Nerve 10 - Justice for the Shrewsbury Pickets

1972 had been a torrid year for the Government. The miners inflicted a defeat over pay, and the Tories had been forced, in the face of mass protest, to release five dockers held in Pentonville prison. Then came Britain's first national building workers strike.

Justice for the Shrewsbury Pickets

On 31 August 1972 the strike committees of North Wales building workers’ met in the upstairs room of the Bull & Stirrup in Chester.
This was to be a fateful day for these men. They would go on to be the victims of one of the worst miscarriages of justice seen in Britain since the days of the Tolpuddle Martyrs. They would be vilified and hounded by parts of the press, convicted by a court as a deterrent to strikers, and abandoned by their own union leaders and the TUC.
Six of them would go to prison and one of these would die later as a result of the treatment he received while there.
The strike had begun in June 1972 on selected major building sites, the first of these being Marks and Spencers in Liverpool. Pressure from the rank and file soon forced the Union of Construction Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT) and the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU) to call all their members out.
The strikers wanted a 35-hour week, a national minimum wage and an end to 'The Lump', a system of paying workers illegally, cash in hand, which undermines union organisation and safety.
In the Bull & Stirrup, Ricky Tomlinson says, the strike committees: " …discussed picketing in the Shrewsbury area, where many of the big sites had still not come out.
We voted to organise a big picket for the following week, with coaches bringing building workers from the surrounding districts."
Police outriggers escorted the coaches from site to site, and apart from minor scuffles everything was peaceful. Most of the sites they visited supported the strike and there were no arrests.
Des Warren was even congratulated on his conduct of a meeting by the officer in charge, Police Superintendent Meredith, who shook his hand.
The strike ended on 15 September with the biggest pay increase ever recorded for workers in the building industry, although it didn't remove 'The Lump'.
In October 1972, the Home Secretary Robert Carr instructed chief constables to investigate violent picketing. Carr was responding to a dossier, almost entirely made up of press cuttings, handed to him by the National Federation of Building Trades Employers.
This set in train a massive operation by the police to find 'Terror Pickets' - a term used by the press - raiding dozens of ordinary building workers' homes and subjecting them to intense questioning.
Although we now refer to them as the Shrewsbury 24, there were actually 31 North Wales building workers charged. The first trials were in Mold and they were used as a dress rehearsal for Shrewsbury.
Only minor charges were upheld by the jury and all the pickets walked free. But five of those cleared were to appear again at a later trial.
In his opening address at the first of three Shrewsbury trials on 3 October 1973, prosecuting counsel, Maurice Drake QC, told the jury that the pickets would be described as being, 'like a swarm of Apache Indians'.
One of their witnesses said he heard pickets shouting 'Kill! Kill! Kill!'. The pickets had actually been shouting 'Kill! Kill! Kill! The Lump'.
Unlawful assembly and conspiracy to intimidate had been added to the earlier charge of affray. The conspiracy charge, using an act of 1875, allowed for an unlimited jail sentence.
Drake explained the incredible nature of this charge. You didn't have to meet, you didn't even have to know each other; a conspiracy could be arranged 'with a nod and a wink'.
Three of the pickets - Warren, Tomlinson and McKinsie Jones - were found guilty and given prison sentences of up to nine years (three years on each charge). McKinsie Jones hadn't even been in the Bull & Stirrup at the time of the decision to picket the Shrewsbury sites!
At the end of the trial, and before sentencing, Des Warren and Ricky Tomlinson spoke from the dock. Both speeches laid out clearly their thoughts on how the trial had been set up to criminalise picketing, that it was a political trial.
Warren told the court:

Politically motivated interference by governments acting on behalf of and under political pressure from employers now means that no trade unionist can enter freely into negotiations with employers. They cannot withdraw their labour - the only thing they possess as a bargaining lever - without being accused of setting out to wreck the economy, of challenging the law. The building employers, by their contempt of the laws governing safety regulations, are guilty of causing the deaths and maiming of workers - yet they are not dealt with by the courts.

