‘Railworkers beat back the Tories with strikes – that fighting working-class approach is missing from politics’
Labour has been running Birmingham since 2012 and has presided over years of brutal cuts. The Labour council has attacked its own workers, like the bin workers and homecare staff. They have even sued Unite the Union for protesting cuts outside bin depots.
At the same time, our roads are literally crumbling, and local services have been cut to the bone.
As an active member of the RMT transport union myself, I think it is important that trade unionists take a stand and, if there’s nobody willing to fight for working-class people, then we need to do it ourselves.
RMT members on the railways fought back against the previous Tory government as they tried to use the pandemic as an excuse to attack our jobs, pay and conditions. But we stopped them.
I feel that fighting approach, based on unity of the working class, is what is missing from politics in general today. Corbyn’s ‘Your Party’ still has not got out of the starting blocks for the upcoming council elections. So far, even the Greens have shown they are not willing to lead a struggle against austerity wherever they run councils around the country. We are pushing for Polanski to change course.
Standing for the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition I give my word that, if elected, I will fight cuts in deeds as well as words. I will seek to work with any genuine campaigners who are trying to keep their local library open, or fighting no-fault evictions in our community. But our councils need sufficient funding from central government to be restored in order to provide the services we need.
It’s no good just criticising morally and politically bankrupt parties for what they do. Without a positive alternative on offer, right-wing forces are picking up support due to growing despair.
It is a disgrace that Labour, a party which was set up by and remains funded by trade unions, prosecutes striking workers for trying to effectively picket their workplaces.
We should not let them get away with it. Support your local TUSC candidates on 7 May!
Ted Woodley
