the isisssuuee 1 73:: Mmaayr 2c0h1 27 018 clarion £1 (unwaged 50p) A socialist magazine by Labour and activists International Women’s Day STRIKE !

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By Kelly Rogers, sacked Picturehouse union rep What we now know that International Women’s Day grew out of a wave of protest and action by working-class women in the early 20th century. Industri - This International Women’s Day, Thursday 8 March, workers at four Pic - alisation had thrown millions of women into factories, domestic service and turehouse cinemas in London will strike for the Living Wage, company ma - other work. Many occupations were gender segregated, and “women’s work” – ternity and paternity pay, sick pay, and union recognition. such as textiles – was often in the most appalling sweatshops, with low pay, ter - In the context of the abusive histories of Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, rible safety standards, and long hours. But women workers were together, rather Gary Oldman and others, the world is – rightly – talking about the problems than isolated in the home, and better able to fight back. of powerful, entitled men, sexism and sexual abuse that are rampant in the film On March 8 1907, women demonstrated in New York, demanding votes for industry. But it doesn’t end at the big names. Thousands of women workers at women and an end to child labour and sweatshops. On March 8 1908, 15,000 the lower-paid end of the industry, cinema workers included, not only experi - women, mostly garment workers, marched through the city demanding shorter ence widespread harassment from customers and managers, but also an eco - hours, better pay, union rights and the vote. In 1909, women shirtwaist makers nomic exploitation that is very much gendered. Low pay, precarious contracts in the USA staged a 13-week strike. The Socialist Party of America declared and poor conditions are all things predominantly experienced by women work - 28 February the first National Woman’s ers, especially migrant women. Day. In 1910, women chainmakers in More on page 3 Inside: corbynism and feminism • socialist feminist reading • reports: npf, ownership event, clpd • minnie lansbury • haringey next steps • momentum backs the purge? labour, rmt, neu • czech spies • all social democrats now? • ucu strike • brexit debates ISSUE 13 Contents page 3 Clarion issue 13 comes out just before International Women’s Day. What is the Women’s Strike? Claire English Hence the heavy focus on a central aspect of socialist politics which page 4 has already featured heavily in many of our issues – the fight for What kind of Labour feminism? Rosie Woods and women’s rights and women’s liberation. This fight has not been Janine Booth, Jill Mountford nearly as central to the “Corbyn movement” as it should be. We page 5 consider how to change that. Polish women’s fight for choice Ana Oppenheim As you will see our coverage of International Women’s Day is in - tertwined with our coverage of strikes and trade union struggles. Defending our children’s centres Liz Yeates The Picturehouse and UCU disputes are both, in very different sec - Their reading list and ours Rida Vaquas tors and on a different scale, vital for the labour movement to win page 6 and a test for mobilising the Labour left as it takes control of the Models of Ownership conference Alena Ivanova party. We also look at the relationship of two important but cur - Elinor Ostrom’s anti-capitalism Daniel W. Round rently unaffiliated unions, the RMT and NEU, with Labour. Page 7 Issue 13 also features more on the debate about Labour councils; Organising in the belly of the beast Steve Price and, last but not least, a number of articles about the nature of the blows up George McManus socialist project and what is and is not. pages 8-9 Minnie Lansbury and us Janine Booth WHERE WE STAND page 10 Haringey takes back control Liam McNulty The Labour Party and the country are standing at a crossroads. page 11 ’s election as in 2015 and re-election Momentum’s online farce Ed Whitby in 2016 opened up a space for socialist politics to re-emerge into the British mainstream. The 2017 General Election result confirmed that Revolutionary socialists in Labour Amber Traven there are millions of people in Britain who at least want to see an end page 12 to austerity, neo-liberalism and the worst miseries inflicted by the Labour and unaffiliated unions NEU and RMT activists broken capitalist system. The socialist left of the labour movement page 13 has a historic opportunity – we must seize it now. Chuka Umunna and Paul Mason Sacha Ismail That means an open discussion on politics and principles; assisting Lies, damn lies and Czech spies Michael Elms the grassroots of the labour movement to develop our own policies for a Labour government to transform society; building on and crit - page 14-15 ically engaging with policies proposed by the leader’s office, the Youth: Support UCU; London Young Labour; unions, constituency parties and other parts of the movement. YL group reports; Corbyn and McStrike It means democratising the Labour Party, preventing further coup page 16 attempts against the leadership, and preventing further unjust purges, Free movement is still critical Michael Chessum suspensions, and expulsions. It means facilitating debate on Momen - tum’s purpose, problems and future. The Clarion is a space for and a contribution to those debates. In This issue of The Clarion was printed on 24 March 2018 addition to news and reports from the labour movement, our cover - Design by Gemma Short and Simon Hannah. Printed by Mixam Email: [email protected] age will focus on: Facebook: www.facebook.com/theclarionmag • Debate and discussion on class and class struggle today, and how Twitter: www.twitter.com/clarion_mag we go beyond ‘new politics’ and ‘progressive politics’ to revive work - Website: theclarionmag.org ing-class politics. 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Continued from the front page

Cradley Heath, in the West Midlands, struck for ten weeks to force em - ployers to pay a minimum wage. Their strike even used the new medium of cinema to bring their fight to a wider audience. In 1910 German socialist Clara Zetkin proposed to an International Congress of Socialist Women, attended by over 100 women from 17 countries, that “the socialist women of all countries will hold each year a women’s day”. The first International Working Women’s Day was held on 19 March 1911, with more than one million attending rallies in Aus - tria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. International Women ′s Day has continued to be a focus point for working-class women ′s struggles. It was Russian women striking for “bread and peace” on International Working Women’s Day six years later that triggered the 1917 , forcing the Tsar to abdicate. The women chainmakers on strike for a minimum wage in 1910 5,000 women demonstrated in London on IWD 1971, demanding childcare, equal opportunities and easier access to safe abortion. In 2014 should be discussing the wider political issues too. Picturehouse’s parent cleaners from the IWGB union organised an International Women’s company Cineworld made over £90 million in profit last year: why are Day protest and event against outsourcer Mitie and its female CEO. they not taxed more? Why is the Minimum Wage so low? Why are The feminist aspects of the Picturehouse strike go beyond just the de - companies not legally obliged to pay proper maternity and paternity pay? mand for maternity pay. Jobs seen as “women’s work”, such as cleaning, Why is it that women do two-thirds of the world’s work, but only nursing and caring, the service industry, secretarial work, have historically earn 10% of the world’s income, and own only 1% of the world’s prop - been underpaid as well as precarious, for both women and men n them. erty? Supposedly “flexible” zero-hours contract jobs are more likely to be oc - The labour movement has not always been good at organising and cupied by women working around caring and other responsibilities. fighting for the rights of precarious workers, or women workers, and the The service industry has a problem with sexual harassment. In Unite’s feminist movement has often neglected working-class women ′s strug - “Not on the Menu” survey of hospitality workers, 89% of respondents gles. Our International Women’s Day strike aims to bring these two said they had experienced one or more incidents of sexual harassment wings of our movement together. in their working life. 56.3% said they had been targeted by a member of We should revive the original spirit of International Women ′s Day: the public. 22.7% said they had been harassed by a manager. to mobilise support for working-class women's demands, and cele - Strikes are about, but not just about, defending our rights at work in brate the contribution that women make to the struggle for human an immediate way. Workers withdrawing our labour is a political act, it liberation. We need more like this. Other unions and disputes should is a rejection of the idea that our bosses should control our lives. We discuss striking on 8 March in future years. The Women’s Strike: collectivising our fight

Claire English, London Women’s Strike As - some work of being expected to listen to our sembly and Walthamstow CLP, explains the bosses patiently about their marital problems call for a Women’s Strike on 8 March 2018. and never expect the same in return. Women’s labour is exploited in multiple ways and a women’s strike is about building the counter- We’re looking forward to a wave of strikes power to fight around the multitude of issues this spring. facing women, non-binary and femme people. 92% of staff at some FE colleges voted for The Women’s Strike is about more than just strike action after being offered a paltry 1% the withdrawal of our paid labour – it is also payrise. The USS pension strikes called by about recognising that women take on a dis - UCU members at universities will aim to shut proportionate amount of unpaid work in the down over 60 university campuses across the form of cooking, cleaning, caring and other country in February and March to stop the tasks that are essential to the day to day func - slashing of pensions. Workers at Picturehouse tioning of capitalist society. have got their union BECTU to announce We also face a particular kind of violence multiple days of strike action in the coming and oppression that needs to be fought and or - months, including on International Women’s ganised against through an intersectional Day. Things are heating up as the winter fades The Women’s Strike Assembly calls our praxis. behind us. friends and comrades to welcome the oppor - If you think everyone, regardless of their Struggling to win in the current climate of tunity to bring gender to the centre of our pol - gender or identity should be able to collec - cuts and austerity is not easy and requires us to itics on 8 March – and experiment with what tivise their fight, striking at the heart of what build new forms of solidarity and working- would happen women withheld their labour keeps the system running – the heterosexual class struggle. The traditional strategies of the not just in the workplace, but in the home and nuclear family – join the Women’s Strike on industrial strike whilst productive, need to be on the streets. 8 March, in Birmingham, Cardiff, Edin - expanded upon, encompassing those outside of Presenting as women brings all kinds of ad - burgh, London, or organise in your own city. traditional forms of employment and under - ditional labour. Everything from the fact that we are expected to be pretty (trans women are employment. To be able to win we need to • Find out more at www.womenstrikeuk.org reimagine what a strike can be. often expected to be even prettier!) to the tire - the clarion : MARCH 2018 Page 3 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY The Corbyn movement and women’s liberation

By Rosie Woods (Harrow West) and Janine Booth (Hackney South)

