The Socialist 26 October 2016

Protest and strike to save our NHS

Protest and strike to save our NHS

Health campaigners announce national NHS demo

Hundreds march and rally to defend Tyneside hospital

'Jungle' camp destruction is no solution

Welsh budget: Labour government makes Tory cuts

Academies mired in debt and corruption

Homeless sleeping rough: councils must build housing

Four in five self-employed workers living in poverty

Readmit expelled socialists

Wallasey whitewash must be condemned

Battle in Leeds council over care home closure

Jarrow March: an inspiring show of solidarity between workers and youth

Teaching assistant pledges ongoing fight against pay cuts

A day in the life of a midwife

Striking Sheffield bin workers picket scabs

Crossrail sparks get organised

Unison higher education seminar points no way forward over pay

Housing campaigners meet to plan resistance to the Housing Act

Why I joined the Socialist Party: "I really can't wait for Socialism 2016"

"We are all Daniel Blake!"

US presidential election: The disastrous failure of 'lesser evilism'

Ireland: Jobstown protester found guilty

Book review: Fighting racism in football

TV: No Place to Call Home

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Welsh budget: Labour government makes Tory cuts

Trade unionists in Carmarthenshire lobbying their Labour council for a no-cuts budget in 2014, photo by Scott Jones (Click to enlarge)

Dave Reid, Socialist Party Wales

The Welsh government's budget continues Welsh Labour's policy of meekly passing on the Tories' public service cuts. It inflicts them on some of the most deprived communities in western Europe.

The Welsh government is slamming another nail into the coffin of council services. There will be a further cut of 3.5% to council spending next year if proposals go through.

We are reaching the point of no return. Nearly 20% has been cut from devolved public services in Wales already.

If cuts to council funding continue, some services will disappear for good. Even statutory services will be severely impacted. Already, the child protection unit of at least one Welsh council refuses to respond unless the child is within 72 hours of harm.

And council workers' pay and conditions are under threat, as councils take the cheap and easy option of outsourcing council services to private companies, who cut staffing, hours and pay.

Welsh finance minister Mark Drakeford highlighted the increase in NHS spending of 2.5%. But this does not even keep up with health inflation, which is higher than the average inflation rate - let alone make up for last year's cuts.

It's no good for the Welsh government just to wring its hands and blame the Tories. Nor is it acceptable for Welsh councils to pretend they are 'improving' services while they cut and privatise them.

Their strategy of 'humanely' implementing inhumane Tory cuts has failed. Between them they have implemented the managed decline of public services in Wales towards oblivion.

Instead, a council of war should be called in Wales, bringing together the Welsh government, councils, trade unions and community organisations, to declare "enough is enough!" and prepare a plan of action to defy the Tories:

Pool council reserves
Combine Welsh government and council borrowing powers to set no-cuts needs budgets for Welsh government and local government
Begin a mass campaign of protests, strike action and civil disobedience to demand sufficient funding from Westminster to maintain public services at an adequate level

The Wales Trade Union Congress (TUC) has pointed the way, passing a motion initiated by Socialist Party members calling for no-cuts budgets. It called on "councils of all parties in Wales that claim to be against austerity to set legal no-cuts budgets." This echoed the decisions of public service union Unison's local government conference, and the national local government committee of general union Unite.

All these motions represent the growing realisation that we cannot continue as we have done previously. A stand must be made against the cuts.

The Tory UK government is very weak and divided. Already it has been forced into eight major u-turns since being elected.

And even they have been forced to accept - in words, at least - that investment needs to be pumped into the ailing British economy.

So now is the time to strike. The Welsh government needs to pass a no-cuts budget and the TUC should be building towards a 24-hour general strike to end the cuts.

The alternative is just too bad to contemplate.

In this issue

Socialist Party NHS campaign

Protest and strike to save our NHS