Q. Now that the James White Bill is effectively dead, are there still dangers of further restrictive legislation being introduced? A. The Select Committee (investigating evidence submitted around James White's Abortion Amendment Bill) were unable to give a linal report on their findings to Parliament, and so the Bill automatically falls. However, the Select Connittee officially exists until the beginning of the next parliamentary session and is in fact meeting three times this month. It is also making application to Parliament to be re-constituted in the next session. This means that, although White's Bill has fallen, the Select Committee two ures or whom arc connulcu anu abortonists) coma continue to consider ine evidence presented on the various clauses of White's Bill.
There is also a strong possibility that further attempts will be made to push new restrictive legislation through Parliament. The Society for the Procchion or tne unoom child (srUc) are at present reported to be working on a new Bill and looking for a sponsor. Wilson has indicated that the Government supported White's basic intentions - if not the form they appeared in - and could well produce Meanwhile, restrictions are being proposed which need no legislation. These are contained in the Third Interim Report of the Select Conmittee, and include such measures as introducing a quota sys em to cunies perormineaporaons on corewa women, restricting referral agencies to a specially approved list, etc.
These proposals, agreed on unanimously by the Select Committee were being reported to Parliament ov Barbara Castle this week, and unless there is strong opposition voiced at that time, will be forwarded to the DHSS for implementation. Q. Among those on the Select Committee wizo endorsed these proposals were some proabortion women Labour MPs. How do you explain their apparent change of position? A There are two reasons. First, they rely on parlmentry manoeuvres and not te united action of the labour movement to defeat the anti-abortioni for abortion rights in Italy, will be f speakers and entertainment to be held ny the right of women to decide whether not they have an abortion.
The Italian Socialist Party presented its oposals over two years ago. They would mit abortion when the mother was in grave ental or physical danger or when there was ikelihood of the foetus being deformed, and uld also take into account the moral and cial conditions of the mother. Abortion ists. This has meant they have been forced into compronises on the Select Committee. They are no doubt proud that they prevented the White Bill from being rushed through by 'talking-out the antior course, une price they nave nad to pay lor this so-called victory is - as they see it - to com promise on a few minor issues. But any measures which restrict women's right to abortion are hardly manor issues. in tact, wese are tings that snoule be in the forefront of our fight back in the coming monEls Secondly, let's look at who some of these women MPs are. Joyce Butler and Helene Hayman, both on the Select Committee, are firmly committed to Wilson's anti-working class policies. They have never taken up a teht against the Wilson leadership. Or the Connon Market issue, on the question of cuts in social spending, and on the Healey measures they have been in Wilson's camp.
By viewing abortion as an issue "for women alone', and not as an integral part or the working class light against Labour's attacks, they are simply unable to defend a woman's right to choose.
have made a complaint to the police before an abortion would be allowed.
The CP also state that permission to abort would have to be obtained from a committee consisting of a gynaecologist, a female social worker, and a general practitioner. The minimum age would be 18, and the abortion would have to be carried out within 90 days of conception, under the national health scheme, and only in certain approved hospitals.
The CP's "progressive' attitude to abortion can be seen in their proposal to fine women who do not follow their procedure between 5,000 and 100,000 lira (£4 and £80 approximately).
It is almost certain that the CP's proposals, aimed at not alienating the 'Catholic masses", will be passed by Parliament. These proposals will complement the law passed in July, establishing family planning clinics on a national basis. This law was hailed by the Unione Donne Italiane (the CP-controlled women's organisation) as a 'victory for the couple'.
The new law, however, allocates a totally inadequate sum of money for the clinics, which are supposed to be incorporated into the new health reforms. Since these are not being applied, this public money is actually being ploughed into financing private clinics; a veritable gold-rush has begun as the Catholic Church and the political parties scramble for their share of the money, as well as an outlet for their ideologies But Italian women are fighting back against proposals?
conference this weekend.
months to take us towards our objectives of the 1967 Act is being blocked introduced into Parliament. sored and co-organised activities.
the Wilson Government? Q. How is the NAC proposing to fight these.
