Durham Miners Gala Sat 14th July 2012
Arthur Scargill | 03.07.2012 19:52 | Liverpool | Sheffield
The Durham Miners Gala this year promises to be the largest for decades. Already 100K strong recently, the addition of the Labour leader Ed Miliband is likely to tip the numbers higher still if the weather permits. The bands, speeches, marches, banner, Gala field, funfair etc all allow for a great family day out where old and new comrades meet and greet.
"I would like to extend a very warm welcome to all our comrades, friends and supporters who will be joining us in Durham on the occasion of the 128th Durham Big Meeting.
The Gala goes from strength to strength and we have to thank our banner and community groups for much of this success. They play a vital role in maintaining our links with the former mining towns and villages of the County - communities bearing the brunt of the Government's savage attacks on the social wage and the very fabric of the Welfare state.
Whether, young, middle aged, or old no one is safe from this vicious Tory/Liberal coalition. On the one hand they reward bankers for failure, allow politicians to get away with dodgy expenses claims and reduce taxes for the rich. They then conclude that the solution to the crisis is to clobber the poorest in society. And now while every family lives in fear of unemployment we have some lunatic advising the Government to make it easier to sack workers. To make matters worse they insult our intelligence by saying 'we are all in it together'. Well we weren't in it together when the big profits were being made and just how much our people think 'we are all in it together' was demonstrated in the results of the local government elections.
In County Durham and Tyne and Wear the Tories and Liberals were obliterated - and rightly so. They represent the interests of big business and capitalism and we want no truck with them.
Although it is now 18 years since the last pit on the Durham Coalfield closed, the fight to get justice for our former miners who suffer from painful and debilitating diseases continues.
Although we have has considerable success in some fields we are still struggling to establish compensation for our members who are sufferring from the painful and crippling symptoms of arthritis of the knee - known in the industry as 'miners knee'.
We are at the moment awaiting a judgment from the Court of Appeal which we hope will allow our litigation against the Coal Authority to proceed to the High Court. If we lose the case it will not only deny many of our members, now advanced in years, the justice they deserve but the legal costs will have a profound impact on the Durham Miners Association.
We are very proud of the success of our Compensation department which is due to the dedicated work of Davy Guy. unfortunately as we go to press Dave is too ill to take part in the preparations for the Gala. His struggle against serious illness over the past 4 & a half years has been an inspiration to us all and our thoughts today are with Dave and his family.
In a county where the County Council has been labour controlled for 93 years, where all Metropolitan Borough Councils have vast Labour majorities and where every constituency regularly elects Labour MP's, it is fitting that, after an absence of 23 years a Labour party leader h.as accepted an invitation to speak at the Gala and we of course welcome Ed Miliband to Durham.
We also welcome the new banners to this year's Gala from Burnhope, Felling, Brandon and Heworth, all making a reappearance so many years after their pits closed. There has hardly been a year without new banners being brought to the Gala. They are a credit to the communities who have produced them and a fitting tribute to our forefathers who fought so hard for our future. We must dedicate ourselves at this Gala to defend all the gains they made for us and to fight for a better future for the next generation - there is no other reason for the trade unions and the labour movement to exist.
As the European financial system teeeters on the brink of total meltdown it is now clear to all that capitalism has failed miserably. As we go to press the Spanish miners are fighting a life and death battle for the future of their industry and their communities. They are as we were in 1984/85 the victims of organised state violence and we pledge to them our solidarity and assistance as they did for us 28 years ago.
We have never had a better opportunity to fight back and establish a society based on the needs of people and not on the profit and greed of the few. Let today's Gala be that launchpad.
Have a great day and a safe journey home.
Best Wishes, Dave Hopper," General Secretary of the DMA, NE region NUM
Taken from the 128th Durham Miners Gala programme, pages 11-13, Sat 14th July 2012.
The Gala goes from strength to strength and we have to thank our banner and community groups for much of this success. They play a vital role in maintaining our links with the former mining towns and villages of the County - communities bearing the brunt of the Government's savage attacks on the social wage and the very fabric of the Welfare state.
Whether, young, middle aged, or old no one is safe from this vicious Tory/Liberal coalition. On the one hand they reward bankers for failure, allow politicians to get away with dodgy expenses claims and reduce taxes for the rich. They then conclude that the solution to the crisis is to clobber the poorest in society. And now while every family lives in fear of unemployment we have some lunatic advising the Government to make it easier to sack workers. To make matters worse they insult our intelligence by saying 'we are all in it together'. Well we weren't in it together when the big profits were being made and just how much our people think 'we are all in it together' was demonstrated in the results of the local government elections.
In County Durham and Tyne and Wear the Tories and Liberals were obliterated - and rightly so. They represent the interests of big business and capitalism and we want no truck with them.
