the Activist

Issue 57
June 2015

Bulletin of Socialist Party members in

Serious Questions Avoided at ADM
Usdaws recent Annual Delegate Meeting (ADM) was a
relatively quiet affair as opposed to the challenge of the
position of the leadership
from the floor at ADM over
the last few year.
Whilst important motions
were passed including calling
for renationalisation of the
three remaining deep coal
mines that are due to close
and opposition to TTIP &
benefit smart cards, several of
the more controversial progressive motions were
manouevered off the conference agenda.
The only issue where this
wasnt the case was on the
question of prostitution where
branch reps stood defiant.
The blatant bullying backfired
of the leadership who lost the
vote against it.
Combined with no questions
been allowed to the guest
speaker on behalf of Labour,
Chukka Ummuna, then it

leaves the impression of a

stage-managed conference
designed to not cause too
many ripples ahead of the
general election.
One of the motions manouvered off the agenda by pressure from standing orders
was an amendment calling for
a minimum wage of 10 an
hour now, as supported by
the TUC, a bid advance on
the paltry offering of Labour
of 8 an hour in 2020.
S1 similarly wasnt accompanied by a bribe this year having been secured in advance.

9th annual conference takes place on

Saturday 4th July, Conway Hall 25 Red
Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL
11am-4.30am
Speakers include:
Mark Serwotka, PCS General Secretary;
Matt Wrack, FBU General Secretary;
Dave Smith, Anti-blacklist campaigner;
Ronnie Draper, BFAWU General Secretary
See www.shopstewards.net for info

Left
Advances
Further
Although not reflected
on the floor of ADM as
in the last two years, the
pre-ADM Broad Left
meeting this year saw a
much increased atten-

dance.
This reflects the huge vote
won by Broad Left president
candidate, Socialist Party
member Amy Murphy. With
45% of the vote it is the closest the left has come to winning a national officer position
in years and reflects the huge
discontent at the lack of a serious response from the union.
The meeting agreed to organise divisional Broad Lefts
with co-ordinators in each division. Also agreed was the
need to plan to make sure
progressive rule changes get
on the agenda at ADM 2017.
Supporters of the Activist also
held a successful fringe meeting.

Inside:
p2
p3
p4
p5

Labour leadership election

Huge anti-austerity demo
Irish Dunnes Stores Strikes
Mailbag / Clerys lockout

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Bulletin of Socialist Party members in USDAW

Labour Leadership: Can Corbyn Win? Will it change anything?

The resignation of Ed Miliband
the day after the election has
opened up a leadership election
within the Labour Party. Initially a
debate between different shades
of neo-liberal supporting rightwingers, the entry of left-Labour
MP Jeremy Corbyn into the election has enlivened the debate.
In the immediate aftermath of the
election, those on the right of the
party sought to draw entirely the
wrong conclusions from Labours
defeat. Out of the woodwork
creeped people such as Peter
Mandelson and Tony Blair to tell
Labour they needed to be more
aspirational.
Yet it was Labours incoherent
message and failure to mount a
serious alternative to the Tories
which cost them the election.
They failed to challenge the Tory
myth that overspending on public
services has led to the countrys
national deficit (although that
would mean admitting it was due
to bailing out the finance sector).
In Scotland where the SNP and
Nicola Sturgeon used antiausterity rhetoric (despite like Labour councils actually implementing Tory cuts) then the SNP won
a landslide, 56 of 59 seats,
mostly at the expense of Labour.

Corbyn Enters the Race

Corbyn entered the leadership
election late, and after securing
the nominations of the handful of
genuinely left MPs was struggling, much like John McDonald
five years ago, to reach the ballot
paper.
That he did do so, was due to
right-wingers, who have openly
said they will not vote or campaign for him. This includes
openly right-wing MPs such as

Frank Field and David Lammy,

but also some who say they are
on the left, such as newly elected
Sheffield Hallam MP Louise
Haigh who is supporting Andy
Burnham.
Rather than showing a left resurgence in the Labour Party, it
shows just how far the party has
drifted to the right.

