WHAT MIGHT have been a great conference in the end was a passably good one. As Arthur Scargill said in summary, "If this conference is nothbut good speeches then nothing will be realised. What is required is a massive campaign." Whether or not such a campaign will emerge is still too early to say. Around 500 delegates did hear a series of good speeches. Early on Shirley Winter from Magnet • earned a standing ovation. But this was then followed by a lack lustre Jimmy Nolan HOTe interested 1n praising the SLP than drawing any lessons from the Liverpool Dockers dispute. This set the pattern. Whilst there were speeches from the floor, delegates could be forgiven for believing that the whole thing had Threatening marches: Edmonds been carved up in advance.
Whilst the organisers tried to resist the pressure to turn the day into an SLP recruitment exercise, the threat that this was all there was lingered at the back of one's mind. Having painted themselves into a corner by committing themselves to a massively long list of platform speakers it is perhaps excusable that no firm practical discussion or decisions were taken. Instead the conference agreed to a basic statement, after little debate, and then accepted that decisions on all major questions, plans of action, election of officers and a steering committee will take place at future meetings to be held on April 18.
A recall conference is to be called before July 1. Only at those of the campaign be confirmed. The maximum effort need to be made to mobilise for April 18 to ensure the healthy development of the campaign. Reclaim Our Rights has to take up three strands:
• Becoming a movement of support for all those in struggle, giving workers the confidence to fight As one speaker from the CWU put it, "Fear of the law is as dangerous as the law itself, as well as fighting to change the law we have to be ore. pared to break it." Building grass roots campaign out on the streets. The plans for regional conferchices and for march against the anti-union laws in a years time must focus on this aim. • Fighting in every union to call our so called leaders to account, placing demands on the TUC, and the Labour Party, to force them to act in our class' interests. As Geoff Martin from UNISON put it, "When John Edmonds said get out on the streets I was pleased. The question, John, is when are you going to do it? Our pressure has to trigger the TUC into calling a national demonstration."
Despite many problems, the Reclaim Our Rights conference must be marked a success.
If out of it we can build a broad, united campaign of resistance to the attacks on the trade union movement that Thatcher started and Blair is continuing, then it will have been useful.
But to confirm its potential it needs to sink roots deep inside the trade union movement.
We must set ourselves that task. MPs - they seem to have