Educators need new political representation

Educators need new political representation: it’s time for the trade unions to take the lead in founding it.

This district/branch notes:

• The ongoing funding and privatisation crisis across all education sectors; Labour’s delays in implementing its Employment Rights Bill, and ongoing attacks on public services and disability benefits, as well as attacks on trans rights, migrants and ongoing support for the onslaught in Gaza.

• The statement by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana calling for a new political party “rooted in our communities, trade unions and social movements”, with 700,000 people signing up to be kept informed, which will include many NEU members and other trade unionists.

• That other unions are involved in discussions: UNITE are reassessing their relationship with Labour; UCU have agreed to “look for an alternative political voice to Labour” and the bakers’ union have released a statement on the creation of a new political party.

• That NEU policy agreed this year states in the motion: Defending and extending members’ rights at work

Conference further instructs the executive to appeal to all the MPs with whom the union is associated, the 7 Labour MPs who had the whip withdrawn after voting against keeping the 2-child benefit cap and the independent MPs, including Jeremy Corbyn, elected for the first time in 2024 to table amendments to the Employment Rights Bill.

This branch/district believes:

• The battles our members face – over funding, workload, pay, restructuring, academisation etc – will be greatly strengthened if we also have a political voice.

• The number of people signing up to be part of the founding process for ‘your party’ is an indicator of the huge potential support there is for a working-class based alternative to Labour, with the potential to cut across the divisive rhetoric of Reform.

• Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana have already vocally shared views on education policy, child poverty and Palestine that are compatible with our union policy. This would be greatly amplified by having actual education workers as decision-makers in a new party,

• A new party will be stronger and have more political authority if trade unions - collectively representing more than 6 million members - participate in the founding of a new party and are represented in the democratic decision-making process of a new party.

• Our union, along with other trade unions, can and should play a leading role in the founding of a new party.

This branch/district resolves:

• To request our National Executive members invite Jeremy Corbyn, Zarah Sultana and the Independent Alliance MPs to an urgent meeting of the National Executive to discuss how to build a bloc of MPs in parliament that will fight for the policies of the NEU, and the role of the NEU in steps towards a new party

• To request our National Executive members approach the Unite EC, UCU NEC and bakers’ union executive, and other relevant trade unions, to discuss trade union involvement in the founding of a new workers’ party

• To write to our local trades union council to suggest working with other unions locally to discuss what is locally needed for political representation.

• To elect representatives to attend local meetings about a new workers’ party and share the needs of education workers.