A. NAC called for national pickets of DHSS offices on Monday to coincide with Castle's report, calling ror reccuon or me select committee proposals, In the longer term, the perspectives for the fight against restrictions will be discussed by the NAC national •Al lne conterence we will be trying to draw up a balance sheet of the campaign to date, and analysing the nature and source of the present attacks on abortion. On the basis of this we hope to agree on specific activities which we can build in the coming The proposals which the IMG put forward to the Steering Committee, and which the Committee endorsed and will propose at the conference, include:
A national week of action immediately before me next paramentary session. against me Ic appointment of the Select Committee and for the implementation of the TUC and Labour Partv resolutions. The week of action should cumnate un aronaon and remon rany wu trade union and Labour Party speakers. 2. Regional rallies early in the new year, which we can use to highlight those areas such as Leeds and birmingham were even tne implementation 3. International Women's Day in 1976 to be focussed on abortion (and possibly used to Jaunch our own 4. The week of action to be used to lav the basi for a rapid and effective national mobilisation in the event of new restrictive legislation being Q. With the success of pro-abortion resolutions at both the TUC and Labour Party Conferences, how is NAC taking steps to draw in the labour movement at a local level? OLner aLacKs A. We want to see the trade unions and Labour Party act on their conference resolutions by develop ing their own campaigns in coniunction with NAG It is in this spirit that we have asked the TUC to vote £5,000 as a budget for its promised campaign on abortion, and have made suggestions as to how the money could be spent - eg. on a postering/advernsing campaign to co-incide with the week of action etc. If the above proposals are accepted by the NAC conference we should approach the trade unions and Labour Party both at local and national level to co-sponsor and co-organise the activities involved. The January rallies are projected as co-sponQ. How do you see the campaign for a wom an's right to choose being tied into the general fight against the pro-capitalist policies of A. One of the most complicated questions the conferènce and the campaign has to get to grips with is that of the relationship between the attack on abortion and the Government's attempts to solve the crisis at the expense of the working class. We must be clear that this attack is not being waged for dir ect economic reasons - whereas closing a hospital will save money on the welfare service budget, cutting back on abortions does not have the same effect because maternity services and patching up back- the area. street abortions costs more than out-patient abortions. Therefore this is not just another cut.
Nor is this another attack on democratic rights of the same kind as the Shrewsbury example. Legal ly women have never had the right to decide for themselves on this issue, and historically the working class have never accepted this as a right to be defended by class action. In fact we are still fightDEPARTMENT AND • IVE ing against the idea, upheld by so many Labour MPs that it is a question of individual conscience rather. man a mater for te cass as a whore No, it is an attempt to drive back the offensive which has been developing against women's oppression and for a woman's right to a life independent of family over which she has control. So it is an important ideological battle, but it is also significant in terms of the battles over the material conditions or me or tae working class, its standard of living welfare services, etc.
The more a woman is tied to the home and family and the more her ability to control her independent existence is curtailed, the more effectively the family acts as a shock absorber for the cuts, allowing them to proceed without their full impact being realised antil the relationship of forces has been appreciably changed and the combative force of the working class class appreciably reduced. The relationship between exists not because reducing the availability of abortion is central to Labour's plans, but because it is compatible with the wider attack, and can be turned to the Labour leadership's advantage in pressing its Q. What role do you see for the Working Women's Charter in the fight against Labour's attacks?
A. I think that the Charter Campaign has an extremely important role to play in this campaign. One of the demands of the Charter is for readily avalable aborton racines. ine charter campaigr has been very successful in getting broadly based support in the trade union movement, and this support can be tapped by the abortion campaign.
More importantly, the Charter highlights many other aspects of women's opression - unequal and low pay, lack of maternity leave, inadequate pre school teaching facilities, inequality in education and legal rights - which combine with lack of con traception and abortion facilities to deny women real control over their own lives.
• BRISTOL: Over seventy trade unionists and supporters of the women's liberation movement attended a regional conference organised by Bristol NAC on 4 October. As well as seeing the immediate need to fight the restrictions on abortion facilities contained in the Select Committee's Third Interim Report, it was decided to re-convene the healthworker sub-group and investigate the availability of abortion facilities in Dr. Berry Beaumont, the invited speaker, pointed out that despite recent Labour Party and I Conference decisions, the effect of the Labour Government's attacks on social spending would be to retard yet further free abortion and contracebuon or gemane on me sos. SOCIAL SECURITY OF HETE
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ice at 7.30 pm in the Central Hall, West- hen the police arrested her during the ion Centre in Milan, following an 'ex- ne. However, she was speedily released talian city, and the Italian Government w taking place in the major Italian pol-
tion is still nst the race