About 200 militants from the engineering industry attended a conference in Birmingham last Sunday called by the rank and file paper Ergineering Voice.
Most of the leading left-wing officials from the AUEW wore there, including Hugh Scanion, Ernie Roberts, Les Ambrose, John Foster and Bob Wright.
Again we saw Scanion trying to face two ways at once. In his opening speech to the conference he put the record straight on the rumours that he had opposed the AU's delegation to the TUC from the start.
It was true. He had argued that they should abstain, or vote for the General Council's resolation supporting the social contract.
He then rejected the allegations that the AUEW was rocking the boat' and not playing their part in co-operating with the lahour Government's incomes policy Alter all, hadn't they sellled with the employers far short of the orignal claim precisely because there was a Labour Government. They had even postponed the adoption of the next wage claim until November, In case Harold Wilson had any worries about this Scanion assured everybody thal the next claim Over 51 schools were represented would be designed so as nor to increase living standards but just to keep up with prices, After demonstrating how reasonable he was he then announced that none of this implied that he supported the Obviously, he hadn't completely lorgotten that be was talking to a CP-dominated audience who also happened to be his base in the union. This did not prevent him from informing a delegate from Sheffield that if he moved a resolution rejecting the social contract he would speak against it. In the end, the platform decided that this might cause too many problems and that no resolutions would be allowed:
Of course, Scanion received the usual ovation that a stat always receives from his fan club, But there must be a few worried minds after last Sunday's display. It is clear that Scasion is firinly on the road to collaboration with the social contract in spite of his protestations As was pointed out in the discus sion ut the conference the TUCS decision is not the last word on that. The fate of the social contract will be determined by the strugele of the working class--not the deals made hy governinent ministers and trade union bureaucrats.
taking action on the cisim course of any of the debates UNREALITY The whole proceedings semed to have an air of lotal unreality about them. The only decision laken which was mone than a simple endorsement of the official Labour line was the demand, on Tuesday. for Labour to end all private prac tice in the health service. And even