Mar
17
Category: 
Teachers in Ruth Kelly’s constituency town of Bolton have indicated their willingness to take strike action against the White Paper. In a ballot conducted prior to the Commons debate last Wednesday teachers organised in the NUT in Bolton were asked whether they were prepared to take strike action to defend national pay and conditions of service and to retain the local authority as school providers, both of which the White Paper discourages. 92 % of teachers indicated their willingness to strike. Coming on top of Tony Blair’s reliance on Conservative votes to win his education reforms and subsequent allegations of sleaze, this lack of support for the White Paper by teachers in his Education Minister’s own constituency is a worrying development.
Barry Conway, Secretary of Bolton NUT commented:
‘As soon as the vote went through I was receiving e-mails savaging Blair, Kelly, and the Labour MP’s who were voting for what was clearly a Tory education bill. There is a close connection between national conditions of service and comprehensive education which are both threatened by this White Paper. The need for equal opportunity in schools as both workplaces and centres of learning reflects the fact of inequality in income and power in the wider society. The difference between Labour and Tory education policy was that while both parties recognised this inequality, Labour tended to emphasise equal opportunity to overcome it while the Tories sought to sustain and perpetuate inequality through market competition and selection. Under Blair’s leadership, and Kelly’s management, the Tories are now running the education agenda, closely monitored by the CBI who are clearly driving the project. Eight months prior to the publication of the White Paper the CBI recommended policies which were completely accepted by Kelly and seconded by Gordon brown as ‘an economic necessity’.
‘This vote by Bolton teachers is extremely important. This is the first and only time so far that the people directly affected by these plans – staff, parents and pupils- have been asked their opinions outside of managed media situations. It clearly indicates the depth of concern and opposition there is to the White Paper. And it also shows that this is not reflected in any effective opposition within Parliament’.
‘In two weeks we will be meeting with all members and delegates to discuss the implications of this vote and determine our next step’
Julia Simpkins, Assistant NUT Secretary in Bolton added
‘This is a spectacular result which shows that people who work in schools feel very strongly against the White Paper and are prepared to lead the opposition to these catastrophic reforms. The government keeps going on about parental choice, but as a teacher, and a parent who wants to send their child to a good local school, we are being left with little or no choice at all.
In two weeks Bolton NUT will be meeting to discuss the implications of this vote and determine their next step.
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