Water-thir » margin in Campaign for LABOUR by John Bloxam PARTI Democ

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THE result of the CLPD Party organisations, and 31% "consultative" ballot on regis- of trade union - but the tration was a virtual dead- result was very similar with heat: 67% of individual sup- 8› voting in favour and 80 porters voted. with 344 in against.

and 338 against. There was a regional variation in the smaller turn-out among voting. organisations affiliated to At the CLPD - 46% 01 Labour December 1 favour of registration now There was no significant CLPD EC on 8 nobody argued sion. To get this-mandate they tried to turn the ballot into a vote of contidence in themselves, the main originators ot CLPD.

Although they won a majority in the end. the ballot result wås cleariy a defeat for this strategy. and showed the solid feeling against registration.

Inside the Party, the vote at the CIPD AGM on whether it will openly siüi with CLPs defying the purge wil be the most important one.

For the CLPD. however. the registration question has also been important as the latest stage in a moch wider debate. At assoc over the last year has been whether C1 PI will remain consistently at the forefront of the fight for democracy and democratic rights inside the Party, or whether it will begin to bend and equivocate under the pressure of the new situa tion. Not surprisingly, this debate is reflected in a number of the resolutions for the AGM - on registration, but also on the register and resistance to expulsions.

Closely related to this debate has been the question of democracy inside • the Camp ign, and specifically the implementation of past AGM decisions, the treatment of disagreements and recently the use of open theats to split the CLPD.

This will also be a major issue at the AGM, and one of the resolutions condemning some of the practices has been submitted by CLPD's President. Joan Maynard. will be opened up to greater competition from the likes of GEC and Westinghouse for the installation of equipment.

There is now talk of maintenance also being put out to contract.

With the decision by BR that all BREL workshops are to be sold, with the exception of Shildon and Doncaster, the attacks on railworkers' jobs and conditions continue.

Limbo

And what are the leaders of the major rail union, the NUR, doing? With Weighel gone the union is in a stare of limbo awaiting inc election of a new Genera Secretary.

Weighell's policies

working with managemer to shed jobs, lines are depots in the hope : government money mus § as well. Railworkers canne: afford otherwise.

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Socialist Organiser no.114 January 6 1983 Page 14