“The right to peace and self-determination must not be confined to Western Europe” – NEU school worker activists stand up for internationalism

Last year the conference of half million strong teachers’ and school workers’ union NEU (the National Education Union) voted for a strong Ukraine solidarity position. Since then union’s solidarity with Ukrainian teachers and school workers has strengthened, and the NEU supported the UK trade union statement in solidarity with Ukraine issued for the fourth anniversary of the invasion. This year’s NEU conference (30 March-2 April, Brighton) may also see an important debate relating to Ukraine, but with much wider implications.

A motion, number 38, advocating “Welfare and wages, not weapons and warfare” (see below) “instructs the executive to… Reaffirm that the union’s priority is welfare and wages, not weapons and war”.

An amendment (also see below), promoted by supporters of the NEU Ukraine Solidarity Network (linked to USC), replaces this with: “peace, welfare and quality of life for workers, oppressed and vulnerable people around the world, building solidarity with their struggles, and against regimes and wars of oppression, national aggression and territorial expansion”.

In the ‘believes’ section, it also adds:

“A general and justified opposition to war and militarism does not preclude support for practical assistance to nations which are seeking means of self-defence because they are facing imperialist aggression…

“The right to peace, good-quality public services and self-determination must not be confined to relatively safe and comfortable countries such as the UK and those in Western Europe. Trade unionists should build international solidarity with workers and oppressed people around the world who are fighting against poverty, oppression and exploitation.”

We don’t think we need to add too much on why this is so important. See the leaflet with the headline ‘Reverse cuts and austerity. Support Ukraine. Tax the rich!’ we issued for an anti-cuts demonstration last year.

Solidarity with the NEU comrades fighting to replace reactionary parochialism dressed up as anti-militarism with genuine internationalism!

(There will also be a NEU Ukraine Solidarity Network delegation leaving for Ukraine at the end of the conference. More on all this soon.)

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Motion 38
Welfare and wages, not weapons and warfare

Proposer: Halton
Seconder: Vale of Glamorgan

Conference notes:

1. Britain’s public services, public goods, and core infrastructure, including education, healthcare, local government, mail, and transport, continue to suffer from chronic neglect and underinvestment
2. Figures from the School Cuts website show that most schools have lower real-terms funding than in 2010
3. Political pressure on European governments from Donald Trump to ratchet up expected levels of spending on defence, potentially climbing to 5 per cent of gross domestic product.

Conference believes:

i. The union should continue to stand, in our best traditions, for peace and against militarisation
ii. Under-investment harms working people, holds back unions and compounds the erosion of public services and the standard of living
iii. In the current political context, ever-higher expenditure on arms will inevitably mean less money for our education, health, councils, and the green transition
iv. A move towards ever-higher spending on arms increases the risk of a wider drive to war, in the dangerous context of renewed great-power rivalry
v. British participation in the F-35 programme implicates it in Israel’s grave violations of international law in Gaza.

Conference instructs the executive to:

a. Support TUC policy to prioritise campaigning for public investment in Britain’s public
infrastructure, which has been decimated by austerity
b. Renew the union’s pledge to campaign for a safe, liveable planet
c. Reaffirm that the union’s priority is welfare and wages, not weapons and war
d. Continue to work with organisations campaigning on the issues outlined in this motion, and to call upon districts and branches to continue to challenge funding levels in schools and colleges.

Amendment 38.1

Proposer: Rochdale
Seconder: Isle of Wight

Add new iii and iv to conference believes and renumber:

iii. A general and justified opposition to war and militarism does not preclude support for practical assistance to nations which are seeking means of self-defence because they are facing imperialist aggression
iv. The right to peace, good-quality public services and self-determination must not be confined to relatively safe and comfortable countries such as the UK and those in Western Europe. Trade unionists should build international solidarity with workers and oppressed people around the world who are fighting against poverty, oppression and exploitation.

In conference instructs:

In c.” delete all after “Reaffirm that the union’s priority is..” and replace with
“peace, welfare and quality of life for workers, oppressed and vulnerable people around the world, building solidarity with their struggles, and against regimes and wars of oppression, national aggression and territorial expansion”