WHAT A RESPONSE IN NW!

ON MERSEYSIDE THE RESPONSE our march received in Skelmersdale today proved to all of us what impact the Right-to-Work campaign is having in the Lancashire working class.

First of all, just outside the town we were met by some building workers from the Bison site. They had just finished a four-week reinstatement strike But on the first day back, deputy steward Ray Hodson was sacked for defending another victimized worker.

'Our fight is like your fightthe right to work and the right to strikeinto town. Just before marched into town. Just the strike began, the men on the Site collected over £33 for the Right-to-Work campaign.

Waiting on the balcony of the town hall greet us was councillor Phil Bond, chairman of the Labour-controlled tow n council. With him was Charlie Denton, chairman of Skelmersdale trades council and a member of the Communist Party.

After, the tea and sandwiches laid on by the council Phil Bond told me that the serious situation confronting the working class needed total unity of the class. We couldn't afford to argue about bans and proscriptions in the Labour Party.

'As far as I'm concerned the test of any organization must be its seriousness •in fighting the Tory government. We are pleased to see youth like these in action and welcome them here. The Tories won't be brought down by speeches or resolutions in the House of Commons or anywhere else, he said.

Councillor Bond also told me how they •used to talk about Skelmersdale as the promised land, a new town in the heart of Lancashire which would bring jobs for all.

Workers_were lured from Liverpool with the bait of a new house. But the dream turned sour on broken promises. Today there are over 1,000 workers unemployed.

During the reception at the town hall we were given two more boosts to our march. Workers from Air Industries : U.K. Ltd walked in and handed over a collection of nearly f5 taken among 40 office and shop-floor And then I was told that workers on the nearby McAlpine building site had raised over £10 for us and would take weekly collections until the march reached London.

We got about five miles from Wigan after our Skelmersdale break and we once again met our friends from Bold colliery. About 15, led by Mick Connolly, joined the march and stayed. with us into town.

The magnificent response we have had SO far has • really impressed the marchers. Norman Oswald, who at 15 is the youngest on the march, said:

'Everywhere we have asked for support wever mach miners said toy ndon with us it they would march all weren't going back to work' One of the Kirkby boys, Kenneth Joyce, who lost his apprenticeship some months back, also recognized the support. 'I've sold about 150 Workers Press in two days and I think it was good the way all those other workers joined in the march. Now we are going to fight to get to London Ne'll beat the Tories, otherwise I'll never get a decent job.

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