Driving teachers?

A teacher at a school "somewhere in Sussex" was given a performance target of "driving" not cattle or the school minibus but other teachers!

They are clearly unaware of the traditional Sussex ballad:


Some folks as comes to Sussex,
They rackons as they knows
A darn sight better what to do
Then silly folks like me and you
Could possibly suppose.
But them as comes to Sussex,
They mustn't push and shove'
For Sussex will be Sussex,
And Sussex won't be druv.

Cable v Murdoch

Vince Cable talks a good war. He declared war on Rupert Murdoch to a couple of undercover hacks from the Telegraph. Then instead of going on the offensive he retreated with his
tail between his legs. The first war in history to be fought by unconditional surrender.

There have been calls for Cable’s resignation from newspapers owned by a certain Mr Murdoch. Now there’s a spooky coincidence.

Those who watched the debate on tuition fees will remember battling Cable’s role in that farce. Cameron and Clegg might as well have been pulling his strings as he mouthed their policies and tried to look sincere.

Interestingly the Jeremy Vine Show on Radio Two specifically asked listeners to call in with comments supporting poor Mr Murdoch. There were none.

Some recalled the lies Murdoch told about the Hillsborough disaster – lies insulting and demonising Liverpool fans. Lies which which the Sun later withdrew.

Others drew attention to Fox News which is a continual right-wing rant rather than a news channel.

Listeners also drew attention to Berlusconi in Italy who used his media empire to silence opposition to his corrupt repressive government.

Another said Dennis Potter had the right idea when he named his pancreatic cancer “Rupert”

Perhaps the best comment appeared on the Sky News own website: “I love SKY. What ever they say, i believe. Tell me what to think next Mr Murdoch?”

"North Korean" Gove

“We will give teachers power over how money is spent”
was the rather surprising remark of Michael Gove on the Andrew Marr show on 21 November.

Even more surprising was his assertion that spending on education would be increased. At the same time here in West Sussex 50 teachers supporting the most vulnerable pupils with hearing and vision impairment are facing the sack.

The “increase in spending” does not in fact involve any new money, they are robbing Peter to pay Paul, But Peter will still need paying!

To celebrate the 2012 Olympics 162 million pounds of government spending on Sports Partnerships is being cut. Yet again the “teacher autonomy” and “more spending” of Mr Gove's doublespeak actually means more cuts. Emma Greenough, Brighton School Sport Co-ordinator, now facing the sack, commented in the Observer “You are going to be left with two-tier sports – it'll be sport for children whose parents can afford it.

And even Andrew Marr thought Gove's attitude to the curriculum was “North Korean.” Gove protests that teachers will be given autonomy. However Mr Gove who has no knowledge or experience of teaching will decide how little Willie in Willesden will learn to read [“Synthetic phonics for you laddie”] and How Harry in Hastings learns History.

The NUT opposes loss of 50 jobs. You can help

This press release about the loss of jobs in West Sussex should appear in your local rag this week.

* If it does not, why not send it to them?
* If it does then why not write in supporting it?

If you agree the union should fight job cuts then you can email

Chair of WSCC, Mark Dunn:
Mark.Dunn@westsussex.gov.uk

Cabinet Member for Education: Peter Griffiths:
Peter.Griffiths@westsussex.gov.uk

David Sword, Director of Learning:
david.sword@westsussex.gov.uk

***The union is as much YOU as it is ME ***

Derek McMillan
President
West Sussex Teachers Association

Press release follows:

West Sussex NUT is gravely concerned over the intention of West Sussex County Council to restructure the support services to schools from centrally employed staff as its response to central government?s cuts in funding.

These cuts will hit some of the most vulnerable children in West Sussex; they will inevitably result in the reduction of services to the most disadvantaged, including those with special needs.

This action, if unchallenged, will result in the loss of almost 50 jobs in front-line services and we believe it will inevitably reduce the quality of the service provided. The jobs lost will be those of specialist teachers, psychologists, educational advisers and other professionals who provide invaluable support to our most needy children, their families and schools
This will be contrary to the government?s declared intention to protect front-line services in vital areas such as education. It is also inconsistent with West Sussex?s declared intention to deliver good quality services to all, especially the weakest and most vulnerable in our society.

West Sussex Teachers' Association urges all concerned parties, such as the parents of vulnerable children who are most likely to be most disadvantaged by this policy, to communicate their concerns to WSCC as a matter of urgency.

