weeks.
Although Corrie tried to obtain extra time on March 15th to get parts of the Bill through, the threat of women being faced - once again - with having children they do not want or returning to the horrors NO The Corrie Bill has been consigned to the dustbin - where it belongs. Despite attempts by the Tory MP to cobble together a last-minute compromise, it is now clear that the Bill has been stopped in its tracks and with it, the proposal to curb the time limit on abortions from 28 to 24 But the real reason for the deteat of the Bill was the mass opposition that developed throughout the country in the preceding months and which reached a climax in the 70,000 strong TUC demonstratMIS their resolve to fight the Bill.
DANGERS ne openly stated Inat ne would uce another anti-abortion Bill.
organised in SPUC and LIFE.
get anti-abortion Bills through mobilised against them in the period ahead.
FIGHT-BACKR In this sense, the struggle for defeated, continued action is ed and to prevent any further ones male allous.
of introducing positive laws in favour of a woman's right to choose.
pledged itself at conference to ion on request - to include this it when returned to power.
CONSCIENCE? on women's rights is the Tory protests continued to be held. On Feb 5th, over 20,000 pro-abortionists - including a contingent from the NUS - mobilised outside Westminster, mass meetings took place and a petition of 200,000 names handed in to anti - Corrie The fact that CAC continued to mobilise support right up to the last minute was vital in keeping pressure on MPs and 'stiffening' While Corrie seems to have lost the battle he hasn't given up the war. Speaking on Feb 5th, when it looked as if his Bill was doomed continue to oppose the 1967 Act and, if the chance arose, introdCorrie's stand reflects the determination of the anti-abortion lobby Three times they have tried to Parliament - the White, Benyon and, most recently, Corrie Bills -and they have only been stopped in their tracks by the mass action Their offensive has already led to certain parts of the Act being eroded and we can be sure that new initiatives will be mounted EXTEND abortion rights is not over. While Corrie's Bill seems to have been •stil nege co remove rre curos that nave are been incode bands.
In the coming period, NAC will be discussing out what should be the way forward - in the light of Corrie's set-back - and the chance A central thrust of this campaign should clearly be to commit the Labour Party - which has already TO SUlA NAU support a woman's right to abortparties in their Manifesto and implement This will not happen without a CUTS & NURSERIES Carol Rees (Southwark CLP)
As the Tory axe descends on local authorities, guess what are the first facilities to disappear? Nurseries. Already, councils from Nottingham to Wandsworth have decided that. in their 'priority list', the already in. adequate nurseries for the under 5s will have to go.
What this means, of course, does not take much imagination. Thousands of working mothers around the country will be forced either to leave their children with un-qualified staff - if they have the money - or walk out of their jobs to look after them.
EQUALITY The closure of the limited nursery provisions councils provide will be a severe set-back for women's rights. Thatcher might claim that women already have equality with men -Far from closing nurseries, what is needed if women are to have a chance of fulfilling themselves, is to extena tnem. Such a move would not only be of interest to women but also children who need the stimula. tion of contact and play with other children in the under 5 age-range.
There needs to be a comprehensive svstem ot state care which includes nursery classes, mother and toddler groups and child-minder drop-in centres under one root ORGANISE This will not happen by itself however. If the • Thatcher coverment is nor to de clow ed to push women back into ine nome, we neea to organtse This coming July, a conference organise a national child-care