The pickets had become victims of the government's push to shackle union activity, and they had every right to believe, as they were led away, that the movement would fight to get them out.
The leaders of UCATT and TGWU, though, had abandoned the pickets. They had refused them representation at the outset of the trial. And now three had been jailed, they wouldn't support the calls for action to get them released, nor even appeals against sentence.
Although hampered by the response from trade union leaders, the groundswell of support for the pickets gained momentum. At the time of the trials there had been industrial action in support, notably from the Liverpool dockers. And in early 1974 workers stopped work in London and Glasgow, and 25 major building sites in Manchester.
Pending appeals Warren and Tomlinson (McKinsie Jones having been released) were allowed bail in June. When, in October, they were sent back to prison, with the appeal court verdict that the sentences were a deterrent to others, workers on building sites all over the country spontaneously walked out, only to be told to get back to work by their unions.
In early 1975 Lancashire building workers marched from Wigan to London calling for a general strike for the release of the two pickets still in jail.
By this time a Labour Government had been elected and the trade union leaders did not want to "rock the boat". The TUC did meet with the Home Secretary, Roy Jenkins, only to be rejected. Jack Jones, General Secretary of the TGWU, declared that the General Council of the TUC would not even consider the call for a general strike.
Warren and Tomlinson continued their sentences, Des in 14 different jails, encountering squalid conditions and hostility from prison staff in most of them. As part of their campaign to prove their innocence and that they were political prisoners, both men went on hunger strike and 'on the blanket' for long periods, and refused to do prison work. Warren, in particular, was singled out for punishment, with many months of solitary confinement and cuts in visits from his wife, Elsa, and the children.
When Tomlinson came out of jail in July 1975, he joined the campaign for the release of Warren but, once again, there was a lack of support from the trade union leaders.
Des Warren served all but four months of his sentence and was released on 5 August 1976.
Warren died on 24 April 2004 of Parkinson's disease. He laid the blame for his illness squarely on the ‘liquid cosh’, the tranquillising drugs administered to difficult prisoners like him while in prison.
The Shrewsbury Pickets Campaign was renewed in August 2006. The demand is justice for the pickets, and a public inquiry to expose the real conspiracy. There are still many questions that remain unanswered about the events surrounding the Shrewsbury trials, not least the role of MI5.
Such a campaign has a clear relevance for workers in today's casualised construction industry with its appalling safety record.

For further information on the Justice for the Shrewsbury Pickets Campaign contact justice4pickets@yahoo.co.uk phone 07907 307 835 or look at www.billhunterweb.org.uk

References from:

Des Warren, The Key to My Cell, New Park Publications (1982), to be republished in May 2007 by Living History Library.
Ricky Tomlinson, Ricky, Time Warner Paperbacks (2003).
Peter Hain, Political Trials in Britain, From the Past to the Present Day, Penguin (1985).
Jim Arnison, The Shrewsbury Three, Strikes, Pickets and 'Conspiracy', Lawrence and Wishart (1974).

The reprint of Des Warren’s autobiography ‘The Key to My Cell’ is to be launched at the Writing on the Wall (WOW) Festival, History Day, Tuesday 15 May 4.00-5.30 pm, at Dean Walters Building (JMU) Upper Duke St.
Joe Sim, Professor of Criminology at JMU, will discuss the use of legal drugs by the state to control prisoners. Steve Tombs, Professor of Sociology at JMU, will discuss corporate crime and the construction industry today.

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Sorry Comments Closed

Comment left by john walker on 6th November, 2008 at 16:33
capatalist britain! it is a disgrace and everyone should strive to clear their name. the lump still goes on with employers still trying everything to deny workers basic rights.union activity is frowned upon especially if unoficial and leads to people like myself to be put on blacklists and denying us employment.your struggle is an inspiration to me .

Comment left by Magaret Reid on 13th March, 2009 at 15:40
I found this wesite very informative - it's shameful that this issue has not had major publicity. May you all win your cases to clear your names, union rights are basic human rights. Unoin rights are for EVERYONE not just a few. Respect! Victory!

Comment left by Louise Warren on 25th March, 2009 at 14:47
I am des Warrens granddaughter and it devestates me to know that I lost my grandad to a horrible disease, one of which could of been avoided had he not been issued with tranquilisers whilst in an environment he should never have been in. I hope the shrewsbury picket campaigners succeed in getting a pardon for all those concerned and I wish them well.

Comment left by arthur murray on 8th April, 2009 at 23:05
John Hendy QC said at the meeting in London "That the 1875 conspiracy and the protection of property act. "Was passed by liberal reformers of the day, to protect trade unions engaged in official disputes from being handed down savage sentences from establishment judges". The 1875 act was used against pickets at three separate Crown Court cases held at Mold in June 1972. The prosecution failed to get any convictions on the 1875 charges. At Shrewsbury the Prosecution added Conspiracy,Unlawful Assembly and Affray. For affray the prosecution had to prove that the site workers were in fear for their safety. Photographs taken that day show the workers near site office 3 at Brookside Telford waiting for the pickets to leave the centre of the site, and they come together for a frendly meeting. Sir Peter Rawinson the Attorney General in a memorandum to the cabinet spells out the guidelines to the police on Unlawful Assembly, the police must warn the leaders on any large picket that if they do not disburse the police shall start arresting people,and this is a judgement for the police to make. No pickets were arrested or cautioned. The trial judge said."For a conspiracy to take place you don't have to know each other or have met before. A nod and a wink will do. It's impossible to defend yourself against this ruling. The prosecution don't have to prove where the conspiracy took place.

