five to one support for Scargill in the coalfield membership of the NUM.
nominations show that ir Yorkshire 52 out of 54 bran ches have nominated Scargil and So has the Yorkshire Regional Council. Six out of seven branches of the Durham Mechanics have nominated Scargill. branch of the Durham NUM has failed to nominate Scargill. The Lancashire area iș vircertail to nominate Scargill with 59 of the 75 VULCO on the area council already committed Scargill. In North Derbyshire, alcd recommendation that no should be made, seven out of eight cent the membership nominated Scargill. Scot tish area general secretary Eric Clarke has been forced to support Scargill.
The media hype for the right wing candidate Johr Walsh has so far produced little results. Only the tiny Leicestershire area, COSA — Ise we conar seculol. THE CAMPAIGN to re-elect Arthur Scargill has won the first round of the election campaign for the presidency of the NUM. Scargill has secured a massive Yorkshire which includes a third of the total - and the power have nominated Walsh of course, enormous media will be devoted to turning this situation around between now and polling day.
The stakes are shown bs the fact that Tine government actually in troduced a law whose sole aim was to remove Arthur Scargill, one trade union leader, from office. Within the coal industry what is involved is the government trying to secure an NUM leadership prepared to ac cept the destruction of the gains of miners over the past 40 years. This starts with six day working and massive pit closures and its aim the eventua of the coal If the Tories defeat Scargill it would be taken as the green light to ahead with this programme.
The so-called soft left Community leaderships of the South Wales and Scottish areas have played a disgraceful role in this. On the NUM executive they have blocked with the right-wing agains! Scargill Des Dutfield and the South wale. leadership tight of the six-day week.
the six-day week.
Neil Kinnock openly working to try to defeat Scargill. Even the soft left Tribune has given favorable coverage to Walsh and none to Scargill editorial choices of that sort always have clear purpose.
By submitting himself re-election Arthur Scargill has allowed issues to be clearly presented to the NUM's membership.
But the South Wales leadership also considered desperate legal moves prevent a contest - after months giving spencile press briefing claiming that Scargill is out of line with the majority of the NUM they are now afraid to pu that to the test. The soft lef is, in practice, giving sup port to Walsh. But it is dif ficult for them to do so openly because it puts then out of line with the NUN membership in the scottist and South Wales areas Mick McGahey's son accurately characterised the leadership's recommendation for no nominations 'Failure to nominate Mr Scargill would amount in practice to support for the right wing candidate , John Walsh. Two brancher have already nominated Scargill and more may follow.
In South Wales four lodges have nominated Scargill and it is possible that secure the of the South Wales area delegate meeting against the area executive's advice wales Women Against Pit Closures have overwhelmingly supported Scargill.
If the stakes in this election are enormous for the mining communities it will also have a major impact on the wider labour movement British politics Under Arthur Scargill's leadership: the NUM has vanguard of the seen ute British labour movement.
was the longest mass strike in the history of any advanced capitalist country and the single greatest batthe against the government's assault on the trade unions. The NUM has been the champion women and black rights the Labour Party. A defeat for Arthur Scargill would be a defeat for every single pro gressive cause in Britain The first round has been won by the campaign to re elect Scargill. But the fight is by no means over and big resources indeed are going to be committed to defeating Scargill.
The tactics in this fight will be decided by those directly involved. But every single activist of the labour must everything they are asked to help ensure Scargill wins.
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majority of the branch and area nominations. A poll for the Mail on Sunday predicted that Scargill will win three times the vote of his right wing challenger John Walsh. The same poll showed an even more massive