Oh my good god...

NUS' 5 challenges just keep getting worse... and just to twist the knife our fulltime officers haven't even submitted a motion on it to the next national executive - so much for being accountable.

There are however two motions highlighting the continuing crisis in Iraq that is dogging Brown and has been on the front of the Guardian since his corronation was pushed into the middle pages - Iraq. Both the Stop the War Coalition motion to support the protest on the 24th June and the national petition and neo-liberal restructuring of the oil industry driven by the US/UK occupation.

Other motions include supporting the UCU action at Harlow college and supporting Ken livingstones plans to increase the London living wage by 15p and to promote it in the run up to the GLA elections next year. The motion on supporting a miliant campaign driven by UCU left members should be particularly important - standing in stark contrast to the sentiments expressed by other "independant" NEC members with their 5 sops from a Brown government plea.

Motions for the NEC

Two motions for the next NEC meeting on the question of Gordon Brown and the devastation Blair has left behind. One to support the Stop the War demonstration on June 24th in Manchester alongside StWc 100 days to get the troops out petition and one for a real 5 demands on Brown.

Here is the second motion:

NEC Believes:

1. That the immediate period is dominated by the change of Prime Minister and speculation on how different Brown will be to Blair. The media is full of opinions and speculation of what Brown will do in government.
2. That the failure of the Labour Party to field a second candidate will be used to try and lessen debate about what a new government will actually do while in power.
3. That both Stop the War and the Public and Civil Service Union (PCS) have launched major campaigns to ensure the debate around war and the future of the public sector are central to the government changing policy not just its leader.
4. Unions like the CWU, NUT, UCU and Unison are looking likely to campaign against the government’s plans for further cuts and privatisations joining a growing public opposition.
5. That the NUS also published 5 “demands” on a new Prime Minister on Monday 14^th:

· Health - NUS calls for prescriptions, dental care and eye test exemptions to be extended to cover all students.

· Travel - NUS calls for a commitment to ensure concessionary bus travel for all students.

· Debt - NUS calls for the current interest rate on student loans to remain linked to inflation.

· Skills - NUS calls for the extension of free entitlement to level 3 qualifications to all adults.

· Work - NUS calls for an equal minimum wage to protect our most vulnerable workers and give them a fair and equal position in the workplace

NEC Further Believes:

1. That NUS should support the initiatives from Stop the War and PCS while agitating for activists to raise 5 student demands on the new prime minister to unite all those opposed to Blair’s neo-liberal vision of society and campaign to make sure it prioritises supporting students, workers and the oppressed over pandering to business interests and privatisation.
2. That Blair left early because of the pressure of mass opposition to his policies. NUS and the wider movement must capitalise on this opportunity by uniting students in and out of the Labour party around a different vision of society.
3. NUS’ current demands amount to a call for little more then a milder version of New Labours attacks and will cut us off from students expecting a more bold campaign and a Trade Union movement starting to challenge the government.

NUS NEC Resolves:

1. To adopt the following 5 demands:
• Education for all - Reverse the attacks on Higher Education, the privatisation of FE and city academies. An education for social benefit not the market.
• For a Living Wage – For a living minimum wage for all and extended Trade Union rights for casual workers to protect students and insecure work forces. End the public service pay freeze.
• Racism – Stop the attacks on Asian and Muslim students. For a progressive policy to counteract the discrimination of black students in education.
• Welfare – stop the privatisation of the welfare state. Bring back all benefits, accessible public health and local support for students and the wider community.
• Environment – Major investment in renewable energy research in our Universities. Tax companies which pollute our cities and environment.
2. To produce an open letter for Student Unions and activists to sign on our website and circulate a hard copy to all student Unions, education unions and campaign groups.
3. To produce leaflets to put out at all Brown’s speaking dates and at his coronation on the 24^th of June in Manchester both on the protests and inside.

The key still remains orientating on the wider Stop the War campaign to nail Brown down to the demand to get the troops out now and the PCS' Union campaign to defend the public sector.

Brown Bounce

With McDonnell’s failure to get on the ballot just reaching the ears of leftwing students the Brownite leadership of NUS had already released 5 “demands” on the new Prime Minister. Demands that fail to mention the small questions of fees, war, racism let alone free education…

· Health - NUS calls for prescriptions, dental care and eye test exemptions to be extended to cover all students.

· Travel - NUS calls for a commitment to ensure concessionary bus travel for all students.

· Debt - NUS calls for the current interest rate on student loans to remain linked to inflation.

· Skills - NUS calls for the extension of free entitlement to level 3 qualifications to all adults.

· Work - NUS calls for an equal minimum wage to protect our most vulnerable workers and give them a fair and equal position in the workplace.

With no left candidate on the ballot paper the debate on what a new Government should do will be silenced as the “legacy” of Blairism is passed on. What will be presented as a defeat for the whole left should be seen clearly for what it is – the death of any attempt to reclaim Labour. That McDonnell could only scrap 29 nominations (with another 13 left MPs stepping down at the next election) is a sad testament to the state of the labour left. NUS’ intervention in no small way demonstrates the capitalisation rightwing leaderships will make of it to push forwards a New Labour agenda that the left needs to be prepared to fight.

If we’re not to be marginalised during the “Brown Bounce” we need to fight for our own 5 demands and attempt to reorganise those who could have looked to a left challenge on the need for a struggle from bellow.

• War – Bring the Troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan; stop the Imperialist disaster that is Blair’s “war on terror.”
• Education – Reverse New Labour attacks on education. No fees, privatisation or city academies. Bring back Free Education.
• Work – Break the public sector pay freeze; invest in our teachers, nurses, civil servants and firefighters. For a living minimum wage.
• Racism – Stop the vilification of Black, Asian and Muslim communities stop the demonisation of asylum seekers.
• Welfare – stop the privatisation of the welfare state bring back benefits, accessible public health and local support.

What ever the demands the student left adopt the focus will have to be the stop the war protests attempting to force Brown to abandon Britain’s imperial ambitions in the Middle East by putting the question of war centre stage. But within these mobilisations a more subtle debate needs to be waged with those who look to the labour left on the class nature of the Labour party and the historic role of its leftwing. Labourism retains a working class base and has always been committed to managing the capitalist system but its commitment to neo-liberalism is straining at this contradiction. The acceptance of neo-liberalism of has almost completely marginalised a left inside the party committed to a slightly milder program (represented by Meacher) and almost destroyed the campaign group opening a real space to the left of labour. Respect must try and play the role john4leader could have played in debating a real alternative for labour representation as well as building a popular organisation outside the labour party. Building on the logic of the stop war mobilisations we can put forwards a series of demands that can unite those outside Labour and appeal to those that committed their hopes to McDonnell.