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From Militant, No. 693, 30 March 1984, p. 3.
Transcribed by Iain Dalton.
Marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for the Encyclopaedia of Trotskyism On-Line (ETOL).
PEOPLE TALK about the rule of law and parliament but this government was elected in 1983 with a reduced majority from 1979; a big majority of the population didn’t vote for them.
In Liverpool there was a swing to Labour in the council elections despite a national swing against. In the general election there was a two and a half per cent swing to Labour in Liverpool. In my constituency, Broadgreen, we had a four and a half per cent swing.
That is an indication that the programme we have gone out on at local authority and parliamentary level is one that people have been prepared to support.
Even in the Liverpool Echo we have a statement from a Tory so-called ‘dossier’ that the policies of Labour have been known at least since 1981. An article by Derek Hatton in the Echo then indicated what Labour would do.
In Liverpool there have been a whole series of public meetings, mass rallies, reaching all sections of the community. Despite the press lies, the unions and the mass of the rank and file are coming fairly and squarely behind Labour.
Over the past months there has been a wide programme of activity by Liverpool city councillors who have gone to every Labour-controlled authority in the country.
In the last week I and other people have addressed a number of meetings in London to explain Liverpool’s situation, and received magnificent support. We have got Labour MPs from the London area, from the Campaign Group of MPs, London councillors and local authority workers to come to Liverpool before the 29th to support the council.
When all this is going on it is a scandal that we have got people on the council prepared to stab the movement in the back. What is even more scandalous is that they have had the opportunity over the past months, indeed since last May, to raise any reservations about the policy, and got support from certain Labour Parliamentary spokesmen.
Liverpool’s five Labour MPs are solid in support of the city council. We were elected to fight for the people of Liverpool, not to carry out the dirty work of the Tories.
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Last updated: 11 February 2017