PARLI AMENTARY COLUMN

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: march 2016 :: RMTnews I hope RMT members will not need too much persuading that Labour supporters should vote to Leave the EU in the June 23 referendum. The union has led opposition to EU policies and the late Bob Crow was one of the strongest advocates of that campaign. The European Union is anti- democratic, anti-socialist and failing economically. With low and negative economic growth, 25 per cent unemployment and 50 per cent youth unemployment in some member states, living standards cut by a quarter in Greece, forced privatisations and restrictions on collective bargaining rights as conditions of bailouts, the true nature of the EU is now plain to see. Free movement of labour is designed to simply reduce wages and reduce wage bargaining strength. The Laval and Viking Line cases where the European Court ruled in favour of employers and against trade unions made a nonsense of the supposed EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and were a clear indicator of the directions of travel being steered by the EU’s masters. Raising up the market and market forces against elective democracy was evident from the start in its original name, the Common Market, and was opposed at the time by British socialists including Clement Attlee, Nye Bevan and Hugh Gaitskell. In a Commons debate in 1989, Tony Benn said, “I was brought up to believe, and I still believe, that when people vote in an election they must be entitled to know that the party for which they vote, if it has a majority, will be able to enact laws under which they will be governed. That is no longer true. Any party elected, whether it is the Conservative party or the Labour party can no longer say to the electorate, "Vote for me and if I have a majority I shall pass that law," because if that law is contrary to Common Market law, British judges will apply Community law.”Labour’s policy of returning the railways to public ownership will become impossible if the EU’s railway policies are implemented. This is bizarre when German Deutsche Bahn, the state railway owns much of Britain’s public transport services, with British passengers effectively subsidising Berlin commuters. The European Union project moved slowly and by stealth at first, later accelerating following the 1980s Single European Act. It was intended to promote the progressive dismantling of the post-war social democratic structures which brought such massive benefits to millions of working people across Western Europe. The current secretive negotiations to impose TTIP, the proposed EU/USA trade deal which would give massive power to the giant private corporations to be able to prosecute democratically elected member state governments is conclusive proof – if proof were needed - about the true nature of the EU. It is time for democratic member state governments once again to stand up for their peoples and to reject the EU. The United Kingdom has an opportunity to take the lead in that process by voting “Leave” in the coming referendum. That being said, I always emphasise that the European Union is not Europe. Europe is a sub-continent of great peoples, beautiful countries and superb culture. Democracy, socialism and trade unionism were all created in Europe. The European Union is simply a political construct covering many of the countries of Europe. We can have a great Europe without the EU, a Europe of international friendship and solidarity which will not sell out working people to the global corporations. Kelivin Hopkins is a member of the RMT Parliamentary Group and the Labour Leave Campaign VOTE TO LEAVE 9 A s London's largest tube union RMT has called for reassurances from London Underground on the Night Tube safety case, and a fair deal for Tube Lines engineers, after the Mayor confirmed a July start for the project. RMT LUL members have overwhelmingly backed a pay and conditions package that covers Night Tube and the union has supported the idea of extended running properly introduced through negotiation. However, the union has yet to see a full safety case and remains in dispute over nearly 1,500 Tube Lines maintenance staff who are currently being balloted for strike action. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the dispute may have been settled for LUL staff on pay and conditions but the idea that all of the outstanding issues have been resolved, not least the safety case and the Tube Lines engineers dispute, is simply not true. "There are still significant concerns over staff rosters and those basic operational issues would be fundamental to hitting a start date this summer. There is very clearly some distance to go in terms of getting all of the components in place. "The whole project is being constructed against a backdrop of TFL cuts and only a fool would pretend that those cuts do not have an impact on the operational model. " Police concerns about increased crime taking place during all-night running on Fridays and Saturdays ". "RMT remains fully engaged in delivering the Night Tube and fully committed to making sure that all of our members, including Tube Lines, are properly respected and rewarded,” he said. RMT DEMANDS FAIR DEAL FOR NIGHT TUBE Parliamentary column