Two conventions that can re-shape the left
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The new year is going to get off with speaking. It starts with the Convention of the Left on January 25 to launch Respect - the Unity Coalition, and then a fortnight later the Convention of the Trade Union Left, on February 7 will discuss the issue of trade union representation directly as it affects the unions.
Over 60 trade union bodies have sponsored the latter Convention. The two events are a part of the same process and are fully complementary.
The key development with the Convention of the Trade Union Left is that Billy Hayes has agreed to speak at it. He will be representing the Reclaim the Labour Party Campaign. He has agreed to present ... the reclaim the Labour Party side of the debate, providing the normal rules of debate apply. This means that he will get equal time to present his case for reclaiming the Labour Party as Mark Serwotka and that the debate will be balanced between the two sides. Serwotka will be presenting the case for building an alternative outside of the Labour Party. UNISON members ignore Prentis
At the same time Dave Prentis has written to UNISON regions and branches telling them they are not entitled to sponsor the Congress and that they should withdraw their support. This appears to have had very little effect, in fact Geoff Martin, the London Region convenor of UNISON is speaking at the Congress.
DECENT UNISON Fire fighters and UNISON council staff - political issues must be answered
All this makes the Convention extremely important for the political evolution of the
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RAY OFFICIAL* UNISON PICKET
trade union left and the issue of labour representation. It will, with Bob Crow, RMT General Secretary, also speaking at the con ference, be the debate of the awkwar squad on the central political issue facing the
The awkward squad has always had differ ent views within it on the feasibility o reclaiming the Labour Party. Bob Crow an Mark Serwotka have long represented the most radical wing of the debate - even wher the Campaign to Reclaim Labour was set up last autumn.
Since then the RMT has changed its rule to allow to support parties other thar Labour and have drastically reduced its pay ments to Labour after eight years of ne Labour government. Now the RMT is allow ing its Scottish region to break from Labou and affiliate to the SSP. Something serious i certainly going on in the unions in their rela tions with Labour Sponsor it now
In England the involvement of the trad union left will be absolutely crucial to th development of Respect. To have this debate presented in front of what promises to be the largest rank-and-file trade union confer ence for many years will be extremel important.
Already well over 50 trade union bodie regions, districts, branches and other bodie such as trades councils have sponsored th conference - which was initiated by the Socialist Alliance. There is less than a month left to build this event. If your branch o trade union organisation has not yet spon sored the convention make sure that it doe so at its january meeting