When times are hard it is usually women who are hit hardest. Auster - ity has packed quite a punch for women in the UK. Research conducted last year by the House of Commons Library found that the cuts have cost women a total of £79bn since 2010, against £13bn for men. By 2020, men will have borne just 14% of the total bur - den of welfare cuts, compared with 86% for women. We continue to dominate part-time, insecure and low-paid work, manage the bulk of childcare and housework and our reproductive rights remain inadequate. In the face of this reality, what is the most effective form for women’s politics in our movement to take? What are our demands and how can we fight for them? We have precious little in the way of a women’s movement; specifically a working-class women’s movement. Middle-class women have tended to dominate modern feminist politics; much of the focus has been ver - sions of breaking the “glass ceiling”. There is plenty of noise about all- Jayaben Desai and other women involved in the Grunwick Strike women shortlists for council and parliamentary seats. While the desire to have more women in Parliament is valid, we know the majority of workers – the kind of solidarity that sees stronger and more organised those women will be middle-class (and white). workers striking in solidarity with the women who dominate caring pro - Even if we get a hundred more female Labour MPs, it’s no substitute fessions like nursing and social care – and manifesto commitments from for a vibrant movement of working-class women formulating and raising Labour to reverse the trade union legislation that makes this illegal. our own demands. Ultimately we need a movement that enables working-class women When working-class women find their voices the results are powerful. to set our own agenda and pick our own battles. To see these battles lead Jayaben Desai was one such woman whose passion and courage helped to victory, we need revitalised women’s sections in our party and our change the way the trade union movement viewed not only women but unions; but these women’s sections must have teeth! We need funding black and in particular Asian women. Her words to her manager on the and democratic structures that mean the ideas women generate ourselves day the Grunwick strike started echo today: “What you are running here are the ones that Labour fights for. is not a factory, it is a zoo. In a zoo, there are many types of animals. We need a discussion about how we can make this happen. Some are monkeys who dance on your fingertips, others are lions who can bite your head off. We are those lions, Mr Manager.” There isn’t a much better example of the confidence and aspiration a Which side are Labour women on? strong women’s movement can create in the women who are part of it than Women Against Pit Closures, started by the wives, mothers and By Jill Mountford, Lewisham daughters of striking miners in 1984. Bridget Bell, secretary of WAPC, Momentum chair put it like this: “We all speak with one voice when we say that the strike absolutely Greenham Common women sang changed our lives in understanding the power of collective action as “Which side are you on?”, inspired by women. We were unique in the 20th century as an organisation of work - a song written by Florence Reese after ing-class women coming together as women. Collective strength was her husband was arrested during the the result. After that, the women who were involved were never isolated 1931 Harlan County miners’ strike. at home again.” Both songs urge the listener to decide It is this history we can look to when we think about how women in if they’re on the side of the oppressed or Labour can win. It is a militant history of courage and solidarity. the oppressors; the creators of wealth or Effective action can win funding for our domestic violence services, its thieves. Women Against Pit Closures decimated by austerity and leaving women with nowhere to go to escape sang them during the picket lines and Florence Reese violence. demonstrations of 1984-5. A strong women’s movement will give strength to each individual to These are shared songs about shared experiences of solidarity. They call out sexual harassment because she knows that there will be thou - reflect spaces and movements where working-class women (and men) sands of women who have her back and sanctions against perpetrators. have learned how to organise, how to educate themselves and others The Labour manifesto promised some added protections for women: around them, and how to agitate to draw others into struggle. There action against maternity discrimination, protecting funding for domestic are many other examples, like the East London Federation of Suffra - abuse services and, vitally, positive trade union rights through which gettes or the Glasgow rent strikers of World War One. women can organise to win rights at work. But it did not go far enough. Contrast this class training to the “gold standard Aspiring Leaders We don’t just need protection of a woman’s right to access free safe and Candidates Resident Training... designed for women who are abortion; we need an extension of those rights to make terminations preparing for leadership” offered by the Labour Women’s Network. available on demand with no time limits. This is an attempt to create not more fighters like Laura Pidcock, let We need to fight the scourge of low pay – yes we want a living wage, alone anyone more radical, but more women MPs like those led by but we want more than that! We want pay that keeps pace with inflation, who refused to vote against the anti-working class, we want guarantees that if we stay home with children our pensions and anti-women Welfare Reform Bill in 2015. pay don’t suffer. They have sided time and time again with the enemies of our We need solidarity from across the labour movement with women class. Which side are you on?

The clarion : march 2018 Page 4 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY Fighting for abortion rights in Poland

By Ana Oppenheim, Hornsey and Wood Green CLP Until recently, feminism in Poland has suffered from an image of being a movement of the privileged, more concerned with abstract sym - “Abortion is ok,” declares a recent cover of a popular Polish women's bolic questions than the everyday worries of most women. Over the last magazine. two years, the struggle for reproductive rights saw perhaps the biggest Statements like this are met with huge controversy in a country where ever mobilisation of Polish women as women, organising across class termination is largely a taboo, described as murder by one side, and by and political divides. To the legalistic battle, socialists and social democ - the other as an inevitably traumatic experience which should only be al - rats added demands around access to sex education, pre- and post-natal lowed in extremely difficult personal circumstances. Abortion as a healthcare, childcare, housing and the resources necessary to raise a child. woman's choice is still far outside of the mainstream. Slogans aiming to destigmatise abortion have reached magazine covers, Until 1993, abortion in Poland was in practice available on demand. and a billboard campaign called “You’re Not Alone” was launched in six Under pressure from the Catholic Church, a new law came into place, Polish cities, raising awareness of the fact that one in three women will banning abortion with three exceptions: a serious threat to the mother's have an abortion in their lifetime. health, foetal deformation or when the pregnancy is a result of rape or It will take much more than this to change both the law and atti - incest. Even in these cases, doctors can refuse to perform terminations tudes in a deeply conservative country like Poland but the growing citing their conscience, leaving big areas of the country without access women's movement finally makes it seem possible. to legal abortion – unsurprisingly, the abortion underground is large and thriving. A reading list for women who want This “abortion compromise” was never uncontroversial and has regu - larly come under attack, primarily from religious conservatives. In Oc - to change the world tober 2016, a massive wave of protests stopped the far-right government from outlawing abortion completely. Another similar proposal was re - By Rida Vaquas, Oxford East CLP jected in January this year. However, feminists have not only defended existing rights but also I recently came across the reading list for the much-acclaimed Jo gone on the offensive. A citizens’ petition to legalise abortion has twice Cox Women In Leadership Programme. Read it at bit.ly/2Fr0ERF reached the required 100,000 signatures to be discussed in Parliament. Some inclusions I very much welcome, such as biographies of Ellen It was voted down both times, and among those opposing or abstaining Wilkinson and Jennie Lee: but the list had an overwhelming focus were members of the so-called liberal opposition. Parties of the left, on women at the top of capitalist society. It focused on the politics of which unreservedly backed the proposal, currently have no parliamentary women like Hilary Clinton, whose campaign received millions of dol - representation. lars in corporate funding, serving a very different purpose to politics for women taking leadership in the labour movement . Women in lead - Save our children’s centres! ership can’t mean women leading class society and pushing forward the exploitation of their sisters. Instead, labour movment women can and must take the lead in presenting an alternative to class society. By Liz Yeates, Charnwood CLP Here are some suggestions to point the way. This list is by no means comprehensive! Tory majority Leicestershire County Council would like to change the way they provide “Early Help”. They propose to close 24 Chil - Women in politics: dren's Centres and one family centre and merge their services with all : A Life by Rachel Holmes other family and young people’s services. These would be Supporting The Letters of Rosa Luxemburg by Rosa Luxemburg Leicestershire Families scheme, Early Help Information Support and Women of the Right Spirit: Paid Organisers of the Women's Social and Assessment and the Youth Offending service. Political Union (WSPU), 1904-18 by Krista Cowman In addition to the council's own services many other agencies operate Dreamers of a New Day by Sheila Rowbotham almost exclusively out of Children' Centres, health visitors for example. Nawal El Saadawi Reader by Nawal El Saadawi The centres are also well used by the council's own “Go Learn” service Pankhurst: Suffragette, Socialist and Scourge of Empire by providing valuable education programs for parents in need. This will Katherine Connelly shift a sizable financial burden on to the NHS, while other services will Inessa Armand: Revolutionary and Feminist by Ralph Elwood often not be able to afford the rent on alternative accommodation and Lesbian Avengers Organising Handbook most of the groups will close. The Tories understand the impact of cuts to services used by working Socialist and feminist debates: class people, they just don’t care. The council’s own report, Early Help Social Reproduction Theory: Remapping Class, Recentering Oppression Review, details the risk of “capital clawback” under this proposal – the edited by Tithi Bhattacharya council may have to pay back up to £5.8 million in previously awarded Is the Future Female by Lynne Segal grant money if the closed centres are not used as per the wording of the Beyond The Fragments by Hillary Wainwright, Lynne Segal and grant award. This is two million more than it planned to save. These Sheila Rowbotham plans are so ill conceived it beggar’s belief. and the Oppression of Women by Lise Vogel Local activists including Labour party and Momentum members have Dangerous Liaisons by Cinzia Arruza launched a campaign to defend services and jobs. The campaign, Save Abolition Democracy: Beyond Empires, Prisons and Torture by Angela our Childrens Centres Leicestershire, was championed by Jeremy Cor - Davis byn at the East Midlands , where campaign ac - Your Silence Will Not Protect You by Audre Lorde tivists got him to sign the petition. Close to Home: A Materialist Analysis of Women’s Oppression by A petition against the proposals has so far had over 1,500 signa - Christine Delphy tures, and will be presented to the scrutiny committee before it meets Selected Writings by Clara Zetkin at the end of the consultation. Selected Writings by Alexandra Kollontai Sex, Race, Class by Selma James • Find us at www.facebook.com/SOCCLeicestershire The Gentrification of the Mind by Sarah Schulman

