The trouble with the Labour Party leadership and the trade union leadership, they're quite willing to applaud millions on the streets of the Philippines or in Eastern Europe, without understanding the need to also produce millions of people on the streets of Britain.

Arthur Scargill’s quote criticizes the Labour Party leadership and the trade union leadership for their inconsistency in supporting popular movements. He notes that they were willing to applaud the sight of millions on the streets in places like the Philippines or Eastern Europe, where mass protests challenged authoritarian regimes, but failed to recognize the importance of mobilizing similar mass action within Britain. The meaning of his words lies in the call for domestic solidarity and activism, not just distant admiration.

The origin of this quote comes from Scargill’s role as the leader of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in the 1980s, during a period of intense conflict between the unions and Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government. Scargill was a vocal advocate of militant trade unionism, believing that only through mass mobilization could workers defend their rights against political and economic pressures. His criticism of Labour and trade union leadership reflects his frustration with what he saw as their timidity and lack of commitment to direct action within Britain itself.

The meaning also underscores Scargill’s broader critique of political hypocrisy. By praising struggles abroad while neglecting to foster the same people power at home, Labour leaders revealed, in his view, a disconnect between rhetoric and practice. Scargill wanted them to recognize that British workers faced comparable challenges to those overseas and that solidarity should not stop at words of support but translate into visible and powerful collective action.

Ultimately, Scargill’s statement highlights the enduring tension within leftist movements between moderate leadership and radical grassroots activism. His call was for a politics that matched international admiration with domestic courage, urging Labour and the unions to mobilize Britain’s working class with the same energy they celebrated in other countries’ struggles for freedom and justice.