Greek Elections View this email in your browser

Greek Elections - UCU Congress resolution In the light of the recent Greek elections, here is the resolution passed at the UCU Annual Congress a couple of years ago. Delegates to Trades Councils and other bodies may wish to use it. Congress notes the increasing cuts in public services, including education, in countries across Europe and the severe attacks on education workers’ pay and conditions. Greece is at the cutting edge of the neo-liberal austerity measures that are being introduced across Europe. Greek people face an avalanche of cuts to pay debts incurred by bankers and politicians. These cuts are exacerbating the economic situation. Congress notes that in Greece:                  1     unemployment is 20% overall (50% for young people)                  2     public sector workers’ wages have fallen by up to 40%                  3     the minimum wage has been cut by 20%                  4     the EU-ECB-IMF “Troika” imposed an unelected banker as Greek PM                  5     Greek workers and students have launched waves of strikes, occupations and mass demonstrations that have rocked the political establishment in Europe. Congress welcomes the widely-supported development of a European Front to Defend the People of Greece and all those facing austerity. Congress salutes the ordinary Greek people for their collective strength in resisting the damage of austerity by campaigning and giving each other practical support. Congress is appalled by the vicious severity of public sector cuts, including education cuts, imposed on Greece. Congress believes: a.    workers and students in Europe are being made to pay for a crisis they didn’t create b.    investment in education and training remains one of the best ways out of the current economic and social crisis c.    it is important to encourage education union solidarity across Europe. Congress resolves:                     i.    to support the EI/ETUCE action and campaign on the economic crisishttp://etuce.homestead.com/ETUCE_Crisis.html                    ii.    to publicise the ‘Appeal for solidarity with the people of Greece’ and to explore further ways of developing links with Greek education workershttp://www.coalitionofresistance.org.uk/2012/02/sign-the-appeal-for-solidarity-with-the-people-of-greece/                   iii.    to continue to campaign for progressive alternatives such as the Financial Transactions Tax                  iv.    to publicise the issue of Greek solidarity and encourage debates about the Greek crisis at every level of the union                   v.    to support all broad-based UK initiatives of solidarity with Greek workers and students                  vi.    to organise a speaking tour of Greek strikers in 2012                 vii.    to develop links with Greek education unions by exchanges and visits involving lay members                viii.    to ask UCU branches to twin with Greek union branches/villages/towns – if necessary, with the advice of a Greek regional university union branch and the European Front, in order to offer our solidarity and support.

Copyright © 2015 UCU London Retired Members Branch, All rights reserved. UCU London Retired Members Branch Committee Our mailing address is: UCU London Retired Members Branch 53 Fladgate Road, London, United Kingdom Leytonstone, London E11 1LX United Kingdom Add us to your address book unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences  Copyright © 2015 UCU London Retired Members Branch, All rights reserved. UCU London Retired Members Branch Committee Our mailing address is: UCU London Retired Members Branch 53 Fladgate Road, London, United Kingdom Leytonstone, London E11 1LX United Kingdom Add us to your address book unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences

Greens support Syriza

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/26/greece-election-syriza-victory-economic-uncertainty-david-cameron

Green MEPs hailed the result as a victory for the forces opposed to austerity. Keith Taylor, Green MEP for South East England, and Molly Scott Cato, MEP for South West England, said: “The result of the Greek elections has shown that the people of Greecehave taken a strong stand against the politics of austerity. Greens share the view of the new government that austerity is a failed model which has piled misery on the poorest while making the wealthiest even richer. This result shows that challenging business as usual politics can win the support of the people.

“We hope the Greek election result marks the beginnings of ordinary people standing up to a discredited economic model and failing Governments across Europe.”

