News and Action No 6

The views expressed in this email and blog are those of the individuals whose name is attached to the posting. They do not represent a collective position of the WLG or the Labour Party

Dear Comrades

As usual, we’ve tried to pull together some interesting sources for this email and blog, which you can access at any time using the web here. The discussion piece this week is more of a strong argument for all socialists to prioritise getting as many people as possible to the TUC’s national demonstration in London on 20 October. Don’t forget, if you have any information and you think it is the sort of thing that would fit the ethos of the blog and email, send it to us to circulate and post; if you wish to comment please feel free to do so on the blog; and if you are a WLG member, please submit posts.

WLG AGM and other forthcoming events

The WLG annual conference and AGM will be taking place at the Welsh Institute of Sport, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff on Saturday, 27th October. The theme will be ‘Austerity and Public Services’ and the speakers will include Mark Drakeford AM. There will be a roundtable discussion about the challenges facing Labour councillors, which will include Cllrs. Siobhan Corria (Cardiff), Gareth Phillips (Bridgend), Jessica Powell (Torfaen) and Mark Whitcutt (Newport). At 2.00 p.m., we will be having a joint session with the Socialist Educational Association, addressed by Cllr. Julia Magill, Cardiff Council cabinet member for education. Please send any motions for debate to darren.s.williams@hotmail.co.uk by 12.00 noon on Friday, 19th October and also any nominations (including self-nominations) for election to the steering committee (chair, vice-chair, secretary, assistant secretary, treasurer, & nine ordinary members) or as one of our two auditors. Some of us will be going for a drink and a meal after the meeting – all comrades are welcome to come along.

The final WLG meeting of the year will take place on Saturday, 1st December in County Hall, Swansea and our guest speaker will be Mark Seddon, former Labour NEC member and editor of Tribune.

Other events:

On Thursday 27 September, Wales Progressive Co-operators will be holding a pre-meeting for a proposed Co-operative Care Development Forum between 1.00 and 4.00 pm at Cartrefi Cymru 5 Coopers Yard, Curran Road, Cardiff CF10 5NB. Contact David Smith on 01633  266781 for details.

On Thursday, 4th October, the PCS general secretary, Mark Serwotka, will be speaking at two public meetings. Please note that the first of these two meetings has had to be postponed. The first has been organised by PCS and will take place in the Temple of Peace Edward VII Avenue, Cathays Park, Cardiff between 12.30 pm and 1.30 pm (free entry – all welcome). In the evening, Mark will be giving the S.O. Davies Memorial Lecture, organised by Merthyr Tydfil Trades Council, at 7.00 pm at Canolfan Soar, Pontmorlais, Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8UB (300 yards from bus and rail stations). There will also be refreshments, live music and a photographic display. Tickets are £2 from Margaret Davies, tel: 07989 791179.

On Monday, 8th October there will be a UNA/Amnesty International public meeting: Yolanda Foster (Amnesty South Asia Desk) on ‘Human Rights in Sri Lanka’. 7.00pm, Temple of Peace, Edward VII Avenue, Cathays Park, Cardiff. Free entry – all welcome.

On Thursday, 11^th October, the World Development Movement Cardiff group will be presenting  a free showing of the film, The Yes Men Fix the World, about two political activists/pranksters who lie their way into big business conferences by posing as corporate executives. 7.30pm at The Gate, Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW (meet in the Café Bar from 7.00pm).

On Tuesday,16th October, CND Cymru will be holding an anti-Trident demo on the steps of the Senedd, Cardiff Bay from 12.00 noon with speakers including Mark Drakeford AM.

London Saturday 20th October must be in every member’s diary to get themselves, family, friends, brothers, sisters, comrades up to London for the TUC ‘A Future That Works’ demonstration. Everyone who wishes to see an end to this Tory government should attend and False Economy has details of transport from Wales here. Here is a link to the Coalition of Resistance leaflets with posters supporting the demonstration and the TUC has also produced a number of statements from people about why they are marching.

This resolution supporting the march was passed at the Pontypridd SW branch meeting last week and other branches may wish to take it up:

‘Pontypridd SW Labour Party branch fully supports the aims and objectives of the 20 October London TUC march for ‘A Future That Works’. The march provides an opportunity to oppose the attacks on the working class being pursued by the Tory government and to show our support for alternative policies that would ensure that we do not pay for the bankers’ crisis. The branch will communicate with every member providing them with information about the purpose of the march, together with details of transport and urge them to attend along with all their families and friends.

