Party.
Instead the NUT leaders wants to tailor union policy more to the needs of Blair's New Labour than teachers. parents and students.
FACE's second annual conference on February 10 will focus on: mobilising for the most effective demonstratons during the May local elections including a national demo in Nottingham in late Aprit the Autumn Stateand the general election-whether soon or later.
And the conference is likety to relaunch the FACE pledge which helped put pressure on candidates at last year's district council elections.
This will aim to keep education on the centré stage. There will also be practical workshops on needs related budgets-school governors setting deficit budgets to stop teachers being sacked to balance the books.
Campaigners face a battle. Abour AS CPSA workers in the Employment Service (ES) prepare to vote for a massive escalation of their strike action, General Secretary Barry Reamsbottom's latest plan to wreck the dispute could blow up in his face.
For the first time in his career as the most notorious right-wing do-nothing in the union movement, Reamsbottom is calling for an all-out indefinite strike. Has Barry finally seen the light and decided to support his members fight for decent pay? Not quite.
Reamsbottom and his fellow travellers on the CPSA National Disputes Committee have consistentiy put the brake on the strike. It was Reamsbortom who did shady deals with Employ: ment Service Manal ement to try to get the strikers back to work before Christmas. When the Broad Left-led ES Section Executive wanted a programme of regional strikes starting on January 31. Reamsbottom called them off.
He is now forcing members to vote on whether or not to strike indefinitely with no strike pay. because he thinks there is no chance of a yes-vote. If there is a no vote. the dispute will be over ar far as Reamsbottom is concemed.
Now is the time for CPSA members to call Barry's bluff by delivering a yes-vote: preparing to go all out to win.
Nigel Danby, North Humberside ES CPSA Branch Sec'tary, personal capacity