Bristol To Be Hit By Even More Council Cuts

Marvin Rees announces another £100m to be cut from Bristol

Tory austerity must be challenged – mass anti-cuts campaigning needed

 

Marvin Rees, Bristol's new Labour mayor has revealed that the city council faces a funding shortfall of £100m by the end of his term of office in 2020. This is because of the cuts being imposed on spending by the Tory government.

 

Bristol is already reeling from over £100m cuts made by the previous mayor, George Ferguson. Coming on top of that, these additional cuts will hit jobs and services in the city even harder. Even Rees himself concedes that “there is little fat left to trim leaving us facing unpalatable options.” Those worst affected will be the less well-off and those with the greatest social needs. Making these cuts is not compatible with Rees’s stated aim of making Bristol a more equal city.

 

During the recent mayoral and council elections Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition candidates repeatedly warned that the new administration would end up making cuts on a huge scale if it was not prepared to stand up to the government and refuse to implement the austerity agenda. We called for a no-cuts budget based on the needs of the city, and a mass campaign to force the government to return the stolen funds. We will continue to campaign alongside ordinary people to resist this new threat to jobs and services.

 

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) former mayoral candidate and Socialist Party member Tom Baldwin said:

“Just over a month ago Bristol voted in an election that saw an overwhelming desire for change in the city. But already we’re getting threats of massive cuts, wrapped in the talk of “tough choices” and “unpalatable options” – exactly as we’ve seen over the last few years. I’m sick of politicians talking about the tough decisions they face when those decisions are tough on us and not on them. More cuts of this scale will be disastrous for Bristol. If our new mayor is serious about making this city a more equal and better place to live then he must stop them. If he’s not prepared to stand up to this weak and divided government then he risks becoming just the latest Tory stooge – pushing their austerity agenda from City Hall.”

Bristol's New Labour Mayor Puts Tory In Charge of City's Education

Marvin Rees, Bristol's new Labour mayor has announced his cabinet today. Despite a resounding win in the mayoral election and Labour taking a majority of Bristol's council seats they've allowed the hated Tory party a seat on their cross-party cabinet.

Conservative councillor Claire Hiscott has been given the education brief. This is despite her party in government cutting education funding and pursuing the destructive policy of academisation.

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) former mayoral candidate  and Bristol Socialist Party member Tom Baldwin said:

“Bristol needs a fundamental change from the cuts policies of the last few years. This cabinet does not reflect the change people that voted for just 2 weeks ago. Education is absolutely vital to Bristol’s future and to put it in the hands of a Tory will be a slap in the face for many Labour voters. Unfortunately this is already beginning to look like the approach taken by the previous mayor. The main parties will be ‘all in it together’ on the cabinet, implementing anti-working class austerity.

“Tory policies of taking from ordinary people and giving to the rich are playing havoc in Bristol and across the country. We need a mayor who will oppose that party, not bring them onto the top table and into the running of the city. TUSC will continue to stand alongside ordinary people and campaign for the jobs and services we need, regardless of who is threatening them.”

Support for TUSC rises in Bristol's elections

Bristol's mayoral election saw the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) vote rise by over 450 from 2012. TUSC candidate and Bristol Socialist Party member Tom Baldwin got 1,876 first preference votes. At the same time, TUSC's local council election candidates in Bristol picked up a total of 2827 votes, an increase of over 900 on last year. The best of these was 411 for Bristol Socialist Party member Chris Farrell in Ashley.

This election showed a thirst for change. Labour's Marvin Rees thrashed 'independent' incumbent George Ferguson as people turned their back on three and a half years of arrogance and austerity.
Given the swing to Labour, increasing our vote was impressive.

It remains to be seen whether a new mayor will mean the change of direction that is badly needed. The challenge is on for Labour to reverse the cuts made by the previous mayor. Unfortunately that was not offered by Marvin Rees during the election - he said we have to "pick our battles" when asked if he would pass on further Tory cuts of over £70 million.

TUSC got a great response to our policies of opposing austerity with a no-cuts, needs-based budget and a mass anti-cuts campaign to challenge the Tory government. The potential for such a campaign is there. Campaigning has won victories in Bristol recently, reversing closure plans for six libraries and virtually all public toilets.

During the election TUSC campaigners spoke to people on doorsteps and stalls, put out thousands of leaflets, spoke at several hustings and appeared in all the local media. We had to work harder than the establishment candidates, lacking their money. Campaigning does not stop and start with elections for TUSC and the Socialist Party. We'll continue to stand alongside working class people across the city to defend our living standards, jobs and services.

Save Bristol's Libraries!

Protecting our libraries has been an important part of Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition campaigning in Bristol. 7 libraries are set to be closed in a cut put forward by the independent mayor and his cross-party cabinet. Scandalously this closure programme has been fronted by the Green Party assistant mayor. Despite their avowed opposition to cuts they are at the sharp end of implementing Tory austerity. Saving our libraries and other services requires principled and consistent opposition to the cuts, in actions, not just words.

