Austerity Uncovered - STUC Tour

On Tuesday in between council meetings and attending a funeral I very briefly went along to see the STUC's Austerity Uncovered Tour in Dundee.  Unison were also there campaigning for a fair pay rise for local government workers.

I was pleased to get the chance to hear from Dave Moxham from the STUC about the campaign.  They are looking for long-term policies including

• A new industrial policy to back our industry
• Banks that work for the people and a new state investment bank
• A jobs guarantee for young people
• A fair tax system tackles the tax dodgers and makes banks pay a fair share through the Robin Hood Tax
• A massive programme to build social and affordable housing

I am supportive of all of these objectives.  It is important that we listen to the voice of trade unions.  The economic crash was not caused by trade unionists but rather by banks.  It is crucially important that policy makers listen to the views and experiences of people who are in the firing line of cuts and benefit changes and that is one of the things that the STUC tour is trying to do.

I was also happy to listen to Unison activists make the case for a pay rise for their members.  Councils are put in a very difficult position by the funding settlements we have but we must also recognise that the workforce is the greatest asset the council has.  We should also recognise their economic impact on the local community and that putting more money in their pockets can boost the local economy, that's one reason why I campaigned for the Living Wage for Dundee City Council workers.

Once again I would just like to say sorry that I wasn't able to stay for longer.