Although it is now 18 years since the last pit on the Durham Coalfield closed, the fight to get justice for our former miners who suffer from painful and debilitating diseases continues.
Although we have has considerable success in some fields we are still struggling to establish compensation for our members who are sufferring from the painful and crippling symptoms of arthritis of the knee - known in the industry as 'miners knee'.
We are at the moment awaiting a judgment from the Court of Appeal which we hope will allow our litigation against the Coal Authority to proceed to the High Court. If we lose the case it will not only deny many of our members, now advanced in years, the justice they deserve but the legal costs will have a profound impact on the Durham Miners Association.
We are very proud of the success of our Compensation department which is due to the dedicated work of Davy Guy. unfortunately as we go to press Dave is too ill to take part in the preparations for the Gala. His struggle against serious illness over the past 4 & a half years has been an inspiration to us all and our thoughts today are with Dave and his family.
In a county where the County Council has been labour controlled for 93 years, where all Metropolitan Borough Councils have vast Labour majorities and where every constituency regularly elects Labour MP's, it is fitting that, after an absence of 23 years a Labour party leader h.as accepted an invitation to speak at the Gala and we of course welcome Ed Miliband to Durham.
We also welcome the new banners to this year's Gala from Burnhope, Felling, Brandon and Heworth, all making a reappearance so many years after their pits closed. There has hardly been a year without new banners being brought to the Gala. They are a credit to the communities who have produced them and a fitting tribute to our forefathers who fought so hard for our future. We must dedicate ourselves at this Gala to defend all the gains they made for us and to fight for a better future for the next generation - there is no other reason for the trade unions and the labour movement to exist.
As the European financial system teeeters on the brink of total meltdown it is now clear to all that capitalism has failed miserably. As we go to press the Spanish miners are fighting a life and death battle for the future of their industry and their communities. They are as we were in 1984/85 the victims of organised state violence and we pledge to them our solidarity and assistance as they did for us 28 years ago.
We have never had a better opportunity to fight back and establish a society based on the needs of people and not on the profit and greed of the few. Let today's Gala be that launchpad.
Have a great day and a safe journey home.
Best Wishes, Dave Hopper," General Secretary of the DMA, NE region NUM
Taken from the 128th Durham Miners Gala programme, pages 11-13, Sat 14th July 2012.
Arthur Scargill
Comments
Hide the following 12 comments
Milliband
03.07.2012 21:17
i think the miners gala needs to consider his position
An angry Ex member
Labour bullshitters
The enemy of the working class.
03.07.2012 22:16
Dave
Well done
04.07.2012 13:20
you have to take the politics on in the real world or you will remain irrelevant. The trick is to see how Labour sell their political compromises, what exactly is the ideological make up, and actively anticipate and try to do something about it. Many of us will be at the Durham Miners Gala trying to do just that.
If you can leave your keyboard warrior persona behind, you maybe able to do something useful on the day too. 100 to 120K working class people, most thinking people in the North, and you can try to have a conversation with them, or you can ignore and be pure and foolish all at the same time.
Arthur Scargill
Labour - Tratiors
04.07.2012 14:08
the labour party started cuts the torys just made them more visable
And i will NOT be joining the march as this is a joke of a march we march with bands and banners around durham and then go get pissed listening to milliband i dont think so
Ex Notts miner
Ex miner and Ashamed
Great idea.
04.07.2012 15:32
Ex Shipyarder.
It was my idea...
04.07.2012 20:01
Shadow secretary of the brass bands
Political organisation, have you heard of it?
04.07.2012 20:39
You lot also don't seem to know much about Gala traditions, the labour leadership have almost since their inception been invited to speak at the gala, 'thats how it is done'. Often branches invited speakers, or voted for them to be invited (there was more than one speaking stage at the Gala in earlier times).
Ed is the first Labour leader to accept the invitation to speak for 23 years, I think the General Secretary fell off his chair when the invite was accepted (the net is cast widely). Anyway, I hope to see more than radicaler than thou posturing in future posts (but i doubt it).
Arthur Scargill
Labour = Tory bitches
04.07.2012 20:51
the organizers of this event need a serious rain check Inviting a person who supports WAR who supports CUTS who supports HIGHER EDUCATION FEE'S its back stabbing Traitory
NUM Scargill you bastard
Political organiser
04.07.2012 21:02
Oxbridge attendee
Point about Ed Milliband.
05.07.2012 12:21
Ne
Facebook pages
05.07.2012 12:26
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Durham-Miners-Gala-July-14th-2012/178008108959169
Arthur Scargill
Homepage: https://www.facebook.com/#!/events/445337982149557/
Labour Leader
05.07.2012 13:39
I believe the current labour leader has always been invited to the Gala. But over the last few years few have accepted there have only really been union leaders or the likes of Skinner and Benn.
Mackem