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NUM must act JOHN HARRIS Stan THIS YEAR's conference of the National Union of Mineworkers (held in Perth last week) was packed out with fighting speeches by delegates_ and members of the National Executive Committee.

Central to any fightback by miners against the Tories' attacks had to be a rebuilding of the Triple Alliance, with railworkers and steelworkers: 'The Triple Alliance must beome a fighting alliance instead of a cripple alliance. Two of the cripples have already gone. We had one. The NUR had another.' And there was no question of the union allowing itself to be hamstrung by the Tories' anti-union legislation: 'All the motions passed this week will mean nothing unless we make it specific figures, although it did state the goal of seeing 'our miners at the top of the industrial wages league.' More disturbing was the vagueness of the emergency resolution on Cardowan. Whilst condemning the NCB's tactics as 'vicious, bullying and blackmail', the resolution merely pledged conference's support 'to the Cardowan men and to any action which they feel is necessary to save their pit.? the background to this motion, it should be stressed, was that the day before miners at Polmaise and Bogside pits had struck spontaneously to prevent transfers from Cardowan. Yet neither from Cardowan itself, nor from the two pits on strike, were any speakers given the opportunity to address the conference.)

Re-election Finally, a rules alteration meant that all union officials had to stand for re-election every five years - if elected after Ist August 1983. So Scargill himself, elected before this date, does not need to stand for re-election and could have a job tor ever.

The vagueness of the motions was justified as good tactics. By not fixing a specific amount for the wage demand, or a particular time for a ballot on fighting closures, the argument went, it would be easier to out-manoeuvre the NCB and prevent the NCB driving a wedge between the union leadership and the rank and file.

Emptiness

Even the emptiness the emergency resolution on Cardowan was interpreted by Scargill as meaning that the NEC could endorse strike action in Scotland in defence of Cardowan, or any other area in defence of jobs. But the failure to use the conference to build immediate and active support for the struggles then taking place (Cardowan, Polmaise and Bogside) must place a massive question mark against both the ability and will of members of DURING the health workers' dispute eight pickets were arrested and charged with obstruction during a mass picket out-

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pursue NHS Dickets