Hot steel jobs clash

Workers Press no. 981, 26 January 1973 · scan page 2

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BY STEPHEN yesterday steelworkers marched on the House of Common yesterday smashing through two police barriers in an unprecedented display of anti-Tory feeling.

By law all marches must disperse one mile from Westminster when parliament is in session. The steelworkers and their wives had travelled from North Wales in two special trains and in a fleet of cars.

Police moved in to break up the march at the south end of Lambeth Bridge and again on the far side damaging the works band's instruments, scattering nusic sheets and jostling frightened women.

Parry, whose is employed works, said:

It will be closes. There's at all. We'll eating crisps.' Superviser Bozier said: seen anything

IAN YEATS

Reinforcements were rushed to the bridge in coaches, but the marchers fought through to parliament in full order chanting: 'If you all hate the Tories, clap your hands'.

The workers were in London to persuade the government to abandon its plan to shut the open-hearth furnaces at Shotton, axing 6,500 jobs.

Shunter Kevin Onions asked me: 'Why should our wives and kids starve so that Heath can get more money for his boats?' Canteen worker Mrs M.

entire family at the steelterrible if it no other work all end up Mrs Jean 'Heath hasn't yet. We shall win Decause we are nghting for our jobs.

*If they try to close the works the country will come out with us.

Liverpool dockers and builders were in the march and builders at St Thomas's Hospital site downed tools for 15 minutes and cheered as the march went past chanting: 'Heath out'.

Many workers said that if their present protest campaign failed, they would occupy the doomed works and call for strike action throughout the industry.

But action committee leader Geoff Hett said that for the time being they would continue their campaign to maximize Shotton's profits.

They would lobby workers at Britain's car factories to persuade them to use the works' steel.

The committee was due to present a plan on BBC Wales TV last night for converting the open-hearth furnaces at Shotton into more modern tandem furnaces.