Portrait of the week
Mr Michael Foot unexpectedly repudiated the new Labour candidate for Bermondsey, 29-year-old Mr Peter Tatchell, an Australian and campaigner for homosexual causes, on the grounds that he did not respect parliamentary sovereignty. Bermondsey Labour Party continued to support him, but Mr Foot's view eventually prevailed at the national executive's organising committee. Tariq Ali's application was thought to be Mr Foot's next target. Mr Ray Fletcher, Labour MP for Ilkeston, found himself dropped by his constituency association under 'mandatory reselection' procedures and Mr Willie Hamilton (Fife) found himself with a hung committee. Mr Ronald Brown (Hackney South) joined his brother Lord GeorgeBrown in the SDP. War on Want was severely criticised by the Chief Charity Commissioner for spending its money on political agitation in support of the Labour Party and Sir Geoffrey Howe increased National Insurance contributions and National Health prescription charges, while cutting rate support grants in order to pay for the Government's projected £500 million overspending in 1982-3. The High Court allowed Norwich City's Labour council to test the legality of Mr Heseltine's attempted takeover of council house sales.
The Soviet Union celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Battle of Moscow with an extra subbotnik, or day of unpaid labour, for the entire population. British Leyland's tea-break strike seemed to be over when a mass meeting at Longbridge voted very narrowly indeed to accept the management's compromise offer of 51/2 minutes' teadrinking time, but tea fanciers vowed to continue the struggle and threatened 'a lot more trouble'. Mr Andrei Sakharov and his wife, both on a death fast in Gorky, were seized and taken to an unknown hospital for forcible feeding. Later, Mr Sakharov was said to be seriously ill. Renewed fighting was announced from Afghanistan with a hundred people killed, mostly villagers. South Africa announced details of a large-scale military operation against Swapo guerrillas in Angolan territory, which killed 71 last month.
Q hell, Esso and Texaco tanker drivers snubbed Mr Alex Kitson, of TGWU, by declining to go on strike as his union had advised, but warders at Strangeways Prison, Manchester, started a lock-out of remand and magistrates court prisoners in protest against overcrowding and the National Union of Students, meeting in Blackpool, voted for the biggest strike in its history to close all universities and polytechnic colleges next term in protest against the proposed four per cent grant increase. They demanded 17.4 per cent. Mr Arthur Scargill secured an easy victory in the NUM presidential elections to succeed Joe Gormley, amid loud complaints of intimidation by 'flying pickets' of Yorkshire miners.
Poland was unable to repay a $500 million loan from West German and American banks. The Libyan Foreign Office denied that Colonel Gaddafi had sent assassination squads to America to murder President Reagan. Spain applied to join Nato and China began a crack-down on bourgeois drift. Many Jesuits were reported to have been arrested.
Lord Matthews denied that any of the Express Newspaper titles were for sale and once again denied a merger with the Mail, but said that any company could always bid for any other company at any time. Mr Denis Hamilton resigned from Times Newspapers. The Official Solicitor was given control of Charles Clore's £40 million estate, still unprobated, after a High Court judge had complained that many of its assets had been spirited away. Ms Elizabeth Canham, an Englishwoman, was ordained priest in New Jersey with Dr Mervyn Stockwood, former Bishop of Southwark, assisting. An advanced passenger train (APT), capable of 150 mph, was introduced on the Glasgow-London run, but broke down on its second journey. The Queen appealed to Fleet Street editors to respect the Princess of Wales's privacy during her pregnancy. Ruth Lawrence, aged ten, won the open mathematics scholarship at St Hugh's College, Oxford.
Grants to the arts were increased by £15 million, of which the Arts Council received £6 million for its own purposes: the Old Vic sold its wardrobe, having been closed by the Arts Council's withdrawal of support, and the D'Oyly Carte Company seemed certain to go the same way for the same reason. Everybody agreed that Mr Paul Channon, Minister for the Arts, was a fine fellow, and Mr Tommy Docherty was sacked again — as manager of Preston North End, in the League's third division. AAW
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