Teachers’ pensions are under attack. But the NUT is going to fight to defend them.

The November NUT Executive agreed unanimously that we prepare a campaigning timetable building up to a ballot for strike action in the spring term.

The Government are trying to claim that our existing pensions’ scheme is ‘unaffordable’. The most recent valuations of the Teachers’ Pensions Scheme confirm that’s just not true. They just want to rip-off our pensions to pay for their debts.

The first Hutton report made quite clear what the Government intends – to make us retire older and pay more for less pension.

October’s Comprehensive Spending Review made the threat clearer. The Government plans for all teachers to be paying another 3% of our salaries in pension contributions. That’s a big pay cut. It’s a cut that we cannot accept.

On top of that, the Government have switched the indexation of pension benefits from the Retail Price Index to the lower Consumer Price Index. That change alone could cost a teacher tens of thousands of pounds in retirement.

When the Hutton Commission issues its final report in March, it could include further attacks. Changed pension calculations – like using ‘career-averages’ – could cut pension payouts. Our retirement age could go up – to 65 for all of us – but perhaps to 67 and beyond – unless we make a stand.

We can’t wait for Hutton’s Final Report in March to reveal the full details of these attacks. To make Hutton and the Government think again, we have to take action before then – hopefully co-ordinated with other teaching and non-teaching unions too.

That’s why the NUT Executive agreed unanimously to produce a timetable for:

• Distribution of campaigning materials

• Meetings, rallies and demonstrations

• A ballot for strike action in the spring term.

We will approach other unions to seek maximum co-ordination in all of the above activities and then confirm our action timetable at the December meeting of the NUT Executive.

Get the news out to every school – the fight to defend our pensions is on!

Do it to Julia!

In the book 1984 Winston Smith is threatened with savage
cuts from the claws and teeth of a rat. The state do this to
him so he will plead with them to "Do it to Julia" and thus
betray his lover and himself.

Representatives of the New Labour canaille have similar "do
it to Julia" plans. They wish to appear reasonable by saying
"of course some cuts are necessary but vote for me and I
will oppose this particular cut."

They have the cheek of the devil. New Labour kowtowed to the
bankers and gave them billions to keep the gravy train on
the rails. They expect us to pay the fare. The bankers would
benefit from a short sharp shock - perhaps six months in
prison for profiteering and economic sabotage - far more
than the bonuses which are simply not good for them.

The anti cuts movement will welcome support from any quarter
but anyone from the Labour Party should be asked whether
they would vote against "nice Labour cuts" as well as "nasty
Tory cuts"

Richard Venton and Rupert Murdoch

Let's imagine for a moment that Richard Venton is telling the truth. Let's imagine that Tommy Sheridan actually did visit a sex club.

Where is that "crime" in the scale that includes Blair's mass murder in Iraq, Rupert Murdoch's disgusting slanders against Liverpool supporters at Hillsborough or the common or garden corruption of 99 percent of politicians.

Yet Richard Venton chooses to side with Rupert Murdoch - apparently without even the bad excuse of being bribed!

Andy Burnham's two faces

Andy Burnham was interviewed by Andrew Marr on his new role
as shadow education secretary. He started by distancing
himself from those who got the Labour Party in the soup by
deriding "bog standard comprehensives." He strongly defended
the role of comprehensives and denounced the Tory plans for
academies. He went on to roundly excoriate the Con Dem
government for their ill-conceived plan to raise fees
through the roof and he opposed the Con Dem cuts in public
spending.

So far so good.

Then he felt he had to be statesmanlike. He condemned Tory
academies but praised Labour academies. He condemned Tory
fees but he defended Labour fees. He had the gall to admit
that he went to college on a grant but had no shame
whatsoever about kicking away the ladder now he no longer
needed it.

And as for cuts? Well no prizes for guessing. He was against
Tory cuts but strongly favoured Labour cuts because he was
tough and macho! So it looks as though the Labour opposition
will be as much use as a chocolate teapot when it comes to
fighting against the cuts.

We need a party for the common people – a new workers’
party.

Crawley against the cuts

West Sussex Teachers' Association is urging all of its members to support campaigns by trades councils and community groups against the cuts. The WSTA opposes cuts regardless of which political party is initiating them.

