MONEY Two-tier gold plan upsets EEC plans

ment rules. support operations.

rency reserves. The first breach in the April agreement

EEC civil

strike THE COMMON Market's administrative machinery began to grind to a halt yesterday as 6,000 civil servants in its Brussels headquarters began a nine-day strike for more pay. They will be joined today by another 2,000 workers in LuxembourgThe strike is against the refusal of the French and German governments to adhere to a wage-rise settlement reached last March after an earlier series of strikes. The two governinents claim that the present demand conflicts with national wages policies.

A further complication is the threat that the European parlia ment may vote out the Executive Commission today been motion of censure has tabled by a French member against the executive's failure to give the European parliament wider powers over the EEC budget.

BUILD TI REVOLU GLASGOW SUNDAY DECEME Woodside Halls St George's Cros Speakers committee)

JOHN BARRIE committee)

WILLIE DOCHE Paisley Tenant mittee. in pers PLANS for monetary integration within the Common Market received a major blow yesterday when European was the floating of sterling in June. The central bankers decided at a meeting Italian lira required heavy support to of tough trade negotia in Basle to abandon their debt repay- prevent devaluation and Italy was given peans are forced to n The rules were drawn up in April when the six EEC countries and the four candidates for membership decided to maintain their currencies around a common parity by mutual Under the April agreement they agreed to repay each other for these support operations in proportion to the composition of their own gold and foreign curCELEBRATE 3RD ANNIVERSA OF WORKERS PRESS WE Central national TY hairman Compacity.) was the floating of sterling in June. The Italian lira required heavy support to prevent devaluation and Italy was given special exemption from repaying the gold special exemption from repaying the gold single currency bloc. portion of its debts.

But two weeks ago Britain and Italy On Thursday the US administration declared they would not in future break again warned it plans to be tough in into their gold reserves to pay debts to negotiations with western Europe on a other European central banks. They said broad range of trade, economic and that the current 'official' gold price, $38 military issues over the next two years. an ounce, was too low by comparison with the 'free market' price of over $60 Henry Kissinger's chief deputy for an ounce. European affairs, Helmut Sonnenfeldt As the Workers Press emphasized on November 28 this meant that 'the free market price now predominates over the agreed central bank gold price and the [1968] two-tier system is effectively undermined. Troops brought in to break Paris THE PREFECT Tean Verdier, yester in the French army the strike of Paris and street-cleaners.

Verdier claimed that the troops were not breaking the strike, but protecting 'public health' CGT trade union leaders have complained that the Prefect would have acted more sensibly if he had had serious discussions with them. They reminded him that army strike-breaking in April 1970 only led to the damaging of mechanical collectors by untrained young soldiers.

This touching respect for council property, and lack of regard for the atrocious conditions of their members, is symptomatic of the reasonable, socially res:NEW:

:FILM:

THREE ORKERE PRESS Shoving the developments and gains since-lee first issue or eptem tember 26. 1969 BIRMINGHAM SUNDAY DECEMBER 17, Assembly Hall Digbeth Civic Hall Speakers:

G. HEALY (SLL National tary)

WILLIE AITKIN (YS national committee) steward. in personal capacitie PETER SMITH (Rover shop CORIN REDGRAVE (Equity. In a personal capacity.) dustmen's strike bf Paris, lay called to break dustmen ponsible' attitude of the Communist Party leadership in the CGT.

CGT general secretary, Georges Séguy, told a regional congress in Montpellier at the weekend that the situation in France resembled the chaos at the end of the Fourth Republic.

*The multiplication of strikes by workers, teachers and students, the various demonstrations of discontent by small farmers, traders and artisans, the proliteration of all types of scandal; the anarchy of prices, the dissensions in the government, all this gives French people this impression of disorder and mess which legitimately horrifies them,' was how this CP Central Committee member described the state of France.

The gathering of trade unionists was told that a Socialist Left swing in BOTH the Socialist Party and the Communist Party made considerable gains in the Japanese General Election, though premier Kakuei Tanaka is still in office with a comfortable parliamentary majority.