NHS Day of Action *Thursday 29 January – 9am – 9pm*

*To our hardworking health workers and support staff,*

*We would like to express our solidarity as you begin four weeks of strike
action. You have done an incredible job of holding our health service
together in extremely difficult times, and you deserve to be paid fairly
for the work that you do. *

*The NHS is in crisis and urgently needs more funding. We are committing to
provide an extra £12bn of core funding every year to the NHS, to support
and restore services and pay, improve mental health care, and make vital
updates and improvements. We are also supporting a bill to reinstate the
NHS as a service that is publicly-owned and publicly-run, without the
pressure of creeping privatisation. Thank you for fighting for the NHS,
which benefits all of us and needs our protection.*


*Wishing you every success for current and future campaigns,*
*The Green Party Trade Union Group

  NHS strike action in England

UNISON members in the NHS in England are taking strike action.
Strike:
Thursday 29 January – 9am – 9pm
(Except ambulance workers who are on strike midday to midnight on 29
January)

Three good reasons to take part

*1. What we are asking for is reasonable *

UNISON wants the NHS to be properly funded so that it can have enough staff
who are well motivated and fairly paid. Our campaign is for:

   -

   immediate payment of the 1% consolidated sum to everyone, as recommended
   by the NHS Pay Review Body
   -

   the Living Wage of £7.65 an hour for low-paid staff
   -

   an above inflation pay rise for 2015-16
   -

   a commitment to future pay rises that will restore the value of
   NHS pay.

  *2. If you take part, the action will be more successful *

Following the successful action in October, we need to keep pressure on the
government and make them listen to us and think again about pay. Please
take part. Talk to your branch and steward about the plans for action in
your workplace.

*3. If we can’t make the government think again, more misery is in store
for you *

The Pay Review Body has already been told it won’t be able to recommend an
increase for you next year either. It was 2009 when you last had a pay rise
which kept up with

the cost of living. The government also has plans to make changes to
unsocial hours pay.

You have been telling us you feel undervalued and demoralised. It’s time to
stand together in UNISON and take further action for fair pay for the NHS.

You can’t afford not to.

FoE anti-fracking rally 26/1/2015

London Green Party– Monday 19th January 2015 passes Motions to support NHS and housing demos.

London Green Party– Monday 19th January 2015 passes Motions to support NHS and housing demos.

MOTION “The London Federation of Green Parties resolves to support defend London’s NHS ‘s ‘use your vote for the NHS’ rally on March 10th at Hammersmith town hall and agrees to add its name to publicity advertising the event.”

Proposed by Pete Murry Brent Green Party

APPEAL FOR SUPPORT FOR USE YOUR VOTE FOR THE NHS LONDON RALLY RECEIVED FROM

DEFEND LONDON'S NHS BY BRENT GREEN PARTY

DEFEND LONDON’S NHS

USE YOUR VOTE FOR THE NHS

LONDON RALLY 10 MARCH

HAMMERSMITH TOWN HALL

We are writing to ask for your support for a London wide "Use your vote for the NHS" rally.

This has been called by a number of London NHS campaigns meeting at the London Keep Our NHS

Public coordinating meetings last year.

The rally will bring together campaigns from across London in a very public way aiming to make a big enough splash to help ensure the NHS and our demands to defend it become a key election issue.

Save Our Hospitals (Hammersmith and Charing Cross) campaign has agreed to host it and the council have made Hammersmith town hall available. The plan is for a broad platform of speakers reflecting the campaigns across London.

This needs to be a big event to reflect the scale of the attacks on London's NHS and to help promote

successful campaigns to overturn them. It will bring together the mix of members of the public, health and disability campaigners, health professionals, trade unionists and politicians working together to defend it.

We have booked Hammersmith Town hall from 7.30pm on March 10th.

We would like to ask your campaign or organisation to back the rally. Please let us know as soon as

possible if we can add your campaign’s name to the publicity advertising the event.

