2011 United Kingdom anti-austerity protests
Encyclopedia
The 2011 United Kingdom anti-austerity protests were a series of anti-austerity protests
that took place in the United Kingdom
in early 2011. While agreeing that the country faced a financial crisis, organisations including some UK trade unions, argued that the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government
was pushing deep spending cuts rapidly and without proper consultations or consideration for the impact on the public. They believed that most of the government cuts were targeting workers, while big businesses, and financial businesses in particular, were going unpunished, despite the latter being the main reason for the financial crisis
and the subsequent recession.
Earlier demonstrations led to a major event, the March for the Alternative, on March 26, 2011 coordinated by the Trades Union Congress
with a crowd of 500,000 people taking to London
's streets.
Further smaller demonstrations led up to a second big event, J30, on June 30. This was marked by major rallies in London
, Brighton
, Sheffield
, Birmingham
and Newcastle
, and massive strike actions by teachers and public sector workers.
and Liberal Democratic Party
entered into a coalition government
together. The Conservative leader David Cameron
became Prime Minister whilst Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg
became Deputy Prime Minister.
The government planned to put into action sharp spending cuts, stating that they were necessary to address the UK's record peacetime deficit, with the UK finance minister, George Osborne
, saying that Britain risks suffering a debt crisis like those seen in Greece
, Ireland
and Portugal
if it fails to reduce the budget deficit. The cuts that they planned proved to be the toughest in the United Kingdom since the Second World War. The new administration has proposed an austerity
program intended to fight the nation's debts, virtually eliminating budget deficits by 2015. The planned spending cuts include most government departments, which involves around 300,000 public service jobs ending and other civil servants receiving pay freezes.
The organisers of the protest say that the Government's plans to eliminate the deficit in four years, and to focus on cutting spending rather than raising tax, do not have national support. They say they want to give a voice to all the people affected by the cuts, and to demonstrate to Westminster that the public rejects the argument that there is no alternative. They and many protesters argue that the cuts will threaten the country's economic recovery. They suggest that since the government recently spent billions bailing out indebted banks, the government should create new taxes for banks and close loopholes that allow some companies to pay less tax. Labour MP Chuka Umuuna declared that it was "shocking" to learn that Barclay's Bank paid only 1% of its 2009 profits in taxes while the corporate tax in the UK is 28%. Max Lawson, of the Robin Hood Tax Campaign, said: "If banks paid their fair share we could avoid the worst of the cuts and help those hit hardest by the financial crisis they did nothing to cause." Dave Prentis, general secretary of UNISON
, remarked that "These are ordinary families and working people, many with their children to send a strong message to David Cameron to halt the damaging cuts which are leading to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and the closure of services including libraries and care homes."
The march followed the student protests
of November and December 2010, which focused on cuts and changes to the funding of higher and further education in England. A previous student protest had descended into violence when students attacked the automobile in which Charles, Prince of Wales
and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall were riding. According to The Daily Telegraph
, the protests represent "the biggest public backlash against the Government's spending cuts since it came to power."
, Scotland
was occupied and re-opened as the Free Hetherington anti-cuts space. It has since attracted much controversy due to heavy-handed attempts to evict the students, staff and community members from the building, which resulted in multiple injuries and arrests. On 12 February, council workers in Darlington
, including members of the unions UNISON
and GMB, staged a We Love Darlington protest against council cuts in the North-East town. On 24 February a Hull City Council meeting was interrupted by protests. On the previous evening, a Sheffield City Council meeting was invaded by protesters over proposed cuts to local children's centres.