Further, the branch will place the same motion to the Pontypridd CLP for the meeting on Friday 21 September, committing the constituency to provide the same information and call to all members, together with an instruction to all other PCLP branches to support the call and work to do all they can to ensure that members, friends and families support the march.

As a follow up to the march the branch will keep in contact with the TUC and other bodies that are coordinating an on-going campaign against the policies of this Tory government so as to ensure, as far as possible, that local Labour Party members can support and have every opportunity for joining in these campaigns.’

Left Week – Len Arthur

Owen Jones in his book Chavs traces the background to the demonization of the working class, rooting it in Thatcherism, the defeat of the trade unions and increased inequality. During the last week we have witnessed how deep this view is amongst the rich of the world. Usually, they keep their class hatred and their belief in continued class war under wraps, so they can dismiss it all as the ‘politics of envy’, but clearly they are feeling the heat and letting their guard slip. Tory Chief Whip Andrew Mitchell revealed what he thought of public sector workers in his much publicised outburst, using language that would have attracted an arrest in another situation. In the US, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney let slip that the 47% (actually nearer 46%) who do not pay Federal taxes – but of course pay many other kinds of taxes – were not worthy of his representation. Then of course Michael Gove, secretary of state for education in England announced, in official language, an exam system that is aimed at raising the barrier against working class children leaving school with qualifications. I’m sure the term sorting the ‘wheat from the chaff’ is used in the bar of the Tory clubs. Being challenged by Leighton Andrews, our Welsh Government education minister over the downgrading of this years’ GCSE results, has rattled his cage and class fury!

The Stop the War Coalition has produced an email newsletter, most of which can be accessed on their website, dealing with the appalling level of troop deaths. Three British soldiers were killed last week and the current rate of US troop deaths is running at one a day. It points out the futility of the war in Afghanistan and argues there should be a complete withdrawal of troops by the end of this year. It goes on to support Paul Flynn, who accused the Tory minister of lying in the Commons and was promptly thrown out for a week. Also included are details of demonstrations around the UK and a petition that we can all sign now.

A trade union weekly news update is produced by the union Unite with lots of useful links; worth keeping an eye on.

Left Roundup

Michael Roberts maintains a superb socialist and Marxist commentary on what is happening in the global economy. Here he openly and, to an extent speculatively, looks at whether capitalism is facing a breakdown that it will be very difficult to recover from. And here, he critically evaluates Ed Miliband’s case for a ‘responsible capitalism’. For a more specific perspective on the increasingly dominant power of US corporations and how they contribute to the economic crisis, here is an article by US socialist Jack Rasmus. Incidentally, this last article is from what is essentially a socialist international cooperative social networking site called Z Communications which you may like to join and support.

The Hope not Hate campaign against the fascists and racists in the UK has produced an analysis of what is now happening with the extreme right and here are the details of the Unite Against Fascism website. The extreme right may seem to be in some disarray, but it is important to remember just how deep their arguments can sit within peoples’ consciousness, regularly given succour by the right wing press such as the Daily Mail. Both at a personal and an organised level it is critical for us as socialists to challenge their dangerous, divisive and inhuman politics.

Left Futures provides an analysis of how many people the Atos ‘assessment’ process could be seen to have been killed by the application of their systems. The information provides a good source of evidence to counter the ‘scrounger’ myths and the need to continue to campaign to support disabled people.

Eoin Clarke on his Green Benches blog, has been digging around in the data again and produced evidence of top Tory donors who have interests that will benefit from the outsourcing and privatisation now taking place in the NHS.

Labour Party

The UK Labour Party website is here. You may have read in the press that Ed Miliband suggested that the next Labour Government should adopt the aim to have a decarbonised power supply in the UK by 2030. It was not a speech but an article written for the Green Alliance which I’ve tracked down here. The suggestion has been well received but, like all these targets, how to we get it to stick and is it sufficient, given the current rate of climate change?

UK Labour policy debates are now reaching a critical pre-conference stage.  Left Futures blog has identified some mixed messages with policy documents coming too late for member consideration and comment, yet it may be possible to detect some radical thinking about Trident. Sometimes these arguments about internal Party democracy and policy can seem like navel gazing, but they are vitally important and should be taken very seriously indeed, if we are to be able to campaign for socialist policies at the next general election.