Local people will fight to save their libraries and we will stand with them. In many cases these are the only resource that communities have left. They are used by people across the generations and provide far more than just books. Below is an eyewitness account of one library user's experiences and how vital the service was to him.

Tom Baldwin

"In September last year I found myself evicted and unemployed, while I never had to sleep on the streets not having a place of your own still comes with its problems.  Due to my low mood and feeling of helplessness I started to drink, a lot.  I thought there was no way out and even one day called 999 to tell them that "a friend" was considering taking his life.  Of course the friend was me and the ambulance crew came and did their duty, but that is a different story.

"After hitting rock bottom I thought that I had to do something, and do something fast.  While I do have friends in Bristol I am from Belfast so I have no immediate family here.  And my friends were not in position to do much other than the occasional night on the sofa.

"Being homeless and without a internet capable phone I went to the local Bedminster library.  In my first session there I found a homeless charity, St Mungos, who I registered with and was able to get a free meal once a day.  They also helped me with the council as in getting on the homeless register.  So that was one meal a day sorted out and at least a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. 

"On the job front, I was able to use the library to search all of the main job sites, alter my CV and scan legal documents when required.  Again, the light at the end of the tunnel got a little brighter.

"While all of this seems logical and something that you would expect, there is another less tangible way the library helped me.  It gave me something to do, I was living in a squat with no amenities or facilities, literally sleeping on the floor in an empty room.  So each day when I woke up I knew that I could go to either Bedminster library for one hour internet or the central library for two hours.  Add to this that I was now attending interviews and able to go to St Mungos, this gave me some structure and hope.

"As of writing this today, I am in a job that I like, I viewed a property last night, again, found on the internet using the library, and it looks like I will be moving in next week.

"I have learnt a lot in the past months, about taking responsibility for yourself, about support there is out there for you and how important something that people take for granted, a local library, can be a life saver.

"I think the proposed cuts to the libraries are a disgrace and will put further pressure on people that rely on them, not just for books and education but for other services that people tend to forget about."

Sean R

Bristol TUSC on Protect Our NHS demo

The 1% ‘walk tall’ while the 99% are bowed by austerity

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition press release on today's budget:
TUSC Chair and ex-Labour MP Dave Nellist said: “Hoping to gain a few extra votes, the Chancellor has tried to sell this budget as a little relief from the endless austerity he has offered up for the last five years. It is nothing of the sort. The coalition once again banged the austerity drum, promising £30 billion worth of cuts, including £12 billion from welfare. George Osborne says austerity is working but the queues at food banks and pay day lenders tell a different story.

“This government of millionaires might think things are improving, but most ordinary workers are facing a Dickensian future rather than a bright recovery. George Osborne says wages have started to increase but – that is only if you include bankers’ bonuses in the figures! In fact they are still lower than they were before the ‘Great Recession’ – for young people a massive 12.5% lower. A 20p an hour increase in the minimum wage is a drop in the ocean compared to that. TUSC is campaigning for an immediate £10 an hour minimum wage for all with no exemptions.

“No one who has experienced five years of Con-Dem government will be surprised by this budget, but where is the opposition? Labour also promises continued austerity. When Osborne put his plans for £30 billion worth of cuts under the next government to parliament only five Labour MPs voted against it!

“It is time to take a stand. That is why the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition has attracted a record number of anti-austerity candidates in the elections on 7 May 2015.”

Vote Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts on May 22nd!

Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts leaflet for local elections in Bristol, May 22nd 2014.

Promoted by Tom Baldwin (agent), Top Flat, 96 Cotswold Road, Bristol, BS3 4NS.

Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts candidates standing in every ward in Bristol

Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts candidates and supporters at the Bristol May Day rally

 

The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) will be standing candidates in all 24 seats in Bristol being contested in the local elections on May 22^nd. The candidates will appear on the ballot paper under the description 'Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts'. People across the city will now have the option of voting for a real alternative to the main parties - anti-cuts campaigners who will put defending local jobs and services ahead of chasing their own political careers.

 

 

TUSC candidates:

Avonmouth - Patrick Hulme

Bedminster - Robin Clapp

Bishopston - Martin Saddington

Bishopsworth - Joe Etherington

Brislington East - Matt Gordon

Brislington West - Ibado Ali Mahamoud

Filwood - Marion Jackson

Hartcliffe - Rob Nash

Henbury - David Rawlings

Hengrove - Mark Baker

Henleaze - Chris Farrell

Horfield - Martyn Ahmet

Kingsweston - Caroline Vincent

Knowle - Domenico Hill

Lockleaze - Roger Thomas

Redland - Laura Collins

Southmead - John Yeandle

Southville - Matt Carey

St George West - Tom Boyd

Stockwood - Phil Bishop

Stoke Bishop - Michael Wright

Westbury-on-Trym - Mike Luff

Whitchurch Park - Frankie Langeland

Windmill Hill - Tom Baldwin

 

Previous TUSC mayoral candidate, Tom Baldwin, currently standing for Windmill Hill, is a TUSC spokesperson. Tom said:

“We’re standing to give a voice back to ordinary people and protect the jobs and services that we need. 

