Retreat before they even start

their pay-curb plan. For premier Heath and his recognize that among the words spoken by TUC and leaders on the subject since there is not a syllable of reai pistol at our heads' or as an ultimatum.

leaders retreat', page 11).

with the Tory plan. It was said that Party leader Harold Wilson would unveil these demands in a major speech tomorrow.

Any such demands will be just as bogus as the union leaders 'opposition'.

Having themselves proposed state regulation of wages while in office, the Labour leaders' have worked diligently to keep the Tories in power to carry the plan through. Shadow Chancellor enis Healey has already wel omed the Heath plan Heath's confidence yesterday vas further boosted by news of the Labour leaders' 'tactics'.

No resolution opposing the plan will appear on the agenda of the Labour Party conference, which starts in Biackpool today. The conterence - arrangements committee has refused to accept an emergency motion on the issue from the white-collar ASTMS.

The conference managers will explain this morning that this is because there will be plenty of opportunity for opposition to be expressed during the scheduled debate on prices and incomes, which is fixed for Thursday.

But a clear hint of the nature of this 'opposition' came in Blackpool yesterday from Jack Jones, Transport and General Workers' Union secretary (see above).

Speaking after a meeting of the contenc pla was outage the T&GWU Tones the conterenco.

In Birmingham on Friday Jones said that arrangements between top strategists thousands of Labour Party last Tuesday opposition.

ROY JENKINS: Darling of the Tory press .. 3 BRITAIN'S DECAYING DENTAL SERVICE. A three-part series in which Virginia Strickland details the Tories' attack on this most vital section of the NHS .. 4 THE LABOUR Party conference which opens today in Blackpool will make no direct challenge to the Tory bid to impose a wage freeze on the trade unions.

The two resolutions to commit the movement to opposition to incomes policy have fallen in preconférence compositing, and an attempt by the white-collar union ASTMS to table an emergency motion attacking the wages offensive has been rejected.

The only chance for delegates to discuss this issue, which overshadows the conference, will come motion asking the TUC and Thursday when the Party to work out an incomes policy will be discussed.

The manoeuvre is designed to spare the big trade union leaders embarrassment.

It would be clearly contradictory if the Party came out with a policy rejecting the Heath proposals while the TUC decided to go on talkingINSIDE PAGES TODAY as it will do on Wednesday when its Economic Committee meets on the issue at Preston.

Even alleged left-wingers like Jack Jones, head of the giant Transport Workers' Union, is against any LABOUR PARTY: execa. tive member lan Mikardo MP said yesterday that he did not want to lose members from the Party, whether they, were proCommon Market or not.

But he would not be blackmailed, he said. It would not be an unmitigated disaster s o ne e Marketeers decided Pro stand down at the next election.

émergency resolution attacking the government's He considers the issue 'outside the conference'.

On Wednesday, he will urge the Economic Committee to carry on with the talks.

WHO LET THE RENT MAN IN?

Philip Wade assesses Labour's retreat on the Tories' Housing Finance Act, which operates from today 6&7 RED PAPER COMPILED BY PARLOUR PINKS. Tom Kemp reviews the "left' reformists' alternative programme 9 JOHNS Jones believes that a deal over wages can agreed, but not on the existing 22 figure.

His union is insisting also that the government must introduce a legal freeze on house prices and rents, curb rises in pronts and dividends and put the Industrial Relations Act on ice.

A formula has also been worked out on the At the debate on Wednesday, delegates will have three resolutions before them.

One supporting entry will certainly be defeated. But uncertainty surrounds the motion from the Amalgamated Union of Engineerfor complete opposition to entry and commits a future Labour government to pulling out of Europe on taking office.

The resolution most likely to find favour is a third alternative.

This is a composite LOOK OUT! LOOK OUT! Be sure of your Workers Pass the were eng Labour 'HELL and STEPHEN JOHNS are in Blackpool to bring you all the news, views and background to this conference.

ORDER WORKERS PRESS EVERY DAY. Telephone circulation dept. 01-622 702% three resolutions from the Boilermakers' Society, and the Ebow Vale and Ilkeston constituency Labour Parties.

It calls on Labour to negotiate terms and scrap the Market's common agricultural policy, ValueAdded Tax, and to reject any curbs on the British government's freedom to carry out its economic policy.

The composite also demands that Labour halts any immediate entry negotiations until new terms have been negotiated and 'the assent of the British electorate has been given'.

This is only marginally tougher than the C•OlC outlined in Labours dratt •urnee in programme, which calls on a Labour government to sound out the feelings of the electors if agreement on satisfactory terms between Britain and the EEC cannot be reached.

On both main issues, therefore, the conference has already been made virtually incapable in advance of reaching any kind of principled decision.