The clarion : march 2018 Page 5 who owns it? Alternative Models of Ownership conference

By Alena Ivanova, and Bow CLP celebrity with his lauded Preston Model. The session also included Ted Howard from Cleveland, Ohio – who provided the inspiration for the Labour’s Alternative Models of Ownership Conference in February Preston Model – and Heather Wakefield from Unison. In brief, was organised around the report that came out in June 2017. Matthew presented the procurement ‘miracle’ they’ve achieved by using Now is the perfect time to engage members in conversation about anchor public institutions that leverage their substantial procurement how best to deliver public services after the collapse of Carillion, and power to breathe life into local small businesses. Ted Howard then ex - the spectacular end (hopefully) of the Haringey Development Vehicle. panded on those principles, speaking about localism, multipliers, part - The day started with a rousing session that included a speech by John nerships and more. McDonnell. He argued for reversing decades of privatisation and dis - In the final plenary, Anna Coote from the New Economics Founda - cussed the benefits of new models of public ownership - not just state- tion, Spiros Sgouras from the worker-owned Vio.Me in Greece, Hilary owned, but accountable, democratic and worker-controlled services, Wainwright from Red Pepper and Olivier Petitjean from l’Observatoire delivering results for the public rather than shareholders. He was joined des multinationales all discussed various countries’ track records of re - by the excellent Cat Hobbs from We Own It, who have been campaign - nationalisation. They spoke about why taking ownership might work ing for publicly-owned utilities and services since before it was sexy, and better at a local level, and how ultimately we would need a tight network Andrew Cumbers from University of Glasgow. of ‘transformative’ workers unions to enable socialism to transcend na - The session on ‘developing our manifesto commitments to public tional borders and become a sustainable project. At the same time, ownership’ was led by speakers Sian Errington from Unite, Andrew hyper-localisation may lead to undesirable outcomes in terms of social Towers from the CWU and Mick Whelan from Aslef. They agreed attitudes to migration and ‘otherness’, as well as potentially raise inequal - that the 2017 manifesto has opened up considerable potential. Labour ity as regions and localities are not equal, and the state would need to is no longer gingerly posing the option of taking back control of services play the ‘leveller’ role. if they fail in private hands, but arguing that public ownership is in and The day ended with a detailed speech by Jeremy Corbyn, who spoke of itself a good thing. The speakers all stressed that solutions and models about the environment and how publicly controlled services are key in of ownership should come from the workers themselves and should be our fight against climate change. You can read Corbyn’s speech here: tightly bound with local circumstances. They challenged the ‘Lexit’ as - bit.ly/2nTdP60 sumption that it is membership of the EU that stands in the way of re - A key observation from the day would be that, sadly, there were far nationalisation. too few representatives from Labour councils. We are looking at local The ‘local democratic economic strategies’ meeting featured Cllr government to lead the way in making changes while we don’t have Matthew Brown, who has become something of a minor Labour national control, and they should have featured more heavily. Valuable ideas from outside our movement

By Daniel W. Round, Stourbridge CLP task – to not only introduce Ostrom’s Elinor Ostrom’s Rules for Radicals: Cooperative Alternatives Beyond ideas, but also to Markets and States is the latest book by former Green Party Principal demonstrate their Speaker Derek Wall. value for the left. Elinor Ostrom (1933-2012) was an American political economist. He convincingly She remains the only woman to have won the Nobel Prize in Economics, makes the case awarded in 2009 for her influential work investigating the management that her theorising of common pool resources. Her multidisciplinary, multifaceted research of the commons also addressed environmental issues and the ways in which institutions opens up debate function. Rules for Radicals , named after Saul Alinksy’s seminal 1971 about non-capital - primer on community activism, is a 123-page introduction to Ostrom’s ist forms of eco - thought and the main themes that crop up in her academic work. In it, nomic organisa - Elinor Ostrom Wall posits that the left – in particular ecosocialists - can and should tion. At a time make use of her ideas and methodologies, while recognising her theo - when John McDonnell and Labour are looking towards alternative retical drawbacks. models of ownership, Ostrom’s design rules for a successful and sus - Wall begins by listing the 13 ‘rules’ he has extrapolated from Ostrom’s tainable commons strengthen socialist arguments for decentralised, co - writing, such as “collective ownership can work” and “self-government operative and public models with democratic control. is possible” – rules those of us who advocate a socialised economy along - Most useful is Wall’s summary of how Ostrom’s thorough research side a form of participatory democracy would of course agree with. can be used to refute the ‘common sense’ belief that human nature is Others, such as “map power”, speak more to Ostrom’s methodology and selfish, meaning there will always be someone on top and that socialism are also crucial for socialists who seek to understand how best to shift will never work in practice. Her studies clearly show that human moti - power away from capital. vations are complex, and that conditions can be established and institu - Before going on to address the various themes of Ostrom’s work tions designed that promote alternatives to enclosure, privatisation and chapter-by-chapter (commons, climate, etc.), Wall provides a brief in - statism. troduction to Ostrom’s life. He makes it clear that Ostrom did not con - Elsewhere, Wall applies Ostrom’s suggestion that the corporation sider herself to be on the left and was at one point President of the is a commons to argue that an Ostromian strategy for democratic Public Choice Society (1982-4), usually thought of as a right-of-centre ownership could take the form of social corporations, perhaps along body. Later on in the book, a quotation suggests that she associated so - the lines of the Swedish Meidner Plan. cialism with top-down statism. Yet, in a thoughtful and considered manner, Wall embarks upon his • To read more, see bit.ly/2sJT1mv The clarion : march 2018 Page 6 LABOUR democracy Left mobilisation in the West Midlands

By Steve Price The September meeting attracted around 60 novel experience for many comrades who are comrades, and since then there have been three more used to dull branch meetings consisting For many years, the West Midlands has been similarly large meetings with other guest of councillors droning on about traffic manage - known as the heartland of the Labour right. speakers. ment and dog dirt. It has also become notorious for its anti-de - The meeting gave energy to the campaign by WMCLPD has already seen success. Special mocratic practices – sometimes born of sheer allowing people to tell their stories and express measures have been lifted in four constituencies incompetence, but more often than not, po - their frustrations. We heard from those who for the first time in 20 years. Comrades have litically motivated. joined the party to support the Corbyn project, been fighting this for a long time, but we feel This is not an issue of left vs right: it’s about but have been ignored and treated with suspi - our campaign and the collective pressure we ex - fair, rules-based, democratic, transparent and cion or outright hostility. erted helped to finally force the issue. In Feb - accountable behaviour. It’s also about the need The following issues came up: constituencies ruary, the left captured the Unite Political for Labour to reach out and engage the many (still) in special measures; subsequent Council - Committee for the first time in memory. thousands of new members instead of deliber - lor selection problems in Birmingham; the We are also planning our own left conference ately alienating them. blocking of left candidates from the panel; un - for later in the month, and many of us are But I can report an exciting development - acceptable freeze dates being adopted in other working at the grassroots level to ensure we get comrades in the West Midlands have formed West Midlands branches and constituencies; some genuine left-wing Corbyn-supporting the West Midlands Campaign for Labour abuses of the LCF and of Union affiliates to Parliamentary candidates. Party Democracy (WMCLPD). CLPs; undemocratic constituency organisa - The most interesting of times for the left Long time CLPD secretary and NEC mem - tional structures; inactive branches; CLP fail - from deep within the belly of the beast! ber Pete Willsman came to our launch in Sep - ures to engage with new members; and feeding tember, at the regular meeting place of the large these issues into the party’s Democracy Review. • Steve is the coordinator of both West Mid - and active Corbyn-supporting Abbey Branch, The point of this mobilisation wasn’t just to lands CLPD and Dudley and Sandwell’s Mo - which also happens to be in the constituency vent, but to organise and drive real change. mentum group of ’s very own John Spellar. Just being able to discuss these ideas is a What happened at the National Policy Forum?