If you would like further information please call Anne Drinkell on 07854 467 373

Supporters so far:

Save Our Hospitals (Hammersmith and Charing

Cross)

Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition,

Save Lewisham Hospital Campaign,

Defend Haringey Health Services

Newham Save Our NHS,

Save our Surgeries, Ealing Save Our NHS,

Waltham Forest Save Our NHS,

Brent Fightback

Hackney KONP, Camden KONP, Tower

Hamlets KONP, Islington KONP,

London Health Emergency,

Peoples' Vote 4 NHS

Brent Trades Council,

Central London Community Health Joint reps

Committee,

Kensington CLP,

Andy Slaughter MP

Dr Jacky Davis,

Dr Ron Singer,

Dr Jackie Turner,

Dr Louise Irvine,

Dr John Lister,

RehanaAzam ,

Frank Wood Unite EC (Health)

Bruce Kent

MOTION to Support the March for Homes

MOTION “The London Federation of Green Parties supports the March for Homes and its call on Boris Johnson and London councils to start building the thousands of new council homes we need, control private rents and stop the demolition of homes currently threatening over fifty estates.

The March for Homes will be the next step in the growing fight for decent, really-affordable, secure

housing for all Londoners. We will ensure that this is an election issue in 2015.”

Proposed by Dave Plummer Lewisham Green Party

Government policies are stoking up the housing crisis blighting the lives of Londoners, with subsidies to lenders and developers, while tenants’ rights are undermined.

Over 344,000 are on council waiting lists. The average house price is sixteen times the average

Londoner’s salary. Expensive, insecure and often poor quality private renting has become the only

option for a quarter of us.

Private property developers are driving policy of Ministers and the London Mayor, building homes that few can afford, while many are forced to move out of the city. Our broken housing policy is damaging our communities.

The March for Homes is demanding change. Tenants, trade unionists and housing campaigners from all tenures and all parts of London will call on Boris Johnson and London councils to start building the thousands of new council homes we need, control private rents and stop the demolition of homes

currently threatening over fifty estates.

The March for Homes will be the next step in the growing fight for decent, really-affordable, secure

housing for all Londoners. We will ensure that this is an election issue in 2015.

Join the March for Homes from Elephant & Castle Shoreditch 12 noon Saturday 31st January 2015.

Dave Plummer London Green Party Campaigns Coordinator

Brighton Green Party passes motion supporting 'No Cuts' budget

BREAKING NEWS! Brighton Green Party passes motion supporting 'No Cuts' budget - Join the resistance

Breaking news from Brighton

This is the full and final text (below) of the No Cuts motion passed by a large majority at a quorate and ell attended meeting of the Brighton & Hove Green Party today.

The General Meeting sets policy for the party, but cannot "instruct" Green Councillors.However, given that the General Meeting is "the primedecision making and organisational body for the BHGP", and has now made this vital policy decision, the party expect Green -Councillors to abide by it, and if they feel they cannot, to step down.  It remains to be seen what will happen when the Budget comes up for decision in late February, but the local -party has now made its position very clear - Green Councillors should not vote for any cuts budget or abstain so as to allow one to pass; and after this the party and councillors should lead a campaign of resistance to imposed cuts. If Green Councillors vote for a cuts budget of any kind then they would be defying the clear and democratically expressed wish and policy of the local party.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This General Meeting notes the Motion passed unanimously (with one abstention) at the December 2015 General Meeting that the Brighton &; Hove Green Party supports the production of an alternative Budget for 2015-16 that would protect local services and

employment, not cut them.

The cuts to local services required to "balance the budget" for 2015-16 are the direct result of massive and unprecedented cuts by central government to the local government support grant, cuts which could mean a further cut to the Brighton & Hove budget of over £100 million by -2020.  This will effectively destroy local services as we know them.

The cuts required to balance the budget for 2015-16 alone would require  a restoration of more than -£20 million of government grant or a Council Tax rise of over 20%. The proposed 5.9% Council Tax 

increase is therefore not viable as a means to fight the cuts or defend the vulnerable. It is a regressive tax on the poorest, and it would hardly dent the massive cuts still required. To propose

this rise in Council Tax in conjunction with a cuts budget would fatally undermine the Green Party's -anti-austerity stance locally and nationally.  It is the worst of all worlds.

