Oppose The Cuts-carried at Regional Council meeting on May 26th 2011

This Resolution submitted by LU Fleet and amended by Piccadilly and District west was carried at the Regional council meeting on 26th May

Oppose the Cuts.

This Region opposes:

·The vicious attacks by the ConDem government on public services and working class people.

·The idea that public services should be cut in order to bail out the banks.

·Privatization and cuts to public services, whether NHS, education, civil service, transport industry or local authority, and will resist them.

This Region believes:

·Cuts will not be defeated without trade unions fighting hard to protect our members' jobs and conditions.

· This must be done whilst working alongside community groups, including tenants organizations and pensioner groups and local campaigns fighting day to day against the cuts.

This Region notes:

· That Barnet Alliance for Public Services (BA4PS), Camden United Against the Cuts (CUAC) and Lambeth Save Our Services (SOS) are broad based, democratic anti-cuts committee which brings together trade unions, community groups, campaigns and individuals to fight all cuts.

·That B A4PS and CUAC were initiated by local Trades Councils and local community groups. BA4PS and recently organized a demonstration of a thousand people in the borough and CAUL held an excellent and well-publicized demonstration outside Camden Council during the full council meeting.

·That supporters of Lambeth SOS include- Lambeth Pensioners Action Group (LAMPAG), Lambeth Tenants Council, Save Lambeth Libraries, Lambeth University and Colleges Union (UCU), Lambeth National Union of Teachers (NUT), Lambeth GMB, Lambeth UNISON, RMT Finsbury Park and Corydon and Crystal Palace UNITE. They have won their first victory when their lobbies, petitions and campaigning alongside the UNISON branch saved the jobs and services in all of Lambeth's One O'clock Clubs and Adventure Playgrounds.

This Region resolves:

· To affiliate, and put a motion for the region to affiliate, to Barnet Alliance for Public Services, Camden United Against the Cuts & Lambeth SOS at a cost of £50 (Region).

· To participate in local campaign planning meetings.

· To publicize campaign events and actions to branch members and encourage them to become involved.

The general secretary to contact all RMT branches with details of trades councils in their area and further that as much support as possible both practically and financially be given to those trades councils in the fight against these severe austerity cuts. [This clause added by Piccadilly and District West amendment]