The Welsh Labour website is here. For us in Wales at the moment there is the question of campaigning and voting in the police commission elections. It is very difficult to drum up enthusiasm for a policy that first surfaced as a UKIP one in 2005! However, the power that these people will hold will be extensive and largely beyond the weak democratic control that currently exists. A low turnout could deliver this power to some very right-wing candidates: a frightening prospect. Should we on the left take these elections more seriously?

Finally, taking forward some of the points made in our discussion about WLG principles and priorities that we started in the last email and blog, Owen Jones wrote in the Independent this week, what can best be described as an appeal to Labour councillors during the next budget round to join the active fightback against this Tory government.

All the best

Darren Williams WLG Secretary

Len Arthur WLG Assistant Secretary

The importance of 20 October - Len Arthur

The importance of 20 October

Probably, like many of you, I’ve been on many marches and demonstrations. One of my first, was the last day of the CND Aldermaston march in 1961, which ended with the Committee of 100 sit down in Trafalgar Square. It was my one and only close encounter with Bertrand Russell! More importantly, it set the scene for ever more effective demonstrations during the 1960s. Perhaps the most tragic demonstration, was the day in 1979 at Grunwick’s where the TUC mobilised a solidarity picket which we were winning, then everyone was marched off to a meeting, letting the scabs’ bus through. Similarly tragic, but in a different way, was the indifference with which our own Labour Government met the 1 million that marched against the Iraq war. The action of every single person who was on that march has been subsequently justified by the horror and illegality of the events that have followed.

So will the TUC demonstration ‘march for the future’ on the 20th October be the start of a historic trend, or another tragic lost opportunity? The answer, as ever, lies in our hands, in our ability to mobilise just about everyone we know and more, to get up to London. In the UK, just as in every other country where the state has stepped in to bail out their bankers, the working class is being forced to pay the cost of the crisis. We haven’t yet experienced the barbarism that has been meted out to the workers of Greece, or that is constantly suffered by the poor or undefended workers in developing countries, but that is where the Tories are driving the weakest in our society and where they would like us all to be, in the very near future. Essentially, as argued in earlier blogs, capitalism will survive if the working class can be forced to the pay the cost: we have it in our power to stop them.

With the decision of the TUC to consider the possibility of a general strike and individual unions, together with other organisations, preparing at a rank and file and community level, the political conditions can be seen to be moving into place where it could be possible to unite all parts of the working class, to mobilise to bring this government down. We should have no qualms about arguing this case as we did not elect this Tory government: they lack democratic legitimacy both as the coalition has been imposed upon us and key elements of their manifestos and election pledges have been revealed as lies. In short, it could be argued that we have experienced a neo-liberal coup d’état.  As socialists, our political priority should be to work in solidarity with all who can see the dangers that the Tories represent, toward achieving this end.

Here are some of the reasons that we should aim to have over 1m people on the march:

1.    Everyone who relies, would like to rely, or who has relied on selling their labour to survive – the working class – is being affected by the Tory attacks. Those who depend on the support of the state, particular the weakest, are having their benefits removed, capped or reduced and are being denigrated and hounded by the state and the Tory gutter press. The demonization of the working class, so well documented by Owen Jones is having the intended effect of dividing us, as a recent report from the Joseph Rowntree Trust has indicated. The 20^th October can demonstrate that we stand together and do not accept these cruel attacks, which are not acceptable in a society that seeks to describe itself as civilised.

2.    Unemployment is a horror that not only locks people out from an income, but wastes and undermines their ability to make a meaningful contribution. The much-adjusted official unemployment figures do not provide a real indication of the extent of this unacceptable experience. The TUC has estimated that the real unemployment figure is 6.3m and in addition another 3.3m are underemployed. UK Unemployment for those in the 16 – 24 age group is running at 21.6% according to official figures. What is revealed by these figures, is that 1/3 of the employed population of around 29m is experiencing unemployment or under-employment. No wonder fear stalks the land.

3.    For those in work, the attacks are unremitting. Pay freezes coupled with price rises means that for most, real wages and family incomes have been falling for the past 7 years. Use this frightening indicator from the Guardian to discover just how low and unequal family incomes are in the UK: you will be shocked. Pensions – in effect, saved wages - are being stolen and young people in work face working to nearly 70 to save sufficiently to retire, if even then. The threat of job loss means that fear stalks the workplace and the Tories intend to make it worse, by removing even the protection of health and safety legislation.

