Unions urge autumn of civil disobedience

UK Political Correspondent

Tuesday 11 September 2012

Union leaders have called for a mass campaign of civil disobedience to demonstrate the extent of public anger at the Coalition's cuts.

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Kate Devlin UK Political Correspondent

Communities should take direct action to block roads and occupy services earmarked for closure in a show of resistance, union bosses said at the TUC annual conference in Brighton.

Amid calls to "put the boot in and finish off" the Coalition, there were also growing signs there will be a fresh round of public sector strikes this autumn.

The TUC general council announced it would back a call to consider the practicalities of a general strike – not seen in the UK since 1926 – while members of England's two biggest teaching unions announced industrial action short of a strike later this month.Delegates also voted to back plans to co-ordinate their action against the UK Government's cuts.But Labour leader Ed Miliband risked antagonising union leaders, telling them at a dinner last night the public did not want to see further industrial action. He told them that not only did the public not want to see strikes but "nor do you, nor do your members".And he appeared to suggest they work with the Coalition, telling them the solution was "for the Government to understand why working people are so unhappy".Earlier Dot Gibson, of the National Pensioners' Convention, which represents 1.5 million affiliated members, called on the public to "sit down in the road [and] take direct action" to fight the cuts.She predicted greater "radicalisation" across the country as the effects of the cuts started to be felt by ordinary people and said her organisation was already seeing a growing militancy in rural areas, where people were more reliant on disappearing services such as post offices.Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades' Union, also called on communities to take matters into their own hands."In the early years of the Thatcher government we occupied the hospitals," he said. "That's the sort of thing we should be demanding."When they want to close down a youth centre, when they want to close down a school or a hospital, if communities want to occupy them we are going to support them. That's the sort of action we need to take to challenge this Government."The call followed agreement by unions to work together to resist the Coalition's cuts agenda.Bob Crow, leader of the RMT union, told delegates they had to bandtogether to take on the Government. "If you spit on your own you can't do anything," he told a fringe meeting on co-ordinating action, "but if you all spit together you can drown the b******s." Steve Gillan, general secretary of the Prison Officers' Association, said: "There are real cracks in the Coalition and I think we should stick the boot in and finish them off." Meanwhile, in a speech to the TUC conference today Labour Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls will call on ministers to announce a full-scale Plan B to kick-start the economy. He will say that the risk is "not short-term pain for long-term gain, but short-term pain causing long-term damage".l Scottish Finance Secretary John Swinney piled further pressure on the Chancellor by again stressing he would try to use his Budget next week to end a two-year pay freeze for tens of thousands of public sector workers in Scotland.Mr Swinney said in his previous Budget he hoped the start of the 2013/14 financial year next April would herald a "period of modest pay increases".Aides last night said they were still working towards the goal, opening up the possibility of different pay rates north and south of the Border.

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Unions urge autumn of civil disobedience

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