It takes a certain tenacity to have stuck with Labour in recent years. Foolhardiness, maybe. One of our hopes when Blair was still around was that the "Big Four" trade union leaders would somehow help the members "re-claim the Party." How vain that hope was now becomes absolutely clear.
The BBC website reports that the National Policy Forum - and the unions - approved the disgraceful, puniitve welfare reforms proposed by James Purnell. The NPF also approved ID cards, 42 days, more Academies. In other words, the whole right-wing package.
Perhaps someone can enlighten me what happened to the hundreds of amendments tabled by the CLPs on rather more progressive lines. The ones, presumably, which ended in the bin. And what, precisely, have people like Woodley and Prentis actually achieved in return for their backing of Tory policies on welfare? Not much, it would appear. The "concessions" on the minimum wage and parental leave are just sops which leave the bigger picture unremittingly New Labour.
The problem with the National Policy Forum, as we knew beforehand, is that it is a stitch-up. I was pretty sceptical that many of the left-of-centre amendments to policy positions would get through but it was worth a shot. However, that particular exercise appears to have been a complete waste of time. So what to do?
We need to campaign for an OMOV procedure to the NPF. Without that, the Policy Forum will continue to be a New Labour cabal. We need to publish the list of amendments which were proposed on Trident , trade union rights, etc and make it clear to people that many thousands in the Party support them. And we have no option but to carry on campaigning . It's clear the union bureucrats are following Brown into the abyss. We don't have to join them.
Monday, 28 July 2008
WHAT HAPPENED IN WARWICK?
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6 comments:
We need to campaign for an OMOV procedure to the NPF
You say it's a "stitch-up": how? An alternative interpretation is that the NPF, who have to discuss and rationalise ideas in order to produce workable policies for Government, decided those policies were the best and most appropriate. Those conclusions don't suit my own personal ideological views in all cases, as they don't yours, but your OMOV call just takes us back to the days when Conference produced resolutions that were completely detached from Government. Where is the incentive for members to think about policy, or be willing to have their views challenged by the minority?
OMOV votes for the NPF would at least mean the CLP reps were voted for by a wider constituency - as the NEC reps are. And four out of six of those are Centre left Grassroots Alliance.I think this represents the view in the CLPs
Measures such as the welfare reform Green Paper are "best and most appropriate" for the Tories - which is why they support them. Most ordinary Labour party mmebers I know are simply appalled by Purnell's proposals
Of course the NPF is a stitch-up - that is how it was designed as anyone like me and others who saw through New Labour will verify. That is why it was set up.
And if they seriously think these are the policies to win back support - wait and watch the loss of hundreds of seats next time.
Frankly , the more we can be detached from this failed and risible Government, the better. I won't be voting for them.
I was told that some of our local NPF reps had read our CLPs amendments 'with interest' - that is the most feedback we get for doing that. I now feel guilty for making our CLP secretary sit at the website for ours feeding all those amendments into the computer, only for this little cabal to ignore them. What sort of a process is this? Does the weight of amendments count for nothing.
I want an NPF rep to explain the process very clearly so that we can fully appreciate the rationale for what was accepted and what wasn't. Otherwise, how can it be anything other than a stitch up?
It was very noticeable on TV News that many delegates were young middle class LP student hacks who had imbibed Blairism from an early age and were clearly predisposed to right wing policies like welfare cuts.If all this carries on, the LP will become a rump party of opposition, time for some clear red or at least pink water!
I was at a meeting tonight where someone remarked that New Labour seemed to be heading towards a cliff and the steering wheel didn't seem to be working.
Someone heckled "they sold it!".
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