4.    The UK is a rich society: so rich that the deficit is not a problem and could be sorted within a year, with all of us benefitting. However the UK does not seem to be a rich society, as that wealth is so unequally distributed, and becoming more so. Stewart Lansley’s work and that of Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett document the current situation and the dangerous adverse consequences. Moreover, business is on general strike, holding back around £750bn in cash that could be invested. Not only can we afford all of our public services, we in fact have the money to bring them up to the best standards: it is just in the wrong hands and used for useless speculative purposes. False Economy has documented all the arguments against the current economic policies, we have covered them in the earlier blogs and there are many plan ‘B’s.

We can orientate the economy to work for people and the planet and not for profit. The answers are possible, we know what they are and we know what we can all do to make them come into being. What is needed is the political confidence and boldness to make the alternative happen. This is why the 20^th October is of critical importance. The Tories have run out of options to save their system, other than attack us; the working class. We have the power to stop them and go on to put make our socialist solutions into a realty. By making sure over a million are on the streets, we demonstrate our power and, moreover, we link in solidarity with the workers in the EU and across the world who are fighting back. Within the Labour Party, we can demonstrate to the right that New Labour is dead, that the active working-class political base exists to argue the case that socialism and democracy, provide an answer.

News and action No 5

The views expressed in this email and blog are those of the individuals whose name is attached to the posting. They do not represent a collective position of the WLG or the Labour Party.

Dear Comrade

This is the fifth of our (just about) weekly email bulletins, which are also posted on our blog; thanks for the comments on the first four. Darren has produced a short discussion paper re-affirming our political principles and setting priorities for the coming months and this is the main part of the discussion section this week. Comments made by members at last Saturday’s meeting are also in the section, together with a piece from Len. Members are asked to contribute to this debate leading up to the AGM.

Don’t forget, if you have any information and you think it is the sort of thing that would fit the ethos of the blog and email, send it to us to circulate and post; if you wish to comment please feel free to do so on the blog; and if you are a WLG member, please submit posts. Just to make the point, the piece on Llansamlet should have referred to Jenny Rathbone MP for Cardiff Central and not Jenny Randerson!

Report of the Welsh Labour Grassroots meeting 8.09.2102

WLG met on Saturday (8 September) in Newport Centre, with comrades present from Cardiff, Swansea and Newport itself. John Griffiths, AM for Newport East and Environment Minister in the Welsh Government, kicked off the meeting with a lively and wide-ranging assessment of recent developments at the Assembly and some of the challenges facing Welsh Labour in the near future. He said that the argument over devolution itself had been settled and the question was now about the kind of policies that Wales’ government could deliver. Welsh Labour was, of course, in a difficult situation because of the cuts imposed by the Westminster coalition, which meant it had to find ways of achieving its aims with depleted resources. Its lack of an overall majority also made it frequently necessary to seek an accommodation with either Plaid or the Lib Dems. The Assembly’s newly-won capacity to pass its own legislation was also a challenge; John had recently been to Edinburgh to learn from the Scottish experience. Labour’s aspirations for Wales combined economic recovery with progress in education – where there had been notable successes but also some setbacks - and in health, where it was seeking to address long-standing inequalities. Overall, the aim was a fairer, more equal Wales and a general improvement in people’s quality of life.

John answered questions on Wales’ capacity in public service management; the question of tax-raising powers; the challenge from Plaid under its new leader; the possibility of coalition; the influence of the Scottish independence question; Carwyn’s faux pas over Trident; the media’s misrepresentation of the Welsh government’s record; and the need for greater collaboration in local government. He took a positive view of the potential for further expansion of the Assembly’s powers, argued that the best way to deal with the Plaid challenge was to strengthen Labour’s commitment to a socialist platform and felt that the media’s neglect of the devolved government’s record might be offset, to a degree, by the readiness of Ed Miliband and Owen Smith to acknowledge the achievements of the Welsh model.

Darren circulated, and commented on, a short discussion paper that sought to reaffirm WLG’s political principles and set out some priorities for the coming months (this follows in the discussion section below, together with some other contributions). The idea was to stimulate some discussion and thereby better inform the decisions that would need to be made at the AGM.