By George McManus, CLPD tempted to explain the rationale of the decision gested that Ann Black might be persuaded to but NPF members shouted from the floor. accept their support to be NPF Chair. Getting Representatives to the Party’s National Pol - From the back of the hall there was a cry of Black elected would give Corbyn a bloody nose. icy Forum (NPF), which considers proposals “Challenge the Chair’s decision”. In order to re - The says that for for the next manifesto, met on 17 February. store some order, Andy Kerr then took to the elections to take place, voting members must The agenda was due focus on the NHS and podium. He reiterated the NEC’s position. be given at least 7 days notice and with the Brexit, most were blissfully unaware that a “No election”. NEC as arbiters of the Rule Book, the decision weird scenario was unfolding. Their blood boiling, the mob got nasty with was theirs, not the NPF’s. So a carefully crafted Four days earlier, the NPF Chair, Ann Cryer, shouts of “Bully” and “Dinosaur” directed at the coup had failed but not before news agencies had announced her resignation. The message NEC veteran. Andy backed off. A vote was had broadcast the events to the world. went on to say officers had met the day before taken on the challenge to the chair. I don’t know if the NPF can survive this lat - and decided an election for the post should take Twenty minutes later the embattled Katrina est row. It was originally set up to stifle debate place on the Saturday morning of the NPF. took to the podium and announced that there not to encourage membership engagement. I It transpired that Ann Black, a stalwart of would be no election today. The mob rose was elected in 1997 and have always believed Labour’s left for 20 years, was being supported again. “What was the result of our vote” they that a rolling programme with deliberative pol - by members of the NPF belonging to the right demanded. “Nobody’s told me” said Katrina. icy formulation was preferable to open argu - wing Labour First. Following recent changes Cue Andy Kerr with a promise that the issue ments on the floor of annual conference. If the at Labour’s NEC Ann Black’s popularity with would be referred to the March meeting of the NPF is to have a future then it must change. the left had started to wane. Suddenly I found NEC. He went on, “The NEC’s authority su - We now have over 500,000 members who myself being wooed for support for Ann by persedes that of the NPF”. thought that last year’s manifesto was brilliant. people who formerly would never have given “No it bloody well doesn’t” came a loud reply. They don’t care who is Chair of the NPF. But me the time of day. I’ve always been on the There was a further break before Jeremy Cor - they do care when they see Tories having a same wavelength as Ann and when she asked byn was introduced. laugh at the unedifying spectacles like that me to nominate her for the role my response The rebels refused even to offer a polite wel - being broadcast on Saturday. was unequivocal. “If there is an election, of come. This hadn’t been a challenge to the Unfortunately when you’ve run the show for course I will..” NEC but to Jeremy Corbyn. A barnstorming so long it can be difficult to adjust. I hope that 11am on Saturday morning 300 NPF mem - speech brought a standing ovation, but the Labour First supporters be flexible, adapt and bers and party staff packed into the Queens rebels were stoney faced and remained seated. tolerate the changes. The Labour Party is a Hotel, Leeds, and a row erupted. For many years the NPF was a rubber stamp broad church. But it’s not York Minster. If NEC Chair Andy Kerr announced that Ann for the Leadership’s policy ideas. Debate was they can’t adapt then they will become irrele - Cryer’s immediate resignation had been con - deliberately stifled. Labour First, and their as - vant but they won’t just be letting themselves firmed but due to representatives being given sociate group , ran the NPF, in thrall down. inadequate notice, there would be no immedi - to the leadership. Many of those members are The Democracy Review will make propos - ate election for her replacement. still on the NPF. als in the autumn, but if the NPF is to give a Members gathered in the centre of the hall Now dis-enfranchised, as they see it, the voice to members, it must be reformed, went ballistic. The podium was given over to same members had seen an opportunity to re- strengthened and re-configured. Otherwise the NPF Vice-Chair Katrina Murray who at - establish some control. Recent events had sug - it must be replaced. The clarion : March 2018 Page 7 The Central issue Minnie Lansbury: a model for socialis

RMT and Hackney South CLP activist Janine Booth, don Teachers’ Association. Minnie and George Lansbury opposed the author of George Lansbury, Minnie Lansbury and In the two years before the First World War, First World War. At the start many Labour and Modern Feminism tells the story of Minnie — class- the Great Unrest saw a wave of strikes and a sig - union leaders supported the war, and the anti- struggle socialist, teacher, trade unionist, migrants’ nificant increase in union membership. The Un - war stance Minnie and George continued to rights activist, suffragette and a leader of Poplar rest involved many thousands of women workers, hold was very unpopular. council’s victorious 1921 “rates rebellion”. though in 1914, still over 90% of trade union George Lansbury’s Daily Herald was the lead - members were men. ing anti-war paper. Minnie and her husband Minnie was a Lansbury but not by birth; a suf - In 1913, Minnie supported a motion for union Edgar, George's son, took part in an anti-war fragette but not a Pankhurst; a political pris - conference to her East London Teachers’ Asso - protest at the Dock Gates on 17 December 1916. oner and martyr but somehow not remembered ciation, proposing that the union “should support When the government started to run out of vol - by history. the principle of equal pay for men and women unteers and introduced conscription in 1916, the Her name, Minnie, means ‘rebel’. She was teachers of the same professional status”. The Lansburys campaigned against it. born in 1889, the second child of Jewish immi - motion was defeated by 26 votes to 25. Two years During the war, the East London Federation of grants Isaac and Annie Glassman, who had fled later, Minnie seconded a similar motion: it was Suffragettes threw itself into campaigning for – anti-semitic persecution in Russian-ruled defeated by 26 votes to 20. and providing for – the welfare of the people, pri - Poland. Trade unions are important and potentially marily women, suffering on the home front. Socialists and anarchists amongst the Jewish powerful in the fight for women’s rights, but Minnie became Assistant Secretary of ELFS, immigrants promoted left-wing politics, trade sometimes it takes a fight to make them stand working full-time for the suffragette cause after unionism and integration with the British work - up for us. resigning her job as a teacher. ELFS ran a day ers’ movement. But Britain’s first law to restrict Minnie was a suffragette. Her father-in-law nursery, cost-price restaurants, a toy factory to em - immigration was aimed at the Jews, the Aliens George Lansbury was the most well-known ploy women, milk distribution and more. Act 1905. male supporter of women’s suffrage in Britain. At the same time, ELFS demanded higher, As East European EU immigrants do today, He resigned his parliamentary seat in 1912 to and more prompt payments of, separation al - those Jewish migrants faced open racism from fight a by-election over it. Several members of lowances, higher wages for women workers and the right wing, and also pseudo-left-wing hos - the family were imprisoned for suffragette activ - control of prices. tility that swallowed falsehoods that immigrants ities. Putting food on the table in working-class were driving down wages and undercutting na - The Women’s Social and Political Union households sometimes required direct confronta - tive Brits. marched, they smashed windows, they got ar - tion with businesses and the state. In this unpub - Then, as now, it was employers, not foreign rested, they refused food and water in prison. lished passage, reports on workers, who drove down wages This massively increased the profile of their cam - Minnie Lansbury’s response to one such con - In 1911, Minnie Lansbury became a school paign, intensified pressure for the vote and accel - frontation: teacher at a school, erated its victory. “Minnie Lansbury burst in, exultantly an - most of whose staff and pupils were Jewish. nouncing ‘a riot in the Roman!’ [Road] A crowd Women teachers were paid £90-£130 and men The WSPU of women had threatened to storm a fish and £95-£140. There was an even bigger gulf be - chip shop for potatoes. A policeman attempting East London suffragettes, including Minnie tween the classroom teachers and the head to stop them had been swept aside and 'they tore Lansbury and Sylvia Pankhurst, built a working- teacher, whose salary was more than double off all his buttons!', her black eyes twinkled with class-based mass movement for universal suf - Minnie’s. merriment. To save further disturbance the po - frage, welcoming men’s support and using, but Minnie became active in the National Union liceman had compelled the fishmonger to bring not fetishising, militant tactics. of Teachers and its local branch, the East Lon - out his store of potatoes and sell them at three The national WSPU, led by Emmeline and halfpence a pound from a table outside his door.” Christabel Pankhurst, demanded only that The mainstream suffrage organisations, in - women have the vote on equal terms to men. lansbury pamphlet launch cluding the WSPU, suspended campaigning for Only better-off men had the vote; millions of votes for women in order to support the war. The working-class men did not. So the demand remembers and learns trade union leadership suspended industrial ac - amounted to ‘votes for ladies’ only. tion during the war. Christabel expelled Sylvia from the WSPU for The Clarion co-sponsored a public meeting But in the Lansburys’ East End, both these sharing a platform with George Lansbury and on 15 February to launch Janine Booth’s struggles continued. ELFS – renamed the Work - Jim Larkin at a rally in support of locked-out pamphlet. Janine discussed the life of Minnie ers’ Suffrage Federation in March 1916 – con - Dublin workers at the Albert Hall in 1913. The Lansbury and drew out political lessons for tinued to campaign for votes for women (and for East London WSPU branch continued as the our struggles today. The meeting was also ad - working-class men). In 1918, workers on the East London Federation of the Suffragettes. The dressed by Selina Gellert, Minnie Lansbury’s buses, trams and London Underground took national WSPU went on to be actively pro-war great niece. strike action for equal pay for women workers, and Christabel and be - The event was hosted by the Tower Hamlets despite their union’s General Secretary telling came Conservatives. Local History Library & Archive, and also them not to. Today’s version of feminism that emphasises sponsored by the George Lansbury Memorial The labour movement – while divided on the women in boardrooms (or in Downing Street or Trust, the East End Women's Museum, Tower war – united in demanding labour and women’s the White House!) while ignoring the demands Hamlets Labour Party, Hackney South and representation on the committees such as those of low-paid women workers is the modern Shoreditch Labour Party, and the Jewish So - that administered war relief. equivalent of ‘votes for ladies’. It is not just mil - cialists’ Group. Minnie became a Labour-appointed member itancy that is important, it is politics and class. All the supporting organisations, including of the local War Pensions Committee, and later A mass, working-class-based women’s move - The Clarion, said a few words; and we ran a committee chair. ment, with the active support of the labour stall from which we sold quite a lot of copies Poplar Labour councillor Charlie Sumner said movement offers the best prospect for a femi - and several subscriptions. Many thanks to Ja - that “there was no better friend who fought an nism that is relevant and effective. nine for getting us involved. unscrupulous Government, on behalf of ex-serv- the clarion : march 2018 The Central issue list feminists

