Callaghan Survives Mass Protest

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It comes to something when the leader of the Labour Party is warmly congratulated for surviving a ten minute speech to a Party rally.

But such was the climate amongst the 40,000 demonstrators who marched through London against the Tory cuts last Wednesday that even wellrehearsed left' speeches from Eric Heffer, Stan Orme and Frank Allaun failed to placate the crowd that filled Central Hall.

Heffer and Allaun did what they could to appease miltants by larding their speeches with vague calls to "bring this government down" , and bring back "a Labour government that will implement the policies of our Party conference?

But since they refused to offer any means whereby either Thatcher could be toppled or the right wing Labour leadership defeated, such bluster carried little conviction, and they were subjected to merciless heckling.

Increasingly rattled, both Allaun and Heffer cited the 100,000-strong 1971 demonstration against the Tory Industrial Relations Bill as proof that mass demonstrations by the working class could "move mountains"

They carefully avoided the fact that despite the demonstration the Bill became law-only to be eventually repealed after the downfall of the Heath government by a Labour leader- ment by a Labour leaderLe Hopes of a quiet November 28 in Leicester were rudely dispersed when over 1,000 trade unionists and youth turned up to lobby the County Council over proposed new cuts in spending.

Hundreds of striking students and school students joined teachers, nursery nurses, hospital and welfare workers in a show of determination which made a mockery of the local union bureaucracy's plans for a "dignified delegate lobby"

Instead, they subjected the speakers assembled by the joint Nor so ready vague i task at remove Stan Group's chief in ably to 11. - Limship threatened with a national engineering strike.

Such lessons are plainly lost on Labour's lefts, who continue to urge workers to place their faith in protest marches and lobbying MPs"particularly Tory MPs"-rather than the all-out industrial action which alone can defeat the cuts and bring down the Tories.

But they have not been forgotten by many militant workers, who throughout the length of the march had readily responded to shouts of "Tories Out"

Time-worn

are workers any longer ' as in the past to accept alls for unity' with s right wing when the hand is fighting to a Tory government.

Orme, the Tribune former junior torture Ireland, failed lamentsilence hecklers with ine time-worn responses Wal ... +han+ "you are just helping the Tories" and "go and shout at Thatcher, not at us"

And he brought uproar when he attempted to argue that Callaghan should be given a hearing.

'Left' chairman Alex Kitson alsa pleaded for attention while "the leader of the Opposition gives his address" • A heckler shouted back "Which address? His London address or his Sussex farm?"

Callaghan's entry had been Callaghan's public sector action committee to continued barracking, and shouted down right wing Labour MP Greville Janner when he tried to justify Labour cuts.

The ' continued call was "when' are you going to do something?"

In fact, the only sign of a fight coming from the platform 'was the young NUSS speaker who, having pressured NUT officials into allowing him onto the platform, urged direct action and asked what use an MP was who said he supported you but wouldn't do anything.

Hardly surprisingly the speech got the biggest round of applause. greeted by a wave of booing which drowned a handful of cheers.

And he was finally able to grabble through his speech-at breakneck speed-only in the stunned aftermath of a punchup in which a group of anarchist hecklers had been forcibly ejected from the hall, and with Labour Party stewards looming over would-be interruptors.

Callaghan obstinately ignored one heckler demanding that he declare where he stood on the victimisation by BL management of Derek Robinson for whom earlier speakers had declared full support.

And while vaguely declaring that "we shall fight the cuts as hard as we can", Callaghan offered not even a verbal nod ve The impressive turn-out of school youth had not taken place without a fight.

In two schools youth defied threats of expulsion to take part in the NUSS-organised strike, and in one as teachers manned the gates in a bid to stem the walk-out». dozens of school students climbed over the wall to join the demonstration!

In Beaumont Leys school two leading NUSS members were ordered, under threat of expulsion, to cali on school students not to take part in the action. in the direction of action bring down the Tories.

But while certain 'lefts'-in particular Dennis Skinner and Tony Benn-are adept at trotting out speecehs to match the mood of such mass protests, they have shown no more inclination than their fellow Tribunites to mount a campaign in the labour movement for the ousting of the Callaghan/Healey A few platitudes about pledging the next Labour government to "implement Party conference decisions" mean nothing unless the present right wing leading clique is removed and a genuine socialist internationalist programme is fought for by those claiming to speak for the working class. AMANDA A visit from the ruling class They stood firm. But on Thursday and Friday the headmaster hit back, and held 80 youth in the main hall, suspended from all lessons.

The willingness of Leicester youth and of trade unionists to fight must now be taken back into the union branches and directed against the local bureaucrats who have so far successfully confined opposition to the cuts to no more than protests and publicity.

An important step in this would be the building of the conference at Leicester Poly on December 16 on how to fight the cuts as the focus for developing a programme for action.