"Meet the new Boss - same as the old Boss"
In 1990, John Major promised continuity from Margaret Thatcher, but
succeeded by 1992 to convince sufficient people that it was possible to
change the government's direction, without changing the governing
party.
 
Of course, nothing fundamentally changed.  Privatisation for example
continued and, in fact, Major's new Chancellor, Norman Lamont, quickly
introduced what is fast becoming the widest route to private
involvement in public services, the Private Finance Initiative (PFI).
 
So can Gordon Brown do the same?  Can he simultaneously continue
Blairism, whilst seeming to ditch sufficiently Blair's legacy?
 
One of the essences of Blairism was that he regarded the very creation
of the Labour Party by the trade unions just over a hundred years ago
as a mistake, as it led to a split from the Liberals.  Gordon Brown
seems to have a similar view, bringing in Liberal Democrats as
advisers, and even seeking to bring Lord (Paddy) Ashdown into the
Cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
 
The new 'government of all the talents' doesn't end there.  Former CBI
head, Sir Digby Jones, is being ennobled to enable him to take a
ministerial job. And the new Prime Minister has created a 'Business
Leaders' Council' of company bosses such as Sir Alan Sugar to advise
him.  No invites yet to form an Advisory Council of pensioners, former
manufacturing workers living now on Mcwages, health workers, posties or
anyone else trying to deliver a public service under the pressure of
PFI or imminent privatisation!
 
And within hours of taking charge at the Labour Party Conference, the
new Labour leader submitted plans to Labour's National Executive to
thank the union leaders who had backed him by ending the current role
of the trade unions who have 50% of the votes at the Labour Party's
annual conference - by turning policymaking into a party referendum.
 
10 years of New Labour has seen the gap between the rich and the rest
rocket to the stratosphere.  The rich are so leniently dealt with in
Britain that in the Sunday Times Rich List only three of the top 10
richest individuals in the country were actually born here - the rest
seem to have settled for tax reasons.
 
Gordon Brown is as wedded to the interests of big business and the rich
as Tony Blair ever was, indeed much of the policies in those areas were
directly his responsibility in 10 years as Chancellor.
 
The case for working people, particularly in the trade unions, laying
the basis for a new independent party of working people and their
families and communities grows day by day.
 
If you can help the campaign in any way, I hope you will.
 
Dave Nellist
Chair, CNWP
 

 Supporters of the Campaign for a New Workers Party along side hundred
of other trade union activists will be taking part in the founding
conference of the Shop Stewards Network in central London on Saturday 7
June. We believe that the campaign for independent working class
political representation and the struggle to build a national network
of militant shop stewards are two key elements of the same basic
struggle, to give workers a voice and the confidence to fight. For more
information about the Shop Stewards Network visit: www.shopstewards.net
 

 The latest campaign resources of the CNWP are available on our website
now. For a copy of the latest CNWP leaflet to use in building support
for the campaign go to:
www.cnwp.org.uk/downloads/24JuneBrownLeaflet.pdf
For the latest version of the declaration for a new workers party go
to: http://www.cnwp.org.uk/downloads/NewCNWPDeclaration.pdf
Make sure you go around you workplace, trade union branch and campaign
groups that you’re involved in with the declaration for a new workers’
party and collect new signatories to the campaign. All new signatories
should be e-mailed to info@...
 
Campaign for a New Workers’ Party public meetings
The CNWP is organising a speaking tour to help build support for the
campaign. Would your trade union branch or local campaign group be
interested in hosting a CNWP meeting? Would you like to organise a
meeting in your area? Get in touch and we can help promote the meeting,
provide speakers, campaign material, etc.
 
Campaign Finances
Unlike the establishment parties, we can’t rely on big loans or
donations from the fat cats to fund our campaigning. The CNWP is
reliant on the money raised by its supporters and the donations we
receive from workers who support the campaign. If you could spare just
£1 or £2 a month to regularly donate to the CNWP it would significantly
help us in the campaign material we are able to produce and the impact
that the CNWP can have on the workers movement. Standing order forms
for regular donations to the campaign can be found here:
www.cnwp.org.uk/downloads/Standing%20Order%20Mandate.doc
 
If you want more information about CNWP activities in your area or if
you can help with any of this work, whether its leafleting, organising
meetings, hosting a fund raising event for the campaign or anything
else you can think of then please contact us at info@...