Labour NEC bends the party rules by Vladimir Derer

Scan page 2

THE National Executive Committee (NEC) has always been famous for its flexibility in interpreting the rules to its own advantage, varying from extreme rigidity to extreme permissiveness, depending on the circumstances. This year it has gone one better, and is actually attempting an outright breach of wing Labour people. the rules covering who is entitlLed to stand for the NEC.

Standing Order 4 (3)(c) of the Party Constitution lays down that "only persons appointed to attend Annual Party Conference labour movement. as Delegates, or, in the case of Division I and Division IV, Members of Parliament or dulyendorsed Candidates attending as ex-officio members of Conference, shall be eligible for nomination for a seat on the NEC" • Clause XIV (10) of the explanation alone. Rules for CLPs states: "An election shall cancel any Parliamentary candidature"

It is therefore clear that, words or appeals. immediately after a General Election, under the Constitution there are as yet no "duly endorsed Candidates" , and only full our enemies.

delegates or MPs can be nominated for the NEC. In the past these qualifications have always would have been better organised too. been scrupulously applied.

As a special concession, defeated parliamentary candidates were allowed to attend the 1979 Conference as guests, and even to speak in the debate on the General Election which had taken place not long before. Never was there any suggestion that they should be given the status of ex officio delegates and allowed to stand for the NEC.

Bishops Stortford. -•This year, however, the NEC has taken it upon itself to write to all CLPs that "defeated candidates will be regarded as duly front, we have to organise the revolutionaries. endorsed candidates for the purpose of nomination to the NEC".

The Conference Arrangements Committee (CAC) has pointed out that this is completely out of order, and is advising Conferenfrequent. ce to treat the following nominaWe need to prepare. tions as invalid:

sometimes scab on the fight against the Tories.

politics a material force in the class struggle. OUR reporter Patrick Spilling Such organising is an irreplaceable part of the work of Social- has been visiting US positions in Lebanon and brings this first hand report from the peacekeeping forces. "Look bud" • The GI rolled his

Division III [Constituency

Section] Lestor, Joan; McGuiggan, John;

Spellar, John; Vaz, Keith Division IV (Women's Section] Hewitt, Patricia; Taylor, Ann.

Conference Arrangements Committee Morris, David.

Like the CAC, the NEC is charged with the duty of upholding the Party constitution. Nevertheless, on this question it has decided to ride roughshod over the Constitution. The 1983 Conference will open with the remarkable spectacle of the Party Chairman, in the name of the NEC, calling on delegates to defy the rules and overturn the CAC recommendation.

Why is the NEC so desperately anxious that these nominations should not be ruled out? Suggestions that it sees the matter as one of principle can be safely disregarded.

In their submissions to the NEC's 1979 Commission of Enquiry on party organisation, over half the CLPs urged that the present restrictions should be lifted. This was because of the way they discriminate against ordinary Party members and in favour of MPs, as CLPD has always argued. The NEC totally ignored the overwhelming opinion of the rank and file, making not a single mention of the matter at any of the three Annual Conferences which have taken place since then.

An alternative expianation is that the NEC is trying to "be fair" - in other words to give an unfair advantage — to former MPs. This too seems implausible, since to begin with the NEC seemed to have shown no great concern about their plight until the closing date for nominations, two whole months after the General Election. As long as it seemed that Tony Benn, Albert Booth, Stan Newens, and Audrey Wise would be disqualified by viitue of their dedefeat at the General Election, the NEC seemed to have been happy to keep silent.

The question was only raised when the NEC majority realised that its opponents had been chosen as Conference delegates, but Joan Lestor, John Spellar, and Ann Taylor had not. Far from showing fairness, the NEC majority is really trying to exploit the atmosphere following an election to pull off a blatantly partisan manoeuvre to bolster up the position of its present majority.

Even if the NEC was on firmer ground in its arguments for change, its chosen method for going about this makes a mockery of the need to uphold the Constitution. Conference has indeed the right to change the rules, but only by first carrying a constitutional amendment. Unlike affiliated organisations, the NEC is allowed to put forward such proposals at any time and for immediate consideration.

The proper course would therefore be for the NEC to submit a constitutional amendment, though even if this was done the change would not come into effect until the following year.

The fact that this is not being done only confirms suspicions that in reality the NEC majority supports the existing rules, and simply wants to be allowed to break them when this happens to suit its immediate purposes. CLPD urges all affiliated organisations to uphold the sovereighty of the Party Constitution against this flagrant violation by the NEC.

Maily Huril EXPRESS ühr Dailn Ürlegraplı THE Labour Campaign for Gay Rights held a small but informative fringe meeting at this year's Trades Union Congress at Blackpool. 'Delegates to the Conference listened as the three main speakers outlined ways in which lesbians and gay men suffer discrimination at work and how trade unionists can challenge this discrimination.

Brian West from LCGR spoke about the experience of losing his job simply because he was gay and how his trade union had failed to give him support. He also talked about how LCGR is working to increase its support within the union movement.

Geoff Hardy from the Gay Teachers Group described the impact the group had on the National Union of Teachers conference held in Jersey, where male homosexuality is illegal. He stressed the value of having gay groups within trade unions and for them to work closely with heterosexual allies to ensure that gay rights had the widest support.

Sexism

Sheila Smith, the chairperson of NALGO's Equal Opportunities Committee and a National Executive member, spoke about recent NALGO publications on gay rights, sexism and sexual harassment at work. She saw these as úseful ways of raising sexual politics amongst trade unionists and convincing them that gay rights was a trade union issue.

Delegates at the meeting stressed the importance of using the work done by NALGO as a model for their own unions. They also felt that LCGR could play an important role in improving communications between gay groups in the unions and in coordinating pressure on the TUC to adopt an equal opportunities policy which included sexual orientation. cunningly keeping out of sight and letting the US take the weight of criticism but every. one knows that none of the Syrian, Palestinian or what-

----- pull-quotes -----

Stin campaign at TUC