"lefts' in Britain, covers up its acceptance of the capitalist system in its own country.
At the same time, of course, the CP's position is partly designed to make inroads into the Socialist Party of Mitterand which is strongly pro-European and which has been making gains from the CP recently. Its nationalist thrust aims to offer a 'solution'albeit in capitalist terms-to the problems faced by French workers by placing the blame on Germany or Italy.
NATIONAL ROADS These different positions adopted by the Italian and French CPs reflect the national conditions existing in their own separate countries. In both cases, the differences are determined not by the needs of the French or Italian workers but by the needs of French or Italian capital.
There is, of course, nothing new in this. The trends towards 'national roads' to socialism proclaimed by the Communist Parties represents, essentially, a growing adaptation to the needs and interests of their own ruling class. The positions adopted on the EEC brought this out perhaps more starkly than at any other time The way forward for workers in Europe, however, lies neither in supporting the chauvinist positions of the French CP or the 'European' perspective of the Italian. It lies in developing growing unity among themselves to fight for a Socialist United States of Europe.
TIM ROBINSON (NALGO) wark reflects a deep controversy within Southwark Labour Party itself. Two of the three constituency Labour Parties have come out against the project and offered support to the expelled councillors who defied the whip to vote against it.
£70-million scheme are clear. Devices falling far below local local of senior officers and Labour coming from them, for example, renovating existing buildings was was on to support the new town hall. Why was the study carried out-in three weeks flat!-by the be the establishment realised too late their complacency was illfounded?
OUT OF TOUCH Feelings on both sides of the Labour group run deep since the original 11 were expelled in January. This is hardly surprising. (Dulwich Labour Councillor)
The public outrage surrounding the proposed new town hall in SouthThe arguments used against the caying environment, a 10% unemployment rate, incomes well below the national average and local serneeds. Those in its favour are not (except perhaps to the inner circle councillors who run the Council.)
No explanation has been forthas to why the feasibility study on only commissioned after the whip same architects who drew up plans for the new civic centre? Could it socialists.
Ma Carol Turner (Lad)
The Labour establishment is led a former vice-chairperson of the Social Democratic Alliance, an organisation which distinguished itself in recent elections by calling on voters not to support Labour candidates named on its 'Communist' blacklist. The same organisation spawned Reg Prentice.
Selling council houses, running down direct labour and distraintusing the bailiff against tenants in arrears-are just a few of the 'management techniques' of Southwark Council's leading Inevitably, the image of the party is conveyed through such figures. Their out-of-touch arrogance has discouraged many local activists from membership. The party machine ground too slowly into action, unfortunately, to harness progressive elements in the campaign against a new town hall—a campaign born before the issue was ever an item on any GMC agenda.
DEMOCRACY The struggle in Southwark is not only about the bricks and mortar of an unwanted and unnecessary civic centre, but around the accountability of local representatives of the labour movement. It is quite clear that the bulldozing through of the Council's plans for a town hall was done in opposition to the local Labour Parties and Labour feeling generally in Southwark Paper resolutions opposing it, and abstract talk about 're-selection' are not enough. Local representatives have been subject to automatic re-selection for years and this in itself has not changed Southwark Council and others like it. The only way re-selection can become a living issue is by the greater involvement of the Labour movement in local affairs.
The potential for such involvement exists in the coming period as local Councils are called upon to implement the cut-backs recently passed in the Tory bud. get. It is only by mobilising local support and turning the councils like Southwark into real fighting bodies against Tory policies that the cut-backs can be challenged Such a fight will also, necessarily, involve combatting those elements on the Council who are already implementing Tory policies.
August 79