Sussex LRC

Hundreds of people marched together through central Brighton last Saturday, 6 April, in protest against £30m cuts proposed to Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust and the redundancies bound to result.  Sussex LRC was honoured to be asked to be the lead banner in the march.  Thanks to our three banner carriers who bravely struggled in the infamous Brighton “breeze”. All were relieved that the march route didn’t go along the seafront!

Jointly organised by the GMB trades union and Brighton Defend The NHS, members from many different groups brought their banners, flags and placards as well as large numbers to support the march.  These included trades unions NUT, UCU, UNISON and UNITE, community groups and NHS campaigners Keep Our NHS Public, Brighton and Hove Women Against the Cuts, Brighton Benefits Campaign and Lewes Stop the Cuts, as well as Brighton, Hove & District Labour Party and members of the Green Party.

All came together to voice united opposition to cuts proposed to our local NHS service.  It was particularly encouraging to see so many students from Sussex University, taking time away from their leading anti-privatisation campaign, keen to both defend the NHS and return the solidarity they have received from local supporters, as Adriano Merola Marotta emphasised when he spoke.

A well-attended rally heard some excellent speeches, notable among them Mick Foote – local GMB rep at the Royal Sussex County Hospital and the ever-amusing Mark Steel.  A terrific array of photos and video footage of other speeches from Stephen McLean of UNISON and Labour’s Simon Burgess is available on the GMB Southern Region website.  Those with limited time can get a feel of the protest by watching the GMB’s round-up video.

While nurses warn of a hospital in crisis and local reports show BSUH NHS to be already under-resourced, leading to patient overcrowding and unnecessary risk, one pertinent UNITE placard pointed out that the damaging £30m cuts down here are a drop in the ocean of the huge £2.2bn NHS surplus in the last year.

There is no logic to these attacks on our NHS apart from an intention to destroy the NHS as we know it, hand control of the NHS over to private contractors and, eventually, swap to a private insurance-based healthcare system, as in the USA.  Matthew Kershaw, the new Chief Executive of BSUH NHS has form as the previous administrator of South London Healthcare Trust.  He did the government’s bidding in reducing NHS provision, sacking health workers and privatising NHS assets and services in South London, then devastated the people of Lewisham by forcing the downgrade at Lewisham Hospital.  If you haven’t already, sign the petition against Kershaw’s £30m cuts to Brighton & Sussex NHS.

We must resist this in Sussex at all costs.  We repeat: remember the words of Nye Bevan: “The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with the faith to fight for it”.   Now is definitely the time to fight.  Take inspiration from the students at Sussex University: “Sussex United Will Never Be Defeated”!

GMB & Defend Our NHS Brighton protest: Saturday 6 April

11 am Meet outside Royal Sussex County Hospital, Eastern Road, Brighton BN2 5BE

11.30am March from RSCH to Victoria Gardens, Grand Parade

12.30pm Rally with speakers in Victoria Gardens

Even before Matthew Kershaw officially took over as the new Chief Executive of Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust on 1 April, he had announced £30m cuts to local hospital services covering Brighton hospitals and the Princess Royal in Haywards Heath. These include A&E services despite recent reports where nurses spoke of  the “worst working week of their lives” as overcrowding and understaffing at RSCH meant they could no longer properly care for patients and feared patients dying.

Kershaw is no ordinary health manager. Rather than assist South London Healthcare Trust with onerous interest charges, Kershaw is the man this government hand-picked to send in as its administrator to reduce NHS provision, sack healthworkers, privatise services and sell-off NHS assets at that Trust and at neighbouring Lewisham Hospital. Not for no reason is he called the “axe-man”

The GMB trades union is backing a major campaign against these cuts together with many local groups. Members of the GMB and other trades unions, Defend the NHS, Brighton & Hove Women Against Cuts, Keep Our NHS Public, the Labour Party, other campaigners and local NHS supporters will gather at 11am outside the main entrance to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Eastern Road, Brighton, East Sussex BN2 5BE before marching to Victoria Gardens in Grand Parade, Brighton for a rally starting at 12.30pm.  Speakers at the rally will include Labour peer Steve Bassam, Caroline Lucas MP, Mark Steel (comedian), Paul Maloney (GMB), Steve Guy (Defend the NHS) and other health trade unions and campaigners.

Come along to join in giving Matthew Kershaw the welcome he deserves.  Remember the words of Nye Bevan: “The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with the faith to fight for it” Now is the time to fight.

