22/05 Exeter branch meeting report

The meeting started off with a discussion of organisational issues. JT started off with a report back from the recent National Committee meeting (the Socialist Party elects a National Committee and an Executive Committee to run the party, debate and discuss on strategy etc., and put forward policies and plans to the yearly national congress which discusses and votes on them).

We then discussed ways to improve our internet presence, the fruits of which will be seen over time.

After then talking about fundraising ideas (details of some exciting competitions and events wil appear on this website soon) and the forthcoming National Youth and Student meeting, JL started the discussion on the Israel-Palestine question with a brief outline of the history of the conflict, starting from the dividing up of the old Ottoman Empire, a defeated ally of Germany in the First World War, between Britain and France. The strategies employed by British and French imperialism in the region led to division and ethnic tensions. The introduction and discussion covered issues such as imperialism, nationalism (for instance, why we support the right of democratic self-determination), and the reactionary, anti-working class ideologies of Zionism and Islamism which drive the Israeli state and the Hamas organisation respectively.

As usual there was an informative and comradely discussion of what is a sensitive and complex issue. All at the meeting agreed that the key to successfully analysing the situation is to look at it class terms - both Palestinian and Israeli workers are exploited and oppressed by Israeli imperialism, and Palestinians by their own ruling class, and both are increasingly hostile to those who rule them. There has been mass industrial action over welfare cuts, job cuts and non-payment of wages in both Israel and Palestine, and the key issue is uniting the struggling Israeli and Palestinian workers, and fighting for the establishment of a democratic, socialist, secular Palestinian state alongside a similar democratic socialist secular state of Israel as part of a socialist federation of the middle east.

For more information see the website of the Committee for a Workers' International, the international organisation the Socialist Party is affiliated to, and the website of our sister organisation in Israel, Ma`avak Sotsyalisti.

Grass Roots Union Member Support is Growing

Dear Comrades,

I am a Member and Branch secretary of the T&G. I am proud to be an active part of what I believe is a great Union. I am now actively seeking to encourage the leaders of My Union to Dis-affiliate from New Labour. I have started writing to other Branch secretaries and so far the response has been very positive, many members feel it is time to leave New Labour behind and stop funding a Party that offers us nothing.

I recently attended the CWNP conference in London and was very impressed by the commitment shown by all present. Despite differences between some groups the debate was healthy and productive. I believe the ball is now rolling and nothing New Labour or our reluctant Union leaders do will stop it. It is up to Union activists to come together and encourage members to make their feelings known to the leadership. Through our Branch structure it will be possible to remind Tony Woodley and his cronies that this Union is indeed member led, as they have said on many occasions in many Speeches. I have had many Branch secretaries respond to my letters positively and they have told me that they intend to discuss the CNWP at their next Branch meetings. I encourage Union activists to increase the pressure on our leadership to bring about the change needed to leave the New Labour Party and join the Campaign for a New Workers Party.

I would like to thank the Devon Socialist Party for my invite to the conference and wish them well for the future. I will be setting up my own blog-site detailing how my own campaign through my Union is going. I hope to put a link to my blog-site on here soon, if permitted by the owners of this page.

Yours fraternally

John Stone

T&G 177 Branch secretary

Next Exeter branch meeting - 22nd May - Israel/Palestine

Every fortnight, the Socialist Party holds a branch meeting in Exeter. All members and anyone interested in coming along are welcome. The meetings are informal but businesslike. We discuss events over the past few weeks and plan our activities, campaigns and interventions in the days, weeks and months ahead. We also hear reports on international news and industrial work.

One member will then introduce a discussion on a topic of interest - on the 22nd it will be Jim on Israel and Palestine. After this introduction we will debate and analyse the issues surrounding it. The purpose of this is to educate members and supporters about a wide range of important areas, improve confidence in speaking and debating in public and to deepen understanding of how we as socialists analyse the world. In the past discussions have ranged from the French Revolution to fascism, from nuclear power to the Labour Party, and so on.