The Mid Sussex Socialist Party is backing the campaign. When leafleting with the Trades Council in Tilgate today the only adverse comment we got was from someone who thought we were backing the Labour Party. We soon cleared that up!

North Sussex Trades Council oppose cuts

On Wed 15th September the North Sussex Trades Council meeting was an open meeting to discuss a campaign against the cuts. There was a wide ranging discussion.

Although there is apparent public support for "cuts" in the abstract, when people realise that the cuts are unnecessary and will affect front line services they will have a change of heart.

For example, Phil Clark from Brighton Trades Council pointed out that Connexions staff - who cope with the most difficult pupils and seek to get them into work and/or off of drugs - are facing cuts and the next target was likely to be mental health nurses. This gives the lie to the bluff of the coalition that no front line services will be hit.

This will only matter if the trade unions are seen as willing to fight. The TUC has already been more vertibrate than is commonplace. They talk a good fight but it will be up to the ranks of the unions to make sure they actually fight one. The trades councils can play a key role as is shown by the success of Brighton Trades Councils launch meeting attended by 250 people on Thursday.



Next Meeting Tuesday 2nd November
Time 7.30 pm
Place St John's Church Hall in Crawley
Be there

Oppose cuts - whichever gang are in power!

New Labour began the policy of robbing the poor to give to the rich.
The Con Dem coalition are no better.
There are plenty of "efficiency savings" to be made by confiscating the bankers' bonuses and making millionaires pay tax but the rich want to make the poor pay for a crisis created by the greed and incompetence of the bankers.
One member of the public came up to us and said "we should be like the french - come out on strike and on the streets until the government say 'give them what they want!'"

U.S. Troops Accused of Killing Afghans For Fun, Collecting Fingers As Trophies

From Democracy Now

The Guardian newspaper reports twelve U.S. soldiers face charges over forming a secret "kill team" that allegedly blew up and shot Afghan civilians at random and collected their fingers as trophies. Five of the soldiers are charged with murdering three Afghan men who were allegedly killed for fun in separate attacks this year. Seven others are accused of covering up the killings and assaulting a recruit who exposed the murders when he reported other abuses. All of the soldiers are members of a Stryker infantry brigade based in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan. Meanwhile the father of one of the men charged has told the Associated Press he tried nearly a half dozen times to pass an urgent message from his son to the Army that troops in his unit had murdered an Afghan civilian and planned more killings. Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell addressed the charges on Thursday.
Geoff Morrell: "I don’t believe the allegations here against these few individuals are representative of the behavior or the attitudes of the entire force. That said, it clearly—even if these allegations are proved to be untrue—is unhelpful. It does not help the—you know, the perceptions of our forces around the world. And so, the sad part about this is, even if these individuals are vindicated, even if they’re not true, the damage will have been done."

Megalomaniac Murdoch

News Corporation - the misnamed Rupert Murdoch empire - is launching a million dollar lawsuit against Skype. The lawsuit concerns the first three letters of its name.

Murdoch's lawyers claim this word is Murdoch's personal property and want money from anyone else who uses it! To quote the Sun - another Murdoch property - "you couldn't make it up."

The inhabitants of the Isle of Skye could be in trouble here and Murdoch's lawyers will have their sights on "The Sky's the Limit", "Blue Skies thinking" and the Skye Boat Song.

So next time you sneak a peak at that thing...you know that blue thing up there...Murdoch could be after your money.

And as for you Trotskyists...watch out!

Forget twanging bowstrings in Sherwood Forest and men in tights. The "Robin Hood Tax" is being proposed by Oxfam and others as a means of making the bankers pay for the crisis they created.

For years Oxfam and Cafod have made valiant efforts to feed the poor in the third world. At the same time unfortunately the fat cats in the city have been making valiant efforts to feed *off* the poor in the third world through criminally extortionate interest repayments. Oxfam and Cafod raised thousands. The bankers clawed back millions.

Their website claims "The 'Robin Hood Tax' is a tiny tax that would have a massive impact. It would raise enough money to help poor people, protect public services and tackle climate change at home and abroad.Oxfam, along with many partners, is working to make this tax happen. Politicians around the world are already beginning to consider it as a serious possibility,"


These are very modest beginnings. The video by Bill Nighy makes the point in a humorous way that a tiny proportion of the bankers' profits would be a massive sum and could repair some of the cuts in spending on the poor and the damage brought about by climate change.