One Member, One Vote

The implementation of the Collins
review has abolished the previous electoral college system,
where undemocratically Labour
MPs had 1/3 of the total vote. But
it also removed the collective
voice of the unions who also had
a third of the vote.
It was the trade union section of
the vote, of political levy paying
members, who were the left-most
section of the leadership electorate in 2010. Now these same
people will have to register themselves as Labour supporters in
order to vote. Many will be so uninspired by the leadership debate
they not do so.
But the partys individual membership, which was the bastion of
the left in the 1980s when Tony
Benn stood for leader and deputy
leader, is now much further to the
right. Only 9% of constituency
members voted for the most left
candidate who made it to the ballot paper in 2010, Diane Abbott.
Of course, the unknown factor is
the introduction of a US primary
style system where party supporters can register to vote. Trade
unionists who pay the political
levy can do so for free, and other
people have to pay 3.
There are some who may see
this as allowing Labours natural

Jeremy Corbyn, left Labour MP

supporters to finally have a say

and swing the party back to the
left. But the introduction of these
measures was brought in to
strengthen the right in the party
by diluting the voice of the organised working class in the trade
unions even further.

Can Corbyns Campaign

Change Labour?
For there to be a possiblilty of
Labour swinging to the left, then
a mass campaign behind Corbyn
would have to develop. When
Tony Benn stood for deputy
leader in 1981 he did have mass
support behind him. In that campaign Benn held mass rallies,
with 2,000 attending one in Newcastle, he only narrowly missed
out on winning,
Undoubtedly, there is enthusiasm
amongst a layer of trade unionists for Corbyns campaign, as
well as amongst some who may
be disappointed in a lack of a
breakthrough for those to the left
of Labour.

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Bulletin of Socialist Party members in USDAW

But amongst the newly radicalised young people who have
marched on the streets over the
last month and a half since the
election, there seems to be
hardly any registering of the election campaign at all. After all
there experience of Labour has
been a party of war in the Middle
East, increased costs to study at
university and putting up only
lacklustre resistance to Tory austerity.
For those who believe that Labour can be reclaimed, then the
only viable option on the ballot
paper is Jeremy Corbyn. Any union which fails to back him, exposes the hollowness of their
claims to be trying to change Labour. Unfortunately, given Us-

daws past track record of backing Blairites such as Jim Murphy,

then it is likely that Usdaws leadership will recommend support
for a right-wing candidate.
But there are also huge obstacles
to Labour moving to the right in
terms of its structures and policies. The vast majority of Labour
MPs support the 3 candidates on
the right who are putting forward
a platform so indistinguishable
from the Conservatives, Channel
4 were led to ask the candidates
Why dont you just join the Tory
party?
Labours policy is not decided
democratically at its annual conference, but by their National Policy Forum. At the pre-election fo-

rum last year, a vote to reject the

Tories spending plans was defeated 127-14.
This means that even if Corbyn
wins, his leadership would be
sabotaged by the right-wing from
day one. Corbyn winning or losing will both demonstrate once
again the dead-end that Labour
has become as a vehicle for
working class political representation.
The Activist has long argued that
a new workers party is a necessity for workers to gain a political
voice, a fact which will again be
demonstrated by the outcome of
this election. We support the
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition as a step in that direction.

Huge Anti-Austerity Demo in London

A vast mass of people compressed
into the streets next to the Bank of
England on Saturday 20 June, eager
to show their anger and opposition
to the Tory government's vicious
austerity agenda.
Estimates of the huge turnout
ranged from 70,000 to over 200,000.
The mood was very buoyant, as the
size of the demo brought home to
everyone that the fightback against
Cameron's plans has really begun,
and this just six weeks after the
shock result of the general election.
After an opening rally of speakers
invited by the demo organisers - the
People's Assembly - the march set
off through the City of London, packing the streets through to Blackfriars
and then along Fleet Street towards
its destination - Parliament Square.
Many of the individuals and groups who came from all over the country were new to demonstrating. Young
people were strongly present. All
clearly felt that they can't sit back
and watch a renewed onslaught on
people's living standards, while the

richest get richer.