-ice men and widows, than Minnie Lansbury”. Sylvia Pankhurst described how Minnie brought the determination – rare among the holders of such office – to fight to get the greatest possible advantages for the workers concerned: “She made no pretence of impartiality between the Government and the applicant, and fought, as a lawyer does, to get the best possible terms for her client.” And her husband Edgar paid his own tribute to Minnie: “Although she strove hard to alleviate suffer - ing, she always looked forward to the day when preventible misery and economic injustice would A different kind of councillor! Lansbury on her way to prison in 1921 be no more.” In 1917, both George and Minnie Lansbury Guardians immediately set about improving con - the precepts, but still they refused. They were were enthusiastic in their support for the new ditions for the working-class population that found in contempt and over the first five days of workers’ state in Russia. elected them. , thirty councillors were impris - Minnie and Edgar joined the Communist It introduced both a minimum wage of £4 per oned – five women in Holloway prison, 25 men Party when it was formed in 1920. George never week, and equal pay for men and women, which in Brixton. did, stating that he believed that revolution was together raised women council workers’ wages by The councillors continued to refuse to levy the the right road for Russia but the wrong one for an average 70%. precepts, helped to organise the campaign from Britain. Minnie Lansbury was particularly involved in behind bars, and forced the authorities to allow In 1918, Minnie Lansbury and Sylvia the Public Health and Housing, and Maternity them to meet as a Council in prison. Supporters Pankhurst parted ways politically. and Child Welfare Committees, which: ex - demonstrated in the evenings outside the two The Representation of the People Act was on panded maternity and child welfare services; ap - prisons. Eventually, two other councils voted to its way and in the forthcoming General Election, pointed housing inspectors; built new housing; take the same action as Poplar had. men over 21 and women over 30 would have the and provided a TB dispensary. Six weeks after their arrest the councillors were vote. Sylvia argued that socialists should not give George Lansbury summed up why Poplar’s all released, without backing down. The govern - Parliament credibility by taking part. Minnie also new Council took such radical action: ment backed down and rushed through the Local fought for revolution, but believed that working- “Labour Councillors must be different from Authorities (Financial Provisions) Act 1921, class political representation within existing those we have displaced, or why displace them?” which provided for pooling of local government structures could be part of that fight. Perhaps we could print George’s quote on a funding, benefiting Poplar Council by £250,000 The WSF took Sylvia’s view; Minnie stopped postcard and send it to every Labour councillor per years and other poor boroughs too. being its Assistant Secretary, and became active in the country now! The material benefit to the women (and men) in the Labour Party and the Communist Party. After a brief post-war boom, there was an eco - of Poplar was immense, the political victory huge. It seems ironic that after decades of huge efforts nomic crisis which brought mass unemployment Over Christmas 1921, Minnie Lansbury de - and sacrifice had finally won the fight for votes in Poplar. Local councils were responsible for un - veloped flu, which turned into pneumonia. Under for women, Sylvia advocated not using them. employed benefits, and had to raise all their funds normal circumstances, a healthy 32-year-old Labour lost the hastily-called 1918 General through local taxation, with no redistribution be - woman’s body would have fought this off: but Election, and Tory/Liberal coalition government tween rich and poor boroughs. Minnie was weakened by her six-week spell in was formed. But in 1919, Labour did well in local Poplar’s labour movement debated and de - prison. On 2 January 1922, she died. elections across London. cided its council’s strategy for tackling this dire Thousands upon thousands of people turned situation. Labour women played a key role. out for her funeral. Among many tributes, Poplar rebellion One reason they were able to do this is that so - George Lansbury said: George and Edgar Lansbury were among the cialists and feminists had built a strong local base “Minnie, in her 32 years, crammed double that Labour councillors and Poor Law guardians over decades of political activity. The councillors number of years’ work compared with what many elected in Poplar, and Minnie Lansbury was ap - and many of their supporters had been suffra - of us are able to accomplish. Her glory lies in the pointed Alderman – a council member with a gettes, community campaigners, trade unionists. fact that with all her gifts and talents one thought status between the Mayor and the elected Coun - They had organised demonstrations, strikes, wel - dominated her whole being night and day: How cillors. Poplar Labour led in increasing political fare provision. They had spoken on street corners, shall we help the poor, the weak, the fallen, weary representation of women as well as workers. Four given out leaflets, knocked on doors, held small and heavy-laden, to help themselves?” Labour women were elected to the Council – education classes. This work paid off when the Minnie Lansbury, loved by the working-class Jennie MacKay, Jane March, Nellie Cressall and time came for a major confrontation in 1921. women and men of east London, whatever their Julia Scurr – and two of the four Labour alder - The council had a choice. It could cut services, gender, ethnicity, religion or lack of it; a daugh - men appointed were also women: Minnie and raise the rates, or refuse both and defy the law. ter of Jewish immigrants; a socialist, feminist, . Like the suffragettes before them, Poplar’s suffragette, school teacher, trade unionist, anti- Although it was not yet gender-balanced, Labour councillors chose to break the law in war campaigner; revolutionary opponent of Poplar Council looked much more like the peo - order to fight for justice. They voted to refuse to capitalism and advocate for its victims; Labour ple it served than previously. Rather than being collect and pass on the element of the rates – the Alderman and rebel councillor deserves her dominated by businessmen, it now included rail - ‘precepts’ – that were supposed to go to cross- place among our role models. way workers, dockers, school teachers and other London bodies such as the London County working people. Council and the Water Board. • You can buy Janine’s books and pamphlet on - The newly-elected Poplar Labour Council and The court instructed them to collect and pay line at www.janinebooth.com Page 9 Local government Haringey members fight for control over council By Liam McNulty

On 4 February, over 200 Labour members in Haringey gathered for a borough local government conference. Any member could attend, with GC delegates from the two CLPs (Hornsey and Wood Green and Tottenham) having voting rights. Delegates passed all the motion that were submitted to shape – what exactly that word means is a matter of debate, as I will explain below – the Labour manifesto for the may elections. That included: • Setting up a wholly council- democratic members’ control over Councillors are the democratically-decided major - owned development vehicle to re - local manifesto processes. At the delegates of the labour ity policies of the group they were place the discredited Haringey same time a fight to establish sim - expected to resign. Development Vehicle ilar bodies with discussion and vot - movement The Labour right makes a big • Campaigning for the restora - ing – as well as fighting for their deal of being accountable and re - You’re a Labour councillor. Who tion of the funding cut by central right to be decision-making – in sponsible to the electorate, often as should you be accountable to? government since 2010 other boroughs is also necessary. At a reason not to carry out the poli - As a Labour councillor you • Reinstating council tax sup - the same time Haringey conference cies of their local parties. They cre - should be a delegate of the labour port and ending the use of bailiffs has set an important precedent. ate a false dichotomy between the movement. Being a councillor, or an • Bringing waste management electorate and the local labour MP, should not be a “job for life”. It back in-house • Local supporters of the The movement. The Labour Party should not make you more impor - • Initiating an audit of empty Clarion produced a bulletin for should be the party of the working tant than other members of the homes and deploying compulsory the conference. class, who are our electorate. party. The Labour Party does not purchase powers to buy properties Here are two excerpts from it, Labour membership is high in exist to serve councillors. Council - to rent as required one by Liam and one by another Haringey and has grown under lors exist to serve our movement. • Resisting academisation Hornsey and Wood Green GC Corbyn’s leadership and since the The tactics and policies of our party • Keeping all libraries open, with delegate, Kate Harris. general election. We should seek should not be driven by the per - the same opening hours, for the to make it even larger and involve ceived priorities of councillors. next four years. Stand on the decisions working class people in the run - In Clay Cross in the 1970s, All too often, in fact nowadays ning of the Labour Party. We of this conference when Labour fought a Tory plan to almost always, local Labour man - should make the Labour Party raise council house rents, the ifestos have been written by a Haringey Labour's local govern - their party. The same goes for Labour group on the council un - clique around the council leader, ment conference today marks an trade union membership. derstood that they were serving the with no consultation – let alone important step in the process of Congratu lations to our council interests of the constituents (a democratic control by – the rest of democratising the Labour Party. candidates, and I will see you on the poor mining community). The the party or the trade unions. All too often, Labour Party local door-step! But remember, you’re a councillors also reported and made The victories of the left in government manifestos have been delegate from a bigger movement. themselves accountable to, Haringey’s CLP have opened the written by a clique around the You’re chosen by our members to monthly meetings of members of possibility of something different Council Leader, with little or no represent us. And you have a re - the local Labour Party. From the here. Labour wards, the Women’s consultation with the rest of the sponsibility to make the labour start, councillors understood that if Forum, Young Labour and so on party or the trade unions. Mem - movement bigger and bette r. they were not prepared to stick to met to send motions to the event. bers have then been expected, like The trade unions had a separate a stage army, to campaign on poli - event on 6 February to feed in cies they barely had a say on. their proposals. The organiser’s of today’s con - 24 March: Reimagining local government However, the manifesto will still ference should be congratulated — London for the many, not the few be written by the Labour group for setting an important precedent, and, in theory, all the proposals which the left in other Boroughs could be ignored. There is an on - should take up in future. Organised by London Momentum groups going struggle over this. We are far Our council candidates should from the situation which existed, commit to standing on a mani - 11am-5pm, Institute of Education, London for instance, in Islington in the festo based on the policies demo - 1980s where a similar body had cratically decided by this Facebook event bit.ly/2sJipbS direct control over the manifesto. conference. When we launch our Register at bit.ly/2CEw5F5 Ignoring the votes of the con - campaign, our messages and ma - ference would be an affront to terials should take their lead from Sessions include • Housing policy • How can democracy, but also damaging to the decisions made here today. councils fight cuts? • Radical Labour manifestos the local party and Labour elec - In that way, we can make it • What does a socialist council look like? tion campaign. clear to the electorate what a left- We should investigate a national wing Labour Party will do, and rule change to establish and cement do differently, in power. More: [email protected] the clarion : March 2018 Page 10 the purge Momentum ignores its first online vote

By Ed Whitby, Newcastle Momentum secretary (pc)

