THE TORIES and their In refusing, NUM for £500,000 the Tories work.
The problem the courts nave sull not releas ed the NUM's funds which were sequestratea during the miners The courts were finally forced formally lift the sequestration ano recevership of the union tunds. BulL in reality thev • have used the fact of continuing legal analist NUM as an excuse to hang onto them The TUC has previously refused NUM financial appeals on the grounds of courts still doing everything they can to attack and weaken the National Union of Mineworkers. They are desparate to shore up their crisis ridden organisation — the so-called Union of Democratic Mineworkers (UDM).
on Monday, an urgent appeal by the TUC is clearly aiding the now no longer existe nen refusal to respond must be denounced up and down the movement.
The courts also backed British Coal, as it has now in unilaterally suspending Tribunal, which arbitrates DetwCCI NUM, unless the NUM agrees to sit down with the UDM.
The courts backed this abrogation of agreement the 1946 Coal NationalisaMeanwhile HOll ACL Tory energy minister Tony Hunt has promised legislation to include the UDM in the tribunals from autumn it this is necessary.
problem which this creates can be seen in case thorpe in South Yorkshire where LWU lave been victimised. Miners immediately walked out and then agreed to return to work pending arbitration. British Coal is now refusing to convene the tribunal unless the UDM is involved nationally. British Coal's blackmail is that unless the NUM capitulates the miners remain sacked.
The Tories courts have reason to step NUM their allacks on present. Accorfigures registered with the certification ncer, une ww can make claim to little more than 25,000 members. This despite the fact it elected delegates to its recent conference on the basis of a supposed 34,000 membership. Even this latter figure down on previous claims. it shows that the UDM has completely failed to break out of its Nottinghamshire base.
The UDM's character as a puppet of British Coal the government becoming still clearer. The UDM's comerence decided to accept any closures that British Coal feels necessary and agreed to two or three year wage acas As miner Cull mented to Socialist Action: 'Roy Link may have been in hospital and David Prendergast dig to the USA. But this problem for the UDM conference because their 1ca leaders, Tony Hunt and lan McGregor were there the whole time Meanwhile, the NUM the preparing itself more for the struggles it lace decided at their conference last week to hold a one dar of- of the coalfield in support of victimised miners.
According Hamilton HTON Monk. tonhall, who moved the successful motion, would lead to a national protest stoppage same vein, the Yorkshire area is presently ballotting its members to win support for a levy for national solidarity TUnG remobilising the memberlayıng groundwork for a renewed push into the rest of the pit labour movement.
Finally, the Campaign has announced a Justice for Mineworkers to be held Mansfield in the tinghamshire coalfield on September. This once more take the fight right into the heart of the scab UDM.
All these developments make it more urgent than ever or luc laboul luve ment to step up its solidarity with the NÚM cow-towing to Dean.
George Hall, orCi FOC Sun Clerical, personal capacity.
Hilleis Davy this the Weapon' (6 June). 'Nott Action.
will Socialist Action Garry Croft Fleet Street would have been lost, it would have created a groundswell which has been effectively quashed by the failure of the London leadership Sexist on Dean?
I WANT to protest, as have other Socialist Action readers in Manchester, regarding the front page of Socialist Action entitled 'Murdoch's Secret The image of a man, Rupert Murdoch, holding a bag with a women's head in it was sexist and offensive and this image is not in character with the nature of a paper such as Socialist We hope in future that more careful thought is given in the preparation of items for the pages of