Trade unionists were also key participators, though not on this occasion in a highly organised form with
large blocks of union contingents,
which are an inspiring and important
hallmark of TUC-led demonstrations.
Self-made placards were prominent,
with inventive and humorous messages condemning austerity - from
the carefully polite to the rude or
crude.
The hundreds of placards on offer
from the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC)
and those of the Socialist Party were
eagerly snapped up,
until all were gone.

on the need to build for a 24-hour

general strike meeting widespread
support.
A number of the anti-cuts candidates
who stood for TUSC in the 7th May
elections spoke from a TUSC stage
while the marchers were assembling, attracting a lot of interest.
Later, the Socialist Party hosted a
stage on Whitehall, with speakers
from it including former 'Liverpool 47'
councillor Tony Mulhearn who was
in the leadership of the major Liverpool anti-cuts battle in the 1980s that
achieved victory.

Thousands of Socialist Party leaflets

headed "Organise!
Strike! Resist! to
smash Tory austerity" were also enthusiastically taken,
with their message

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Bulletin of Socialist Party members in USDAW

Solidarity with Dunnes Stores Workers in Ireland

Workers for Dunnes Stores, one of
Irelands retail giants have been embroiled in a fierce battle over secure
contracts, decent pay and union recognition.
The Dunnes workers, could be workers in any company that is ununionised in Britain where the same working conditions prevail.
But the difference is, in the face of
intimidation, workers have taken
strike action on 2nd April and held a
3,000 strong march in Dublin on June
7th. To keep up with their campaign,
v
i
s
i
t
:
https://www.facebook.com/
DecencyForDunnesWorkers
Below we print an article from the
website of the Socialist Party in Ireland giving info on the background of
the Dunnes family.

The Dunnes family dossier

By Mick Barry
The Dunne family own and control 1.78 billion making them one
of the richest families in Ireland.
Frank Dunne is the 19th richest
person in Ireland with 445 million. Margaret Heffernan is the
25th richest person with 389 million.
Exploitation of workers at home
and abroad, union busting and
political corruption have all played
a part in the rise of the Dunne
family empire.
It took a three year strike by Mandate shopworkers in the mid
1980s to force the company to
take goods produced by slave
labour in apartheid South Africa
off their shelves. To this day Dunnes continue to stock Israeli
goods produced in colonial settlements in the occupied Palestinian
territories.
Workers rights a shameful
record
Closer to home Dunnes are leading the way with low hour con-

tracts and anti-worker

rosters policies they
refuse to even discuss
with representatives
of their workforce.
The company does
not negotiate with
trade unions and
doesnt usually show
up at Labour Court or
Labour
Relations
Commission hearings.
In 2005 they sacked a
worker, Joanne Delaney, for the crime
of wearing a union badge.
Mandates Assistant General Secretary Gerry Light said recently of
Dunnes boss Margaret Heffernan
and her dictatorial style: Shes
not so much anti-union as antiopposition.
The refusal by Dunnes to entertain grievances is reflected in the
fact that the company has been
named as defendant in 448 cases
in the High Court in the last 5
years.
Thanks, big fella
When Ben Dunne Jr was arrested
in a Florida hotel in 1992 not only
did it open up a window on his
lifestyle, which included cocaine
and buying sex, but kick-started a
battle with his siblings for control
of the Dunnes empire which
spilled secrets on political corruption and resulted in a tribunal of
investigation.
This tribunal revealed that Ben
Dunne had made more than 1.3
million pounds in secret payments
to soon-to-be disgraced Fianna
Fil Taoiseach Charles Haughey.
What is remembered by the
whole country is the exchange
between Dunne and Haughey
about a payment made on top of
the 1.3 million pounds which later
was recounted at the tribunal: Heres something for yourself (Dunne), Thanks, big

fella (Haughey).
Whats less well remembered is
the fact that Haughey arranged
meetings for Dunne and his tax
advisor with the then Chairman of
the Revenue Commissioners
Seamus Parcir to discuss the
Dunne family trust tax assessment.
Cash for favours
The assessment was revised
downward under Mr Parcirs supervision from 39 million pounds
to 16 million pounds.
Ben Dunne was an equal opportunities donator to Irelands big
business parties. As well as making donations to Fianna Fils
Haughey he also gave money to
Fine Gaels Michael Lowry.
The rise of the Dunne family is
sometimes retailed by supporters
of capitalism as a rags to riches
story, the story of Ben Dunne Sr
who started a little shop in Cork in
the 1940s to sell food and clothes
to working class people and who
built it up into an empire with
stores in Ireland North and South,
England, Scotland and Spain.
But the facts are in plain view and
cannot be hidden. If the rise of
the Dunnes is symbolic of the
Irish capitalist class as a whole,
its symbolic of a class that is rotten and doesnt deserve to rule.

