Why EEC fat cats are begging you to vote on June 7

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tcher and Schmidt-wondering how to get out the vote on June 7? pend It is not just at the level of this massive indifference. s to benevolence has been shown to indifference to the Cinmmon FIGHTING FOR NURSERIES The Common Market has been in existence for over 20 years. Britain has been a member for over four years.

During all this time the EEC has been run by a group of highly paid (on tax free salaries) appointed bureaucrats in Brussels.

All major political decisions have meanwhile been taken by the Council of Minsters which represents the individual capitalist governments making up the EEC.

The European Parliament has always been enviseaged as a completely irrelevant side show to divert attention from the absolute policy-making power of these two powerful bodies.

Its main purpose is to allow politicians from the local parliaments let off steam in Europe and posture as "reformers' of EEC institutions.

Not influenced It also enables the Commission of bureaucrats in Brussels to have direct contact with local MPs so that they could be easily influenced in the hot house of Brussels far away from any "normal" pressures from Constituents.

All this remains unchanged with the advent of direct The powers of the European Parliament are strictly limited.

They can reject the EEC budget-but they cannot amend it or add to it.

They can also remove the entire Commission-but not any individual.

. They can ask questions about the running of the EEC-but cannot start any legislation!

Insight

These powers will remain the same with the direct elections.

An insight into the reality of the 'work" of the European Parliament was offered recently in a Labour Weekly supplement SERTUC CONFERENCE "Care of the Under Fives" man, London Labour Nursery Education Chair: Tess Gill, NCCL financed by EEC funds.

Describing a jet-set Luxemburg by would-be Euro-careerists, the waxed lyrical about "taxing" such tax-free can be:

"One day you will spend hours at an official lunch !!], but the next you may be unable to find time even to grab a sandwich.

"And meetings lasting late into the evening may be followed by protracted discussions in the hotel bar until the dawn breaks.

"Such informal contacts, however, often prove to be the most fruitful part of any meeting and it was these, no doubt, that the candidates in Luxemburg found most useful (!]:.

The question we have to ask is why the individual capitalist governments and the CommisOXFORD TRADES CONFERENCE TUC Under-fi Saturday July 8 OCCR Hall Princes Street peakers from Oxfor ity Nursery Campaig and the NUT among others trip to article how jaunts sion are millions promoting such body.

are willing to spend 1S of pounds on iting direct elections to a weak and ineffectual million Practically the whole of the budget of the Information Department of the Common Market is being spent on promotion of the election, along with allocations from other EEC sources. The total cost will exceed £200 million.

The EEC is giving money to every political party that stands. This will include the Communist Party and the Labour Party.

Money has also even been given to the Official Sinn' Fein.

These organisations share these grubby handouts with organisations such as the fascist MSI in Italy.

LEICESTER TRAI CONFERENCE Saturday June 2.00 p.m.

Highfields Community "Women's Right to Work and the need for City Nursery Campaign More details from 74, Higheross Street on the Common Market that this the Labour Party.

In Britain itself every call by Labour politicians to vote in the elections on June 7 has been given a maximum fanfare of publicity in the television and newspapers.

The big problem-admitted by the media-is the immense apathy shown towards the elections, not just in Britain but in every Common Market country.

In readina the varinnic accounts there seems to be a competition going on among the working class of Europe to achieve the lowest turnout in these elections.

Every British politician b oth Labour and Tory are work ing themselves into a frenzy o Over It is, of course, not •a.. ….Iuv DUCTS Market, but hostility to participation in it or support for it.

If the poll was about /eaving the EEC the interest would shoot up and the politicians of every stripe would face an uphill battle to prevent a vote to pull out.

But why are the capitalists so keen on getting everyone to vote?

The reason lies in the place of Europe in the present developing world economic It is going to be necessary to make even harsher the attack on the working class of aach of the European countries.

The employers hope Parliament will provide a body that will aid them in carrying out these attacks.

It will certainly be a "representative" body that will not be influenced by any reaction from the working class.

Once elected MPs are there for five years. They cannot be removed.

They are cocooned from the working class by the vastness of their constituencies and their €25,000 a year salary plus expenses.

And, above all, there is a built-in Tory majority in Britain and in the Common Market because of the rigging of the Euro Constituency boundaries.

"Representative"

The more votes cast in this election, the more the Tories, and the Labour collaborators, will be able to claim the European parliament "represents" everyone.

It does not matter who you vote for in this election-the Tories will win it and the EEC will remain unchanged as an anti-working class alliance of European capitalists.

Only last week, explaining away a runaway increase in the EEC's scandalous 'butter mountain" and defending the ludicrous Common Agricultural Policy, a top EEC Commissioner arrogantly pointed out that no matter how much candidates may talk of "reform", this wastefui policy is a fixture within the EEC that cannot be removed.

Charade

Nor can any other basic EEC institution. The "Parliament" is a charade designed to con the European working class.

This is why we have consistently argued for a boycott of the June 7 elections throughout Europe, and a struggle in each country for the overthrow of capitalism and withdrawal from this capitalist bloc.

Only such a struggle, as opposed to any illusory hopes of internal "reforms" of the EEC-can lay a foundation foi the internationalism of a Socialist United States of Europe.

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Saturday 30 June 1979 Congress House, Great Russell St, London WCI Credentials (50p) from Jim Watson, 106 Mount View Road, London N4 Speakers: Arthur Latham, Chair-

Reg Race, NUPE Margaret Cohen, National Campaign for

Day Care" Speaker from Oxford