The Socialist Campaign Group Supporters Network, launched in Leeds last year We welcome letters on any subject but please keep them brief. Letters over 350 words will be cut. Send your letters to: Socialist Outlook PO Box 1109, London, N4 2UU the people they are supposed to serve. In short we are working to fulfil a vision of socialism and our actions must be judged by that vision. The Labour Party is not an island (although it often feels like it). The Socialist Campaign Network must therefore furn local Labour Parties into a participatory and campaigning organisations reaching to new sell-out SO NEW realism has come to the pages of Socialist Cutlook with a disgraceful cover-up for the reasons for the defeat of the RMT on London Underground last November (see SO 33).
Heaping all the blame on the ASLER your atticle lets the RMT bureaucracy completely off the hook. I suppose you feel you nave to wind up ur defeat in this way because the bureaucrats had the sense so inveigle the leadership of the LT Dis trici Council into endorsing their ac bons at every stage - a Dstka Council you characterise as dominated by 'class fighters'.
Unfortunately, it is no excuse to explain the LT debacle on the role afor all they only did what was expected of them.
Rather we need to ask why, if the conditions never existed to win the dispute, the strike was ever threatened, given that the withdra wal of the threat only led to a deepening of the deloat And if the conditions did exist for a strike, what went wrong in the RMT's actions to cause the morale cessiul ballots for action, to be so rapidly lost?
Groundswell
On the first point, the feeling for action was not limited to 100 or so mike, do you sai, but wad real groundswet in the wako of the upsurge in support of the miners.
The conditions to win did exist, despite foar of managemont ins Why was morale lost? First, one has to ask why the strike was called by RMT in advance of the ASLEF alot? This made it inevitable that action by their own members.
Either the deasion was a cyre cal manoeuvre, or caused by overconfidence among the 'class Sghtprepared to gamble on morale to expose ASLER By calling for a strike before the ASLEF ballot, the ASLEF leader ship were let off the hook.
Second, one has to ask why, on the Friday before the strike, when it was becoming dear that morale was tading because the lack of ASLEF back-up, no attempt was made to delay the RMT strike? would have been possible to postthan just cancel it. The talks at ACAS were a perfect excuse for such action.
Combese capitulation was not called for. A delay in the strike, to wait for the ASLEF decision, could have prepared the basis for joint cfon and a firming-up of morale Y mume the ASLE- leadershi would have tried to duck the fight, just like the RMT leadership, but a second successful ballot would have made this difficult.
A senior member of the District Council said that no delay in the suite was posade under undr rules; but to call it off altogether apparently was! The RMT bureaucracy used ASLEF as an excuse for their capitulation. The actions of bureaucracy this gift, neatly wrapped, on a plate.
Greg Tucker, South London