Go to Sellafield Sir THE GOVERNMENT marked the end of the dockers' strike with a long string of speeches by ministers attacking Arthur Scargill. For newspapers like the Sunday Times the events of last week show, 'the government is back in control of events.' RED. MOND O'NEILL examines this claim in the light of the real choices facing the government.
With the settlement of the docks strike the government has succeeded in dable. The last weeks have given a glimpse of just how catastrophic for British capitalism would be the consequences of a defeat for the government by the miners.
But the claim by Sundav limes and other that the government has 'regained control' developments measure up to the basic developmentary the rea development dispute. clarified beyond all dosen What been that government must win this strike. so compromise the compromise.
Economist put 'She (Thatcher) has a duty to lake unis alsoule wrougu the compromise barrier Mrs hatcher must not tel the miners' leader, Mr ArScargill, CYCl to win his present UC&l dispute with the coal board over pit closures.
This at least must remain a fixed point after what has been a bad month.
dictates the Soe negotiations between negotiations between the Num and Ine NUD.
As the Financial Times put NCB Caved cu ready concede everything right to close pits on arounus. other words the NCB contial question!
same approach is applied by the government to the class struggle whole. miners, and making all keep other groups like the dockers out of the battle, is precisely the 'fixed point' of government strategy I he tremendous blem for the government, however. is that it remain. as yet without any winning defeat frie NUM itself.
The government did TENe miners would be able to Slay Oul Hielee weeks. The strategy of pressurising miners for broke preventing a rapid disintegration of its The relief in ruling class circles is understan been a complete failure.
Even in North Derbyshire, where the coal board's efforts have been most concentrated, retiring, to work numbers are so tiny that it would take two years for full production to be resumed. Nationally out of the sum total of 397 120,000 miners far returned to Not only has no drift back to work emerged but, on the contrary, miners show every sign that they can stay out until Xmas.
This makes the government's strategy of simply sitting out the strike essenunworkable. By those means the govern ment cannol will and it risks the kind of usintegranon or is positions that we have witnessover the past month. The ehowerender scalend on a much grander scale disrupted by power cuts this winter.
According the Financial Times, for ample there will be shortfall of 30 million tonnes of coal out of the 110 million tonnes annually consumed. This shortage critistart to create a major crisis tober/November wHel electricity consumption starts to rise dramatically In addition the levels of stocks at different power stations vary creating the risk of some running For coal supplies ever earlier.
The fact is the miners can sit out the winter and the government cannot. And that is one of the chief lessons the government itself has drawn from the crisis it has just passed If Thatcher is to have chance oluticalla the miners the government at some point will have to escalate the struggle tremendous!! with all of the risks this will involve to the government's own position. The purpose of the slander campaign against Scargill, launched by create best conditions for this kind of escalation.
options available to the government are that • It can try to move coal to equalise supplies at the • It coal at the the necessary. • Ii cam o інстеві enormously the against the rail miners.
combination the strug gle. the the try isolate NUM.
greatly port the the refusal of the miners.
The task of the leftwinter's with the The prepare make or confrontaMOVe • For the campaign the Tories WILl cantatal national For ine miners. with the treachery of Murray and company and issue the call from the TUC con gress for a national day of action port of the successful follow the regional days of action.
For the TUC Party and all sections of the movement to make clear Wal ally steps move the nitheads or to use the law to break up solidarity, will be met by a general strike in support of the miners.
The Tory government cannot 'regain control of the defeating the miners. They stepping up the struggle enormously this winter. The government are acting on that basis no com. promise is possible, side or the other will suffer a crusting deltar.
It is time the labour movement's leadership got off its knees and woke up to what's at stake in this struggle. The task of the left-wing over the summer fight for tha understanding of what's al This autumn, even more openly than now, the labour movement is going to face its greatest conthe general strike. The stakes really are that high.
*CORMAC