"Somebody has to begin the fight against these measures; it may as well be us.?
of the axe The Government's economic proposals do not simply constitute an attack on the wages front. The so-called battle against inflation involves savage attacks on all fronts and the beleaguered National Health Service is no exception.
Last week Barbara Castle admitted: The prospects for financing the NHS in the next few years would be bleak... • She added: I think we shall be very lucky if in the next few years we see any real growth whatever in the service.
INADEQUATE
Originally the NHS was supposed to be getting around £100 million a year on top of its present budget. This in itself was a miserably inadequate figure. Now the Chancellor has lopped this to £25 millions.
Mrs Castle's 'solution' to these vicious cuts is to look desperately for a pressure group. She whined: "Both education and social services have in recent years repeatedly shown higher rates of real growth than planned by the Government: health.on the other hand has always shown exactly the growth planned by the Government... To me it is a near tragedy that the health service has lacked the kind of effective pressure groups that education has had."
This faded old 'left' clearly has no solution to the attacks by the ruling class on the NHS. All she can suggest is some Washington-type lobby to filch some of the money from the other social services As the squeeze gets tougher, the need for a working class solution becomes more imperative. The 11 October Conference called by the Medical Committee Against Private Practice can help to lay the basis for organBernard Regan, an IMG teacher militant, addresses last Saturday's conference hensive alternative to the Social Contract and incomes policy; and secondly, that defending the present education system from financial against inflation through a sliding scale of ising the forces for such a solution. Unlike Mrs Castle it does not see a way out for the NHS at the expense of the uther social services On the contrary it believes in a united front of the working class movement to defend and extend all the social services.
Mrs Castle is simply trying to operate a health service that is subordinated to the needs of capitalism, whereas MCAPP argues that the NHS can only be defended and extended to work in the interests of the working class on an anti-capitalist basis.
Sponsorship for the Conference is growing at a steady rate. The organisers do ask us to point out, however, that whilst support in the London area is impressive, out-of-London sponsorship is coming in much more slowly As they explain: This is a national conference. To be successful it must get support on a national basis.
NEW SPONSORS No doubt Red Weekly readers will take note and make sure that their organisations are approached as soon as possible to sponsor and support this very important conference Latest sponsors include: St Georges Hospital NUPE branch, presently engaged in a private practice ban; Westminster Hospital NUPE branch, scene of a private practice ban some weeks ago; United Manchester Hospitals NUPE branth; North London District Council of the National Union of Railway men; Southwark Trades Council For details of the MCAPP Conference write to: Dr Paul Stern, 55 Bridge Lane, London N.W.11. (tel. 01-455-4920).
The conference went on to support the principle of automatic protection of salaries wages and agreed a motion opposing cuts in education spending. A speaker from the Troops Out Movement was also welcomed.
UNITED ACTION
Finally, the attitude which should be taken Workers' Fight argued for continuing work in Rank and File to change its policies. For them, the only thing wrong with Rank and File is its 'wrong' demands. The IMG argued that to concentrate exclusively on the tight to reform Rank and File (although we will do that) was dangerous at a time when the most effective action at present in the NUT will be gained with militants who have never been inside Rank and File and don't intend to be.
The conference agreed to meet again in the autumn to agree on practical lines for action. Teachers from Scotland particularly stressed the importance of this, pointing to the glaring gaps in policy and precision in the conference. No-one argued for the premature creation of only be a means of achieving united action with a new organisation. But if all teacher militants work to build the autumn conference, better steps will be taken to mount an effective opposition to the policies of the NUT leader-