On 2 February, 13 months after the coup to abolish Momentum democracy which justified itself by claiming the organisation would hold frequent online votes, the Momentum office launched a sort of online voting system, MyMomentum. So far the only vote granted – under the coup constitution it is almost impossible for members to initiate a vote – is on what Momentum should submit to Phase 2 of Labour’s Democracy Review. A few days before submissions closed, Momentum said 2677 (7.5pc) of members had activated their account. It’s hard to tell exactly how disagreed with the basic planks of my proposal. What forcefully struck many people voted as you could vote for multiple proposals; probably me was that they opposed deletion of the first part of Rule 2.1.4.B (auto- less than half of that (the most “nominated” proposal got 114 votes). exclusion for anyone who “joins and/or supports a political organisation I am the web-literate secretary of a Momentum group but I found other than an official Labour group or other unit of the Party”) on the the process confusing. Anecdotally, many members didn’t receive the grounds that “this could benefit groups opposed to the party”. email to activate their account or any notification. Most importantly, I don’t know what that means. The clause in question is a Blairite out - there was no attempt to get wide discussion among members and in rage clearly put in the Rulebook in order to allow expulsion of anyone local groups which could have made an online vote meaningful. they don’t like and feel strong enough to purge. It could, if you read what Despite my scepticism, I gave it a go. After discussing with Stop the it says, be used against members of Momentum (or indeed, strictly log - Labour Purge comrades, I submitted a 250 word proposal on reversing ically, Progress) as well various political campaigns. It is only ever used unjust expulsions and suspensions and transforming the party’s discipli - against the left. nary system (see bit.ly/2opB8E1). Despite being one of the last submit - The right don’t feel so strong now, but it is not long ago we heard calls ted – less than two days before the deadline – it came second out of 120 to ban Momentum! proposals. I was asked to suggest amendments to their Charter. This was some - Momentum’s guidance said the “most popular” proposals in each cat - what difficult given I’d already been told all the substantive demands of egory would go to an online ballot – with the sting that they would first my proposal were rejected. go to the National Coordinating Group to produce “final versions”. This fiasco has exposed both the limitations of “e-democracy”, and I received an email from the Momentum office saying that an “NCG the attitude of Momentum’s “leadership” towards alternative proposals. panel” had considered my proposal and, essentially, rejected it. It flagged An unaccountable “panel” simply ignored the second most popular. up the “Charter of Members’ Rights” the NCG (NCG panel?) submitted You can only presume that those who run the organisation do not to MyMomentum – which had received precisely zero votes! want to fight expulsions and suspensions. Momentum members According to the staff member who contacted me, the unnamed panel should call to them account. Do revolutionary socialists have a place in Labour?

Calls from the Labour right for expulsions of left-wing socialists Why revolution? Overturning capitalism will require more than sim - have gotten quieter as the left has strengthened, but we have ply legal enactments; it will take a mass movement in society, in work - started to hear more such calls from sections within the left. places and communities as well as at the level of politics, overflowing the blocks and filters and channels of official society – impediments cre - Labour’s new membership seems instinctively opposed to the ated precisely in order to guard against the development of too much purge, but some at the top see thing differently. democracy. Moreover, it seems very likely that such a mass socialist movement This is an abridgement of Amber Traven’s response to the call will come into conflict with the biggest block of all, the existing state made in October 2015 by Labour First’s Luke Akehurst for the machine – the police, the army, the bureaucratic hierarchy – which will expulsion of revolutionary socialists from the party. For the full, defend capitalism with every means available. History, from the Chilean much longer article, linking to Akehurst’s, see bit.ly/2BIyPnK coup of 1973 to our own miners’ strike of 1984-5, certainly suggests that. Labour movements in history have created, at high points of mobili - sation, more flexible, responsive and meaningfully democratic institu - The Labour right is attempting to divide the left so they can conquer tions than the kind of system we have in Britain today. That doesn’t us. Socialists should not allow ourselves to be divided. Akehurst is mean revolutionaries are “against parliamentary democracy”. Workers’ also trying to cover up the right’s anti-socialist and anti-labour move - councils, as have developed in many revolutions and mass upheavals, are ment ideas and record. in fact a kind of “parliamentary” system, a system of elected assemblies. He says the key Labour aim and value is “democratic socialism”. Rev - Meanwhile, we want to defend existing parliamentary democracy against olutionary socialists cannot be in the party because we “believe in a rev - bureaucratic and military subversion, extend its democratic aspects and olutionary path to socialism”. “Labour isn’t your party because we are a test it to the limit as a channel for working-class self-assertion. party that believes in a parliamentary and democratic road to socialism.” It is the Labour right who over decades have helped turn Parliament Akehurst is, or is pretending to be, ignorant of Labour’s history. One into a talking shop, with British democracy more and more hollowed of its founding affiliates was a Marxist organisation (the SDF), while out. Their contempt for parliamentary democracy is in fact second only another (the ILP, of which was leader) had many members to their hatred for democracy in the labour movement. who saw themselves as revolutionaries. Does believe in a “parliamentary road to socialism”? There is nothing undemocratic about Marxists’ view of social trans - Does Peter Mandelson? What about John McTernan, who openly formation. Workers’ rule will on be far more democratic than the system praises privatisation and responded to the Southern Rail strikes by we have now, involving genuine popular power and control unlimited calling on the Tories to “crush the rail unions once and for all”? by the existence of a privileged elite. the clarion : march 2018 Page 11 unions and labour The NEU, Labour and its schools policy

By a London NEU and might halt some of the worst ex - its 2018 confer - Labour activist cesses in the academy system, but ence which would the only way to fix the fragmenta - have laid out spe - tion of the system is to bring cific plans for an Recently it was revealed that Sir schools back under local authority NES, including Dan Moynihan, Chief Executive control. Presumably the point of an explicit de - of the Harris Academy chain, is calling for a National Education mand to bring all now receiving a remuneration Service (NES) is to indicate a schools back package in excess of £500,000. comparison with the founding of under local au - Under the story on the Times the NHS, but if Labour are re - thority control. Educational Supplement ’s Facebook treating from radical change it is Instead, the of - page, over a hundred comments clear that far from a moment of ficial left faction appeared within hours as scan - equivalent significance to 1948, in the union is cir - wants to move on from the dalised teachers expressed their the NES will be a damp squib. culating a Rayner- disgust, pointing out how many One might hope that the largest friendly motion “Academisation debate” salaries and resources for students and most left-wing of the educa - with the nebulous ship is only timidly pressuring the could be paid for with such an ob - tion unions, the NEU, or at least formulation “many of us will have party because their activist base is scene amount. the part of it that used to be the a long list of demands for specific not politicised enough to demand It is unfortunate that at this NUT, would be pressuring the improvements, but acknowledge more from the party of the labour moment, Labour’s shadow educa - Labour Party to move towards that now is not the time to define movement. tion secretary Angela Rayner be - ending the academy programme. these demands and priorities in The way to break this circle is lieves that Labour should “move But the NEU-NUT is a strange detail.” for rank-and-file activists in both on” from the academy debate, and and complicated animal. I would argue that the Labour organisations to build links – for not be “bogged down” in worrying The union has remained pub - leadership is struggling to thrash example, invite speakers to each about the various types of schools. licly silent about Rayner’s com - out a radical programme for its other’s meetings, campaign Essentially, she argues for more ments on academies, presumably proposed NES partly because it jointly against school funding regulation rather than re-national - preferring to try and influence her has no affiliated union embedded cuts, and fight for labour councils isation, which she worries would and others behind closed doors. A in its policy-making processes to oppose academisation. be seen as “going backwards.” prominent left NEU-NUT ac - which could help it do so. Sym - Tinkering with regulations tivist withdrew a draft motion for metrically, the NEU left leader - • Longer version: bit.ly/2C75m8l It’s time for the RMT to reaffiliate

By RMT activists Advice shouted from the other Labour will be divisive in Scot - side of the street is not nearly as land, where many members sup - The rail and transport workers’ effective as speaking, voting and port the SNP. union RMT was expelled from fighting in the Labour Party We believe that the Scottish the Labour Party in 2004 essen - against the right. National Party is not a working- tially for being left-wing; but its From the unlikely event of a class party. We know that this view leaders made little effort to op - left-winger being elected Labour is not shared by many RMT pose or reverse that. leader has been built the hope and members in Scotland. The 2017 RMT AGM agreed possibility of a better world for the We want to continue that dis - Party policy. Affiliating to Labour the union would initiate discus - majority. Who knows how long cussion within the union. In the doesn’t stop us passing different sions with the party, before hold - we’ll have to wait for another un - meantime there is an easy policies: it lets us fight for them ing a Special General Meeting to likely event before we get a chance workaround. When the Fire within Labour’s structures! decide. Here are some arguments like this again. Brigades Union reaffiliated to Some say: RMT’s membership made by supporters of reaffilia - We will not lose independence Labour after Jeremy Corbyn be - includes people who support many tion in a recent bulletin. if we affiliate to Labour. All came leader, it affiliated only its Labour-affiliated unions are inde - different political parties. Why members in England and Wales. should their union affiliate to only In last year’s general election, pendent organisations, with their RMT could do something similar, one? Affiliating to Labour won’t Labour increased its number of own rulebooks, structures and pol - allowing Scottish branches to stop individual RMT members MPs and votes with a left-wing icy-making procedures. The maintain some political autonomy. joining or supporting other parties. manifesto. Labour Party cannot intervene Moreover, affiliating to Labour The decision whether to support This brought tens of thousands into the internal democracy of its would enable us to challenge reaffiliation is about whether you of new members into the party. affiliates or stop them passing right-wing MPs and councillors think it makes strategic sense for Confidence in and willingness to their own policies. for selection, putting up better the labour movement collectively fight for left wing ideas would be The only restriction Labour af - candidates against them. to have its own political party. further boosted by news that a filiation would place on RMT is Under Jeremy Corbyn’s leader - If the union reaffiliates, no fighting union like the RMT has that we would no longer back elec - ship, the Labour left is growing in RMT member will be forced to reaffiliated. tion candidates against Labour. size and confidence. It is increas - join or vote Labour, and those who It is vital to keep Labour on its We will still be able to pass poli - ingly well-placed to challenge disagree with reaffiliation will still leftward course, and we stand a cies contrary to official Labour Labour right-wingers; by reaffili - be free to express their view. much better chance of doing this lines. Almost all unions have poli - ating, RMT can help. Others say that affiliating to if we are part of the Labour Party. cies which differ from Labour the clarion : March 2018 Page 12 SOCIALISM Umunna, Mason, Blair and Marx