A discussion followed, with some initial responses to the paper. Further comments from comrades, either on the blog, or by responding to this email, are encouraged.

WLG AGM and other forthcoming events

The WLG annual general meeting will be taking place at the Welsh Institute of Sport, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff on Saturday, 27th October.  The theme will be ‘austerity and public services’ and the speakers will include Mark Drakeford AM. In the afternoon, we will be having a joint session with the Socialist Educational Association, addressed by Cllr. Julia Magill, Cardiff Council cabinet member for education.

Other events:

Cardiff, Friday, 21st September (International Peace Day): UNA (Cardiff & Dist) public meeting: Stephen Thomas (Chair, CND Cymru) on ‘Preparing for Peace: Prospects for the Wales Peace Institute’. 7.00pm at the Temple of Peace, King Edward VII Avenue, Cathays Park. Free entry - all welcome.

On Thursday, 4th October, the PCS general secretary, Mark Serwotka, will be giving the S.O. Davies Memorial Lecture, organised by Merthyr Tydfil Trades Council, at 7.00 pm at Canolfan Soar, Pontmorlais, Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8UB (300 yards from bus and rail stations). There will also be refreshments, live music and a photographic display. Tickets are £2 from Margaret Davies, tel: 07989 791179.

Cardiff, Monday, 8th October: UNA/Amnesty International public meeting: Yolanda Foster (Amnesty South Asia Desk) on ‘Human Rights in Sri Lanka’. 7.00pm, Temple of Peace, Edward VII Avenue, Cathays Park. Free entry – all welcome.

London Saturday 20th October must be in every member’s diary to get themselves, family, friends, brothers, sisters, comrades up to London for the TUC ‘A Future That Works’ demonstration. Everyone who wishes to see an end to this Tory government should attend and False Economy has details of transport here. Here also is a link to the Coalition of Resistance leaflets and posters supporting the demonstration.

Left Week – Len Arthur

Ed Miliband gave an important speech at the Stock Exchange a week ago, where he rightly attacked the pathetic weakness of the Tories’ ‘growth’ policies and in addition, made significant references to the failed economic consensus paradigms that have influenced policy since the Second World War. ‘Predistribution’ was the word he developed in the speech, which caught the eye of the press. His argument, basically, is that redistribution of wealth through the tax system is not sufficient, so policy attention has also to give weight to higher real wages which, in turn, are a key element to raise effective demand in the economy.

As in our first discussion piece, this moves some way toward the issues raised by radical Keynesians such as Stewart Lansley. However, Ed Miliband placed this emphasis in the context of a continuing tight public spending budget, so shifting the emphasis away from the role of the state in redistribution. He also referred to ideas of human capital, such as raising skill levels, as methods of achieving real wage growth - not improving the collective bargaining strength of trade unions through, for example, removing the legal restriction on taking industrial action. Yet again, Ed Miliband appears to open one ‘left’ door, only to close another.

TUC Congress is not usually these days noted for history making, but last week’s may have accomplished just that. A key decision was made to explore the practicalities of supporting a general strike in connection with the discussion about the 20 October demonstration. Work will now start exploring this possibility, meaningfully opening the door for socialists to take the argument about how this is a critical part of ending this unelected Tory government, to all trade union members. In a little noted article in the New Statesman – not yet available on the web - the new general secretary of the TUC, Frances O’Grady argues that the current priority of UK trade unions is ‘seeking to boost the scope of collective bargaining’. This may not sound significant; it is, however, as, if it is seriously meant, it marks a real break with the ‘service only’ view of trade unions, amounting to a step toward organising and mobilising industrial action.

Left Roundup

Michael Roberts sustains his devastating critique of the limitations of printing money as an economic policy here. Bradley Manning’s trial continues and the press continue to blank it, which has led to protests in the US. Bradley’s connection to Wales should be a reason for the Welsh Government to support him: can we do more as WLG to press for this? Left Foot Forward has produced a pamphlet arguing that inequality should be a serious issue for the next Labour Government. A close-up view of what austerity means on a Greek island is provided here and Noam Chomsky argues that Israel and the US are the greatest threat to peace in the Middle East here.

Labour Party

Here is the UK Labour Party website with all the recent Party statements and a special one on recruiting new members.

Here are two links with draft left motions for the 2012 national conference - here from LRC and here from Left Futures. If any of you are successful in getting these through your branch or constituency please could you let us know so we can report on progress through this email and the blog.

