Oxiord Respect staged a successful "Day for Respect" day school on June 25 to prepare the ground for a local election campaign in the spring of 2006.
Oxford members had been obliged to sit out the General Election campaign as bystanders or support staff for the nearest candidate in Slough, 40 miles away, and many were determined to get some local activity going as soon as possible.
Upwards of 30 members, supporters and new contacts of Respect took part in the daylong event at the Asian Cultural Centre, which Included a showing of the footage of George Galloway's barnstorming performance in the US Senate.
After a substantial barbecue lunch, the highlight of the afternoon was a series of workshop discussions to begin the development of a local manifesto built on the foundations of the national manifesto published by
Workshops session topics Included organising in the trade unions, defending the National Health Service, education, transport, and housing - with Oxford property prices close to those in London, while stati receive no London weighting.
Union members were boosted by the successful fringe meetings that had been held at the WU and other trade union conferences, and confidence that more local supporters could be recruited.
The NHS workshop discussed ways of building a local response to challenge the package of cuts that will emerge in the next few months as local Trusts and Primary Care Trusts face combined deficits of over 250 million this year.
Reports back showed that several workshops had recognised the impact of asylum and Immigration issues, and the meeting noted that the government's controversial plans for a reception centre to be built in nearby Bicester had been replaced by a downgraded plan for a detention centre for failed asylum seekers.
The workshop format ensured that all those present participated in the discussion, and laid the basis for further debate and the development of a local tabloid newspaper to drive forward the campaigning in the autumn.
More detailed discussions on where to stand, and potential candidates for the council elections will come by the end of the year.