Oxfam and Cafod are taking this up because the politicians are useless. So busy collecting their own expenses and so scared of offending the bankers they are completely inert.

However Robin Hood went a lot further. He didn't tax the rich. He expropriated them. It is a tradition we need to revisit.

The TUC is listed as supporting the Robin Hood Tax. Perhaps that is what they wanted to chat with David Cameron about? It is time the TUC got off its knees.

The following 48 organisations are supporting the Robin Hood Tax Campaign: ActionAid, Action for Global Health (UK), ACTSA (Action on Southern Africa), Africa Europe Faith Justice Network - UK, Article 12 in Scotland, ATD Fourth World, Barnardo's, Cafod, Centre for Alternative Technology, Chigwell Justice and Peace Centre, Christian Aid, Christian Medical Fellowship, Christian Socialist Movement, Church Action on Poverty, Church of Scotland Church and Society Council, Commonwealth HIV & AIDS Action Group, Forum for Stable Currencies, General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches, Health Unlimited, Housing Justice, Interact Worldwide, International HIV/AIDS Alliance, National Justice and Peace Network, National Union of Teachers, NCVO, nef (the new economics foundation), Oxfam GB, ONE, People and Planet, Plan UK, Results UK, The Salvation Army, Save the Children UK, Stamp Out Poverty, Stop AIDS Campaign, Student Partnerships Worldwide, TB Alert, Tearfund, Trades Union Congress, UNA-UK, Unicef UK, Unite, University and College Union, Urban Forum, War on Want, World Development Movement, World Wide Robin Hood Society, Zacchaeus 2000 Trust.

Click here for more information

Tolpuddle 2010

Two members of West Sussex NUT (President and Equalities officer - Derek and Angela) went with Crawley Trades Council to Tolpuddle this year.

There are a series of events celebrating the release of six trade unionists - the Tolpuddle Martyrs - arrested and transported in 1834 for joining a union.

It was a good occasion and an opportunity to see the three teachers' unions taking part in the same march and under the same slogan "Save our Schools".

It came as a surprise to see the Labour Party gracing us with their presence and talking about "this dreadful academies programme" - I expected to see a few pigs flying around but no.

The Labour Party is pro-war, pro-privatisation and viciously anti trade union.
I imagine if New Labour had been around in those days they would have locked up the Tolpuddle Martyrs without the formality of a trial and probably carted them off to Guantanamo for good measure.

The Trades Council coach only cost a tenner and we will seek to get more teachers (history teachers for example) involved next time.

Beckham on the Jonathan Ross show

To celebrate his final programme on the BBC Jonathan Ross spent the remains of the budget on luring the millionaire footballer to speak on his program.

As you can imagine he had something to say about the football. "The England team lost because the players played badly." Where would we be without his insightful expertise?

However, leaving his area of specialist knowledge, he went on to talk about two other issues.

He spoke in lyrical terms about "this earth, this realm, this England" omitting to explain why, like many millionaires, he neither lives here nor pays any tax here.

He then turned his incisive intellect to the war in Afghanistan. The war was justified because "our English soldiers are heroes." And there is nothing like a dead hero to sell a war. Unlike everyone else Beckham knew the objective of the mission. You might well scratch your heads at that one. Apparently they are there to win.

So there you have it, football, nationalism and complex international issues all summed up a la Beckham. The world is very simple for millionaires like Ross and Beckham. A bit more complex for the rest of us.

Report on the National Shop Stewards Network conference 26 06 2010

Margaret Thatcher always advised her friends only to employ a gardener who had patches on the knees of his trousers. Thatcherites like the working classes on their knees and the present coalition is no exception.

The NSSN is potentially very useful for public sector unions to co-ordinate actions and simply to exchange information. Various unions have produced data on the “gold plated” public sector pensions one reads about in the media. The median pension for PCS members is 8000 pounds a year – you couldn’t get gold-plated cufflinks on that.

There was a wide range of participants from pensioner activists who reported on the number of OAPs who are up in arms about the government’s plans…down to the Youth Fight for Jobs representatives who are seeking to secure a future for school-leavers.

The representatives of the BA cabin crews got a standing ovation – as you would expect really.

The NUT’s own Linda Taaffe moved the keynote resolution . She is using her so-called retirement to invigorate the NSSN.

