St Mary's: unions
Socialist Press1980 1980-06-18Read it in the scan (PDF), scan page 10 →
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Returned to office after five years of Labour betrayals, THETICIN BLINDFOLD Pil suruggle against The strong opposition to the rundown and closure of St Mary's Hospital, Harr Road, London was shown at a public meeting called by the defence committee on Wednesday June 11 at Paddington School.
In the wake of a massive demonstration and lobby of the Arca Health Authority on May 14, about 80 local supporters and trade unionists attended the meeting.
The main platform speaker was Arthur Latham, a Tribunite ex-MP for Paddington, defeated narrowly in the General Election.
His contribution oftered no way forward-apart from emphasising how much harder it is to fight the cuts with a Tory government and a local Tory MP, he said very little that was constructive or even encouraging:
His only practical suggestion was that a local referendum should be held to see what health facilities the people wanted.
He was not aware that precisely such a referendum had been organised by the Community Health Council only a year ago.
Joe Beckles, secretary of the hospital defence committee and TGWU Branch chairman emphasised how the resistance to closure had begun under a Labour administration and would continuc no matter what government was in office.
He outlined the current stage of the fight, saying that recent assurances by management that no rundown would take place until next spring must not be heeded.
The constant attack has brought manning at the hosptial to a dangerous level, he said, and is beginning to have an effect on employment in the whole arca.
From the floor speakers stressed the active support from local trade union branches and the community.
A NUPE steward from Mary's Paddington argued the need to combine with other threatened hospitals and stressed that strike action amongst hospital trade unionists was the only policy to defend the health service:
The meeting showed clearly the strength of the opposition at St. Mary's, Harrow Road. The day to day task of resisting the rundown of the hospital must be combined with mounting a general campaign of action against Tory health cuts.
The main danger to St Mary's lies in its isolation from other anti-cuts struggles in the London area.
Public sector trade unionists and activists must work to combat this isolation with the maximum support from the official leadership and the A lobby of the AHA has been called for 4.30 p.m. on Wednesday June 18 at Bishopsbridge Road, W2. A big turnout is needed to force the authorities once more onto the defensive.
CLOSED