BOLTON TUC – ZOOM PUBLIC MEETING ONLINE:
WEDNESDAY – 9th DECEMBER 2020
6.30 PM – 8.00 PM
To join the Zoom Meeting you need to e-mail: admin@boltontuc.org before the start of the meeting.
Bolton TUC are calling for a broad coalition of political parties, trades unions, service users and community groups to oppose the potential £39 million cut to next year’s Bolton Council budget and to campaign instead for a huge public investment in the town in any number of pay-for-themselves projects, such as building more Social Housing and insulating people’s homes, which Secretary of Leigh Unite and Bolton TUC member Stephen Hall says:
“…….would not only, not be wasteful expenditure burdening future generations with increased debt; but on the contrary, represent the best public investment we could possibly make right now not only in the interests of our children and future generations, but of everyone else living in the here and now. This is because what we are proposing will amongst other things, help to address the huge housing shortage and growing threat of climate change. It will also help alleviate the widespread financial pressures presently on many households resulting from the covid pandemic, by creating thousands of new jobs, and putting money into local people’s pockets and thereby the local economy.
“Any proposed cuts right now are simply unacceptable in our view and will only heap even greater misery on to already over stretched households. They will only worsen the care of our elderly and severely damage other vital public services. They will also suck money and spending power out of the local economy, all of which will detrimentally effect local businesses. Worse than that they are a completely false economy which will cost the public purse more in the long run as a result of a loss in tax revenues, increased payments of universal credit and the additional cost of addressing many other social problems they will create.
“As well as organising locally to mobilise public opinion in support of a policy of investment rather than cuts, and calling on our local Councillors and our local MPs to join us in demanding the necessary funding from the Government to enable that to happen, in order for us to realistically succeed, it is vital we unite and campaign with other Council areas facing a similar situation in Greater Manchester and beyond.
“Indeed, in the first instant, we believe our best chance, and every other Council area’s best chance of succeeding lies in building the greatest possible public support for this policy and approach across Greater Manchester and putting pressure on all our political representatives, MPs, Council Leaders and GM Mayor Andy Burnham to unite with us in demanding the Government provide the necessary funding. This approach would also look to be more in keeping with the Government’s manifesto pledge of a ‘levelling up’ agenda for The North, than the currently proposed cuts facing local Councils which will more likely do the exact opposite.
“We are delighted to hear that the Bolton West Constituency Labour Party last week unanimously endorsed a motion opposing cuts and calling for a similar approach to ours with regards to investment in our area in the wake of the Covid pandemic. Also, calling for a broad campaign across the Borough to achieve those objectives. We would like to cordially invite them, and everyone else living in the Bolton Council area who is opposed to the proposed cuts, and who agrees that a policy of public investment is the much better option, to come and join us at next Wednesday’s Zoom meeting to discuss how we might go forwards as a united campaign in the interests of us all.”
Invited speakers:
- Cllr Ahktar Zaman – Labour Councillor
- Andrea Egan – Bolton UNISON Branch Secretary
- Karen Reissman – Bolton UNISON Health Branch
- Linda Charnock – Bolton Against the Bedroom Tax
- Stephen Hall – Bolton TUC & President Greater Manchester TUC
To join the Zoom Meeting you need to e-mail: admin@boltontuc.org before the start of the meeting.
Bolton TUC 