Party News (1964)

Party News from the March 1964 issue of the Socialist Standard

Many meetings are arranged for this month (details are given in this issue) members and friends are urged to give all their support, much work is needed in the preparation of meetings and it behoves on us who are not directly connected with the organising to attend these meetings.

Annual Conference is being held at Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London, W.C.1., on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, March 27th, 28th and 29th. Will all provincial branches who need accommodation for their delegates please contact Head Office as soon as possible in order that arrangements can be made.

Swansea Branch is looking forward to the General Election, and hopes to take good advantage from it. Members are very active; a recent meeting addressed by Harold Wilson, the Labour leader, was attended by Party members. Leaflets introducing the SPGB were given out, the Socialist Standard distributed and our case put to passers by. Membership is building up and it is hoped soon to be able to contest a Municipal election. Support in the Party case appears to be quite strong in the area. Swansea branch is confident that it can greatly extend socialist propaganda in the area.

A reminder. Meeting at Bromley Library, (Lecture Room) High Street, on Wages and Inflation, Friday, March 20th, 8 pm Debate: SPGB v Labour Party. Hammersmith Town Hall, Wednesday, March 18th at 7.30 pm.

Blogger's Note:
The details of the above mentioned debate with the Labour Party are as follows:

SPGB v LABOUR PARTY

“Can the Labour Party bring Socialism?"

For SPGB: C. May
For Labour: S. Bidwell (Parliamentary Candidate)

Wednesday 18th March 7.30 Hammersmith Town Hall

Syd Bidwell was a former member of the Trotskyist organisation Revolutionary Communist Party and, at the time of the debate, had some kind of relationship with Tony Cliff's International Socialism group, though I don't know if he was a member at the time of the debate. Bidwell was elected to Parliament in the 1966 election and remained a Labour MP in West London until he was deselected by his local Labour Party in the 1990s.