Brighton Hove and District Trade Union Council

7.30pm Wednesday 27 March 2013

Trades and Labour Club

15-16 Lewes Road, Brighton BN2 3HP

All trades union members are invited to come along to hear Matt Wrack, General Secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, speak – as firefighters face massive hikes in pension contributions and London FBU fights reckless cuts opposed by everyone except Tory Mayor Boris Johnson.  How can 4.7m Londoners be told to wait longer for a fire engine but that their safety will be unaffected?  Will you still be safe visiting or working in London?

Find out the latest plans for a national march through London in defence of London Fire Service: the 12 firestations threatened with closure, the 520 firefighters facing the sack and the 18 fire appliances being scrapped.  Also get an update on the plans of Tory Fire Minister Brandon Lewis to privatise all Fire and Rescue Services countrywide.  Have these proposals been withdrawn as Eric Pickles suggested?

Come along to find out more about the FBU’s campaigns to defeat Coalition cuts and privatisation and why each major incident in London – from the Vauxhall helicopter fire to the Southwark museum fire,  exposes the dangerous nonsense of Johnson’s cuts.

1pm Monday 25 March

Library Square, Falmer campus, University of Sussex

For over six weeks now, united in solidarity with workers whose jobs are under threat, increasing numbers of University of Sussex students have occupied the university’s profitable conference centre in protest against plans to privatise university services.  This action has put Sussex at the forefront of the campaign against the commercialisation of education and the ever-increasing drive to privatise all non-academic services.

On Monday 25 March the University campus at Falmer will become the focus for a national demonstration opposing the marketisation of education so beloved of Tory Education Secretary Michael Gove.  This demonstration is being held at Sussex to show support for the occupation.

We have supported this action from the start as we believe it’s an important part of the struggle to defend state education for everyone.  We urge everyone who can to come along on Monday to support the demonstration.  Take branch banners and flags with you to show who you are bringing solidarity greetings from.  Contact us if you would like to take a turn on one of the poles of the Sussex LRC banner.

The latest press release from the occupation can be read here.  If they haven’t already, please lobby your MP to sign EDM1216 on University Outsourcing.  You can keep up to the minute with events by following @occupy_sussex on twitter and via the Sussex Against Privatisation website.

Show your solidarity with the occupation by adding your name to the many supporters already listed on their website.

We should all be inspired by the Sussex occupation – and stand together in unity with workers and students there.

Defend The NHS reports on the protest which greeted Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt on his visit to Worthing Hospital on Thursday 21 March:

With less than 24 hours notice a lively demonstration of around 30 people ensured Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt’s visit to Worthing Hospital did not pass without him experiencing the anger felt by NHS workers, patients and the public over the Tories’ plans to privatise the health service.  Journalists from the local paper turned-up to cover the protest and to speak to the demonstrators. Unison, Unite, PCS and activists from Sussex Defend Our NHS were all represented on the demo. Representatives from the demo asked the hospital managers if Mr Hunt would receive a delegation of local Worthing residents in order to listen their concerns about privatisation, but were told Mr Hunt was too busy eating lunch to meet with them.

Defend the NHS protest

12 noon, Thursday 21 March, Worthing Hospital BN11 2DH

Gather outside main gates

All welcome

Jeremy Hunt visits Worthing Hospital on Thursday 21 March, officially to open a new clinical unit.  Given the Coalition government’s unremitting privatisation of NHS services, how long before one of his henchmen is back to close it?

Courtesy of UK Uncut

Members of Defend the NHS, Keep Our NHS Public, health trades unions, other campaigns and local NHS supporters will gather at 12 noon outside the main gates to Worthing Hospital, Lyndhurst Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN11 2DH.  Come along to help us give the Health Secretary the welcome he deserves.

Brighton & Hove LRC meeting

7.30pm, Thursday 14 March, Lord Nelson pub, Trafalgar Street

Speaker: Joy Hurcombe, vice-Chair, Labour CND

All welcome

Trident is Britain’s nuclear weapons system. It is made up of three parts: the warheads – which are the explosive ‘bombs’, the missiles which carry them, and the submarines which carry the missiles.

One submarine is on patrol at all times carrying an estimated eight missiles, each of which can carry up to five warheads – 40 in total. Each warhead has an explosive power of up to 100 kilotons of conventional high explosive.  This is 8 times the power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, which killed about 240,000 people from blast and radiation.

