cuts. And the consultants are still on the war path.
The need to mobilise the labour movement against these attacks is vital. The planned sabotage of the consultants must be met by action from the broad workers movement. A complete ban must be instituted on all private practice, both inside and outside the health service. This Cuts in the NHS (NCC). It involves turning the Spring demonstration called by NALGO and the NCC into a mighty demonstration of working class strength.
The alternative to such a campaign is the collapse of the NHS - that cannot, must not be allowed to happen.
DEF More than 700 people marched through Birmingham last Saturday in a demonstration against the cuts in social ex(ASTMS); there was also a contingent of shop stewards from the Rover car plant. Among the speakers at the end Chris Adamson of NUPE called for a local conference against the cuts, and announced that NUPE would be calling read and write for unemployed building workers.
Moss Centre.
sees the fight back being organised • What was the response of your The North West Division of the ATTI has passed a motion supporting the demands of our campaign and calling for an immediate injection of cash tied to the cost of living. It is union porcy to resist all cutbacks and fight for educ • How important do you think the demand for a sliding scale of public exI think it's absolutely essential, because if we don't get that it means inflation is going to be carrying out the cuts aut. It means we re going to have to fight every week just to stand still, which would be a terrible waste of •One of your demands is that the education committee publicly state what its policy is. Do you think this lack of information about the educa tion committee's intentions is a hin drance to organising resistance?
It's been a terrible problem from the start. We've heard nothing but rumours and contradictory statements.
We need to know what their plans are, and the teachers and students around here should be involved in the formufor three to five years means no new library, students union, or faculty of education studies - and no jobs It is against this background that a half-day strike of Polytechnic lecturers has taken place, a demonstration held, and the Manchester Adult Literacy Action Committee organised. Resistance to the cutbacks started in the newly opened and prestigious Abraham GILLIAN FROST, a teacher at the Centre in the adult literacy department and a member of the Manchester Liaison Committee of the Association of Teachers in Technical Institutions (ATTI), spoke to Red Weekly about the effects of the cuts and how she The demand for the opening of the accounts to workers' inspection is very important. As long as their plans and finances are kept secret they can always mystify everyone and divide and rule.
• Do you think it's necessary to link up with other workers fighting the cutbacks?
Would you support a labour movement conference to organise a plan of resistance against the cuts?
Yes I would. Even within education it self we have to make it very clear that we're not fighting for more for ourselves and less for somebody else. We're fighting to defend social expenditure as a whole. We don't want more on educa tion at the expense of health or social services. We have to get together with everyone to make sure no cuts are made at the expense of anybody else On 5 December the Mancheste Adult Literacy Action Committee held a very successful public meeting attended by around 100 people. It was decid ed to broaden the basis of the Action Committee to take in representatives from all trade union and labour move ment bodies interested in the campaign For more information write to MALAC, c/o Abraham Moss Centre, Crescent