Here is the Welsh Labour website, which still needs keeping up to date; all constituencies have recently had a circular from Carl Sargeant about the importance of the Police Commissioners elections. We are all urged to Contact Welsh Labour on wales@labour.org.uk or by contacting our local constituency party secretary to find out how we can help.

All the best

Darren Williams WLG Secretary

Len Arthur WLG Assistant Secretary

WLG principles and priorities – Darren Williams

Discussion

WLG principles and priorities – Darren Williams

Darren circulated, and commented on, a short discussion paper that sought to reaffirm WLG’s political principles and set out some priorities for the coming months (this follows in the discussion section below, together with some other contributions). The idea was to stimulate some discussion and thereby better inform the decisions that would need to be made at the AGM.

We are socialists in the Labour party

·        We believe in the possibility of an alternative that is more equal, democratic and sustainable, where the economy is driven by need not profit and people have control over their own lives

·        We’re committed to working within Labour because we believe that it is the only party capable of representing the interests of ordinary people at the level of (British) government

Labour government – at all levels – should be about transformation, not management

·        Winning elections is a means to an end, not an end in itself

·        The worst Labour government is better than the best Tory government – but a Labour government that simply wants its turn to operate the status quo is not worth having

·        Our responsibility is to do more than get Labour candidates elected and to defend those who have been elected – we should be scrutinising their work, holding them to account and actively lobbying for the policies we think they should be carrying out (& for openness/engagement with citizens)

·        As an organised left, we have to challenge those in Labour who subordinate social & political change to electoral expediency, or who deny the need for change altogether

Austerity isn’t working anywhere

·        Cuts are a political choice not an economic necessity

·        Political & economic elites are applying the ‘shock doctrine’ – using the crisis to restructure economy & society in the interests of the rich

·        Official Labour policy is ‘austerity lite’ – not good enough

·        Credible alternative policies – and demolitions of Con-Dem policy – have been set out clearly & repeatedly – e.g. TUC, PCS, Compass, M. Drakeford etc  - we should do more to publicise and argue for these alternatives

·        Anti-cuts movement needs a principled but constructive voice

Our allegiance is to working people, the poor and the oppressed everywhere

·        We stand for international solidarity, not putting Britain (or Wales) first

·        We have to defend those scapegoated by the right – benefit claimants, economic migrants, asylum seekers, etc

·        We should promote (& where possible, organise) practical solidarity with people in Greece & elsewhere

·        We must continue to oppose imperialist military, economic & diplomatic policies – & support climate justice & debt cancellation

Devolution (& our political traditions) means Wales has something worthy defending

·        Welsh Labour’s record is an example to promote at a British level

·        We have to defend it from austerity & from innovations that undermine its accomplishments

We’ll never have socialism without democracy

·        Labour hasn’t broken the anti-democratic habits it acquired in the Blair years

·        We’ve had warm words but – virtually no appreciable change to ‘Partnership in Power’ regime

We still have control-freakery over selections etcUnions can be part of the problem – most of them need democratic reform too.

The following comment for the discussion was too long to go in the 'comments' section so is added here:

A response stimulated by Darren’s draft ‘where we stand’: a number of questions – Len Arthur

Darren has started to produce a list of basic tenets that try to define and describe what for WLG being ‘left of centre’ may mean. In the earlier blogs, and possibly in a more abstract manner, I’ve attempted to sketch out issues and processes that the left in the UK should be engaging with. Perhaps, behind both initiatives, is an understanding that we appear to be living through times where the domination – hegemony – of the neo-liberal paradigm of ever freer markets is beginning to unravel under the evidence of its own contradictions. At the same time, the ruling class is fast running out of options to manage these contradictions, and is increasingly reliant on printing money and attacking the working class in every conceivable way: they face the potentially fatal contradiction of destroying both the economy and society at the same time.

Now, this narrative could be wrong: perhaps the system will muddle through and the crisis and history will continue unperturbed. First question: what do we think about this, as left of centre socialists in the Labour Party? Can we muddle along with piecemeal reforms or do we seriously, and quickly, need to address how we challenging the power of the ruling class?

