THE POPULAR FRONT FOR THE LIBERATION OF CPSA
FIGHTING ON IN OUR 45th YEAR BUT A BIT RETIRED NOW
FREEDOM! UNITY! SOCIALISM!
ONE CIVIL SERVICE UNION,
ONE GLORIOUS DESTINY!
REVOLUTION UNTIL VICTORY!
ROUND AND ABOUT
BY JUDAS ISCARIOT AND BARRABAS EARLY JULY 2005
Tension is rising throughout London as the DWP members consider the implications of the London Strike Submission. Meetings have been held in most London offices to consider the next step in the fight to stave off the job cuts and be harangued by Socialist Caucus leaders on the need to rally round their demand for a one-day protest strike followed by “discontinuous” action at chosen sites. The members stayed away in droves and the level of abstentions ran high at many office car park meetings. But most of the Carcase’s vitriol has been levelled at their LUNITY allies, particularly JOHN McINALLY, whom they blame for lack of leadership and ineffectiveness.
In fact it’s the Carcase that suffers from inept leaders. The likes of CHARLIE McDONALD, CHRIS HULME and LEE ROCK are unable to deliver an argument below the level of a rant or to consider any other tactics than those drawn up by their own narrow circle. TONY REAY is clearly suffering from stress, so least said, soonest mended. Although it’s obvious that part of their strategy is to take the high-ground within Left Unity their biggest mistake was in not making a stand over the LANNING nomination. The open attacks on SERWOTKA and the LUNITY grandees that began at Conference have provoked a backlash that they will find difficult to contain.
Within LUNITY’s Big Tent the DEMOCRATS and the dregs of UNITY have been baying for CARCASE blood and now LUNITY’s big guns are coming in to cut the CARCASE down to size.
The DEMOCRATS, formerly the fiefdom of LORD UNDY but now under the effective leadership of COMER’s crowd have seized the chance to boost their own standing amongst the membership in the run-up to the elections for the new IR Customs section. They, like the shadowy UNITY faction, also hope for a bigger slice of the slate if the CARCASE is driven out of LUNITY altogether.
The LUNITY grandees, while not wanting to see the loss of any section of their grand coalition, certainly want to put McDONALD in his place and they’re confident that their own strategy at negotiations with Management will obtain a reasonable and acceptable draw on pensions and job losses in the very near future.
Fortunately for them the right wing is unable to exploit the situation. 4theMembers is also preparing for the struggle in the new department which puts them in head-on collision with the DEMOCRATS. Attempts at reconciliation between PRIESTLEY and COMER have come to nothing and while 4TM can still turn out their troops for the EC poll few believe LES has any real hope of capturing the Presidency.
Back in the rear areas there’s been considerably interest south of the Border about the union’s strange Scottish rites following our report about the harassment of the hapless BRIAN NAIRN by LU recruitment heavies at “Scottish Night” in Brighton (Friday June 10th)
But first of all we must step back into the past. In years gone by the Scottish Night was the highlight of Conference for many comrades in CPSA and in PTC/NUCPS. However the events going by that name were very different.
The PTC event was by invitation only, being a gathering of the Secret Left, the high-caste Commissar faction led by one NICK SHITE. This shadowy faction was so secret that even some of its members were unaware that they were in it. EDDIE REILLY was usually in attendance. ROBIN McKENDRICK, now the sole Moderati on the NEC, was one of the leading lights, (which adds new meaning to the concept of “fellow traveller”)
The CPSA event was also unadvertised but, apart from the consumption of large amounts of whisky, was a totally different affair. This was attended by BOYLE, McCANN, McGOWAN and the rest of the JOCKOCRACY along with would-be Scots like MICKEY DUGGAN. RAMSBLADDER himself was usually always there presiding over a gallon bottle of whisky. Entertainment was provided by JOHN MULDOON and HUGH BRADLEY.
Sadly, apart from the traditional singing of “lefty” songs at the end which in this case meant BOYLE and his drunken mates bellowing out Glasgow Celtic football songs and BARRY giving a rendering of Waltzing Matilda , the two events were unlikely to be successfully merged. So after a few years of parallel running, the old CPSA event faded away. The Secret Left bash has also changed somewhat with the admission of LUNITY comrades to the event. In day of old there were no Trots at either bash. Now the SSP virtually runs the event.
