The Fife Labour Party executive met this week and agreed unanimously to continue the fight against the SNP Liberal cuts currently taking place in Fife Council and to build a movement across Fife to defend frontline services. Fife Labour leader Alex Rowley said; “To date we have seen an approach from the SNP and Lib Dems whereby they are enthusiastically cutting frontline services for pensioners and vulnerable people as well as maths and english teachers in a direct attack on education. Their moves can only damage the excellent gains made in education through sustained investment over many years targeting resources to the classroom. We are now seeing the payback for this investment with some of the best results ever and yet their direct cuts will mean that in years to come we go backwards”.
Mr Rowley also questioned the wisdom of issues letters to over 21,000 staff asking them to register an interest in voluntary redundancy. He said; “I am less than convinced of the approach being taken that will impact on 1 in 5 families across Fife, build up expectation of an enhanced redundancy package and then if you are needed for delivering frontline services you are very unlikely to be allowed to go. There is no logic to asking all our teachers if they want to go when the reality is we are unlikely to allow the majority to go anywhere as we need them. There is no targeting or strategy to reducing numbers in specific areas and no sincere thanks to staff in the letters for the work they do, just some rhetoric about being a top performing council when in truth it stinks of desperation by an administration that does not have a clue what they are doing”.
The guest speaker at the meeting was Gordon Brown MP who spoke about the need to remain focused on maintaining and creating jobs. He said; “Fifes history shows that its people have always been willing and able to move into new industries and gain new skills. We must ensure that those who lead Fife’s economy create the conditions in Fife which will encourage investment in skills and infrastructure. The continued investment in the new technologies and green industries is essential to make Fife a leading player bringing thousands of new jobs to the Kingdom to add to those created through the carriers contract”.
The Party agreed that jobs and public services will be placed at the centre of its campaigning over the coming months.