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Bulletin of Socialist Party members in USDAW

Mailbag
Impressions of BFAWU Conference
Dear Activist,
I was recently invited as a guest of
the Bakers, Food & Allied Workers
Union (BFAWU) to attend their
conference in Stockport.
Over the past year Ive worked with
BFAWU in their Fast Food Rights
campaign protesting outside companies such as McDonalds against
low pay and zero-hour contracts. It
was this that had me invited as a
guest.
In many ways the way the conference was organised was refreshing. Instead of right-wing figures in
Labour such as Andy Burnham or
Chuka Ummuna, the conference
heard left-wing Labour figures like
John McDonnell and had other
guest speakers like Ricky
Tomlinson & PCS union leader
Mark Serwotka.
The standing orders committee
helped delegates to get motions
and emergency motions on the
agenda, instead of being used to
quietly dispose of motions the
leadership was politically opposed
toat this conference they took
the debate to the conference floor.
But key to all this was the fighting
attitude of conference delegates.
Not just in keeping their own leaders accountable, but also in fighting for a decent living wage.
This confidence combined with
their Fast Food Rights campaign
has brought young people into
their ranks which showed on the
conference floor.
If only Usdaw took a similar attitude with the millions of unorganised retail workers!
An activist

Usdaw General Secretaries

and the Honours system
In the recent Queens birthday
honours list, another trade union
general secretary accepted a
knighthood for services to the
state, I wondered what the attitude
was of previous Usdaw general
secretaries were to bending their
knee in front of the Queen.
1947: Joseph Hallsworth
(Knighthood)
1949: Alan Birch (Knighthood)
1962: Alf Allen (Lordship)
1979: Bill Whatley (OBE)
1986: Garfield Davies (Lordship)
1997: Bill Connor (Knighthood)
2004: John Hannett
Lets hope John Hannett takes a
principle stand and refuses to have
anything to do with this archaic
honours system.
Republican Greetings
Jack (London)

Usdaw Members Support

the Dunnes Workers
I was down in Dublin on Saturday
6th June along with about 20 others from Usdaw supporting Mandate union on a protest march for
Dunnes stores workers. (see pg4)
It was good protest, some Dunne's
workers on the platform gave great
speeches.
They are definitely up for the fight.
Theres great solidarity from the
workforce, and Mandate backing
them all the way.
They have put the challenge up to
the company I can definitely see
them out on strike again
By a Northern Ireland Usdaw
member

Clerys workers
locked out in Dublin
Workers at iconic department
store Clerys have been locked out
for around two weeks.
The lockout is due to private equity firm, Gordon Brothers, engaging in brutal asset stripping.
Gordon Brothers restructured the
company with the official primary
objective of preserving Clerys
iconic store on OConnell Street.
Yet, within these restructuring
measures, which including closing
two other Clerys stores, were the
seeds of the lockout. The company was split in two, with an operating company (op-co) managing the business. The property
and others assets became their
own separate company with the
op-co paying an hefty rent to the
property company.
As property prices have recovered in Ireland, Gordon Brothers
have decided they can make
more money by selling the property.
This is not the first instance of
Gordon Brothers doing this.
Spanish retailer Blanco saw 45 of
250 stores close under their ownership before being sold off.
Rather than being placed in the
hands of speculators, the Activist
believes key retail and distribution
companies should be brought into
public ownership with their resources organised democratically.
Workers at Clerys, members of
Mandate & SIPTU, have received
fantastic solidarity greetings from
trade unions in Ireland, Britain
and across the world.
To find out more about their campaign - see their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/
justiceforclerysworkers

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