Policies Labour Vintanu THE MASS protests breaking out across Europe against Shell's proposals to dump a massive oil rig in the North Sea show the depth of feeling people havé for the environment.
They also demonstrate the distrust for multinationals that exists - it is clear to all that they care for nothing but the dollar.
In Britain, activists have picketed 100 Shell stations across the country.
The rig continues to make slow progress across the Atlantic to its dumping site. It is trailed by the Greenpeace ship Altair.
Water cannon Two Greenpeace members are on board. A Shell flotilla's use of watercannon to stop them being supplied with food and dry clothes has been unsuccessful - a Greenpeace helicopter broke through the barrage bringing supplies for the two.
The cannons are strong enough to break windows and smash partitions.
The 14,500 ton rig is said to contain at least 130 tons of toxic substances, including 100 tons of partially radioactive oil sludge and large and large amounts of toxic heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury and lead, as well as toxins such as PCBs.
The boycott campaign has been massively successful in Germany. Managers are talking about "drastic losses". The company's sales have been cut by at least a fifth. Shell stations in Hamburg and Buxtehude have been set on fire.
Helmot Kohl was forced lecture Major at their discussions in Nova Scotia over Britain's support for Shell.
At this month's North Sea Conference Britain remained the only country still dumping sewage sludge into the sea, the only one to discharge oil-contaminated cuttings from rigs and the only one not to have drawn up an action plan to reduce pollution by nitrogen and phosphorus.
It was also way behind in reducing pollution by toxic metals and regulating ships' waste discharges.
The Danish environment minister Svend Auken called on motorists to boycott shell until they back down.
In an embarrassing statement for Shell Heeremac. one of their main off-shore contractors, has said that there is no need to dump the Brent Spar at sea: "there are no environmental, safety or economic reasons not to tow this old platform ashore" one of their spokespersons said. request of the union alone.
A successful battle for six per cent by ASLEF and RMT would be a massive setback for the Tory's pay policy.
It would demonstrate the effectiveness of industrial action - a much needed shot in the arm for organised labour.