Can nuclear weapons now be used legally under international treaties signed by the UK? Not if it is impossible to avoid civilian deaths – either in the immediate blast or the subsequent fall out and long-lasting radioactivity.

Are nuclear weapons still relevant to the serious threats identified by successive UK governments – terrorism, cyber warfare and climate change?

As the Coalition commits billions preparing to replace the UK’s Trident submarines when they reach the end of their service life in 2028, we ask is this really an effective use of taxpayers’ money?

The new submarines will be designed to be in service for a further 30 years. The final decision on whether to proceed with the replacement is due to be taken in 2016. Around £900m has already been spent on designing new submarines.  A further £3bn has been allocated for design costs from 2011 to 2016.  The latest official estimate is that the submarines will cost £25 billion to design and construct – already double previous estimates.

Is this best value for £25 billion or should the UK scrap Trident as an increasing number of Labour MPs are arguing?

Come along to discuss all this and more.

Tony Benn returns along with MPs Katy Clark & John McDonnell, union leaders Christine Blower (NUT) & Mark Serwotka (PCS), and campaigning journalists Ellie Mae O’Hagan & Owen Jones.  We screen Secret City – the expose of the London financial sector – and host a Q&A with filmmakers Michael Chanan & Lee Salter.

Fittingly, everything kicks-off with a May Day event where we’re inviting everyone to come along to share their memories of protests and struggles around Sussex.  We think memories from all parts of the local labour movement are hugely important to preserve.

Our Brighton Fringe 2013 tab has full details of all our events and provides information on how to buy tickets.  We already have tickets on sale, so get your tickets now from Sussex LRC!

The official Brighton Fringe Box Office opens to Friends of the Fringe on 27 February and to the general public on 7 March.  Contact the Fringe Box Office online, visit its Brighton outlets or call 01273 917272.

Last year our Tony Benn event was the fastest selling ticket of the entire Fringe leaving many people disappointed.  We recommend booking early!  That’s best done with us as buying your tickets direct from us means no box office or other fees – just a stamp.

You really don’t want to miss out on all this fun!

Have you heard this call ringing out at the University of Sussex this week? Students have occupied the university’s profitable conference centre in protest against plans to privatise university services.  Together with local workers, the students are determined that this will be a united and successful occupation.  We have supported their action from the start as we believe this is an important part of the struggle to defend state education for everyone.

Sussex University management announced privatisation plans in May 2012 without any consultation with staff or students. Subsequently, management has repeatedly refused to enter into any meaningful dialogue with staff or students, despite the proposals including the outsourcing of 235 jobs to private contractors.  This covers all non-faculty university services from catering to security and portering.

Students believe private contractors will inevitably lead to higher prices for worse quality services as profits will come first.  Workers know that outsourcing puts pay, benefits and pensions at risk whatever the TUPE regulations may say about the immediate transfer itself.  Campus unity between students, faculty and staff will be undermined, especially as new employees will have no TUPE cover, inevitably leading to a two tier workforce.

The occupation has developed in lively and innovative fashion, as might be expected in Sussex.  You can keep up to the minute with events by following @occupy_sussex on twitter and via the Sussex Against Privatisation website.

There’s been lots of great press coverage in local, national and education media.  For example, read Mark Steel’s Independent article and the Guardian Education update from 13/02/13.

Show your solidarity with the occupation by signing this statement on their website.  Donations of food and bedding are also very welcome, as will be your support at the regular lunchtime rallies and afternoon activities being organised to support the occupation.  Take branch banners along to show who you have brought solidarity greetings from.

We should all be inspired by the Sussex occupation – Be the change you want to see!

No To Cuts!

 London FBU rally: 12.30pm Monday 11 February

 Outside Brigade HQ

169 Union Street, London SE1 0LL

We urge everyone who can to attend this next major London FBU rally just 10-15 minutes walk from London Bridge station.

Protest at killer cuts being forced through by Tory Mayor Boris Johnson. Against the advice of his own Fire Authority Johnson wants to close 12 fire stations, scrap another 18 fire appliances from other stations and sack 520 staff.

Huge numbers of people commute into London daily from the South East.  These cuts will put people from Sussex at greater risk.

Supporters from Brighton & Hove will meet at Brighton station at 10.30am and travel up to London on the 11.04 Thameslink service, which arrives at London Bridge at 12noon.  Brighton & Hove Labour Party agreed to send its banner to the previous FBU rally so we hope to see it and other Sussex labour movement banners at this event.