Council 'no' to more cuTs

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Scargill A recent meeting in Mexborough, South Yorkshire, saw 1,000 people in defiant mood against the closure of Manvers coking plant.

The meeting was attended not only by the workers from the coking plant itself but also. local miners and workers from plants which are supplied with coke from Manvers.

The platform consisted of three local MPs as well as three NUM officials who pledged support for the GMWU workers at the coking plant.

Arthur Scargill, speaking from the platform, made no call for the necessary policy of immediate occupation to halt the closure. Nor did he pledge to fight for supporting strike action from the NUM.

Instead he suggested a petition and campaign of protest. If this fails, he said, then the workers should workin' UCS-style.

But what does UCs-style mean? At UCS it meant working for the old employer-completing ships-for nothing!

Scargill readily speaks of "mobilising the movement at large": but does he mean strike action or merely getting workers to / pay the wages of their GMWU brothers and sisters?

Protests and petitions will only be any good if linked to a fight for a commitment to decisive industrial action when they inevitably fail to sway the Tories.

The MPs who pledged their support avoided any mention of what they would doe to help.

They must be pressured to campaign in the Labour Party for mass action to bring down the Tory government and to kick out the right wing leaders of the Labour Party.

But the worst thing by the platform was their insistence on à campaign for import controls.

This bankrupt policy really is to support British capitalist industry from "foreign" competition.

So instead of calling for the overthrow of the government they call for the government to implement import controls as a substitute for a nationalised planned socialist economy.

UNION DUES Hyndburn District Council (Lancs) confirmed at last Tuesday's full council meeting that they will refuse to implement any further cuts in expenditure during the current financial year.

The reasons given were:

*The request is unjust as in the past the Hyndburn District Council has faithfully complied with government requests for cuts.

*Compliance would disrupt the borough's financial planning and threaten jobs and services.

*Attempts to deal with a deficit on transport expenditure would be seriously hindered.

*The refusal is in the best interests of ratepayers and employees.

These hardly represent the fight for a principled socialist alternative, but nevertheless, they do represent a historic stand on the part of the Hyndburn District Council and a move away from the conservative ideology of the "common interests" of capitalists and workers.

Labour i spokesman Mike Hindley underlined the mandate they had received from the electorate to oppost 'cuts' when he referred to the massive swing to Labour in Hyndburn in May (it was the largest in N.E. Lancs).

He also reiterated the council's • determination protect jobs and services, and although there was no specific reference to a policy of "no rate or rent increases" , this must surely follow from the commitment to work in 'the best interest of our ratepayers"

The counci must also immediately be called upon to set about restoring jobs and fight The latest news from the Lancashire School Meals Campaign is that support has been given by a local One-parent Family Association and the Campaign is supporting a recentlyformed Unemployment Action Committee based in Gt. Harwood, Lancs.

A protest lobby is being arranged for 14 October at County Hall, Preston, to coincide. with a Lancashire County Council Education Committee meeting to discuss a further £1 million cutback in education expenditure this year!

Support is needed for the protest, and further information can be gained by telephoning Accrington (0254) 395753.

Fskall AT THE services which were under the previous tion.

The Labour Group has decided to support and send a delegate to the National Anti-cuts Conference to be held at Camden Town Hall on November 1.

The meeting should link the various councils' opposition to the 'cuts' to the fight to bring down the Tories and to workers' struggles in both the public and private sector to save jobs and protect declining living standards.

It is not sufficient for Labour controlled councils to oppose government cuts in isolation from other struggles.

They must link with other councils and join with workers preparing for a General Strike to bring down Thatcher's reactionary government this winter.

100 Ealing Day. Care workers who had been operating a series of officially approved sanctions since July 28 in pursuance of their claim for improved grades and service conditions are now on strike.

This action follows the failure of 18 months of talks between the Branch and the Council to achieve a local settlement.

A feature of the dispute has been persistant management attacks on individual members and their union reps, in the form of harassment and disciplinary hearings.

The final staw has been that management has threatened 3 workers with disciplinary action for withdrawing their labour for a day in support of a colleague who had also been disciplined, (for refusing to transfer and cover for sickness and leave in line with union instructions).

When management failed to respond to the deadline to withdraw this disciplinary action the Day Care members came out on unofficial strike on 18 September.

NALGO's Emergency Committee meeting on the same day gave official approval to the stoppage.

The branch is already committed to a voluntary levy but they urgently need extra financial support for their members. Donations should be made payable to "Ealing Branch NALGO", and sent ot the NALGO Office, 2nd Floor, Town Hall, Ealing, London W5.

DOES MOSS EVANS THINK HE IS? POOR OLD VK AND SID OUT ON THEIR EARS AFTER YEARS IF LOYAL SERVICE!.

1 RAC BUT AT LAST HE SEEMS TO HAVE TAKEN A FIRM LINE AND CALLED THE POLICE! BUT HOLD ON A MINUTE -MAYBE THAT'S THE WAY..

CENTRE "Work? —For what you're paying us? 'METRO!

TOUCHED BY THAN HALL You must be joking mate!"

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