The
views expressed in this email and blog are those of the individuals whose name
is attached to the posting. They do not represent a collective position of the
WLG or the Labour Party
Dear
Comrades
This week’s
email and blog follows on from our Welsh Labour Grassroots AGM which was held
last Saturday 27 October. A report of that meeting has already been circulated
and can be accessed on our blog. At the end of the report are the
resolutions that were agreed, together with an updated statement of principles
and priorities for WLG.
On 25th
October, Compass held a meeting in Cardiff that was primarily aimed at starting
a left of centre debate about an alternative plan B for Wales. Compass has also
produced a report of their meeting which is available here. This week’s discussion piece was stimulated
by thoughts emanating from both events, which as usual is at the end of this
email and has been posted to our blog.
Forthcoming events
Labour
Representation Committee annual conference in London this Saturday, 10th
November – all the details and online registration here.
On Saturday, 17th November, the Socialist Educational Association and
other progressive educational campaign groups are holding a conference in
London called ‘Picking up the Pieces after Gove’, 9.45 am – 4.00pm at Camden
Centre, Camden Town Hall, Judd Street, London WC1H 9JE.
Cardiff
Trades Council is organising a meeting as a follow up to the TUC demonstration
on how to come together to fight the politics and policies of austerity. This
takes place at 6.30 pm on Monday 19 November at the Holiday Inn, Castle St
Cardiff. Here is the Facebook link with the
details and facility to indicate that you are coming.
The next WLG
meeting will take place on Saturday 1st December at Swansea Civic Centre
(11.00am-1.00 pm) with Mark Seddon as guest speaker.
Left Week – Len Arthur
Silence has
been a recurrent theme over the last week or so. Silence about how cyclone
Sandy bought devastation to the Caribbean, especially Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica (the latter report coming from the
Hindi Times!) The other silence has been from the left about the Tories defeat
in the Commons over Europe.
In the last bulletin,
I suggested that the Parliamentary Labour Party should move a vote of
confidence in the government and thought it might bring forward the accusation
of being utopian. Lo and behold, the PLP has subsequently decided to organise a
Commons defeat over payments to the EU. Not so utopian, but what dangerous
issues. Tactically planting your tanks on the opposition’s lawn may make for
good parliamentary fun, but lining them up with right-wing Tories and jingoists
on two key issues: public spending cuts and the EU, should send political
shivers down the spine of every socialist.
At first
sight it may seem wonderful to see the Tories defeated – hence, presumably, the
silence from some of the left (however, not all) – but attacking on these two issues
undermines what we are fighting against daily: cuts and nationalism. Where we
need to be is not lined up with the Tory right, but with workers who are
fighting back across Europe; we should be preparing common ground by fighting
ourselves; organising what we can for the ETUC
day of action on 14
November – see also the PCS statement; and getting as many comrades as
possible along to Cardiff TUC meeting on the 19th.
What should
we be supporting? Well the European Left position is a good start and the
Marxists economist Michael Roberts again repeated this week a strong European socialist case. So
– yes please, PLP, move a vote of no confidence in the Tories that we can all
mobilise around: one that directly attacks the Tories’ ‘scorched earth’ polices
on everything the working class has fought for and holds dear.
Left roundup
Labour
Representation Committee (LRC) hold their (our) annual conference in London this Saturday, 10th November,
and the link provides details of registration and motions. The LRC have also
produced an analysis of left motions that were passed at the Labour Party
conference. It is interesting how we have to dig around behind all
grandstanding of the speeches to find out what happened at the real business of
the conference.
Here is something called the Welfare News Service which brings
together some frightening information about the numbers of families and what
areas will be hit by the next stage of benefits cuts in April 2013. We need to
dig into this information and identify what is going to happen in Wales and in
our local areas, so we can start to mobilise those affected and who wish to
fight. A good example is the ‘We are the poor’ meeting in Cardiff that was held on
2 November.
Internationally,
the miners’ strikes in South Africa are reaching a critical stage – one of the
miners’ leaders spoke in Cardiff last night and this Facebook page for the event also gives details of how to give
financial support. In Europe, the rise of the fascists in Greece is a concern
for us all as our own poor political judgement could allow this to happen: a fightback is possible. Links, the international journal of socialist
renewal, can be followed through their website or through Facebook and has a sister
called the Green Left Weekly. Their political approach is similar
to that of Red Pepper and it is stimulating to read articles where just reading
the ‘position’ statement in the last paragraph is not sufficient – if you know
what I mean!
Finally,
although it is too late to attend, Llafur, which used to be the Welsh Labour History Society, had its AGM a few
weeks ago, but the speaker list is useful as it indicates some of
the more recent Welsh labour history research.
Labour Party
The Welsh Labour website is here. Stephen
Doughty’s campaign in
Cardiff South & Penarth is looking for support and the Police Commissioner
elections draw near. Additional leverage for economic growth in Wales was Jane
Hutt’s verdict on the in principle agreement for Wales to receive capital borrowing powers.
All the best
Darren Williams WLG Secretary
Len Arthur WLG Assistant Secretary
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