After Brighton, Left must organise TAKETHE FIGHTINTO THE UN ONS

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Conference - reports and comments from Bob Cryer, Reg Race, Nigel Williamson, William McKelvey and Ken Livingstone - pp.3,4,5.

and Martin Thomas

OUTSIDE Brighton conference centre last Sunday night, Labour Party leaders emerged after the vote on the deputy leadership into the crowd of delegates and visitors.

First Jim Callaghan came out, to a loud chorus of boos and jeers. Then Michael Foot: a little scattered booing, mostly uncertain silence.

Tony Benn followed - to meet noisy acclamation and

cheers. John Silkin - no-one paid any attention.

But what of Dennis Healey, the victor of the day?» Apparently he sneaked out the back way!

Scraped

Six months ago the right wing's aim was to keep Tony Benn's vote down to less than 30 percent, or even force him to withdraw. They wanted a 'vote of confidence' in Healey and his record, and clear support for him as successor to Foot.

Instead Healey barely scraped in, even after winning the NUPE vote. Despite their massive support from the press and the ruling class, the right wing failed.

We won a 49.6% vote and opened the way for new advances.

Healey's victory did underline how huge our tasks are. After two years ot terment, after repeated let-wing victories, the labour movement still approved as its deputy leader a man who declares that he will not serve in a Labour government carrying out conference policy, and who reaffirmed only a few days before conference that he would not be bound by the movement's decisions.

Destiny

We still have an enormous job to create a fighting left-wing that can rouse the labour movement and inspire it with the will and the confidence to control its own destiny - and then the destiny of society.

The pre-conference meeting of the mis-named Labour Solidarity' shows that the right wing has failed to strike roots in the constituencies.

The audience was so well-heeled that it could have been a Tory or SDP But they got their 50.4 per cent. And, through the weight of the block vote, they have swung round the NEC so that the right wing and the Foot/Kinnock/ Lestor centre now have a majority. They may well go on the offensive against the serious left.

The right wing still have great sources of strength. And however much we may wish for peace and unity in the Labour Party, they will have 'peaceful coexistence' rillianno. Honlou and Vinun.l only on their terms.

Right now, the ship, the deputy ship, and the NEC, in the hands of opponents of Party or of people who i fight for it. leaderleaderare all utright policy vill not And the rank and file is not so tame and miserable that we will passively tolerate a leadership that openly organises to obstruct the movement's policy on the Bomb, on wage controls, etc.

At the Solidarity meeting Roy Hattersley stressed that the right wing would fight for "month after month" and would make sure Benn was challenged if he won the deputy leadership.

The fight goes on. We need an organised left wing, fighting with the same tenacity as the right wing - but seeking to enlist the backing of the rank and file.

Our greatest weakness is the lack of an active mass membership in the Labour Only the Left can generate the energy and enthusiasm that can draw millions of workers into the Party, and into the discussion to hammer out policies for the socialist reconstruction of society.

Tony Benn's call for a re-founding of the Labour Representation Committee could not have been more timely.

Abstain

We need a left wing that fights to win; one that also fights against those who talk left, but who wind up on the other side when it comes to the crunch. Like Neil Kinnock and the Tribune MPs who ensured Healey's victory by abstaining.

Those MPs justified themselves by saying they supported 'the policies but not the personality'. In fact it is precisély because Tony Benn's personal role that he most deserves support.

The policies are indeed common currency - but

After Tribune MPs helped get Healey elected, Reg Race MP called for a new

socialist group in the Parliamentary Labour Party. See page 5 for years they have been represented by people who never fight the right wing, people whose dismal wisdom is: 'Not all is lost if Dennis wins' Now, for once, a leader of the Labour Left, instead of just making occasional speeches, has directly challenged the right wing - and stood up to the outraged hail of abuse, hysteria, and press smears.

Instead

Indeed, Benn's personal role has been much stronger than the policies. The policies - which are not just Benn's, of course, but the whole movement's -have many weaknesses.

Instead of a direction towards international socialism, there are import controls. Instead of a clear determination to win common ownership, there is vague talk of planning agreements and a new partnership between capital and labour' . Instead of a policy to replace the police and the hierarchical armed forces - the backbone of state repression against the workers' movement, dominated by hardbitten Tories - with a popular militia, the main proposal to deal with the State apparatus is 'increased ministerial control' But the political openingup of the labour movement through Benn's campaign creates the best conditions for debating the issues. As Tony Benn rightly says, there has been great educational work done in the last six months. continued on page 5

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