By Sacha Ismail, Lewisham a fantasy picture of in order to deny it met these criteria. “Everyone wants to be radical”, wrote He says that New Labour didn’t reverse Streatham MP Chuka Umunna in the Inde - “many of the Tory privatisations”, when in fact pendent on 29 January – “but the truth is a bit it pushed the privatisation agenda much further different”. and in some cases faster than the Tories had, Umunna reports a discussion with journalist including in the NHS. Paul Mason, which he says “got me thinking He cites “investment in schools and hospi - about the labels we attach to people”. Umunna tals”, but neglects to even address the point that identifies himself as a social democrat, thinks limited nationalisations, somewhat higher taxes this investment was on the basis of privatisa - Tony Blair was also a social democrat, and ar - on the rich, free education and so on are not tions, marketising reforms and in many cases gues that Mason is a social democrat too, de - particularly radical. And Umunna is “bemused” simply pouring money into the pockets of pri - spite his Marxist heritage and language. to hear a national investment bank, also advo - vate companies. As the economic crisis hit New “Many who for years described themselves as cated by Ed Balls, described as radical. Me too! Labour politicians began advocating cuts. Marxists”, Umunna notes, “have now become Umunna goes all blurry when it comes to his Bizarrely he cites the “nationalisation” of part ‘radical social democrats’, a precursor — once own political tradition. He defines his own “so - of the banking system, similar to the measures they have secured power — to perhaps heading cial democracy” in such a way as would cover an carried out by George W Bush in the US, i.e. in a more socialist direction.” This may be how enormous range of leftish, centrist and perhaps completely in the interests of the bankers some leading Labour figures conceive of things. even right-wing politicians — “a ‘social market’ themselves and of the rich. But if your conception of socialism is radical, model — where the private and public sectors To say nothing of the persecution of class-based and democratic, it will hardly be work in partnership together”, with “the right refugees, the Iraq war, and so on. possible to head in its direction without stating, balance between the interests of capital and If Paul Mason and Jeremy Corbyn are left- arguing and fighting for the goal in advance. labour”, so “we can build a more equal, fair, wing social democrats who probably still con - That is precisely why it is such an issue that democratic, sustainable and prosperous society”. ceive of going beyond social democracy, Tony there now so many socialists around, but so little It gets worse. Umunna indignantly rejects Blair is far beyond the right-wing boundary of discussion about socialism. the idea that Tony Blair and ’s anything that can meaningfully be called social Umunna’s definition of “Marxist” is shoddy governments were neo-liberal. democratic. That defence of his utterly neo-lib - — essentially, a lot more state control. Nonethe - In fact Blair and Brown were thoroughly eral record remains so central to the project of less he has the advantage over much of the neo-liberal, often failing to live up to even Umunna and co. must surely say a lot. Labour left here that his article does nonetheless Umunna’s stretched-to-tearing definition of Interestingly, Umunna says that “all of the imply a definition of socialism as something dif - social democracy. shades of left – from your Marxists to your ferent from social democratic reforms. Neo-liberalism involves “favouring free trade, centre-left social democrats – should have a He is right that Mason and others are now privatisation, minimal government intervention place in the Labour family”. If meant seri - “radical social democrats” and to ask “just how in business and reduced public expenditure on ously, this statement puts him well to the left radical are the former Marxists?” As he says, things like social services”. Then Umunna paints of some influential people in Momentum! Lies, damned lies and Czech spies

By Michael Elms, Haringey side’s narrative; and denounce and deny any in - capitalism; congratulates the workers of the So - convenient facts. Both tendencies are poison to viet Union, particularly the striking miners of Jan Sarkocy, a one-time junior intelligence of - our movement. Vorkuta, in the Arctic Circle, who are leading ficer for the Státní Bezpečnost, former Czecho - The left must respond to the smears and the struggle for better pay and conditions and slovakian State Security, has made himself a few slanders of the right by developing a culture for an end to one-party dictatorship; notes that quid this month by trading off claims that Je - that values education and truth as powerful their fight has been in the face of vicious anti- remy Corbyn was a paid asset of the Czechoslo - forces for freedom. strike laws of a type that even Her Majesty's vakian state during the Cold War. The other issue is to do with the relationship Government drew back from; believes that these Sarkocy’s claims have been comprehensively of the British labour movement to Stalinism. mighty working class struggles deserve the full debunked. The head of the Czech Security Jeremy Corbyn had a better record on East - support of the British and international labour Service Archive, Svetlana Ptacnikova, has told ern European solidarity than many in the UK and trade union movement; and considers that the BBC that the file on Corbyn in the StB trade union and labour movement. Rather than the only way forward for the peoples of the So - archive shows that Corbyn was at best a “person being bought out and awed by the anti-worker viet Union and Eastern Europe is on the basis of interest” to the service, and not an asset. dictatorships of the Eastern Bloc, or an ideo - of a return to the principles of genuine workers' But this tawdry story does raise some issues logical dupe of Stalinism, he was one of five democracy and socialism which formed the basis worthy of discussion. MPs to sponsor the following Early Day Mo - and inspiration for the October revolution.” One of these is the pattern that the whole tion on “Workers’ Democracy in Eastern Eu - Unfortunately, the bureaucracy of the labour “scandal” has followed. The capitalist press cre - rope” in 1989: movement — and Labour Party, including Cor - ates a market for smears. Any embittered has- “That this House welcomes the magnificent byn’s office — still contains some of Sarkocy’s been or marginal fantasist who cares to concoct movements in Eastern Europe for full demo - spiritual brothers, who are nostalgic for the se - a politically-convenient lie can expect to make cratic control over what happens in society and cret-police regimes that tortured and murdered a bit of cash and see their name in lights, even recognises that this outburst of discontent and trade union leaders in the Eastern Bloc. if their story is eventually discredited. opposition in East Germany and Czechoslova - As the left develops and grows, a culture of Unfortunately, this hailstorm of lies and kia, in particular, reflects deep anger against the respect for the truth should wash away the abuse from the right can feed a conspiracy-the - corruption and mismanagement of the Stalinist anti-socialist practices of Stalinism from our orist fantasy politics on the left. Paranoid left - bureaucracy; sees the movement leading in the movement. wing blogs both concoct “fake news” to suit our direction of genuine socialism, not a return to the clarion : March 2018 Page 13 Youth CLARION Youth pages Edited by: Maisie Sanders, Rida Vaquas, Tom Zagoria, Justine Canady Priorities for London Young Labour Omar Raii, new London Young Labour committee agreements and challenge received wisdom. We also need people who member, suggests some priorities for LYL. think of themselves as anti-capitalists and socialists to argue explicitly for bold socialist ideas and not limit themselves to the dominant con - sensus in the movement – which is what I will be doing. Build local groups We need proper local groups, as centres of campaigning and discus - Support young workers’ struggles sion, at least in every borough and preferably in every CLP. More ac - Even now, when strikes levels are low, there are plenty of struggles to tivists are starting to build those groups, with no encouragement from support – Picturehouse and McDonald’s being the obvious ones waged either LYL or from the party structure. by mainly young workers. LYL’s record on this, and the left’s within it, Moreover this is not something that even most of the left talks about has been limited in the extreme. We need to change that, making cham - much. If it was talked about it more we could surely, with the huge youth pioning these struggles (and also drawing in members and activists from support for Labour that exists, make progress fast. LYL should push for them) a priority. We also need to organise training events so we can share this, including by organising a series of events to encourage and train skills from these comrades to train a wider layer of young members to people to build groups and share best practice. organise at work. This should go alongside strong political campaigns for a £10 an hour minimum wage, banning zero hours contracts and re - Mobilise pealing all anti-union laws. LYL needs to work hard to become a visible presence on demonstra - tions, in student occupations, on picket lines, using its weight and voice Support migrants’ rights and free movement to support these struggles and drawing in new members and activists as LYL conference voted, absolutely overwhelmingly, to campaign a result. Let’s start with support for the UCU pensions strike. against a hard Brexit, for migrants’ rights, to defend free movement and to work with the Labour Campaign for Free Movement. We need to Transform LYL’s culture make those things happen. Finding ways to work with the LCFM to We need a political school for activists, not a school for careerists, push for a strong stance on migrants’ rights in the party and mobilising whatever language that careerism is dressed up in. We need a comradely, for, for instance, the campaign against immigration detention would be well-functioning democracy in LYL. I previously sat on another com - a good start. mittee (NUS NEC) dominated by stifling cliques and a culture of bul - lying and shutting down debate, on “left” as well as right. I very much Help democratise Labour hope and will fight to ensure that LYL’s committee is not like that, and We need to be a voice for democratic transformation of the party, that instead it models democracy, civilised debate and comradely coop - pushing at the limits of the Democracy Review for really radical reforms. eration to the wider movement. I challenge our new chair to help make That must of course include radical democratisation of YL and Labour sure this happens. The way LYL conference was run was not encourag - Students. There is an uncritical adulation of “OMOV” (individual bal - ing. The Stalinist politics and, worse, Stalinist methods which are gaining loting of members) on the left – this needs proper discussion. a foothold in our movement needs to be challenged. And fighting for democracy must also include standing up to de - mand the reinstatement of those unjustly suspended or expelled – as Promote political education a number of excellent young activists in London have been. That means training people in activist and organising skills, but it also means training critical thinkers. Replacing one not-to-be-questioned or - • For more on London YL, read Daniel Round’s report of the AGM: thodoxy with another orthodoxy will not be an improvement. We need bit.ly/2F1ayM0 a culture where people feel empowered and confident to express dis - WTF is a union? Picking up steam in Lambeth By Lauren Kennedy, Rugby Young Labour By Jack Smith

