The Socialist 24 February 2010

NHS: not safe in their hands!

NHS: Not safe in their hands!

Private 'vultures' to run NHS hospital

How to stop cuts and defend public services

Demo opposes £29m Notts county cuts

Young people deserve a future: Join the Manchester march for jobs on 13 March

Youth Fight for Jobs Demonstrations

RMT branch supports challenge to Denham

Support the TUSC election challenge

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition General Election launch rally

British Airways cabin crew v management: Round two

Anger on Teesside over Corus closure

ID cards - an expensive threat to civil liberties

Tories attack community café...

Yarl's Wood hunger strike

Fast news

The Eton co-op won't work

Nominate Roger Bannister: Unison's leadership battle

Unison witch-hunt continues

South Wales: Demo against council cuts

Staythorpe: the fight for workplace safety

Port workers battle bosses... and high court

Jobcentre staff fight cuts

Leeds university: Support lecturers striking to save jobs

Fighting leadership needed for UCU

CWU women vote for political review

CWI Latin America school: A continent on the brink

Iraq: All eyes on the oil prize

Campaigning rights victory: But questions remain on new Waltham Forest policy

How can the racist BNP be defeated?

Scottish Defence League defeated: Working class political alternative urgently needed

Previous issues, etc

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Fighting leadership needed for UCU

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) are currently voting for positions on the national executive committee, as well as for a vice president from further education.

These elections take place against the backdrop of unprecedented threats of cuts in all post-16 education and research, under the direction of Lord Mandelson.

Like all parts of the public sector, universities and colleges are going to be made to pay for the banking crisis, regardless of who wins the next election.

The right wing leadership of the union has conspicuously failed to rise to the challenge posed by these threats, organising plenty of 'lobbies' and online petitions, but not the serious national action required.

Given this, Socialist Party members call for support for the UCU Left candidates in these elections, as those best placed to defeat the right wing.

Ultimately, socialist policies need to be linked to a fighting industrial strategy if we're to defeat the threatened cuts and closures in further and higher education.

This will require building and generalising the existing local campaigns, and linking these to initiatives like the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition.