Good to have another Labour left gathering this year that emphasises foreign policy and international solidarity. Labour CND’s workshop at Arise 2019, Trump and the Global Nuclear Threat, was chaired by Christine Blower former NUT General Secretary and nowadays the NEU’s International Officer and addressed by Labour CND’s Karen Robinson and journalist Liam Young. Jeremy Corbyn, pictured here, brought the 600 plus audience to its feet when he addressed the closing session.
Concern is growing that no date or timetable for Women’s Conference in 2020 has been announced, despite requests from our elected representatives. The conference plays a vital role in helping Labour develop policies that are importance to women.
Ask your CLP secretary to write to the General Secretary – before the next NEC meeting on 23 July if you can – requesting a date to be set and a timetable published. That’s
Jennie Formby, Labour Party General Secretary
Southside, 105 Victoria Street, London, SW1E 6QT
Any correspondence could be copied to
Dawn Butler MP, Shadow Cabinet Women & Equalities Spokesperson at dawn.butler.mp@parliament
Ann Henderson, Chair of the National Executive Committee Equalities sub-committee at ahendersonlab@gmail.com
Yasmine Dar, convenor of the NEC Women’s Sub-committee at yasminedar@gmail.com, and
Teresa Clark, Acting Chair of the Women’s Conference Arrangements Committee at teresamaryclark@live.co.uk
The rules have changed a bit this year. The restrictive criterion that motions had to be ‘contemporary’ has been relaxed and more motions will be debated. Labour’s 2019 conference will debate 20 motions in all, 10 selected by CLP delegates in a ballot at conference, and 10 chosen by affiliates. It’s still the case that CLPs can submit either a policy motion or a rule change, though the deadline for the latter has now passed.
Guidelines and Deadlines
Contemporary motions on policy must: address one issue, not be longer than 250 words, and not propose a rule change.
Policy motions can be submitted now, up to the deadline of noon on Thursday 12 September. Emergency motions deadline is a week later, Thursday 19 September. If your motion is ruled out of order you can appeal to the Conference Arrangements Committee which will consider appeals on Wednesday 18 September.
Labour CND’s suggested motions are here:
Scottish CND stalwart Jim Taggart died on 14 June, aged 83, after a short period of ill health. A committed socialist and internationalist, he was a fervent campaigner against nuclear weapons, NATO and war. Jim was an active member of Labour CND over three decades and served as our rep on the Scottish CND Executive Committee for much of that time.
The Taggart family home in Dumbartonshire overlooked Gare Loch, at the heart of Faslane Naval Base where Trident submarines are housed. Unsurprisingly then, Jim was a supporter of the Faslane Peace Camp from its inception in 1982 and of Trident Ploughshares which began blockading in the late 1990s.
Brian Quail, Jim’s colleague described him as ‘a hands-on and hard-working officer of Scottish CND, a well-regarded member of CND’s National Council, an integral part of Helensburgh CND and immensely practical supporter of the Peace Camp’.
A gentle and peaceable man, Jim trained as a botanist in Glasgow University and lectured for a time on plant classification at Trinity College Dublin. After returning to Dunbartonshire, in the 1970s he developed a botanic garden which became internationally known.He will be missed by his many friends in Labour CND and across the peace, anti-war and labour movements.
Jim Taggart’s funeral service takes place Saturday 6 July, 10:30 at
Craigrownie Parish Church
Cove Burgh Hall, Shore Road,
Cove G84 0LY
followed by burial at Barbour Cemetery and refreshments in Gibson Hall, Garelochhead G84 0AT
He always stood up for what he believed in, and he’ll be standing, in spirit, with protesters against Donald Trump.
Jeremy Corbyn, 30th May 2019
CND Vice President and Labour CND Executive Committee member Walter Wolfgang died this week. The link below is Jeremy Corbyn’s tribute to Walter in the Guardian this week.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/may/30/walter-wolfgang-jeremy-corbyn-donald-trump
who died peacefully in Kingston Hospital in the early hours of Wednesday morning, 29 May, was born in Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany, the only child of Erna Karoline (née Simon) and Hermann Wolfgang. Walter came to Britain as a teenager in 1937. He became a British citizen in 1948 and made his home here, joining the Labour Party the same year and remaining an active member till his death – standing as a parliamentary candidate in the 1959 election and serving on Labour’s National Executive Committee, 2006-8. An organiser of the first Aldermaston march, Walter was a CND and Labour CND stalwart throughout his life, and a Vice President of both and of Stop the War Coalition at the time of his death.
