Partly Political "Broadcast"

My union is UCU; our Annual Congress begins today in Brighton. Unfortunately, I'm unable to attend. However I have written a piece for UCU Independent Broad Left's organ "Broadcast," which will be issued at Congress today. Here's hoping the delegates who read my words agree with my sentiments and help save our union -:

May 11^th 2013 was the first Saturday since August 4^th last year when I didn’t watch an amateur football match somewhere in North East England. As there were 30 or so games to choose from that day, my non-attendance was purely voluntary and not an indication of the arrival of summer or some other alien meteorological phenomenon. Consequently, I needed a compelling reason to do something else with my weekend; I am utterly convinced I had one and made the correct decision, as I was with 20 other likeminded souls at the inaugural planning and organisational meeting of UCU IBL at Manchester Metropolitan University, which came together after a serious amount of thinking and hard work by committed UCU activists. However, the cogent and informed debate in that room on that day was only the first step on a long march to recovery in our union; a march that UCU IBL is well prepared for.

Without wishing to put too fine a point on it, it is my belief that the success of UCU IBL, together with the good will and support of non-aligned colleagues in all sectors of our union, in winning the debate about our union’s future, is essential if we are to have any realistic chance of maintaining the integrity and indeed the very existence of UCU in any meaningful capacity. Vacuous sloganeering and inflexible political posturing are the very things our members must not have imposed on them.  

In UCU IBL we are independent of party or cadre affiliation and from a Left Wing perspective; we take a broad and pragmatic view of the needs of ordinary members. Above all, UCU IBL takes a principled stance on the issues that matter to our members; we seek to defend jobs, to maintain contracts, to campaign on these issues and against pernicious casualization and the disgrace of educational privatisation. However, we are aware that if UCU is to be rescued, tough decisions must be made. UCU IBL is aware of this, but we are flexible and prepared to listen; other cadres may not be so open minded, which is dangerous.

Unfortunately, family commitments mean it is impossible for me to travel from Tyneside to Brighton for Congress, so I am unable to practically support and enact the passionate resolve displayed in Manchester on May 11^th. Instead, I beg those of you who attend Congress as delegates, whether from FE or HE, whether you are politically active or not, to avoid adopting resolutions that will effectively rush the entire union, under the influence of a pack of zealous ultra-leftist lemmings, headlong over the cliffs of dogma to be dashed on the rocks of financial ruin below.

Please, I urge you, safeguard the future of our union; support UCU IBL.