FEATHER FOR MORE TALKS WITH HEATH THE TUC ACCEPTS STATE PAY LAW yesterday held secret talks with the government and

fortnight after Heath's announcement of his pay control law.

This is despite the Economic Committee's ment last week that 'it possibla for discussions held in circumstances the results of collectiv gaining are to remain by such ill-judged and tionable provisions' No minutes ings of the TUC stateis imto be Be barfrozen objecMore important, it is despite the government's attack on the farmworkers in the law's name and the CBI's advice to firms employing between 5 and 6 million workers that they should not even talk to them about pay.

Today the Tories are expected to follow up their attack on the farmworkers by blocking the pay claim of 250,000 low-paid hospital workers (see p.12).

Neither move seems to have disturbed the arrangements for yesterday's talks in the slightest. The forum for the talks was the five-man working party set up earlier this year by the National Economic Development Council.

This was the body which set up the initial talks and working parties for the full-scale negotiations at Cheers and Downing Street. Its members are Feather, CBI director-general W. O. Campbell Adamson, Sir Frank Figgures of the National Economic Development Office and the government's : top two civil servants, Sir Douglas Allen and Sir William Armstrong.

A meeting of the whole NEDC, chaired by Heath, is due on December 6.

are taken at meetfive-man working Described by one union leader yesterday as 'just some of the lads getting together for a gin and a chat, this is an extremely useful forum for class-collaboration. Clearly Allen and Armstrong will report straight back to their political masters. But as far as Feather is concerned there is no report-back to the trade union movement.

Feather's participation in these Iks is completely shameless.

it leaked same day that who rising at almost 9 nonsense be able prices in as an announcement lesale prices are now an annual rate of per cent. This makes of the Tory claim to to hold down retail the shops.

The TUC secretary said week last Wednesday that he and his colleagues would only consider the idea of new talks with the government 'in the light of any changed atmosphere or any new development that might take place'.

Yet the only development which has taken place in the eight days since those words were uttered is a tightening-up of the Tory dictatorship over pay.

Even as the working-party talks were being set up, the CBI were calling for changes in the Counter-Inflation (Temporary Provisions) Bill to make clear that incremental increases for millions of white-collar workers are out, out, out.

The decision to take part in the new talks means the TUC leaders have decisively gone over to co-operation with the Tories' pay-control law.

Feather is supposed to be leader of Britain's 10 million trade unionists.

The people who pay his wages are not Heath and Cabinet, but those like the farm and hospital workers who are being kicked in the teeth by Heath.

He is equally responsible for those like the draughtsmen, and the scientists and technicians, who have said they will proceed with official strikes in spite of the pay law.

But at a time when he and the TUC General Council should be drawing up concrete plans to force the Tory pay-dictators out of office, Feather is engaged in friendly chats with their chief organization men.

Trade unionists will draw the obvious conclusion: that like their Labour Party counterparts in parliament, the union chiefs nave decided to co-operate lock, stock and barrel with the Tories' strategy for a permanent legal structure which will govern all wages.

Harold the man who helped Barbara Castle implement her wages policy, made this clear in the House of Commons during the unsuccessful Labourite bid to get exemption for the farmworkers.

The 'conspicuous weakness' of the Bill was that it did not assure workers it would be applied fairly all round. Neither was it clear it would be operated with 'compassion'. "Those cardinal elements are absent from the Bill', he said.

In other words, Labour MPs would vote wholeheartedly for the law if the Tories would make a few more noises about the low-paid.

Such interventions are utterly cynical and totally dangerous. They are designed to lose the working class time in its fight against the greatest threat to its basic rights ever mounted by the employing class in Britain.

But what the Feathers and Walkers are proving every day is the urgency of the fight for the alternative, revolutionary leadership, for the transformation the Socialist Labour League into decided by the All Trades Unions Alliance national conference.

Greater London Rally

CELEBRATE SKU ANNIV OF WORKE PRESS BUILD THE REVOLUTIC SUNDAY NOVEMBE Porchester Porchester Hall Queensway, W2 Details of provincial meetings—see p. 1 PICKET Dockers picketing the Midland slammed moves by lorry dri demned suggestions their pi Rechnitz, lorry drivers' leader.

- PREMIERE SOWINGEDE NEN: *ILM THREE YEARS OF WORKERS PRESS Crowing the a velopments ick win: sincer tha first issue ret September 26. 1969 M ›vinciai meeting Cold Storage depot Storage ers to cross their Cross keting was illegal was • See story p. 12 ge story (SL (Unior Hackney yest B. They also i claimed by Speakers:

national secretary)

CONNIE FAHEY ›w tenants' leader) 'ORIN REDGRAVE BATTERSBY (ACTT)

ALAN THORNETT uty senior steward Motors Assembly, Cowley, Oxford)

GARY GURMEET Editor Keep Left Chairman:

MIKE BANDA entral Committee) and tenant speakers a personal capacity)

Admission 15p lay Dnric

followed by the imposition of rigor-