We hope you can come along - Tuesday 22nd May 7.30pm Streatham Court E, University of Exeter. If you have any queries please leave a comment or email us at socialistpartydevon@gmail.com.

Campaign for a New Workers' Party conference - a report

On Saturday, four Devon CNWP supporters travelled up to London to attend the second national conference of the Campaign for a New Workers' Party (CNWP). The CNWP is a campaign aimed at building support among socialists, trade unionists and campaigners for the establishment of a new political party, one that explcitly campaigns for workers - a workers' party. Such a party would be able to provide an important united political voice for trade unionists in struggle and campaigners.

At the moment there are 2,500 supporters of the CNWP. In addition to events being held across the country like the one we had in Exeter a few weeks back, we try to gain support for the campaign in our workplaces, unions and campaigns.

The national conference was an opportunity to take stock of the successes and disappointments so far, and to debate and decide upon how further progress might be made. The general consensus seemed to be that steady, if unspectacular progress had been made. Many people have been disillusioned by new parties - the Socialist Labour Party, the Socialist Alliance, Respect - that had failed. Some people are willing to give Mr PFI Gordon Brown the benefit of the doubt. Also, a failure of the campaign has been local groups not notifying the Press Officer Pete McLaren of events that they have held and building they have done. We have been guilty of this, and it means he cannot publicise what is going on, giving the false impression of inactivity. Communications have been a problem in particular, and steps will be taken to send all supporters a monthly bulletin letting them know what is going on with the campaign and update the website more often.

Concerning the direction the campaign needed to take, the officers proposed a resolution updating the declaration to take account of new political developments such as the exit of Blair, as well as some basic points outlining what we stand for. Conference agreed it would put the horse before the cart outlining a fuller programme before a party is even formed, so these basic eleven points were agreed upon -

- Keep health and education public. Stop and reverse cuts in, and the sell off of, our public services. For properly funded, democratically controlled public services for all.
- For decent, affordable public housing for all who want it.
- No to racism and discrimination - oppose the divisive BNP. No to the specific oppression that people suffer due to their ethnic background, nationality, gender, sexuality, age, disabilities or health.
- For a living wage of at least £8 an hour, and a living pension - restore the link with earnings now.
- No to trident nuclear weapons - spend the £76 billion on public services.
- Ownership and planning of energy and transport, leading to massive investment and expansion of renewable energy and clean, public transport.
- Immediate withdrawal of the troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.
- For a democratic republic - a radical extension of democracy including all representatives elected by proportional representation, subject to recall, and paid the average wage.
- No to the capitalist profit system. For a democratic socialist society, based on public ownership of the major corporations that dominate the economy, and run to meet the needs of all, and to protect our environment for future generations, instead of the profits of a few.

There were some amendments put forward aimed at hemming the not-yet-formed party into detailed prescriptions and directions, but these were heavily defeated. Comrades from Workers Power, the Communist Party of Great Britain and the Campaign for a Marxist Party argued that the points outlined above set in stone a strategy of reformism (the idea that a democratic socialist society can be achieved gradually, with parliamentary legislation), as opposed to their proposals setting in stone a revolutionary strategy (proposing workers seize political and economic power now).

There are two arguments against their points. Firstly, the officers' resolution simply stated that we wish to replace the current capitalist system with "a democratic socialist society". The resolution rightly doesn't state how we get to that point - that is a matter for internal debate in the party once it is formed - the different organisations inside the party can argue for their point of view, it shouldn't be determined before the party is even set up. Secondly, the idea that a mass revolutionary party can be built at the present time in England and Wales is ludicrous. The workers movement is still barely recovering from the huge setbacks under Thatcherism, and confidence and political consciousness is still very low.

The debate was passionate but friendly, and there were some welcome new faces, particularly the comrades from the Democratic Labour Party in Walsall. The Democratic Labour Party was formed by socialists who had been chucked out of the Labour Party for being too left wing. They recently won a seat on Walsall council, and the two who spoke were clearly hard working, principled socialist campaigners, precisely the sort of people we need to get on board in this campaign.

There are more extensive reports and records of the motions passed and officer elections on the CNWP website.