WLG has been very successful in pulling together members of the Labour Party from a wide range of left traditions. Meetings have allowed speakers to go beyond their usual LP script and discussions have been open and creative, certainly helping members to cope with the general absence of this level of debate in the official LP organisation. Building WLG has been aided by evidence of a coherent trajectory of ‘clear red water’ in the policies of Welsh Government Labour administrations - up until recently, a period that also experienced increased public spending. In a sense these two factors provided a ‘comfort zone’, enabling the wide range of left traditions within the LP to work together with a large measure of civility.

Changing gear, to place emphasis on a wider challenge to the power of capital, will mean linking action with the outcomes of discussions. It will mean that the outcome of discussions might not be as comfortable, as the issue will constantly arise about what are the conclusions? To what extent can they be seen to be socialist and the challenge transgressive? What, and when, will be the action that WLG members will take as a consequence? Those members who hold office in various organisations could find their actions being challenged and, as a consequence, have to think their actions through very carefully with other WLG members.

For all of us as LP members, defensive direct action, and actions that are transgressive, will involve engagement and coordination with people who are not members, and are possibly to the left of the LP. So how do we balance working within the LP with the need work and act with other who are not?

The statements listed by Darren start the process of linking a position with consequent action. I would argue that we need to initiate a process that links issue analysis, position, policy and subsequent review. For example, Darren mentions a list of possible plan ‘B’ economic alternatives. I suggested in the two discussion pieces on the economy, that the evidence of a Marxist understanding of the current economic crisis is increasingly compelling. What role should such an analysis play in developing a plan ‘B’?

Coordinating left motions for conferences can itself be daunting. It is, however, the easy bit when compared the type of decisions faced by councillors, trade union officers and others in a situation of financial cuts, or where it is difficult to mobilise the power of members. Should we try to establish ‘lines in the sand’ that no socialist councillor should cross, such as never supporting compulsory redundancies? Should we specifically help WLG members faced with these difficult situations by arranging specific and open discussions about how we should respond before a decision is taken? How do we cope with Labour group discipline and decisions to break the whip? Would it help if those in WLG who are trade union officers engage in similar discussions? If there is a continuation or unity between action and theory, then increasingly if the tension becomes too much it creates problems for other socialists in defending the outcomes. Should it be an issue for WLG to avoid this if at all possible?

Finally for us in Wales there is the Welsh Government. Could it be doing more to sustain ‘clear red water’ despite the minority and financial position it finds itself in? There is a consultation out on the NHS, does this provide us with an opportunity to respond and develop our thinking in this regard? As in the previous blogs, I would suggest looking for transitional actions and demands.

The questions are difficult and there are no easy answers, but in my way I’m suggesting that the current economic and political situation requires WLG to move out of its current ‘comfort zone’. With quite a number of tweaks, I support the list and the direction in which Darren is proposing we move, but I’m also suggesting that if the current crisis of capitalism requires this shift of gear, then it requires a more substantial one and I’ve suggested some questions that we may need to ask ourselves if we agree to go down that road. Finally, a practical way to take the discussion forward might be to start at the other end, taking issues or areas of activity - such as being councillors or the NHS consultation mentioned above - and exploring how alternative demands and actions can be specifically developed.

News & action No 4

The views expressed in this email and blog are those of the individuals whose name is attached to the posting. They do not represent a collective position of the WLG or the Labour Party.

Dear Comrade

This is the fourth of our (just about) weekly email and blogs and thanks for the comments on the first three. The blog is still in an experimental stage so bear with us if we have some technical problems or we have bored the pants off you. Don’t forget, if you have any information and you think it is the sort of thing that would fit the ethos of the blog and email, send it to us to circulate and post; if you wish to comment please feel free to do so on the blog; and if you are a WLG member, please submit posts.

Next Welsh Labour Grassroots meeting and other forthcoming events

The next WLG meeting will take place on Saturday 8th September at Newport Centre, Kingsway, Newport NP20 1UH, between 11.00 am and 1.00 pm. John Griffiths, AM for Newport East and Welsh Environment minister, will be talking to us about recent developments at the Assembly and the challenges facing Welsh Labour over the coming months. We will also have a discussion about our political priorities, ahead of our AGM. The latter will be taking place at the Welsh Institute of Sport, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff on Saturday, 27th October. Further details will follow soon.

Billy Bragg is bringing Woody Guthrie’s songs back to life at Treorchy’s Park & Dare Theatre on 12th September – 08000147111 to book.

