comes to Britain Berufsverbot abuses, able to subsidise local council rents from their rates or poll tax income, will suddenly have tens of millions squeeze on local government porary new subsidy so such in- years, still council tenants will be mean fewer cuts or lower poll tax THE TORIES have introduced government bill into parlia- ment. It is an omnibus bill has not yet been entirely suc- revenue accounts of local authorities. Councils will not be or vice versa, This will have profound effects for tenants in many Labour authorities, which have in some cases used tens of millions of pounds of rate income to keep rents low in the inner cities. removed overight it would mean rents for council tenants in such authorities would literally double. The Tories have promised a tem- creases can be phased in over a few though, it means that local concils of pounds sloshing round in their accounts, which might levels than would otherwise bave proposes the another major new local designed to clear up loose where the Tories' 'ringfencing' of the housing If this subsidy was to be clobbered: Strangely enough
with the corpses of breakaway groups, most of them far more nig- nificant - at least numerically - at their launch than the SSP. This swing between the SNP and Labour indicates a conscious: mans opposition to Thatcher in Scotland, It also indicates ominously fot the SSP - that the main struggle is unfolding within and helween those two parties, leaving precious little ground for any new group to exist on, even one which attempts to address this central contradiction in Scottish It is possible forthe SSP to exist on the margins for a certain length of time, but only as a propaganda group - and then only if they key into the main debates, such as those identified with Scottish Lahour Action, that ue beginning to take place inside the Labour Jim Niblock Page 5 Margaret Stewart and J D Young - had previously been in the Labour Party, but neither they nor anyone else had conducted a cam- paign within the Labour Party us an SSP caucas to win over forces On the contrary, it was a case of Individuals resigning as in- divideals without any coberent political programme on which to base their "split other than sup- porting the ideal of an independent socialist Scotland. Parties which first declare themselves in this manner and only afterwards sct about the task of articulating a coherent programme, do not tend With Kinnock's diabolical per- lonnance, there is no shoitage of Labour Party members who are pig-sick. Ir is however, another malter entirely to mould those who may leave in frustration to join the SSP. into a unified and credible or- ganisation. The history of the Labour Party in Scotland is littered to their position. WITH AN APPROPRIATE sense of timing, the new politi- cal group - the Scottish Socialist Party, frst miet on November 5 to have informal discussions about the situation developing in Scottish politics. They have called a founding rally for February 25 in Glas- Though some leading SSP members have recently left the Labour Pauty, the spark which ig nited the pent-up frustration be- hind the formation of the SSP came from the bonfire which Sil- lars lit at the Govan By-election. Splits are, more often than not, messy affair based on accumu- lated frustration at the politics of the leadership, rather than a serious move to challenge the I would not be wholly accurate though to describe the SSP as a split from Labour Certainly, the Interim co-ordinators of the SSP -There's a nasty sting in the tail for those, mainly Tory, local authorities which subsidise rates from their rent income. This too will be made illegal Any subsidy will now have to go towards coun cil housing benctit costs. This sets: a very dangerous precedent. Local govemment has to date only ad ministered the housing henefit sys- tem. This measure will mean some gow City Hall. authorities will be financially sub The second main component of the bill concems the political ac- tivity of local government workers. After many media scare stories about alleged abuses (Jobs In the hoya/girls:) where.council- lors in one authority were employed in another, this hill will put an end to this so-called twin- tracking': It is imnic that Labour councils which introduced tendership. progressive equal opportunity employment policiex to sop the Old bay network of appoint- mente have been accused of such SOCIALIST OUTLOOK no 13 March 1989 sidising it.
ZIRCON RAID TOMORROL I.T.N. В.B.C. TODAY UP though he was k to let off Clive g technically grilty. s complete arbitruri-. have been omitted A jury was able because of the credibility of the