Plymouth Power! A book review of Todd Gray's 'Blackshirts in Devon'

There may be many Devonians alive today who probably don’t even realise they have grandparents or great grandparents who are heroes/heroines, There are no statues or plaques in their honour or anniversary tributes but there should be. Perhaps the new Tory Council could arrange a ceremony on the Hoe!

We know a great deal about the effects of the Second World War on places like Exeter and Plymouth but little about the pre-war struggles against the home-grown variety of fascism. A book by Exeter-based historian Todd Gray tells the story at last - ‘The Blackshirts in Devon’.

Gray uses a wide variety of sources to put the story together – local police and Labour Party branch secretary reports, newspaper coverage and national Home Office material. He also provides a wealth of detail from Devonian fascists themselves - letters, newspapers and journals. Unfortunately, there is one major gap in the book – the stories told by anti-fascists, especially how they organised against the fascist threat. Despite that, Gray has given us a fascinating slice of Devon history.

Nationally, Oswald Mosley founded the British Union of Fascists (BUF) in 1932. Within a year BUF branches had been formed across Devon, the first in Plymouth in July 1933. There were small numbers of BUF members in places like Exmouth, Torbay and North Devon and these relied heavily on a few national BUF organisers to keep them going. It’s clear, though, that wherever the BUF attempted to spread their propaganda, there was often local opposition - in Sidmouth an angry crowd threw a fascist into the river.

The main centres of BUF activity were Plymouth and Exeter. According to local police and Labour Party reports, the Plymouth Branch had over a thousand members at its height in 1934. We don’t know what these members’ levels of commitment were. There were various options – regularly buying BUF newspapers and journals, taking part in branch meetings, attending major public meetings, donating regularly. Some may have just joined to gain access to all the facilities available at the large headquarters in Lockyer Street. In the beginning there were about 50-100 active members who organised and attended outdoor meetings, sold newspapers in the street and acted as stewards at street and larger public meetings. In all this seriousness, there were lighter moments in the book – Plymouth BUF members were forced to change their uniforms as they were being mistaken for tram conductors!

Plymouth BUF met with opposition from the start. As the months went by this grew in numbers and temper, heckling and harassing at virtually every public event organised by the fascists. This constant harrying wore the BUF down. This can be seen by charting the number of stewards they were able to muster at certain meetings. In February 1934 they had about 60. On April 6th (in the Octagon) there were 14 and at a September meeting at Prince Rock only 3 were available. For most of 1934 the police were having great difficulty in keeping order at all. At one point (on June 13th 1934), they were unable to cope with such a large and hostile crowd of anti-fascists without the intervention of a passing navy patrol!

A BUF branch had existed in Exeter since late 1933 and became the main centre of fascist activity in Devon after the Plymouth branch’s collapse. There was a brief flurry of activity in 1936 and 1937 but they made little headway – partly because of organised opposition by local anti-fascists but also because as the War loomed, the increasing association of the BUF with German Nazism damaged their credibility even further. The Exeter Branch became so weak and ineffective it was forced into joint activity with Dorchester fascists.

Gray acknowledges the effect of anti-fascists in reducing the possible influence of the BUF in Devon but concluded that changes in tactics as a result of decisions made in London by Mosley were the main reason for the decline – he mentions the adoption in Plymouth of the violent tactics employed by the BUF in the East End of London, resulting in the loss of the Plymouth branch in 1935.

But large-scale opposition had already severely dented the BUF influence in Plymouth by the end of the summer of 1934 – witness the substantially reduced numbers of stewards the BUF could muster by then. Plymouth BUF had become so beleaguered by the anti-fascists that a last desperate bid to bolster them was made by arranging a public meeting addressed by Mosley in early October 1934, along with importing violent BUF toughs from other parts of the country, particularly the East End of London. This led to more violent disorder, including a confrontation in the Market Square on October 11th. The Western Morning News reported that about 10,000 anti-fascists were present. As a result of these disturbances, three fascists were imprisoned at Exeter following assault charges. By November 1934 the Plymouth BUF had virtually disappeared, thanks to the efforts, all told, of thousands of Plymothians.

