Union bosses weren't bully boys of legend

Stuart Eels writes of “bully boy Union bosses” who thought they “ruled the country and were allowed to by both Ted Heath and Harold Wilson.”

Since we are again facing a period characterised by a concerted effort by Government, to shift wealth away from working class people to the rich, I think it important to think about how wildly wrong Stuart’s idea is.

In the period he erroneously refers to most trade union leaders were desperate to sit round the table with Government and employers.

The policy of employers was to squeeze as much from workers as the latter would allow and the policy of Governments was to support the employers in that endeavour.

Britain was already a low wage economy, but key policies of the Governments of Wilson (Labour) and Heath (Conservative) were to hold wages down to boost profits. Both used legislation to cripple action. There was resistance as union action, often lead by rank-and-file networks, resisted wage cut policies.

Some union leaders joined the revolt against Wilson’s pay cut policies. Millions of demoralised Labour voters stayed home at the 1970 election, so Heath won.

Heath then used unemployment and the timidity of some union leaders to ram through pay cuts and anti-union laws. They even jailed dockers as part of the attack on unions, only to be humiliated when a rank-and-file explosion of anger, forced the TUC to call action, and the dockers were released.

Stuart’s tabloid induced legends don’t come close to describing that

Peter Smith

Woodside Ave

Tories have have 12 years to fix country

David Cameron's mantra during the 2010 General election campaign was 'The country is broken and only the Conservatives can fix it.

During that campaign I was walking through Cavendish Square when Robert Buckland who was out campaigning approached me.

I asked him what he thought of Cameron's 'The country is broken mantra'. His reply was 'Parts of the country is broken, only the Conservatives can fix it'.

Twelve years on from that campaign and 12 years of a Conservative government, Rishi Sunak recently said 'I can fix the country'.

The Conservatives have had 12 years to 'fix' the country.

With strikes, industrial action taking place on a regular basis and so much anger within society, it's obvious that after 12 years of Conservative rule they, the Conservatives, are the problem and not the solution to the many challenges the country now faces.

Only a government with a radical agenda can fix a country that has been decimated since Cameron and Co came to power in 2010.

Martin Webb

Old Town