“£83m of cuts will be made by Bristol City Council. These will be devastating for the city with the loss of 1000 jobs and vicious cuts to vital services like libraries and care. Yet all the parties on the council – Labour, Tory, LibDem and Green – are involved in George Ferguson’s cuts cabinet while UKIP say they want even more cuts!

“Nobody else is standing up for people like us and offering any opposition to the onslaught from the Tory government. We’ve been hit hard by a recession we didn’t cause and we’re still being hit hard now. If there’s a recovery then where’s ours?

“There’s plenty of money in this country but we can’t wait on the charity of the rich and their representatives in power. We need a voice of our own, not indistinguishable politicians falling over each other to do the Tories’ dirty work and pass on the cuts.

“Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts councillors would oppose all cuts. We would move an amended budget based on Bristol’s needs, not carrying out the Tory agenda of robbing from the poor and giving to the rich. We’d build a campaign that can take them on and win back the money they’ve stolen from the city.

“I’ve met a lot of people campaigning bravely and tirelessly to defend the services they rely upon but this finds no reflection in the council chamber. Our members are out there campaigning with them all year round, not just in elections but we think working-class people also need a political voice on their side.”

 

TUSC policies include:

·         Opposing all cuts to council jobs, services, pay and conditions.

·         Refusing to pass on budget cuts. Instead we will move a budget based on the needs of the people of Bristol, not the demands of the Tories. We will mobilise a campaign to try and win back the money the government have stolen from the city.

·         Refusing to evict tenants who can’t pay rent due to the bedroom tax and other benefit cuts.

·         Building council houses and capping rents to meet housing needs.

·         Opposing any privatisation measures affecting council services.

·         Campaigning for the Living Wage for all staff employed by directly by the council or working on council contracts.

·         Using all powers available to councillors to oppose cuts and privatisation of local NHS services.

·         Candidates standing on a worker’s wage, taking no payments or expenses beyond what is necessary to do the job.

 

See www.tusc.org.uk for more information.

Bristol Demo - No to Budget Cuts!

Video of the 8th Feb demonstration of hundreds in Bristol against council budget cuts, organised by Save Our City.

TUSC Public Meeting Tomorrow – Why We Need Anti-Cuts Councillors

Trade Unionist & Socialist Coalition

Fighting Austerity – Why We Need Anti-Cuts Councillors

Tuesday Dec 3rd

7.45pm

Youth Hostel, 14 Narrow Quay, Bristol, BS1 4QA

The government is demanding Bristol City Council cut £90m from their budget in the next 3 years. This is one quarter of the total budget, already reduced by years of austerity.

This will mean 1000 people could lose their jobs. Services will be shut. This will hit hardest in so-called discretionary services like libraries, parks and public toilets. These are vital to Bristol but don’t have to be provided by law.

Services that remain open may be privatised or run by volunteers, not trained professionals. Charities may be expected to step in but Unions and anti-cuts campaigners will be working hard to stop this, starting by lobbying consultation meetings.

But will our mayor and councillors listen? They have already shown themselves to be dependable servants of the Tory government, pushing through the cuts locally. Last year’s cuts budget went through with only one vote against.

While anti-cuts activists don’t have a political voice we are fighting with one hand tied behind out backs. We need local representatives who will stand up for local people, not this shameful shower of collaborators. Last year Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts stood for mayor to oppose all cuts. We said the budget should be based on what local people need, not Tory demands for austerity. We should fight to get back the money they’ve stolen. Next year we’ll be standing in every council seat in Bristol. But we don’t just need your vote, we need your help. Join us in supporting every protest, industrial action and occupation needed to stop these savage attacks on ordinary people.

Stop Ferguson's Cuts Onslaught

From: https://www.facebook.com/events/233003383532465/236066863226117/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity

Mayor George Ferguson is due to announce a further £90 million per year of cuts to Bristol City Council which, if passed, will destroy most of the public services we enjoy but that it would not be illegal for them to cut! An estimated 1,000 more workers will lose their jobs (800 FTE) and Bristol will never be the same again!

BADACA along with the unions and other campaigners will be protesting outside and intervening in various meetings over the coming weeks to build the campaign against this savage attack on the people of Bristol by the mayor & his cabinet.

