The Executive Council of UNITE has issued a policy statement called “Cuts are not the answer.” The statement says the Executive “unanimously confirms its opposition to all Government spending cuts. We commit ourselves to fight this ideological driven assault on our much valued public services and welfare state.”
It goes on, “This assault on our class is designed to shift the blame for the economic crisis to the public sector and make working people pay for a crisis not of our making.”

This statement is most welcome under the circumstances where many of our members are facing local authority cuts on an unprecedented scale. What is needed is action not only by UNITE, but by unions across the board in a united campaign to defeat the Coalition.

The statement correctly opposes the “confusing messages being communicated within certain sections of our union sympathetic to the Labour leadership’s message of ‘cuts too far, too fast’ – the so-called ‘dented shield approach’.”

“We firmly believe that co-ordinated industrial action is an essential tool in the fight... Industrially, it must be made clear that we will support all members fighting back.” The statement continues, “We are seeing an employers’ offensive unleashing itself against all workers – on their pay and conditions, their pensions and their collective bargaining rights. If workers vote to take strike action, they should be encouraged to co-ordinate strike dates with others in dispute to maximise their effect.”

“We must ensure that Labour MPs and councillors receive an unequivocal message from our union supporting our policy of opposing all cuts. Elected councillors must know they will receive the full support of this union if they face disciplinary or other action for supporting union policy. We must ensure UNITE supports councillors who oppose cuts to local services.”

This is an important stand by the union and should be used to galvanise all resistance to the cuts.

The only weakness in the statement is to see the cuts as simply “ideological”, rather than arising from the deep crisis of capitalism itself. Thus, it sees the alternative as being closing the tax loopholes, the introduction of a Robin Hood tax, while maintaining public spending. While we would favour measures against big business, this alternative does not go far enough. If we are to challenge the cuts that arise from the crisis, then we must pose a socialist alternative that will use the resources of society for the benefit of all. As long as capitalism remains, we will see growing austerity. The union should be linking this fight to the fight to change society.
The correctly statement ends: “This is a fight to defend our class. We must redouble our efforts to ensure we will win that fight.”