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Report on Meeting of the Labour International Coordinating Committee Rome

6 May 2006

The biannual meeting of the Labour Coordinating Committee of Labour International which is the International section of the British Labour Party was held in Rome on May 6th. It was meeting in Rome to reestablish the Italian Branch of the Party and to meet with Italian Socialist Parties following the recent victory of the Left Coalition in the Italian General elections.

The Italian based organiser of the the Italian branch Irene Relevant commented
'We were very pleased to welcome the International Executive to Rome for what was a very succesful series of meetings. Our intention is to establish branches in the north of Italy, in the South as well as in Rome. As well as the many British residents in Italy who are supporters of the Labour Party we also have many Italian nationals and others who have been inspired by the example of Labour in the United Kingdom where Labour have been able to synthesise social aspirations with the needs of a modern global economy.We look forward to sharing that experience with our Italian sister parties particularly DiS( Democrats of the Left), which is the main party in the Olive Tree coalition, and with whom we will be working very closely.We will also maintain close links with the Italian Democratic Socialists from the Rose in the Fist grouping'.

The Committee met with Democrats of the Left and with the Italian Democratic Socialists in a series of frank and open discussions. Among the issues raised were the nature of the fundamental shifts in the Italian political scene and the possible creation of a new party to bring together the various political parties on the left. The point was made that the very diversity of the political culture in Italy encouraged the maximum political participation of citizens which was exemplified by the very high turnout of around 85% in the recent elections and by membership of political parties which was the highest in Europe. This could be jeopardised by the creation of a monolithic party. The critical question was whether the left coalition could hold and it was argued that the example of Berlusconi had made the Left very aware of the need to cooperate and all the evidence was that the need for cooperation and compromise was widely accepted by all members of the Left coalition.

The point was made that the British Government had probably misunderstood the nature of the previous Government headed by Berlusconi who had run the Forza Italia the main party in that government. Forza Italia was an example of a post modern party where the marketing of image was more important than the issues of policy and which was based on the wealth and personality of a charismatic leader who run it as a personal fiefdom. All policies had been determined by the top and members had no democratic rights within that Party. It had been able to emerge following the political vacuum that had been created by the political crisis of the early 1990's. Such parties had now reached their sell by date and the selection of Prodi as an academic and serious politician for Prime Minister was intended to emphasise the reemergence of democratic politics.

The Chairman of Labour International Tim Clapham also met with members of the Regional Government in Trieste. In a series of discussion with local businesses and politicians from the local centre left coalition he emphasised that Labour policies provided an environment in which businesses can flourish and that there was in fact no contradiction between progressive politics and business. If business is to flourish the social and educational needs of citizens must be meet which in turn provides an environment where business can adapt to new conditions with the willing support of the public. Close cooperation with parties such as DiS as well as organised Labour was in the interest of business. The positive response of local business people in the Trieste local left coalition demonstrated that problems arising from the decline of traditional industries and increasing global competition can be overcome when capital and labour cooperate positively.The meetings were covered by the Press and televison.

The meeting of Labour International took a number of decisions.

The Committee agreed to support the full involvement of supporters in local Branches of Labour International. 'We do not wish to be an exclusive club 'said the Chairman Tim Clapham.'We recognise that not all supporters wish or are able to become full party members and we propose to open out to all those who support progressive politics of whatever nationality'.

The Committee continues to be concerned about the loss of voting rights on the part of Britsih citizens who are long term residents abroad. It will be writing to all Labour Members of the British Parliament on this issue. 'We see it as the loss of a basic democratic right which is unjustified in an era of globalisation' commented the Chairman. The importance of the Italian overses electorate in winning the last election for the left was emphasised.

The Committtee also recognised that it was necessary to reintroduce value based political discussion back into the political process and agreed to take a more active role in political debate. Politics is about values and ideology it is not merely about the production of consumer services. 'Members look to organisations such as ours to initiate political debate; the decline in membership and the lack of invovement in the political process derives in part from our failure to meet that need'' said Tim Clapham. It will therefore be setting up web based systems to encourage open political discussion.

The Committee also supported the idea of International Committees to be set up by national sister parties which would seek to involve foreign citizens from the left in local politics. These Committees would supplement the efforts being made by the Party of European Socialists to develop a membership based pan European Party and support the involvement of other international
socialist parties in national politics. 'Globalisation and the emegence of the global citizen must be recognised by the political parties just as much as it is by the international business community' commented the Chairman

For comments or questions or further information on Labour International contact;

The Italian Organiser
Irene Revelant
businessvoice@businessvoice.it
00 0432 55308
Manzano Italy

or

Chairman
Tim Clapham.
Timclapham@poczta.onet.pl
00 48 22 6 20 470
Warsaw Poland

Thursday 12 May 2006