Monday 18th November - demo from 5.30pm - meeting (booking required) 6pm: It has been trailed that the cuts will be announced at this event in Great Hall of Wills Memorial Building, University of Bristol, Queens Road, Bristol BS8 1RJ To book:https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/7715199369

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/pace/public-events/mayor-debate.html

The mayor will also be personally attending these four public consultation meetings on the budget:

Tuesday 26th November - demo outside from 5.45pm - meeting (booking required) 6.30pm to 7.30pm - Henbury School, Station Road, Henbury, Bristol, BS10 7QH To book: https://budgetnorth.eventbrite.com/

Wednesday 27th November - demo outside from 5.45pm - meeting (booking required) 6.30pm to 7.30pm - The Park Centre, Daventry Road, Filwood, Bristol BS4 1DQ To book: https://budgetsouth.eventbrite.com/

Thursday 28th November - demo outside from 6.15pm - meeting (booking required) 7pm to 8pm - City Hall (Council House), College Green, Bristol BS1 5TR To book:https://budgetcentral.eventbrite.com/

Friday 29th November - demo outside from 6.15pm - meeting (booking required) 7pm to 8pm - Bristol Brunel Academy, Speedwell Road, Speedwell, Bristol BS15 1NU To book: https://budgeteast.eventbrite.com/

http://www.bristol.gov.uk/page/council-and-democracy/budget-consultation-meetings

Then on Tuesday 3rd December is another of Ferguson's "aimed at residents rather than political or pressure groups" Question Times this time at Great Hall of Wills Memorial Building, University of Bristol, Queens Road, Bristol BS8 1RJ - demo outside from 6.15pm - meeting (booking required) 7pm To book: https://mayorqtdec.eventbrite.co.uk/

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/pace/public-events/mayor-qt.html

And finally there is Cabinet Meeting on Thursday 5th December at 6.30pm (venue TBC)

See also our Facebook event page for our lobby of the full council meeting on 17th December when there will also be a full Bedroom Tax debate in the council in response to our petition exceeding 3,500 signatures: https://www.facebook.com/events/223992244443413/

Southampton: Labour flies the white flag in face of call to fight back

From http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/articles/17797

£57 million cuts since 2010 and Southampton's New Labour council has announced a further £60 million cuts to come over the next three years.

This week's council meeting was the last before the council votes its budget through in February next year.

Southampton Councillors Against Cuts, Keith Morrell and Don Thomas, went to the meeting to urge Labour councillors to reject the cuts agenda and launch a mass campaign to fight central government for the funding the city needs.

Through using reserves and borrowing powers to fund the budget gap, as Keith and Don put forward at this year's budget-setting meeting, it would be entirely possible to protect jobs and services.

By refusing to implement the cuts the council would give a lead, build mass support that could force a weak and unpopular government into retreat.

Moving their motion, Keith said:

This motion gives the Labour councillors in this chamber today the opportunity to chart a different course.

You can say to this government of the rich and powerful: 'We were elected by the working people of this city to defend their interests, not collaborate in attacking them.'

You can say to this government of the rich and powerful: 'We demand you give us back the money you have stolen from us!'

You can say to this government of the rich and powerful: 'We will convene a conference here in this city to which we will invite the people of Southampton, to debate the way forward and organise a challenge to the unacceptable demands you are making on us.'

You can say to this government of the rich and powerful: 'We are Labour councillors who refuse to bend the knee.

We are Labour councillors who will fight for our class. We are Labour councillors who say: the fight-back starts here, today!'

Seconding the motion, Don said:

It has been shown recently if you are willing to fight anything is possible. Look at how the trade unions last year put up a fight and came out with decent terms and conditions. And of course it's not that long ago we were told that Oaklands swimming pool was to close and we were to "get used to it", as the then leader of the council said at the time.

Again residents and others were not willing "to get used to it", instead putting up a fight and forcing the administration to find an alternative, giving the pool a future. So it can be done.
False arguments

Council leader, Simon Letts, gave a reply that unfortunately confirmed the deepest cynicism and betrayal in the face of the impact these cuts will have.

Completely unwilling to provide any leadership, he hides behind false arguments of 'illegality', of 'commissioners taking over' and 'absence of any support' for such a stand.

In fact Labour is happy to promote a consultation process that encourages the public to choose which services they want to cut and where efficiencies can be made.

Some councillors understand that this will mean the wholesale destruction of the youth services, libraries, Sure Start services and non-statutory provision.

Even the council workers, whose strike in 2011 paved the way for the defeat of the Tory council in 2012, will see an attack on their terms and conditions.

Badged as the implementation of a Living Wage, the proposal is unfunded and demands changes to current terms and conditions.

The Labour administration has warned that if an agreement isn't reached, workers will be dismissed and re-employed on new contracts. Exactly the same threats as used by the previous Tory council!

One outcome of the council debate was to unite Labour, Lib Dems and Tories in attacking Keith's and Don's proposal! In reply Keith hammered the Labour group: "The Labour Party was formed to fight for working people against the rich and powerful. All we hear from you are excuses! You have become managers - what difference to the Tories?"

The council debate was covered on the regional BBC TV evening news - Keith and Don and supporters were shown on the steps of the Civic Centre - and BBC local radio interviewed supporters.

The message is clear: Labour may have no fight in them, no alternative and no confidence in winning support to stop the cuts, but Southampton Councillors Against the Cuts do and are prepared to take the campaign to communities across the city in the months running up to next February's budget-setting meeting.

Nick Chaffey

BRISTOL COUNCIL: £90M Cuts, 1000 Job losses, services slashed… DEFEND JOBS AND SERVICES!

The government is demanding Bristol City Council cut £90m from their budget in the next 3 years. This is one quarter of the total budget, already reduced by years of austerity.

