So crunch time has finally come for Red Ed at the UK TUC conference, where he admits that he has no intention of supporting the unions over their pension dispute. As I have stated before, why should this be a surprise to anyone when the Tory policy on slashing pensions is in fact exactly the same as the Labour policy. Well it would be, when a Labour Lord actually wrote it.
What really wound up the TUC delegates though was the excuse that Red Ed gave. He said that he could not support the dispute while negotiations were taking place. What a pile of bullsxxt. Although both sides met, there were never actually any negotiations as the Government had no intention of budging an inch - despite Red Ed's efforts to 'be neutral' to encourage a settlement!
So tonight, it is now clear that the main affiliated Labour unions will be balloting for strike action in the Autumn, so how is Red Ed going to spin his way out of this one? Maybe he will claim that he was on holiday at the time at a place with no mobile signal? Whatever the excuse, it will be humiliating for him and in my opinion, could hasten his demise.
I find the whole affair particularly cynical as if my union does vote to strike, then I will be on a picket line for a union that supports a party that yet again, stabs them in the back when they need them most. This pension dispute is not about making the pensions sustainable as they already are. It is about paying off the bankers debts and at the same time, crashing the whole public sector pension system in the medium term? You think not? Then, ask what many young Council employees on tight finances will do if a 3-5% cut goes on the salary, to contribute more to their pension. They will pull out in their droves, de-stabalise the system and create a failing pension system where previously there was not one.
On this issue as with so many others, you could not put a cigarette paper between the position of the Tories and Labour.
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