The resolution aimed to get the TUC off its knees. The suggestion is that union branches and individual members should be urging them to organise a national protest against the cuts. This is in contrast to their current plan of inviting David Cameron round for tea. Matt Wrack of the FBU said this was about as useful as having a chat with the hangman about what kind of knot you want.

Contact the TUC by email, phone or via the web page:

http://www.tuc.org.uk/the_tuc/about_form.cfm

Tel 020 7636 4030
Fax 020 7636 0632
Email info@tuc.org.uk

Trades Union Congress
Congress House
Great Russell Street
London WC1B 3LS

A number of trade unions support NSSN at the highest level – the PCS, POA, RTM and FBU for example. The NSSN will work with the official Trade Union Congress when possible but without it when necessary. We have no plans to invite David Cameron to our next conference.

The big bang and mythology

“I believe in one God. The Father, the Almighty, The creator of heaven and earth and of all things seen and unseen.”

“I believe in the almighty big bang., The creator of heaven and earth and of all things seen and unseen. (dark matter)”

People believe in all sorts of things. The big bang is a theoretical construct based on a lot of painstaking research over decades. Every year volumes of research are added to the existing information about the big bang.

The Nicene Creed – quoted above - was the “best guess” of Christians in AD 325 in an attempt to explain the fundamentally unexplainable. However as an explanation it is different in kind from the Big Bang theory.

When a child asks you “why does the sun shine?” you might answer “it is like a flame giving off heat and light” If they are a bit older you can tell them a lot of fascinating stuff about hydrogen fusing to form helium. This does not answer the question. The question was “why” not “how”.

The big bang – as a theoretical construct – tells us a lot about how. It tells us nothing about why.

Bertrand Russell’s clinching argument for the non-existence of God was this: if you say God created the universe – after all the universe “must have come from somewhere” – this just pushes the question back a stage. God “must have come from somewhere” too.

And the Big Bang? Well AFAIK it came out of nowhere…

Belief in the Big Bang does not carry any moral implications. I believe in the Big Bang therefore I should forgive those who trespass against me? Not logical captain! Logic and science do not lead you to that conclusion.

Jesus believed you should treat other people as you would have them treat you. St Paul said it was the one commandment which contained all the others. That’s good enough for me. (and for Abraham, Lao Tse, Buddha, and the prophet Mohammed). But I can't prove it.

There is an Arthur C Clarke story in which an entity enters the solar system and immediately begins to communicate with Earth scientists. During the time of its stay in the solar system (it is using the slingshot effect of the sun to continue on elsewhere) it astounds scientists on Earth with knowledge which advances Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology by decades.

Just as communication is fading out, they explain the concept of God to it and ask for an opinion. The response? “I understand there is an answer to this question. Unfortunately it is far beyond my capability to understand it!”

God bless :)

Labour leadership election

I have to say the leadership election of the Labour Party shows the
depths to which the party has sunk. Noticing that they have a plethora
of white gentlemen in suits the right wing consciously used their votes
to include Diane Abbott on the slate on the assumption that a snowball
in Hell would have a better chance than she will.



Diane Abbott does not do herself any favours by cuddling up with Portillo - the most hated Tory after Margaret Thatcher - or by her championing of the "excellent academies programme" on her website.



I am not at all sure we should be "building bridges" to the Labour Party.
They have cut all the bridges just as they proposed to cut everything
else - except bankers' bonuses of course.

I joined the Labour Party in the 1960s because I believed in peace, social justice and public ownership.

People who have joined Labour in the last decade have done so because of a belief in war, privatisation and inequality. If you seek hatred and vituperation of trade unionists you need look no further. Ask the Firemen. Ask the BA cabin crews.



We need a party for the common people:
a party of the working class.

Genius with his hand in the till - David Laws

Chief Treasury Secretary David Laws, described as "a genius" by colleagues, is planning cuts in public spending which will impoverish millions. He has apologised after it emerged he had been claiming MPs' expenses to rent rooms in homes owned by his partner.

The Daily Telegraph blew the whistle on Laws. They said this scam totalled £40,000 of the public money this "genius" is so careful with.

He said his motivation was to keep the relationship with the man private and not to reveal his own sexuality.

So having his hand in the till is OK but being gay is something to be ashamed of?

Liberal values indeed.

The rottenness and corruption is not solely the preserve of the two main parties it seems. They really are all the same. "A workers' MP on a workers' wage" was the slogan of our TUSC candidates.

(TUSC = Trade Union and Socialist Coalition)