All these events took place about seventy years ago, so what is the relevance of the book now? Well, it finally acknowledges the role of thousands of un-named and unknown Devonians who decided to do something about the fascist poison in their midst. Most of all, though, it’s a testimony to the power the working class has when we are united and act together in enough numbers.

The fight against the fascists of today, the British National Party (BNP), has to be led by the working class ourselves, as it was against Mosley and the BUF in the 1930s. We can’t rely on fine words from MPs, councillors, trade union or religious leaders, sports or showbusiness types. Especially if these people support the anti-working class policies of one of the three main political parties, which have been mainly responsible for people voting for the BNP in the first place! Only the working class has the power to crush any fascist threat, just as only the working class can really change the world for the better.

Book review by DL, a supporter of the Campaign for a New Workers' Party

Exeter branch meeting 8/5/07

In a lively branch meeting, we discussed issues ranging from the Scottish elections to carbon emissions trading to the BNP.

Secretary JT (for reasons of security - BNP members operate a charming website called 'Redwatch' which publishes details of socialists with the aim of fascist thugs beating them up - we use initials in these branch meeting reports) opened the meeting with his analysis of the recent elections. He highlighted the fact that despite New Labour's annihilation in Scotland and retreat in Wales, they had not done so bad in England. In some parts of the country, such as the large northern cities and Coventry, the New Labour vote actually went up. JT pinned this on the fears of many traditional Labour voters of the return of a Tory government, which despite Cameron's soft soaping, is rightly dreaded by most working class people. It may also be due to Blair's imminent departure and illusions that still exist in Gordon Brown. The BNP had not done as well as hoped, and though they gained one seat overall, they lost four seats they previously held, demonstrating that once people see what they are really about they are quickly ditched.

In the discussion that followed this opening, those at the meeting generally agreed with the analysis about the fortunes of the Labour Party. JL also voiced his view that anti-fascist campaigning had to put forward an alternative (in the form of the Campaign for a New Workers' Party) or else be pointless in combating the conditions that the BNP thrive in - the lack of a political alternative to the parties of cuts and privatisation.

Linking the opening discussion with the main discussion on the environment, chair AC noted the progress of the Greens in this election and how they are seen by many as a left wing alternative. Many attending the meeting had examples of opportunism and right wing policies pursued by the Greens, for example voting through budgets cutting services in Lewisham and Kirklees in exchange for a few pitiful concessions such as slightly increased recycling, and proposing increasing already extortionate hospital car parking prices and raising the idea of congestion charging in North Devon.

In the organisational section of the meeting the issue of the press fund was raised - the party needs to replace its ageing printing press with some more modern equipment and, having no rich backers, we rely on the financial sacrifices of our members to get things done. Many Exeter Socialist Party members have pledged outstanding amounts to the fund.

JT raised the request by the Irish Socialist Party for England and Wales Socialist Party members to help with their election campaign. In the May 24th election we hope to have Joe Higgins TD (member of the Irish parliament the Dail) re-elected and Cllr. Clare Daly elected.

Also, with the CNWP conference on Saturday, it was confirmed that there will be 5 CNWP supporters attending what should be a historic and inspiring event.

TA led the main discussion on the environment with a wide ranging introduction touching on the science behind climate change, the wilful inactivity of Governments due to obsession with short term rapid economic growth and close relations with the fossil fuel industry. TA left us all to draw our conclusions when he revealed that the Association of Petroleum Geologists was the only scientific body, presumably twinned with the organisation 'Turkeys Against Christmas'.

TA outlined the forces inherent within capitalism that not only cause this tremendous environmental destruction but also render it incapable of doing anything meaningful to solve the problem - in fact the private free-market in energy means decisions are based on profit not social and environmental need - the prices of different fuels dictating whether they would be used in power stations regardless of the carbon dioxide burning them releases.

There were many viable solutions in terms of energy conservation and using greener energy, and while individuals did have a responsibility to act in an environmentally friendly way, ultimately this would be a drop in the ocean while big business pollutes the planet.

