Left Unity Candidate
Left Unity is holding an election to decide our General Secretary candidate. I am putting my name forward with the support of the Broad Left Network – a newly formed group within Left Unity.
Please attend your local LU group meeting and nominate me.
About Me
I have been active in the union for more than thirty years and helped build the left. I have represented members at all levels of our union – locally and nationally. I am currently a member of the PCS National Executive Committee.
I have worked in Government Departments including the Ministry of Defence, both Employment and Social Security (now DWP), the private sector and now latterly in BEIS (Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)- where I am the Group President.
I have a huge amount of experience as a negotiator. I have led many successful disputes including, most recently, strike action to prevent the closure of the Sheffield BIS office and protect jobs.
I have been a member of PCS Left Unity/CPSA Broad Left, all my working life. I am a socialist and a member of the Socialist Party.
Left Unity – Change is Needed
I am appalled at the way the Socialist View/SWP majority on the Left Unity National Committee has completely undermined the basic traditions of Left Unity as an open, inclusive and democratic organisation. Members are attacked for holding and expressing views that are different to theirs. Support for non-LU candidates against official LU candidates is tolerated and even encouraged.
This cannot go on. Change is necessary to reclaim Left Unity as a broad based, open organisation where debate is encouraged and where the official candidates elected in a fair election by LU members are fully supported.
PCS is a Great Union – We Can Do Better
I am proud to be a member of PCS but am concerned at the way in which control and decision making has become increasingly top down and centralised. We need to reassert elected lay control at all levels over all major decisions affecting us.
I know that our union and members have been singled out by successive governments. This had had a huge impact on us with membership nearly halved and wage cuts in real terms by about 20% There is a disconnect between organisation/recruitment and the bargaining agenda and the needs of our members. This has to be put right. We must grow the union and its strength; linking bargaining with campaigning and organising, in my experience is vital to grow our union and therefore our strength.
An Independent Political Voice
I believe we need a strong political voice. This should be expressed currently by supporting the Corbyn leadership and anti-austerity agenda. But we must remain politically independent and put the needs of our members and our policies first.
Equality in Practise
I am totally committed to an equality agenda which puts equality truly at the centre of our bargaining agenda and also proactively campaigns for the rights of all our members – women, black, LGBTQ+ and disabled members. It is not enough to adopt a top down approach to equality, for example through the appointment/election of women to positions at the top of the union- though the record here should be much better. Only 30% of the delegates to the 2019 annual delegate conference were women, it’s at this level that urgent change is required ensuring equal representation of all members – the barriers in the way of this need to be identified and removed.
My Pledge
I will be issuing more detailed explanations of what I stand for – some of which can be found on the BLN website. But I want to conclude this launch statement with a promise. “I will seek no material gain from being elected General Secretary. I will take no more than my current wages, the rest I will give back to the union.”
PCS Broad Left Network 