This will mean 1000 people could lose their jobs. Services will be shut. This will hit hardest in so-called discretionary services like libraries, parks and public toilets. These are vital to Bristol but don’t have to be provided by law.

Services that remain open may be privatised or run by volunteers, not trained professionals. Charities may be expected to step in but Unions and anti-cuts campaigners will be working hard to stop this, starting by lobbying consultation meetings.

But will our mayor and councillors listen? They have already shown themselves to be dependable servants of the Tory government, pushing through the cuts locally. Last year’s cuts budget went through with only one vote against.

While anti-cuts activists don’t have a political voice we are fighting with one hand tied behind out backs. We need local representatives who will stand up for local people, not this shameful shower of collaborators. Last year Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts stood for mayor to oppose all cuts. We said the budget should be based on what local people need, not Tory demands for austerity. We should fight to get back the money they’ve stolen. Next year we’ll be standing in every council seat in Bristol. But we don’t just need your vote, we need your help. Join us in supporting every protest, industrial action and occupation needed to stop these savage attacks on ordinary people.

Public Meeting

Fighting Austerity – Why We Need Anti-Cuts Councillors

Tuesday Dec 3rd, 7.45pm, Youth Hostel, 14 Narrow Quay, Bristol, BS1 4QA

 

 

Trade unions must build a political voice for the working class

Editorial of the Socialist

http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/articles/17130/17-07-2013/urgent-trade-unions-must-build-a-political-voice-for-the-working-class

"If others want to stick around and be insulted by those whose only interest is our money and not our ideas then that's a matter for them." RMT general secretary Bob Crow made it clear that the Labour leadership's attack on the unions, and Unitein particular, should be a defining moment for working class political representation.
From the platform at the 129th Durham Miners Gala Bob made the case for a new mass party for working people: "We need an alternative party of labour." (See RMT press release on www.tusc.org.uk)

He reminded the massive crowd in the Gala's Big Meeting on Saturday 13 July how the trade unions broke from the Liberal Party over 100 years ago, because it was incapable of representing workers' interests, to form theLabour Party.
On top of all the crimes of New Labour over the last two decades -privatising public services, maintaining Thatcher's anti-union laws, conducting wars, etc - the Labour leaders' recent confirmation that a Labour government will stick with the Con-Dem cuts surely urgently raises the question of a political alternative.

Unite

Bob Crow's speech got a huge response from the crowd. There was also support for the Unite general secretaryLen McCluskey as he rose to speak.
As with many trade unionists around the country, the Gala audience wanted to show solidarity with a trade union leader under vitriolic attack from all the enemies of the working class, including the Blairites, the Tories and the right-wing press.
Len got the best reception when he attacked the Labour leadership for their attempt to scapegoat the unionsaround the Falkirk selection process where Unite had pushed for its preferred candidate. "Labour doesn't have an automatic right to exist...
"The Parliamentary Labour Party today does not look like, or think like, the working class communities it seeks to represent. That is a serious problem... That is what Unite was fighting for in Falkirk - to give the working class a stake in our democracy. I make no apology for that."
But as with the week before, when he cautiously welcomed Labour leader Ed Miliband's 'reform' of how the unions affiliate to Labour, even agreeing with Tony Blair, Len's refusal to draw the necessary conclusions, left many bewildered and disorientated, if not angry and frustrated.
Len posed questions without answering them: "But if we are to go out and convince thousands of working class men and women that they want to sign up to be associate Labour Party members they will not be interested in the rulebook, or even the history.
"They will want to know - will Labour make a difference? ... Will it be different not just from Cameron and his crew but from the Blair-Brown years as well? If we can say 'Yes, Labour has learned, and Labour is on your side' then this scheme will work.
"But if our people - our members - are unclear as to the answer then no amount of persuading will get them to sign up."
This doesn't address Miliband's proposed 'reforms' of the Labour Link which will further dilute the already neutered role of the trade unions in the Labour Party as a collective force for the working class.
Miliband is under pressure from representatives of the capitalist class to block a voice for the working class in this way.
Moreover, given Labour's commitment to working within the limits of capitalism and to maintaining cuts if it forms the next government, and Labour councils' record of implementing cuts, the answer is clear - Labour offers no alternative to austerity.
Rank-and-file trade union activists are disgusted at Miliband's actions, particularly calling in the police to investigate the Falkirk allegations, but also Labour's out-and-out anti-working class policies.
As Bob Crow angrily said on Saturday, why hasn't Miliband called in the police to investigate the scandalous injustice meted out to miners at Orgreave, or the Shrewsbury pickets 40 years ago still continuing today after successive Tory, Labour and Con-Dem governments?
We encourage Unite branches to discuss the model motion (see box) and all members of the affiliated unions to raise Falkirk and the question of disaffiliation in their branches.