In the discussion following TA's lead off, the fact that science is not divorced from society was raised. For instance, the original report of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) written by scientists and much more robust in its conclusions and recommendations, was watered down dramatically by Governments to make it more vague and avoid pinning the blame on Governments and big business.

The idea of a democratically planned economy as a counterpoint to the capitalist free market anarchy we currently live in was also raised. In a democratically planned economy, long term decisions would be democratically made regarding energy generation, enabling mass construction of renewable energy facilities, coupled with a programme of energy efficiency. For example, Cuba, a planned economy (not democratically planned, so there are inefficiences and flaws) was able to pursue a programme of replacing all of its lightbulbs with energy efficient lightbulbs. Cuba is also recognised by the UN as the only environmentally sustainable country in the world. If a poor country which doesn't have the undoubted advantages of having its planning democratically controlled, think what democratic socialist planning could achieve in a rich country like Britain.

All the capitalist apologists can muster is a 'carbon emissions trading scheme' - whereby licences to pollute are bought and sold in a kind of stock exchange. In other words, the capitalists have even found a way to make money out of environmental damage! The scheme is ineffective at reducing carbon dioxide emissions though.

The issue of 'Green taxes' was also raised. As socialists we would oppose all taxes such as Green taxes, that disproportionately affect ordinary working class people - a tax on air travel would prevent a normal family from going abroad on holiday, but the rich Government minister would be able to travel without restriction! We favour democratic socialist planning as a solution to environmental problems, not reducing living conditions for ordinary people.

As luck would have it, there happens to be an excellent article on alternative energy sources in this week's copy of the socialist, the weekly newspaper of the Socialist Party, an indispensible read for workers and youth: http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/2007/485/index.html?id=pp1183.htm

Apologies to any who attended yesterday's meeting whose contributions I have missed off, I do remember it being an excellent discussion with a lot of interesting, relevant and insightful points put forward by all those who spoke, but I can't remember everything and didn't take extensive notes, and this post has gone on quite long anyway. It would be great though if we could have a bit of debate in the comments section on some of the points raised at the meeting.

Exeter branch meeting Tuesday 8th May - Can we fight climate change?

Every fortnight, the Socialist Party holds a branch meeting in Exeter. All members and anyone interested in coming along are welcome. The meetings are informal but businesslike. We discuss events over the past few weeks and plan our activities, campaigns and interventions in the days, weeks and months ahead. We also hear reports on international news and industrial work.

One member will then introduce a discussion on a topic of interest - this week it will be Tim on climate change and environmental destruction. After this introduction we will debate and analyse the issues surrounding it. The purpose of this is to educate members and supporters about a wide range of important areas, improve confidence in speaking and debating in public and to deepen understanding of how we as socialists analyse the world. In the past discussions have ranged from the French Revolution to fascism, from nuclear power to the Labour Party, and so on.

We hope you can come along - Tuesday 8th 7.30pm Streatham Court E, University of Exeter. If you have any queries please leave a comment or email us at socialistpartydevon@gmail.com.

More photos from the Campaign for a New Workers' Party meeting held in Exeter on the 19th April

3rd May elections and recent activity

On Saturday 28th April, Devon Socialist Party members and CNWP supporters leafletted the Ilfracombe East ward with anti-BNP leaflets. The leaflets put forward class arguments and posed the question of a new alternative to the main parties for workers. The BNP candidate subsequently failed miserably, garnering just 63 votes. Also on the 28th, members did stalls in Exeter and Taunton and sold over 30 newspapers. On the Sunday, members travelled up to Bristol to assist with Tom Baldwin's election campaign in Windmill Hill. He got a good vote in the end, and was praised by the PCS union for his answers to the questions they asked of all council candidates.

We expressed our solidarity with the striking PCS members on 1st May.

There will be a full analysis of the local, Scottish and Welsh elections on here shortly, including the votes for Socialist Alternative candidates, the state of the BNP vote and lessons for anti-fascist work and the situation in Scotland.