Comment left by barry caldwell on 29th April, 2009 at 18:06
i found the articles i read very interesting i also read about the jailing of these men in rickys book and i was disgusted that these men could be jailed simply for wanting certain rights in employment i also have been with unions in the past and have no time for them now, they only believe in lining their own pockets now, good luck with the campaign

Comment left by John on 1st May, 2009 at 7:45
Interesting how you support an ex member of the BNP.

Comment left by Adam Darroll on 16th June, 2009 at 9:24
it is horrific to think this happened in my lifetime, if in the current political climate and the cries by so called clean mp's for transparency shouldn't we have an official inquiry into this? i implore everyone who can manage it to attend the march and public meeting on july the 4th in shrewsbury. lets show the current and possibly incoming government that des and ricky's hardships and incarceration wasn't something to be swept under the carpet.

Comment left by Rebecca Allum on 30th June, 2009 at 0:42
I was totaly shocked when I read this, I had no idea these events had taken place, unbelieveable that they have not had more publicity. Only made worse by the fact that a brave man with strong principals should loose his life by being denied medication he had a basic human right to, while sticking to these principals. I hope the fight to clear all involved names is sucessful.

Comment left by Alex Humphreys on 7th July, 2009 at 11:38
The BNP did not exist during Ricky's involvement with the far-right, it was the NF. Some socialists have been drawn to fascism while they have been searching for an alternative to capitalism, and all that matters is that Ricky is now a socialist, and a working class gladiator. The march in Shrewsbury on July 4th was a fantastic success, with great speakers at the rally, and inspirational musicians at the social afterwards. The local trades council and the leaders of the campaign are discussing it becoming an annual event, with Ricky saying from the podium that he would fight until he was 140 years old if he lived that long, I will support that fight and encourage all others to do the same

Comment left by Philip Hammond on 19th November, 2009 at 6:16
We all know the BNP are this countries worst nightmare but to just use the word facist about them only, is incorrect.Both the concervatives and now labour have slippped into a subtle form of facism, Dont forget the definitcian of facisim is government and corporations coluding with one another, to control the people. we now have that with the current government and the Tories will continue it if they gain power.So lets not just blame BNP for a facist ideology.Wake up people

Comment left by malcolm davies on 9th March, 2010 at 10:24
there is a facebook cause called THE JUSTICE FOR THE SREWSBURY PICKETS ... anybody wishing to join our cause or petition should contact Jonathan Davies on 07818004054

Comment left by malcolm davies on 9th March, 2010 at 10:26
we want THE TRUTH , THE WHOLE TRUTH AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH

Comment left by pete farrell on 30th March, 2010 at 22:42
unfortuneatly the TU leaders then left them to rot in jail ,even though the pickets continued to fight while in prison . Today are we just hearing words from those TU leaders who claim to want to see justice done. Action speak louder than any words no matter how loud or well spoken . Words never got them out then they won't now .

Comment left by katherine de gama on 7th September, 2010 at 16:10
Hello, My background is in legal history. I live in Shrewbury and have friends who were involved. If anyone has personal stories I would be fascinated. I may publish but confidentiallity would be assured

Comment left by Bentley Smith on 3rd November, 2010 at 18:22
I saw a documentary on the tele about this a couple of years back - it seems that everybody had a different recollection of event than Tomlinson.

Comment left by bob foster on 12th November, 2010 at 19:30
yes... he was in the NF not the BNP...like there's a difference!..still.. let's just let that one slide. . . . .

Comment left by Roger Mullin on 29th June, 2011 at 21:55
I know both Ricky and new Desy,worked with them both, Ricky is a special person beyond the mental capacity of Foster, Desy I have only met one other person in my life I have more respect for and thats my father. Remember the sacrifice he made , he could have been released earlier had he admitted guilt.The rest of the workers in this country owe both Ricky and Desy a debt beyond description.History will prove them innocent.

Comment left by bobby kilbride on 3rd October, 2012 at 13:26
Shame on the trade union leadership for doing so little to clear the names of those trade-unionists, living and dead, who were the victims of the politically motivated trials held at Mold and Shrewsbury.

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