Harry Sloan looks at June 10

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Todd: Class-war prisoner! ing" the government to drop Tebhit's anti-union Bill which is soon to become law.

TUC spokespeople claimed that millions of leaflets were distribufight against the Tories.

Recognising the failure of the London Labour Party EC to lead a fight in the last round of Heseltine it is very encouraging that a number of London Region EC members (including known supporters of Militant) are also sponsoring this conference.

The central task faced by this conference is the need to organise a fight to tackle the Tories that goes well beyond the Council chamber and well beyond the boundaries of each particular borough.

The lesson of Lambeth is that while resistance must begin at local level, a single borough cannot try to or pretend to stand alone. The other lesson is that it is necessary to organise the resistance to mishipen.

ted outside stations, factories and on High Streets on June 10.

It is, not even worth debating the truth of this claim or whether in fact the two-colour leaflets remainHeseltine which is rooted in the workplaces, estates, and labour movement organisations.

Socialist Organiser welcomes the June 19 conference and the proposal to initiate the Association of Socialist Councillors as a way of linking all those Councillors - whether in Labour majorities or not -who are prepared to implement the Briefing policy statement.

Only by campaigning on policies along the lines of that statement can the drift towards "councillor socialism" be halted; and the drive outwards into mobilising the community and labour movement be achieved.

The necessary direct challenge to the District Auditor (possibly Heseltine's only real weapon ed unopened in their boxes in union district offices. The fact is that the leaflet itself - plainly angled at non-trade unionists - said next to nothing and asked nobody to do anything.

And while it may have offered a day in the sun for a handful of over-paid union bureaucrats, 'Union Day' was in no sense an attempts to mobilise the trade union rank and file.

Two years ago on May 14 1980 the TUC held a so-called 'Day of Action' against Prior's Employment Bill - in the run-up to which union leaders argued time and again against any strike action.

In the event and in the teeth of a press witchhunt, hundreds of thousande nf workere tank artian ALLO UI VULACID LUUD ALUULI despite the lack of any official call. But ever since TUC leaders have referred to May 14 as their stock example of workers being now) can only be mounted by those determined to stick to the policy of defending "jobs, services and living standards of the people of London"

Showdown

The ground must be prepared for showdown with this government. This means:

*opposing privatisation of council services;

*refusing to put up rents;

*campaigning for nuclear free London and scrapping of all Civil Defence:

*breaking up Tory control of national wage bargaining bodies, to settle on wage increases that break the Tory norms *refusing to carry o "unwilling" to fight Tory anti-union legislation.

For June 10, there has been a studious attempt to avoid even the term 'Day of Action' . But this does not mean that union leaders will not use the almost complete lack of any activity on that day as an excuse for their inevitable complete capitulation before the Tebbit Bill.

This grim pattern of organised inaction was broken in only a few bastions of trade union strength. Dockers, following a lead from their unofficial shop stewards — and at the same time underlining a separate grievance of their own on jobs and conditions -struck for the day in Livernonl Norriff Normart Cardiff, Iewpurk, Swansea, Ayr and Kings Lynn, with partial strikes at Hull and Felixstowe.

Shipyard wørkers at Cammel Lairds too downed STEVEN CORBISHLEY looks at the issues before the conference "Running London Our Way' called ing.

The conference is on June 19 at County Hall.

of the provisions of Tebbit's anti-union Bill;

*using local council resources to campaign for occupations against redundancies;

*supporting NHS workers fighting defend living standards.

And as long as the fight to stop the Tory attacks also focusses on building effective alliances at rank and file level between Labour Party members, trade union activists, and community organisations, especially those of blacks and women, then the Tories will face a real threat.

Such a threat frightens the pants off Labour' PLP leadership. The ASC should also take up a fight within the right wing's bastion - the national Local Government Confererice CApE 40p plus postage from Socialist Organiser, 28 Middle Lane, London N8

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