Tanaka's Liberal Democrats (Conservatives) lost 26 seats, giving it 271 seats in the lower house. The bourgeois 'opposition' parties, the Komeito (Clean government) Party and the Democratic Socialists, also lost seats.

Komeito representation dropped from 47 to 29 and Military summit in Egypt ARAB army chiefs of staff gathered in Cairo yesterday for a military summit meeting which will attempt to work out an agreed plan for confrontation with Israel.

The meeting follows talks between foreign and As Nixon gears up As Nixon gears up for of tough trade negotiatior peans are forced to make treat from their attempt:

single currency bloc.

Henry warned a ence on was a ma western E permanent that of the Democratic Socialists from 29 to 19.

The Socialist Party, by contrast, won 118 seats compared with 87 in the last parliament and the Communist Party gained 24 seats, bringing its representation to 38.

The results represents a definite swing to the left by the Japanese electorate and a polarization of voting along class lines. Japan faces a major economic crisis with the United States demanding big cuts in exports.

Over the past has produced defence ministers in Kuwait which failed to reach agreement on à concerted plan.

While the Lebanon and particularly Syria have been bearing the brunt of Zionist terror attacks, Egypt has confined itself to making bellicose noises. Jordan is Kissinger's chief deputy for affairs, Helmut Sonnenfeldt four-day international conferthe future of US-European in Columbia, Maryland, there od in the United States that urope must help to halt the deficit in the US balance of year this militant La new round IS, the Euroa major reto build a Party-Communist Party ment would guarantee based on social progress In other words. Séguy includes the strike movement by the French working class against inflation in his catalogue of chaos.

The CGT policy of short protest strikes has already imposed serious limitations on workers struggles against the Pompidou government.

The unions have called a twohour strike on Thursday in Renault-Billancourt on the eve of negotiations with their stateemployers.

Such useless protests. are calculated to break down workers' militancy and to intensify the frustration of the petty-bourgeoisie.

The CP in this way strengthens the drive by Pompidou and Messmer for a 'strong' government.

Japan struggles by workers, notably lengthy seamen's earlier this year. It record for the longest in Japanese history.

In power for 24 years, the Liberal Democrats were hoping the election would endorse their sweeping anti-working-class "Grand Design' for a radical redistribution of industry and population to tackle Japan's economic problems.

The election results, however, indicate that the working class is on the move against the Japanese employers and their militaristic state.

They say that though govern'order anese strike set a strike drawing closer and to the Israelis.

Egyptian People's Council members have issued a statement casting doubt on assurances from premier Aziz Sidky that the government has prepared the country for battle with Israel. Vestey's Argentine chief goes missing negotiate his release.

"alive and well'.

Aires course.

unusual.

their victim's release.

Lord Vestey, million pound possible* was day he release.

—He said thi been told t through the co Buenos Aires.

Steve, who Vestey 1946, was in dave ago on a in Argentina. RONALD GROVE, general manager of the Vestey organization in Argentina, has disappeared on his way to a golf course. Vestey's lawyers, who believe he is in the hands of kidnappers, are trying to The company's representatives have received two tape recordings in which Grove says he is He disappeared on Sunday on his way to play golf on a Buenos So far no political group in Argentina has issued a statement admitting responsibility for the kidnapping. This is very In previous kidnap incidents the groups involved have issued communiqués stating the reasons for their action and the terms for head of the multi- irm, said yesterdoing 'everything obtain Grove's kidnappers had make contact mpany's lawyers in has worked for Argentina since Britain only ten business trip.

subsidiary which has been engaged meat packing in Argentina since the turn of the • THE MIDLAND Cold Storage board meeting which was due early this week has been postponed because of the disappearance of Vestey's representative Picketing by dockers has effectively shut the cold store in east London and the company was to meet early this week to take a decision on whether to seek an order in the National Industrial Relations Court.

'Lord Vestey must have priority,' a spokesman for his organization said yesterday, 'and that must be a man's life. Lord Vestey wants to remain free on the end of a telephone to deal with the situation in Argentina."

benchers are becoming_increasingly shrill in their cries against pickets.

Home Secretary Robert Carr is examining a memo-