Date: Mon 11 April 2005

UK's Left Daily celebrates 75 years of protest

The bastion of left wing daily papers - the Morning Star - is holding a political, cultural and musical birthday party in Glasgow to celebrate 75 years of radical comment.

The paper has attracted a range of trade union, political, literary and musical names to commemorate its anniversary which will take place in the STUC Centre in Woodlands Road all day on Sunday 16 April 2005.

Trade union leaders such as Bob Crow, General Secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, and campaigners like Bruce Kent, Vice Chair and former Chair of CND will be coming to the event. A wide range of political speakers will also be part of a rally to support the Star, including Elaine Smith, Rosie Kane and Mark Ballard MSPs.

Bob Crow saluted the work of the Morning Star/Daily Worker over the last 75 years. "It has been the voice of working people fighting for their democratic rights in a huge number of struggles over the decades."

Bob said "Today it is standing shoulder to shoulder with transport workers in their fight for a publicly owned rail network and in defence of lifeline CalMac ferry services. Long may it continue,".

Bruce Kent said "I am glad to attend the Morning Star celebrations. No other daily paper has given such regular coverage to disarmament issues. What we want from the British government at the review conference of the Non Proliferation Treaty in May is a clear undertaking not to produce another generation of nuclear weapons and instead to start negotiating seriously about nuclear weapons abolition worldwide"

Prominent Scottish writers, Alastair Gray and Tom Leonard will join Chilean singer songwriter, Carlos Arredondo for a cultural event in the late afternoon and the day will conclude with a concert starring one of Scotland's foremost folk singers - Dick Gaughan, with Arthur Johnstone and the Jim Daily Ceilidh Band.

An exhibition detailing the history of the Morning Star through its own front pages will be on display. The paper started publishing as the Daily Worker in 1930 - it was then the paper of the Communist party of Great Britain - and has continued despite many official and unofficial challenges -it was forced to shut during the war, 1941-2.

The latest problem has been the removal of the paper(with others) from the nightly flight from London - meaning it has been impossible to distribute it in Scotland on the day of publication.

John Foster, Secretary of the Scottish Morning Star Campaign Committee, said "Just as the Star has overcome problems in the past we are arguing and lobbying to overcome this latest one. The need for a daily paper of the left is as vital as it has ever been, and we are delighted that so many prominent campaigners want to come and celebrate our achievement."

More information about the event and tickets will be available from John Foster (details below)

ENDS

For Further Information Please Contact: John Foster - Sec Morning Star Campaigns Committee 07913 239 373 (m) Alan Marshall - 0141 579 2390(h) Chris Bartter - 0845 355 0845(w) 0771 558 3729(m)

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