PRESIDENT’S COLUMN

President’s column This is my final column of the year and what a year it’s been. Nobody could have predicted the trauma and massive changes that we have had to undergo following the loss of Bob and EC member Brian Munro, both tragically young. Obviously the union’s suffering is nothing compared to what the families have had to go through and our thoughts should always be for them before our own. We have had to make sure that the union still functioned and I think we have all managed to achieve that. Our constitution has made sure that we have managed to carry on, with heavy hearts, but nevertheless carry on and continue to do what we do best, serve the members to the best of our ability. We owe a huge debt to past and present members for this. We have to remember that our rule book was written by rank and file members, and it has evolved to cover new issues and challenges. The rule book was not written by faceless bureaucrats but by you the membership. I am proud of the way our union is run and you should be as well. I would like to thank you all for holding everything together and I hope that we will continue to win battles against the capitalist system. Next year will bring its usual challenges and a general election. We need to be very aware of the rise of UKIP and the increasing activities of far right parties such as BNP, EDL, and now Britain First, who may well turn out to be the worst of the lot of them. We need to be vigilant against these people and should be really worried if UKIP hold the balance of power. Take away their appalling immigration policies, and you have still got views that are to the right of the Tory Party. I can guess what their attitude to trade unions will be. We should be out there campaigning and opposing them now. This year’s AGM decision regarding the Labour Party means that we no longer automatically support their candidates. In my opinion this is no great loss because, apart from a few notable exceptions, when was the last time they represented the views of the workers and poor in this country? There are millions of people out there who feel they have no representation, so where do we turn? There are a lot of smaller left wing groups, but they would have to put their differences behind them and find some common ground so that they could work together. We have TUSC, which is a good idea in theory but needs to expand. We need proper input from other trade unions which at this time we haven’t got. In my opinion, the party that we should get behind is the Green Party. We have already agreed to back Caroline Lucas in Brighton and maybe we should be looking to give them support in other areas. They have one of the most radical agendas going. They want to repeal the anti-trade union laws, renationalise the railways and power companies and do it in a proper way with profits going back into the industry and not to the state. If they can say it, why can’t Labour? The public consistently demand public ownership of the railways, so it isn’t exactly a vote loser. I am not saying that the Greens are perfect but they are no worse and far better than what we have. Finally, I want to wish you all a peaceful and happy Christmas and New Year and I hope the New Year is a better one than this one. Peter Pinkney CARRYING ON RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: november/december 2014 :: RMTnews 19 harassment in male dominated industries goes on and that fight should have been won long ago - there should be no discrimination in the workplace or society and we shouldn't have to fight for what should be a given right,” she said. Ann paid tribute to people who had been a great loss to the trade union movement. The first was Professor Ailsa McKay who was passionate about women's rights and a big contributor to the work of the women’s committee. “Just a few days later we were dealt the devastating blow that our general secretary Bob Crow had suddenly passed away. “Bob was a huge inspiration to his members and the wider trade union movement and a big supporter of the work of the STUC and the women's committee,” she said. Ann also addressed STUC Congress on behalf of the women’s committee outlining their work plan for the year. “We set ourselves ambitious targets and if I had gone through the whole work plan I would still be standing there but I was given ten minutes and hopefully I did some justice to the hard work of the women on the committee,” she said.