At this year’s event, GERALDINE MORRISON and three other female delegates heard about the Scottish night and assumed it was the old CPSA affair. GERALDINE was on the 4The Members slate for the NEC, the others were of no known faction. They were refused admission by the rather aggressive SSP door managers and subject to a tirade of obscenities.
The eviction was celebrated in the next days UNITY bulletin, handed out at Conference on Friday morning. Amongst a list of ‘funny’ items it amusingly records that ‘Four Moderates attempted to enter the Scottish night but were invited to leave by the door before they were forcibly evicted via the window’ – with some RAB C NESBITT dialogue inserted by the UNITY rag’s editor, who is English, to give it some local flavour. It’s a strange manifestation of socialism that harassment of female delegates is not only tolerated but is now something to be proud of!
Speaking of Scottish Colleagues, DAVID HUNTER, also a 4TM NEC candidate is taking the CURRIE strategy a bit further. He has joined the Conservative Party. Calculating that they may be a little short of names for party lists for election to the Scottish Parliament and the European Parliament, he reckons that as a working class trade unionist he’ll be snapped up as evidence that they are thinking what we are thinking.
The row over the scab on the DCA GEC rumbles on. This individual is a woman by the name of BARBARA SCARFF who worked during last November’s strike. She sat at the top table through the DCA conference but did not speak because the motions allocated to her had been guillotined.
PHIL GREEN moved a motion to ensure that scabs in future are 'asked to resign', as tame as can be to ensure it got through and it did, but not without howls of outrage from SCARFF’S mate's/primed zombies such as ROBIN FALLON, also in SCARFE'S Teesside branch who even distributed a leaflet to members telling them that striking was a matter of their individual choice. When FALLON was challenged about talking over time and to move he told the challengers to "come and make me". When ROB JAMESON was challenged about being President of a GEC that contained a scab he replied that he had expressed his disgust. However she is still on it.
Legendary GRAHAM “Frothy” FIRTH of Birmingham was on top form this year. When challenged about claiming credit for a move instigated by Welfare, he stuck his shouting contorted face only inches from that of HQ BEC member SHARON LESLIE. At this point another LUNITY BEC member, 21 year old ED CARMEL, who had unwisely been baiting JOHN MAGUIRE earlier in the evening, pushed him away only to be warned by FROTHY that he "would put him through the fucking floor" and the shouting match only ended when FIRTH was be dragged off by three others including, appropriately enough, JOHN MAGUIRE a Bailiff from Manchester who is also on the GEC.
FIRTHS previous record includes organising an AGM for Birmingham with an attendance of SIX including the BEC. When challenged to do better, MAGUIRE and DAVE VINCENT of Manchester jointly visited Birmingham and toured the desks eventually mustering 100 for another meeting. FIRTH is back on the GEC this year adding to the calibre of people like SCARFF, GREEN and conference cure for insomnia LES MORGAN.
It seems the little piece about TOKS (Wednesday June 8th) in this year’s conference communiqué didn’t go down too well with DWP LUNITY chiefs ROB WILLIAMS and JANE AITCHINSON. Civil rights campaigner TOKS AINA, you will recall tore up his LU card in disgust at being confined to Black and Equal Opportunity work on the GEC cos he’s Black. They “were disappointed” to read the report that they assumed had come from TOKS himself but they clearly hadn’t read it properly as they then offered him a place as an observer on the Black Section Committee if he returned to the fold. Sources say TOKS was none to happy.
PFLCPSA NEWS
The attempt to ban the PFL and hound any full-time officers suspected of passing information to the Revolutionary Command Council fell ignominiously at the GMB@PCS AGM on 29 th June. The Falconcrest GMB BEC had already indicated that they would oppose the motion if it was heard on the grounds of free speech. This was doubtless why many senior full-timers decided to skip the meeting and spend the afternoon in more important discussions in the pub.
The odious motion was the work of one NIGEL VENES (see PFL passim) though he didn’t have the guts to put his name to it or even bother to turn up to the meeting to move it. In the absence of a mover the Chair called on a seconder to move the motion and when none was forthcoming the motion fell.
The things they say
Grey-haired oldie GRAHAM GULLIVER dithered for some time before ticking
"Heterosexual" in the Equal Opps questionnaire at DWP Group Conference. When
asked why he took so long over it, he said that it was so long ago, he had
difficulty remembering...