On Friday 14th September, Llandaff Branch Labour Party will be holding a fundraising Barbeque at 6 Heol Harlech, Llandaff, Cardiff CF5 2HX from 7.00pm. Tickets are £5 a head - ring or email Greg Owens on 02920 567676 or g.j.owens@btinternet.com to book your place.  There will be a bar and raffle.

On Thursday, 4th October, the PCS general secretary, Mark Serwotka, will be giving the S.O. Davies Memorial Lecture, organised by Merthyr Tydfil Trades Council, at 7.00 pm at Canolfan Soar, Pontmorlais, Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8UB (300 yards from bus and rail stations). There will also be refreshments, live music and a photographic display. Tickets are £2 from Margaret Davies, tel: 07989 791179.

Left Week – Len Arthur

Two bits of news seem to sum up how far and how quickly Britain has become a twisted and inhuman place under the Tories. First, the spectacle of the English education secretary being pleased that the average GCSE results are worse than last year, and now having to admit that pupils have been treated unfairly but not being prepared to do anything about it. Second, ATOS - the organisation that takes a profit from denying the disabled benefits - being a sponsor of the Paralympics; it was tremendous to see Disabled People Against the Cuts (DPAC) exposing this travesty by demonstrating in Cardiff and London. Red Pepper has an excellent article countering the main myths about welfare peddled by the likes of the Daily Mail.

Then the week ended with the attack on London Metropolitan University, which will be the start of attacks on other universities not suited to the rich, through the twisted avenue of appearing to do something about immigration. Please support the university and sign the petition here.

Left Roundup

Two useful conference videos became available this week. There is a lot to look at but they can be speeded up. It makes a change from acres of text. The first is from the European Left conference in Brussels in May and the second is this year’s Marxism conference. A comrade from Portugal has also referred me to this excellent site based, I think, in Cataluña with a collection of videos and photos documenting the aftermath of the crisis.

Left Unity has been the subject of some discussion since David Hind did a piece for Al Jazeera which led to this reply by Richard Seymour aka ‘Lenin’s Tomb’. Quite a number of socialists in Wales have raised these issues, so perhaps it would form a good basis for our discussion piece next week?

Michael Roberts continues to produce sound left analysis on the economy and recently has critiqued the weakness of qualitative easing (printing money) as the main policy of the US, UK and EU.

Left Eye? - Private Eye can be questionable but remains an excellent source of information if you care to dig past the remnants of public school humour. Their articles are not available on the internet but in the latest edition they include:

-      Contrasting Osborne’s writing off £550m of revenue by scrapping the planned rise in road-fuel duty with the Tories’ rail fare rise of RPI+3%.

-      HSBC funnelled $8.9bn dollars into Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme without proper checks and balances.

-      Evidence from the Care Quality Commission reports that demonstrate that private-equity companies are the worst offenders in running poor care homes.

-      Asil Nadir will now spend some considerable time at HM pleasure following his conviction for theft of millions from investors. Recently, the Tory Party promised that, if he was convicted, they would pay back the £440,000 he gave them between 1985 and 1990. Of course, they are now refusing to do so.

Finally, further evidence that we should be very careful of the BBC’s reporting on Israel, which is trying to ignore the existence of Palestinians, as can be seen from the way this interview with Ken Loach was edited. I remember Edward Said making the same point when he spoke in Cardiff some 15 years ago – the most effective way of challenging resistance is to deny it exists.

Labour Party

Here is the UK Labour Party website with all the recent Party statements and a special one on recruiting new members.

Here are two links with draft left motions for the 2012 national conference - here from LRC and here from Left Futures. If any of you are successful in getting these through your branch or constituency please could you let us know so we can report on progress through this email and the blog.

Here is the Welsh Labour website, which still needs keeping up to date; all constituencies have recently had a circular from Carl Sargeant about the importance of the Police Commissioners elections. We are all urged to Contact Welsh Labour on wales@labour.org.uk or by contacting our local constituency party secretary to find out how we can help.

 Fightback

20 October must be in every member’s diary to get themselves, family, friends, brothers, sisters, comrades up to London for the TUC ‘A Future That Works’ demonstration. Everyone who wishes to see an end to this Tory government should attend and False Economy have details of transport here. Here also is a link to the Coalition of Resistance leaflets and posters supporting the demonstration.

All the best

Darren Williams WLG Secretary

Len Arthur WLG Assistant Secretary