Break with Labour

We say it is time for the trade union movement to take the bold step of breaking with New Labour, not to go into 'non-political' trade unionism, but to use its political strength to form a new collective voice, a mass workers' party, that could appeal to the disenchanted, the poor and all the victims of austerity and the capitalist system by putting forward fighting socialist policies.
Undoubtedly, there will be some in the unions and on the left who argue this is impossible. Ultimately they hope against hope that, despite all the evidence to the contrary, Labour can somehow be reformed.
The Falkirk debacle is a damning demonstration of the lengths to which the Labour leadership and their ruling class backers, including in the press, will go to resist any challenge to their complete control of the party and its policies and candidates.

New formations

The early Labour pioneers, such as Kier Hardie, prepared the ground for the advances Labour made from 1906 onwards when workers' mass struggles against the system showed the need for the working class to take independent political action.
Who could question that, given the pro-cuts policies of all the traditional main parties, alternatives can't develop rapidly in the resulting political vacuum.
Despite their limitations new formations have emerged in Europe. In Italy, Beppe Grillo's Five-Star Movement appeared to come from nowhere and in Greece, Syriza's anti-austerity programme sparked its rapid electoral rise.
In Britain, anger at the main parties has been demonstrated by abstentionism and votes for the right-wing nationalist Ukip, including by a section of workers who want to 'kick the main parties'. This adds urgency to the need to build a real workers' alternative.
Imagine a left challenge with the financial resources of the unions or even just the £3 million annual affiliation fee of Unite to Labour compared to the shoestring that the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) attempts to operate on, notwithstanding the involvement and backing of the RMT.
The Socialist Party is also a key component of TUSC and we believe that it is tenaciously playing a pioneering role, arguing the case for a political voice for the working class and providing a way for anti-cuts fighters to stand as candidates against councillors voting through austerity.
TUSC sees itself as facilitating and campaigning for the building of a new mass workers' party. A new formation, based on the unions and the resources provided by their millions of members and the basic anti-cuts and anti-capitalist policies expounded at Durham by Len McCluskey and Bob Crow, embracing all those being battered by these brutal cuts would have a massive appeal across society and, in fact, shove the political debate to the left.

---

What Unite should do:

Unite members, in their branches, stewards committees and constitutional committees of the union, should pass resolutions defending the union against these attacks and calling for a full, democratic discussion of the alternative. In particular, they should call on the leadership to implement the following plan of action:

• An emergency executive council should be called to discuss the crisis.
• The EC should pass a resolution for a recall rules conference which would have the objective of removing the references to Labour Party affiliation from the rulebook, thereby facilitating disaffiliation. This conference should also discuss political representation for the working class.
• Should this be carried, Unite should call meetings and conferences of trade unionists, from affiliated and non-affiliated unions, including those linked toTUSC. These events should have the aim of forming a new workers' party, which would have the programme of fighting the cuts, scrapping the anti-trade union laws and opposing privatisation of public services. Such a party would truly reflect the needs of the working class and fight in workplaces, communities and in elections for socialist ideas.

Lawrence Hill Anti-Bedroom Tax Meeting - Thursday 20 June 7.30pm

Thursday 20 June

7.30pm

Barton Hill Settlement, Ducie Road, Barton Hill

The ConDems' vicious Bedroom Tax is now starting to bite. The recent tragic news of the suicide of grandmother Stephanie Bottrill after facing an £80 per month Bedroom Tax bill reflects the pressure facing thousands of families and individuals across Bristol.

Social housing tenants deemed by the government to have a spare room are having their Housing Benefit docked by 14% for one spare room & 25% for two or more. Even if there is no alternative accommodation available or their personal circumstances mean that the spare room is needed.

Come and join us at Barton Hill Settlement for the latest in a series of local meetings sponsored by Bristol Anti-Cuts Alliance. We are aiming to bring together tenants and supporters to talk about how we fight back and defeat this cruel tax.

We demand that:

* David Cameron and Nick Clegg withdraw the tax immediately and refund any payments made!

* The mayor and housing associations do not evict anyone in arrears because of the Bedroom Tax or other attacks on welfare!

* The council & the government fund a council house building programme to provide homes & jobs for local people!

Also coming up on 18th June: Lobby of Bristol City Council as they vote on a motion opposing Bedroom Tax evictions. For more click here:

https://www.facebook.com/events/646975571982760/

Stop unmanned drone attacks!

By Matt Gordon, Bristol East Socialist Party
"To say a military tactic is legal, or even effective, is not to say it is wise or moral in every instance," said US president Obama in a major speech recently where he promised to scale back the use of unmanned drones to attack targets in Afghanistan, Pakistan and elsewhere.

But pious hand-wringing will not bring back the lives of the civilians indiscriminately bombed in their homes by Obama's killer robots.

Nor does one speech change the tactics of the US Military and the CIA on the ground. On 29 May a drone strike in the North Waziristan, on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, killed at least four people, including Wali Ur-Rehman, second-in-command of the Pakstani Taliban.

However these attacks are rarely as accurate as that. One source estimates that only 2% of drone attacks kill targets as high profile as Wali Ur-Rehman.

It is also common practice for the Taliban to name a commander as killed only for them to later resurface elsewhere alive and well.

