MO MOWLAM, former darling of New Labour, has become the latest and most prominent figure to break ranks and criticise Tony Blair's increasingly discredited government.
Writing in the Sunday Mirror, Mowlam argues that New Labour is now widely seen as sleazier than the Tories, while Blair seems to regard himself as a president, with little time for domestic problems. Her anger, like that of many Labour activists, has been brought to a head by the threat that Blair will drag Britain into a war with Iraq at the behest of George Bush, with little or no debate in parliament or government.
And she quotes a nameless minister warning that "People think we are a load of shysters." Mowlam's criticisms follow strong words from other former ministers including Glenda Jackson and Frank Dobson, and growing evidence of unease among Labour's backbenchers at the way Blair's reactionary politics are alienating the party's traditional supporters.
The recent alliance between Blair and Italy's hard-line, right wing premier Berlusconi on deregulation and privatisation within the EU, produced an angry outburst even from the normally docile TUC leader John Monks, who branded it "bloody stupid".
But the first few months of 2002 have seen a succession of events and policy decisions wnich contirm that New Labour, lacking any principles or policies of its own, is increasingly following the lead of big business.
At the beginning of March Blair chose to appear alongside a privatised rail company boss to launch a 30-page glossy pamphlet entitled "Reforming our Public Services", which served mainly to demand even more "flexibility" from pubiersector workers, and insist that public services should be subject to more competition and invasion from private sector providers.
Even while union leaders denounced this new declaration of war on public service workers, Blair got up to make a speech supposedly to settle growing doubts of Labour activists: instead he presented a vacuous series of waffling assertions that effectively reaffirmed New Labour's total lack of guiding principles.
"There is a clear road map to our destination hit cometimes it can seem as if it were a mere technocratic exercise, well or less well managed, but with no overriding purpose to it," he burbled. Indeed frustration is often as much over Labour's complete inability to manage or deliver on promised policlac as ric abolt ire incro-cinov raze. tionary political programme.
The complete dog's breakfast that has been made over reform of the House of Lords, the failure to deliver significant investment in public transport, Stephen Byers' legendary inability to run even his own office, Estelle Morris's ability to antagonise not only teachers but even head Teachers in her pig-headed refusal to face facts on teacher shortages, the growing cash saueeze on local councils, the fiasco of Labour's efforts to force in elected mayors... the catalogue of incompetence grows alongside the government's blinkered commitment to PPP on the tube. PFI in education and schools, and competition in the post otice Add to this Blair's uncompromisingly reactionary foreign policy, and his party's willingness to take cash and provide favours to a long line of unsavoury business figures, its control freakery and its arrogant disregard for the views of its members and supporters, and you have a recipe for an increasingly dysfunctional government. The coming local elections will offer socialists in many areas another CND March and Rally - London • No to attacks on Iraq• No to George W Bush's war drive -• No to US "Star Wars" • No to US bases in Britain -• No to Britain's Trident nuclear weapons.
Supported by Stop the War Coalition.
Assemble 12 noon, Hyde Park.
March to rally in Trafalgar Square. Blairusconi? Judge Tony by his friends opportunity to test out the extent to which Labour's base support is not just alienated but actively looking for alternatives. The chances for Socialist Alliance candidates improve with each day of government failure.
The 4th Annual Conference of the Scottish Socialist Party at the beginning oI March was CO " pete v unlike previous conferences of the SSP. It was the first delegate conference, all previous conferences having been all-member affairs.
As anticipated, this actually increased the attendance, from around 200 last year to 400 this year. The operation of a pooled fare for the first time ensured delegates (Above) Catriona Grant, SSP attended from a wide geo- co-chair, who moved the graphical area. women's network motion.
This was also the first con- (Right) Tommy Sheridan ference since the SWP joined was preparing for the 2003 the SSP. The structure and time-tabling was clearly a to the Parliament. Whilst our poll surprise to Issues such as the war, which many of them. standing ensures that the SSP will retain an MSP in many of them expected to be key debates at conference Tommy Sheridan, the possiproved non-controversial seats and, bility is open for us to take 4 with an opinion and resolutions were passed without dissent in minimal shift, up to 8 seats.
On a proportional voting time. system the SSP would gain 8 This was not a rally style seats out of 129 on its current conference, rather a decision making conference. poll ratings: nowever, even lc gain 2 under the actual votThe key note of conference system will be all achievement.
By far and away the most heated debate at conference related to the mechanism for choosing candidates for the most winnable seats in the election.
At the 1999 election, no one expected to any seat other than Glasgow, and even there it was only won 1,000 votes. As I recall there was no vote or amendment to the slates for candidates, indeed several people were press-ganged into appearing on the lists.
In 2003 there is the likelihood of further successes, and a furious debate arose over how we ensure 50% of those elected are When actual names are suggested, there seems little dissent as to which should head lists and there may have been less controversy had a slate emerged as in 1999.
A democratic mechanism had been proposed by the SSP women's network and backed by the Executive.
Objections had arisen supposedly over the method suggested, though seemed from some contributions that the disagreements were more fundamental. OIC argued explicitly that they were opposed to 50but some speakers both at conference and local branches were extremely disparaging of the idea that there should be any form of positive action to ensure this actually happened.
Unfortunately of the four hours devoted to the topic, one hour related to wrangles about the voting procedure. In our view the wrong mechanism was agreed. The current standing orders need to be improved to ensure that such problems don't take the thin end of a very thick time awav from political exchanges.
In the end the original women's network motion, improved by amendments, was narrowly passed on a card vote.
Although this was the right delegates outcome, were seriously unhappy ference with the help of arrangements Conmittee. was a mixed blessing. Before the confermotions had CUCC been composited, and all delegates received a booklet setting out all motions and The amendments. organisation of speakers and debates went smoothly, and most of the time delegates were clear what was happening. However, the standing orders adopted for didn't effective allow TOT challenge to procedural rulings, which caused bad feelings on more than one occasion during the weekend.
The overall style of conference was not unlike a trade Which may have been off-putting for some less experienced members.
It is clear that an improved set of standing orders are required for next time.
Outlook prepare for 2003 Gordon Morgan