Rugby is a quiet town in the Midlands. Though we have lots of hard - Formed 6 months ago in the cramped living room of a shared house working activists, it can be tough to get events off the ground and in Stockwell, Lambeth Young Labour is now both officially recog - get young people involved. However, a couple of months ago Rugby nised and going from strength to strength. Young Labour decided to run a series of "WTF is a...?" events, in We’ve had the pleasure of holding events, Q&As with Hugh which big questions are asked and political education is prioritised. Gaffney MP, Helen Hayes MP and a host of other local activists and We kicked off with "WTF is a Union?" on 20 January with speakers journalists. We have a number of exciting initiatives and projects from the CWU and PCS, a Picturehouse striker from BECTU and planned for 2018, and will continue to support the incredible work an organiser from the Women's Strike. They told us what a union is, being done by local groups such as the campaign for the Ritzy Living how it works, the problems you can encounter and, of course, the in - Wage, and industrial action taking place across the borough. credible wins a union can achieve. I’m also working on an online database of materials and resources Everyone left the event with not only a better knowledge of work - for starting Young Labour groups, please get in contact at lambethy - place organising, but of the kind of social strikes that have taken place [email protected] to find out more and get involved! to address labour performed outside of the workplace. At a time when union membership is declining, it worked to drum up excitement about • For more London YL reports from Hornsey & Wood Green, Croy - the future of unions we can all take to our workplaces. don and Redbridge: bit.ly/2CDFuMY Sometimes local parties can feel insular or cliquey to newcomers; there's a lot of bureaucracy to wade through and this can be alienat - Stourbridge Young Labour: Full Throttle for the Local ing. But fun, well planned, outward reaching political events like Elections: bit.ly/2Fr0ERF this can really make a difference, especially to young people. the clarion : march 2018 Page 14 Youth CLARION Youth pages “Igniting a fire in young workers”

McDonald’s striker/organiser Shen Batmaz spoke to The Clarion . For the full interview, see bit.ly/2E1BfwR

At first there were only a few of us. We eventually got up to about ten members, but it wasn’t until the general election that we had a bigger breakthrough. When Jeremy Corbyn promised £10 an hour and said his government would stand up for workers, a lot of people woke up. To hear a main - stream politician saying that gave people a lot of strength. The union in our store saw a massive surge around the election. Like most people my colleagues weren’t that engaged with politics, they were just trying to get by. But what the Corbyn phenomenon has done for us as for so many others is ignite a fire to make us start speaking up. So many young people are angry when we see what our parents had, what was fought for and won by workers and unions before, but is now being dismantled without much of a fight. It’s hard to know what to do As you’ve described, there’s very widespread support for Corbyn and about that, but once people are up and running and convinced it’s pos - Labour among young people, but it’s not necessarily reflected in mass sible they want to fight. involvement. Why do you think that is, how do we change it? How easy do you find it, as a socialist, to make more comprehensive It’s that so many people just don’t know how to get involved. People sort of arguments about how society should be run differently? have heard of Corbyn, they like him, but they have no idea how to get I think that’s not the dominant discussion coming out of our organ - involved in Labour. It comes back to educating people about what’s pos - ising, but it often begins to come up. If you start to ask questions about sible, about their rights. We should be taught properly about politics at the unfairness in society, about how we can get so little when our CEO school, about how you vote, how you get involved in activism, and we is on millions, obviously that poses bigger questions about how society should also be taught about employment law. is organised. People who’ve not previously thought much about politics We need far more young people involved in labour movement pol - can quickly get onto really big questions about the nature of society. Why itics — it’s the future of eighteen year olds and sixteen years olds that is this the seventh richest country in the world and yet people are using is at stake, and it’s young people hit hardest by the rights we’re losing. foodbanks? That must say something much wider about our society. More Young Labour groups would help. UCU strike: channel anger against management! By Amy Robinson, Durham University and Darlington Labour

When New Labour introduced tuition fees in 1998 they also willingly ushered market forces into higher education learning. Since then, the grip of the market on the education sector has steadily increased. This was most visible in 2012 when the coalition government tripled fees to £9,000. The recent UCU strike is simply one more case of the market tightening its grip on higher education. Students are understandably angry. Just about all UK universities now set their fees at £9,250 whilst the current 14-day strike will affect over 1 million students across 64 universities. However, this anger should be directed at those actors which further seek to turn universities into busi - nesses and students into customers. It is the same actors which are com - as students we channel our anger towards the right actors. Don’t be angry plicit in rising tuition fees who want to make staff’s futures more with your lecturers, fight alongside them. Write to your vice chancellors precarious. The insistence of Universities UK to push through reforms expressing support for university staff, post your support on social media to the USS pension will see some UCU members’ pensions reduced by using the hashtags #ucustrike and #studentstaffsolidarity and get in - £10,000 annually. This will leave many with pensions lower than sub - volved locally on the picket lines. sistence levels, whilst just this year the chief executive of the USS re - Don’t let the same actors that have been complicit commodifying ceived a pay rise of £82,000. education use students as leverage against UCU members. Students should be angry at the injustice of a system which charges young people up to £9,250 annually to continue their education and Model motion: Support the UCU strike which erodes the pay and conditions of university staff whilst Vice- Chancellors are paid six-figure sums. Precisely, what students should be For a model motion for wards/CLPs, see bit.ly/2omlQRt angry with is the marketisation of higher education. It is important that For more model motions, including on Brexit, see bit.ly/2BLhafi the clarion : march 2018 Page 15 the isisssuuee 1 73:: Mmaayr 2c0h1 27 018 clarion £1 (unwaged 50p) A socialist magazine by Labour and Momentum activists Free movement is the critical issue

Clarion editor Michael Chessum is an organiser for the Labour Campaign for Free Movement and Another Europe is Possible. He spoke with Sacha Ismail about Labour and Brexit.

What’s your view on calling for a second referendum? Brexit is going to be a disaster – it's going to mean the stripping away of rights and freedoms, and big attack on democratic process, attacks on migrants' rights, and so on. That is highly likely to happen before Labour gets into office. So Corbyn will inherit that, along with a tanking econ - The “one day without us” protest in on 20 February omy. And well, if your aim is to stop Brexit from happening, a second ref - we need to build bottom-up pressure, via groups like the Labour Cam - erendum is straightforwardly the only way that that can be achieved. paign for Free Movement. We also need to campaign on free movement Having parliament block EU withdrawal without a referendum would on a “Brexit neutral” basis (so including Lexiters), so that it's clear that create an enormous backlash, and a backlash on entirely the wrong ter - free movement isn’t purely bound up with EU membership. rain. A portion of the population – including loads of people who voted Remain — would regard it as an establishment stitch up. And we'd be We seem to be hearing more of the argument that being in the Single part of the "establishment" in that scenario, leaving the far-right to clean Market rules out, for example, nationalisations. What would your re - up. sponse to that be? Can we stop Brexit by making it the subject of a general election? I It wasn’t the EU that privatised our rail or anything else — it was a think that's a dead end – mainly because Labour would never put stop - British government. And loads of the rules on trade and privatisation ping Brexit in its manifesto, and also because any victory in that election actually come from bodies like the WTO. Most countries in the EU would almost certainly get less than the 52% of the vote which Leave have a far greater degree of public and common ownership in their achieved, essentially replicating the problem that you get by blocking it economies than we do. A socialist government should absolutely be will - in the Commons. But also, you just can't make elections about one thing: ing to defy Brussels in order to implement its programme. Come back people vote for their own reasons, and parties would have to produce a to me when we're in that position, not when we're running of the edge full manifesto. of a cliff led by Liam Fox, who wants to scrap all the “red tape” and flog There’s another scenario, and not a completely impossible one, in everything to American capital. which Brexit doesn't happen. That's where the Tories fall into such dis - array that they can't enact anything, and they themselves choose to keep There's an argument that pushing an anti-Brexit or more anti-Brexit Britain in the EU rather than crash out over a cliff. That's not a bad sce - position divides Labour and plays into the hands of the party’s right. nario for us, but it's not one we have any control over. Brexit is an awkward question for Corbyn’s leadership. Yes, the right of Labour are weaponising Brexit – though many don't actually like free How does the debate about Brexit connect with the debate about free movement. Left-wingers should build our own distinctive, principled movement? intervention into the debate. Cynics and hacks will say that we're “back - The Labour leadership's current strategy is to say “free movement will ing Progress” for doing that. But if you think that left-wing activists end with Brexit” – not that it should end, but just that it's automatic. shouldn’t use their brain and come to independent positions, we should That's handy if you're trying to dodge the Brexit debate and talk about all pack up and go home. other things, but it's transparently not true. We could stay in the EEA, Rank-and-file left activists who want to shift the party should link and we could have a bilateral agreement with the EU that includes free up with organisations like LCFM and Another Europe is Possible movement. and start coordinating and pushing harder. This is the critical issue at the moment. Corbyn's Labour is in danger of endorsing the biggest expansion of border controls in recent history. • LCFM: labourfreemovement.org / AEIP: anothereurope.org That's what ending free movement means, no matter how you dress it up. We need to be clear and direct that the solution to society's problems Labour against Brexit: pass this motion in your Labour Party is investment and socialist policies, not borders. These things ought to be basic principles – but a lot of left-wingers are now changing their This was passed at Noel Park branch to go forward to Hornsey ideas to fit political expediency. and Wood Green CLP. Why not use or adapt for your branch or Diane Abbott is now launching a principled intervention into the de - CLP? bit.ly/2sNE2b9 bate on immigration, but to really win free movement as party policy

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