Obama and the US government have consistently downplayed the use of drones and the havoc they cause, but in truth their use has grown exponentially during his presidency. It is yet to be seen if Obama's most recent speech is any more genuine.

Afghanistan is undoubtedly the epicentre of unmanned drone attacks, with 506 incidents in 2012 and no way to verify the number of civilian casualties accurately.

In Pakistan there have been 369 since 2004, and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimates that between 2,541 and 3,540 people have been killed, and that between 411 and 884 of those have been civilians.

On receiving the Nobel Prize for Peace, Obama declared that America, "must remain a standard bearer in the conduct of war".

But unmanned drones are not used because they are more 'surgical' or less deadly than traditional weapons, they are used because they save the lives of American troops in the short term and so are more politically and financially expedient back home.

For those on the receiving end, a hellfire missile is just as deadly and indiscriminate whether it is fired by a drone or by a piloted aircraft.

The reality is that the war in Afghanistan is an expensive and bloody failure. Obama tripled the number of troops in Afghanistan, making it the mightiest and most technologically advanced military occupation in the world, but still failed to make any real gains against the Taliban insurgency, which is likely to become apparent when combat troops leave at the end of 2014. Replacing human troops with robots will not change this.

Drones terrorise entire populations. This will leave thousands if not millions of people psychologically traumatised and deeply opposed to the United States, and will also continue to fuel anger.

The billions spent on war could instead be used for schools, hospitals and creating jobs - both in America and in Afghanistan. The war and use of drones must be ended now.

Trade Unionist & Socialist Coalition election results in Bristol

Here are the TUSC results for the recent Bristol City Council elections. Some excellent results amongst them and overall it was a good campaign especially considering the low turnout and the limited nature of our resources compared to the main parties and parties such as UKIP. The important thing is that a clear working-class anti-cuts alternative was available on the ballot paper and that a marker has been laid down for future elections. Thanks again to all that took part and gave us support. Don't let the cutters get away with it!

A full breakdown of the nationwide results and some analysis can be found here: http://www.tusc.org.uk/pdfs/2013/TUSCElectionReport2013.pdf

Ashley - Tom Baldwin 49 (1.38%)
Avonmouth - Patrick Hulme 28 (1.03%)
Bishopston - Chris Farrell 32 (0.92%)
Cotham - Caroline Vincent 34 (1.49%)
Eastville -  Mark Baker 84 (3.25%)
Frome Vale -  Phil Bishop 36 (1.36%)
Hillfields -  Matt Gordon 188 (9.14%) 

Horfield - John Yeandle 35 (1.39%)
Kingweston - Roger Thomas 40 (1.78%)
Lawrence Hill - Fiona Joyce 66 (2.62%)
Redland - Martyn Ahmet 30 (1.12%)
St. George East - Mike Luff 110 (5.21%)
St. George West -  Bernie Lyons 54 (2.40%)
Southmead - Domenico Hill 81 (4.14%)

Total - 867 1.48%

Vote Trade Unionists & Socialists Cuts in Bristol tomorrow! Vote NO TO ALL CUTS

Trade Unionists & Socialists Againsts Cuts are once again standing in tomorow's Bristol City Council elections - Thursday May 2nd. 

It has been an excellent campaign so far, with two public meetings, numerous hustings, two radio interviews and countless stalls, activities and public events - sincere thanks to all those who have helped with the campaign, nominated us to stand or helped in any way. 

Vote TUSC Against Cuts for councillors who fight the cuts! Vote NO TO ALL CUTS!

Its not too late to spread the word....

Here is our Bristol Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/TUSCBristol

Here is the list of candidates for Bristol: http://www.tusc.org.uk/candidates.php

Here is the article about us on the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-22350097

The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition policy platform:

Oppose all cuts to council jobs, services, pay and conditions - we reject the claim that 'some cuts' are necessary to our services.

Reject increases in council tax, rent and service charges to compensate for government cuts.

Vote against the privatisation of council jobs and services, or the transfer of council services to 'social enterprises' or 'arms-length' management organisations, which are first steps to privatisation.

Use all the legal powers available to councils, including powers to refer local NHS decisions, initiate referenda and organise public commissions and consultations, to oppose both the cuts and government polices which centrally impose the transfer of public services to private bodies.

When faced with government cuts to council funding, councils should refuse to implement the cuts. We will support councils which in the first instance use their reserves and prudential borrowing powers to avoid passing them on - while arguing that the best way to mobilise the mass campaign that is necessary to defeat the cuts is to set a budget that meets the needs of the local community and demands that the government makes up the shortfall.

Trade Unionists and Socialist Coalition policies

The working class and peoples of Britain face a ruling class offensive which will intensify over the coming period.

It is an offensive against public services, incomes, living standards and trade union rights in order to boost monopoly profit. Not content with the banks receiving the biggest bail-out in the history of British capitalism, big business aims to make workers and their families pay to serve the interests, first and foremost, of the City of London's financial institutions.

