'No Austerity' Manifesto CONFERENCE

There is an alternative

No Austerity Conference

10.30am to 5pm, Saturday 14 February

Friends Meeting House, School Lane Liverpool

WORKERS and communities fight austerity in work places, schools, neighbourhoods and elsewhere all the time. The fights in Merseyside against the Labour Council is part of this class struggle.
Liverpool Against the Cuts invite all those who want to fight Con-Dem austerity and Labour’s plan of austerity to come to the 'No Austerity' Conference to build the struggle on the streets and to stand against austerity in the elections.

We are told there is no money, that there is worse to come, while the banks, railways and many others take public money, the energy companies rip us off and the government talk of recovery. It’s time to stand up and fight, time for the cutters to be accountable to the people they claim to represent, but don’t.

Communities and workers are facing a hard struggle as both Tory and Labour increase their attacks. Economists talk of recovery but ignore the large number of poor and young households rapidly increasing debt. New borrowing reached a seven year high in November– a £1.25bn net increase in unsecured borrowing, it was the biggest rise since February 2008.

It is a “recovery” based on the interests of the one percent, while five million public sector workers continue to suffer wage freezes. Many are on zero hour contracts and low paid workers balance energy, food and rent bills, they should not have to choose between eating and heating, while unemployed people are getting sanctioned for no reason.

It means increasing the gap between rich and poor, and a culture of blaming the weakest in society in order to shift the blame from those who caused it, while Tory and Labour look towards a privatised public service to service the banks and big business and their profits.

Continuous battles have been waged in Merseyside by anti-cuts groups against the bedroom tax, for disabled people’s rights of access, for libraries and mental health services and at the same time many union members have fought for decent jobs and wages. Victories have been gained in the communities and work places. It means we can fight and we can win.

We continue to oppose ALL cuts in local services: adult social care, support for mental health, children’s centres, swimming pools and parks.

There should be no deterioration but improvement of all services, maintenance of the infrastructure and day to day running to ensure no cuts and no job loss. No to a programme of death by a 1,000 cuts because of starvation of funds.

The main parties attack our services while making deals with the rich and private companies, at local and national level. Privatised services are about profit for the rich not decent and much needed services for the people of Merseyside.

Let’s unite our struggles for all local and public services and defend the employed and unemployed. We are opposed to the policy of the union leaderships that control the many individual struggles and refuse to call a general strike in order to prevent them uniting into one powerful fight to end the government's austerity policy.
 
It is time to take back our services, jobs and rights. Workers need to bring the struggles together such as the NHS workers, those fighting the break-up of public education together with all the community struggles.

Stand in the elections against austerity.

We need to unite our communities and all union members to defeat Labour’s policy of collaboration with the Con-Dem government. Labour are not just implementing austerity they have plans to carry it through. Communities and the rank and file members of the unions need to stand together against the onslaught on the welfare state and all jobs.

Mobilise for local services and jobs. Anti-cuts groups will be standing in the elections in May 2015 to fight the cuts in services and jobs, to oppose the sanctions imposed on unemployed people, to fight all oppression and defend council and public services. We can work together and assist all groups who want to take a stand against austerity.

The fight in Merseyside has been on going against the attacks of the bed room tax, fracking, disabled people’s rights, for the libraries, mental health services, children’s services and much more. Some like the library campaign have been successful because they involved ever more people and mobilised on the streets and this can be repeated everywhere.

To fight the cuts means to challenge all those who support austerity: the Tories, Labour, Lib Dem and UKIP, and give Merseyside back to the people. Deepen the fights against the cuts and call anti-cuts groups to stand in the elections on a social and political struggle basis.

We will discuss and adopt a programme for elections at the No Austerity conference. All those who want to stand on such a programme can be chosen at the conference and will have the backing of the conference.

The programme so far includes the following points, which are open to be developed at the conference, all have come from those involved in community and union campaigns.
* No to austerity
* Oppose all cuts in public services
* No to privatisation
* Fight zero hour and casual contracts - for proper jobs
* For a minimum wage of £10
* End fracking
* Restore the benefits safety net, stop sanctions
* Free public transport for children and students
* For free and quality public education and health
* No discrimination against ethnic minorities
* Communities and union members unite and fight

Please apply for tickets (which are free) so we can see the numbers that are going to turn up. if want a ticket then contact liverpoolagainstthecuts@gmail.com  or call / text 0752 8261016.
Donations are welcome as the conference will cost £500.