His burial takes place:
THURSDAY 6 JUNE, 2pm
The Liberal Jewish Cemetery
Pound Lane, Willesden, NW10 2HG
RESTING PEACEFULLY IN THE KNOWLEDGE THAT HE ALWAYS SPOKE TRUTH TO POWER
TRAVEL TO THE CEMETERY
The cemetery is situated off the south-west end of Pound Lane, Willesden, London, NW10 2HG. At the south-east end of Pound Lane is a fire station, next to the fire station is a block of flats and by the side of the flats is a small road that leads to the cemetery.
Bus: Routes 6 and 226 stop outside the fire station. Bus numbers 52 and 98 stop in Willesden High Road, at the corner of Hawthorn Road; walk down Hawthorn Road to the cemetery (about five minutes). Underground: The nearest stations are Dollis Hill or Willesden Green, both of which are 10- 15 minutes walk from the cemetery. There is a taxi service available from Willesden Green Station.
TRIBUTES
There is no tradition of flowers at a Jewish funeral and there will be one wreath only at Walter’s, from Carol Turner and Marjorie Thompson, his de facto family for the last decades of his life. You can pay tribute to his life if you wish by donating to one of two causes close to his heart.
Labour CND
Please reference your donation Walter
By electronic transfer to Labour CND
Sort Code 08-90-29, Account No 50459106
By cheque to Labour CND Treasurer, 162 Holloway Road, London N7 8DQ
Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD)
Please reference your donation W Wolfgang
By electronic transfer to ICAHD UK
Sort Code 08-92-99, Account No 65132227
By cheque to ICAHD UK, BM ICAHD UK, London WC1N 3XX
Pictured left with Scottish CND Chair and Labour Party member Arthur West and right at Leeds University, Francis Daehoon Lee toured the UK in May representing People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, a south Korean NGO which he helped found in 1994. In London, Scotland and Yorkshire he had the same clear message for everyone he met: the peace process on the Korean Peninsula must continue.
Francis held meetings with Shadow Peace and Disarmament Minister Fabian Hamilton and Shadow International Defence Minister Alex Norris in Westminster and a cross-party group of Scottish parliamentarians in Edinburgh, briefing them on the Trump-Kim talks. He met academics, students and activists for a round-table discussion at Leeds University (pictured right) and joined local activists for a demonstration at the gates of Menwith Hill spy base. Former Labour MEP Glyn Ford, author of Talking to North Korea: ending the nuclear standoff joined Francis on the platform of a public meeting in London.
Francis Daehoon Lee speech:
Glyn Ford speech:
With Korea back in the news again, London CND offers a unique opportunity to hear a first hand account from a Korean perspective. Francis Daehoon Lee is touring the UK as part of CND’s Nuclear Dangers initiative. Check out the Scottish and Yorkshire CND websites for details of other public meetings.
When we heard Westminster Abbey was planning a ‘Service of Thanksgiving’ to mark 50 years of Trident, it was hard to believe. But yes, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson thought we should give thanks for Britain’s nuclear weapons system.
It was such a bizarre idea that there was considerable mediacoverage. Over 200 Anglian clerics wrote a letter of protest, asking for the service to be cancelled.
On 1 May, just two days before his big chance to schmooze with Prince William, Williamson was sacked for a security breach. The ‘Thanksgiving’ went ahead with his replacement Penny Mordaunt in the lead.
Led by Christian CND, hundreds gathered across the road from Westminster Abbey. While the service was held inside the Abbey, there was a die-in on the pavement outside, in memory of the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
When the service finished, the congregation streamed out and across the road for a reception, while the Abbey bells pealed joyously. For a full half hour, royals, military top brass, parliamentarians and a smattering of the establishment filed by the protest.
BBC news that evening reported Prince William was booed and heckled. In fact, some protesters shouted ‘Stop Trident’. He needed to hear that not everyone was celebrating.
Great to have a stand-alone Labour Women’s Conference this year, after a long absence – and with Labour CND women making their presence felt. Our committee member Karen Robinson (left) is picture here with two Sheffield Halam delegates who submitted a defence diversification motion (download below), sadly not chosen for debate. Karen drew huge applause at at a fringe meeting when she spoke about her experiences as a Greenham Common peace camper and why she’d rejoined the party again when Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader. Jeremy was given a standing ovation when he took to the rostrum to address conference.