It is also an offensive which will be stepped up regardless of which party wins the forthcoming General Election. The likelihood is that a Tory government will make earlier and deeper cuts in public spending than a New Labour one. A Labour government may also be more vulnerable to trade union pressure not to outlaw industrial action in 'essential' services.

But both main parties intend to prolong the imperialist occupation of Afghanistan and to maintain the expansion of nuclear power and a new generation of British nuclear weapons.

Therefore this coalition is contesting the General Election to show that there is a clear left-wing alternative to policies of public sector cuts, privatisation, militarism and environmental degradation.

We recognise that there will be Labour and non-Labour candidates standing in the general election who agree with our policies, who share our socialist aspirations and who will be supported by left and labour movement organisations participating in our coalition.

We also recognise that there are different strategic views about the way forward for the left in Britain, whether the Labour Party can be reclaimed by the labour movement, or whether a new workers' party needs to be established.

But our coalition is united on the need for mass resistance to the ruling class offensive, and for an alternative programme of left-wing policies to help inspire and direct such resistance. These are the policies which we therefore propose to put before the people:

PUBLIC OWNERSHIP, NOT PRIVATISED PROFIT

Stop all privatisation, including the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), and the immoral privatisation of prisons. Bring privatised public services and utilities back into public ownership under democratic control.

NO CUTS - QUALITY PUBLIC SERVICES

Take rail back into public ownership and build an integrated, low-pollution public transport system.

For a high-quality, free National Health Service under democratic public ownership and control.

Stop council estate sell-offs and build eco-friendly, affordable public housing.

Good, free education for all, under democratic local authority control; student grants not fees.

Keep Royal Mail as a publicly-owned service, not a privatised cash cow.

JOBS, NOT HANDOUTS TO BANKERS & BILLIONAIRES

Bring banks and finance institutions into genuine public ownership under democratic control, instead of giving huge handouts to the very capitalists who caused the crisis.

Tax the rich. For progressive tax on rich corporations and individuals, with a crackdown on tax avoidance.

For massive investment in environmental projects.

EMPLOYMENT & TRADE UNION RIGHTS

Repeal the anti-trade union laws.

A minimum wage set at half average adult male earnings, with no exemptions.

Invest to create and protect jobs, including for young people.

Solidarity with workers taking action to defend jobs, conditions, pensions, public services and trade unions. Reinstate full trade union rights to prison officers.

PROTECT OUR ENVIRONMENT - STOP GLOBAL WARMING

Deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions - otherwise climate change, caused by capitalism, will destroy us.

Invest in publicly-owned and controlled renewable energy.

Move to sustainable, low-pollution industry and farming - stop the pollution that is destroying our environment.

Recognise that many of our planet's resources are limited and that capitalism fritters them away for profit.

Produce for need, not profit, and design goods for reuse and recycling.

DECENT PENSIONS & BENEFITS

Restore the pre-Thatcher real value of pensions. Reinstate the link with average earnings.

Protect entitlement to benefits; for living benefits; end child poverty.

DEMOCRACY, DIVERSITY & JUSTICE

Welcome diversity and oppose racism, fascism and discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, disability, sexuality, age and all other forms of prejudice.

Defend the right to asylum. No scapegoating of migrant workers.

Ensure women have genuinely equal rights and pay.

Defend our liberties and make police and security democratically accountable.

SOLIDARITY NOT WAR

Bring home all British troops from Afghanistan immediately - no more wars for resources.

No more spending on a new generation of nuclear weapons, huge aircraft carriers or irrelevant eurofighters - convert arms spending into socially useful products and services.

An independent foreign policy, based on international solidarity – no more being a US poodle, no moves towards a capitalist, militarist United States of Europe, no Lisbon Treaty.

SOCIALISM

For a democratic socialist society run in the interests of the people not the millionaires. For democratic public ownership of the major companies and banks that dominate the economy, so that production and services can be planned to meet the needs of all and to protect the environment.

TUSC Candidate for Lawrence Hill to speak at Husting - Thursday 25 April

Easton & Lawrence Hill Neighbourhood Management have invited all candidates, including the Trade Unionist and Socialists Against Cuts candidate for Lawrence Hill Fiona Joyce, to speak at a husting next week. Please go along and ask the other councillors what THEY will do to protect local jobs and services.

Thursday 25 April

6pm to 9pm

City Academy, Russell Town Avenue

Report from TUSC Lawrence Hill Bedroom Tax Meeting

About 30 people gathered on Thursday 4th April 2013 to discuss the campaign against the cuts in Bristol and specifically the hated 'Bedroom Tax' which is set to leave thousands of disabled and vulnerable people homeless. Speakers: Fiona Joyce - TUSC candidate, Lawrence Hill Ward (May 2nd); Mike Roach - Bristol City Council tenant being charged the bedroom tax; and Mark Baker, PCS civil service union executive member and TUSC candidate for Eastville. Chaired by former TUSC candidate for Bristol mayor and TUSC candidate for Ashley ward in 2013, Tom Baldwin.

More pictures here: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.586070454738084.1073741826.201278053217328&type=1