We are now seeing a "Green surge" and rising membership especially amongst younger voters, the –primary reason for which is our inspiring anti-austerity message. If the only example in the UK of the Green Party in office were to implement a large cuts budget just before the 2015 General Election that would disillusion and alienate many of those new supporters. It is likely it would severely damage not only the local party but the national party's prospects in the election.   The Brighton & Hove Green Party will not support any Brighton & Hove -Council Budget for 2015-16 that makes further cuts to local services.

We support a no cuts budget identifying how much government grant now needs to be returned to Brighton & Hove to avoid horrendous damage to local services. It is therefore the policy of

Brighton & Hove Green party that any budget that makes further cuts to local services should not -be voted for by the Green Group of Councillors, nor abstained upon to allow it to pass.

The Brighton & Hove Green Party advocates a strategy of complete resistance to implementing further cuts to local services, including

A massive communications campaign to explain a) why the Green Party is adopting this policy, 

b) the devastating effect of the level of cuts suggested for 2015-16 and the years beyond, 

and c) that Labour and the Conservatives will deliver those cuts because they have no policy  or strategy to resist them. 

Refusal to assist any officials sent by DCLG to enforce a cuts budget upon Brighton &Hove,and wide publicity to explain this refusal.

Working with the Brighton & Hove People's Assembly, local campaign groups and trade unions -to publicise and implement this strategy and to create a focus of resistance to cuts and the austerity 

agenda.

PRIVATISATION AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY

DATE 14th Jan 2015

 

PRIVATISATION AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY

 

In a shock announcement in the run up to Christmas the National Gallery told 400 of its 600 staff they are to be taken over by a private company. These staff are responsible for the security of the paintings and the public, provide information about the collection, organise school bookings and look after the millions of visitors each year.

 

National Gallery steps up the attacks

Gallery managers walked away from talks aimed at avoiding privatisation and dismissed the possibility of an in-house alternative. They have now aggressively stepped up their attacks.

·       On 19 January a private company CIS will be brought in to take over the services in a third of the gallery without consultation or tendering.  CIS staff are told that it is not their job to give information to the public about the paintings on show in the gallery!

·       The National Gallery issued a legal challenge to prevent strikes against privatisation over the Christmas holidays.

 

PCS is now balloting members in a statutory ballot that will run until 23^rd January and plan to start with five days of strike action in February.

 

 

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Circulate this briefing to your members and ask them to take the following actions:

 

·       Emergency Protest against backdoor privatisation Monday 19 January 6pm

At National Gallery Trafalgar Square on the day CIS private company is brought in

 

·       Ask your MP to support the campaign

Such serious plans should not be pushed through just before an election. Ask your MP to back Early Day Motion 300 and come to the PCS briefing on Wed 28 January 10:30-12:00 House of Commons room W1.  Click here to email your MP:

http://action.pcs.org.uk/page/speakout/no-privatisation-at-the-national-gallery

 

·       Make a donation to our strike fund - Thanks to those who already donated over £6000! Any donations or collections will help the campaign succeed.

Donate to Sort code 086001 Account no 20169002 or cheques to Culture Sector Hardship Fund, c/o PCS North West Region, Jack Jones House,1 Islington, Liverpool L3 8EG.

 

·       Sign and share our petition – let’s make it 50,000!

https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/no-privatisation-at-national-gallery

 

·       Join our mailing list or facebook page

Email noprivatisationatNG@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/nonationalgalleryprivatisation

 

 

 

 

If you require this publication in any other format, please contact the Bargaining Group Office on Tel: 0151-298 3900, or email CULTURESECTOR@PCS.ORG.UK and this service can be arranged for you.

 

In Solidarity,

 

Paul Bemrose

Negotiations Officer