held a protest on Knightsbridge
against tax evasion. A protest was also held on the same day by UK Uncut outside the Barclays bank in Victoria Square, Bolton
, opposite Bolton Town Hall. The protest was against tax evasion. On 5 March, there was a protest of around 2,000 people in Manchester about cuts being implemented on the city. UK Uncut held protests in Perth
, Manchester
, Liverpool
, Leicester
, Ipswich
, Edinburgh
, Colchester
, Bristol
, and Aberdeen
. Protests in Perth were against the Scottish Liberal Democrats
and tax evasion; protests in Manchester
, Ipswich
, and Aberdeen
were anti-austerity in general; protests in Liverpool were against the Big Society
; protests in Leicester
and Colchester
were against tax evasion and big bonuses for bankers; protests in Edinburgh were against the closure (by the government) of two nursery schools in the city, and tax evasion; and protests in Bristol
were against the closure of a library in the city. On 6 March, UK Uncut arranged to hold a protest in Taunton
against government cuts. UK Uncut held protests in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
on 7 March, mainly around the Barclay's Bank headquarters in Canary Wharf
. During the protest, a group of around a dozen people gathered in front of a sculpture in the bank lobby, and chanted, "Barclays Bank pays no tax, Tower Hamlets gets the axe," and, "Barclays, pay your tax." According to protest organizer UK Uncut, "Around twenty people, all living or working in Tower Hamlets, occupied the foyer of Barclays HQ while startled bankers were directed out a side entrance." UK Uncut held a protest on 9 March, at a budget cuts council meeting in the London Borough of Bexley
. During the emotionally charged and noisy meeting, there were shouts of "shame" and "cutting respite care is not right" from the residents in the gallery numbering about 165, and protesters at the back doors chanted "care, not cuts" as councillors entered. Police were brought in to guard the civic offices and residents had their bags searched; those with cameras were banned from entering. On 12 March, around 5,000 people marched from Devonshire Green
to the venue of the 2011 Liberal Democrats spring conference, where one man was arrested for public order offences and discharge of a firework in a public place. Barricades were set up on Fargate
and Surrey Street following several incidents, including a group of protesters running into a Topshop
store on Fargate. The event has been "good-natured on the whole", police said. A large group of protesters, separate from the main group, caused violence along the march, including trying (and failing) to set fire to a police car. This group declared the day as the Day of Rage, and this group was clearly inspired by the Arab Spring
unlike most of the recent United Kingdom protests. Much smaller protests were held by UK Uncut in Ipswich
and Poole
, with five protesters attending the latter. Protesters also occerd in Barker's Pool
, Sheffield
, on the Day of Rage (12 March). UK Uncut arranged to hold anti-cuts protests in Basildon
on 14 March. On 22 March, Around 4,000 people from Universities and Colleges across Scotland
marched down the Royal Mile
to the Scottish Parliament
and staged a rally against introduction of tuition fees and cuts to education. Politicians, student leaders and trade union representatives, including Education Secretary Mike Russell, Labour Party's Des McNulty and Margaret Smith, of the Liberal Democrats addressed the protesters at the rally. On the same day the University of Glasgow management evicted the Free Hetherington occupation. The occupation then moved to the University Senate, before the occupiers were eventually offered their original location back, this offer was accepted. Protesters preparing ahead of the 26 March protests broke into 61 Curzon Street in London and occupied the building, calling it a "meeting place". On 26 March, 500,000 people attended a protest in central London
. Further outbreaks of violence were reported in London on 27 March. Several hundred people protested in Barker's Pool, Sheffield; the branch of John Lewis was damaged by rioters throwing smoke bombs and rocks. As of 27 March 201 people have been arrested. The two men charged have been released on bail ahead of court appearances. The other 199 are being held in various police stations around London.
had recently announced that it was to launch a localised trial to determine whether delivering examiners from non-established test centres could help with growing pupil demand, starting in Warrington
, Wiltshire
, Ayrshire
, Wales
and Dumbarton.
In the one-day strike, pickets and a series of anti-cuts rallies by the National Union of Teachers (NUT), Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), University and College Union (UCU) and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) went ahead largely as planned. Over 11,000 schools in England
were affected by the strike, according to the data released by the Department for Education (DfE). Nearly 400 schools were closed in greater Birmingham
and the Black Country
, with another 70 partially shut. According to union reports, across the rest of England, 3,200 schools were shut and 2,200 were partially closed, out of about 22,000 state-funded schools. Only 18 out of 750 Jobcentre Plus
offices in the country were closed due to the lack of strike activity by their staff, while 90% of the civilian call centre staff at the Metropolitan Police did strike. The Coastguard also reported some minor walkouts. According to the Department for Transport, some 76 per cent of driving examiners went to work. Approximately 180 prison office staff and workshop instructors mounted a picket line outside HMP Gartree Prison near the town of Market Harborough
. The event was officially called the "J30" after the date it was held on.
during their rally There were marches and picket lines across London including at the Old Bailey
. Camden Town
and Marylebone
saw a few Camden Council employees hold a local strike
and picket over the council's employment terms. There were queues at Border Control in Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five as some of the immigration and customs staff joined the strike. Pickets targeted the head office of the department for Communities and Local Government in central London and stopped around 20 people from crossing one of the picket lines at Eland House.
There were 35 arrests in central London and 2 in outer London. Arrests were made in Whitehall
as police and protesters clashed.
were either disrupted or closed due to strikes that day in a protest over the Government pension reform plans. 42% per cent of the Bucks Free Press readers had to stay at home to look after their children as a result of the action, according to a Bucks Free Press online poll that day. Most schools were either closed or disrupted in Slough, Berkshire
.
145 schools were closed in Hertfordshire
, 61 school closured in Buckinghamshire
and a further 27 were closed in Milton Keynes
according to the County Councils. 30 schools had closed in Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire
, while 23 were closed in Luton Borough the local Councils said. Most schools in Royston, Hertfordshire
were shut. The majority of of the county’s state schools and several independent schools had been hit by industrial action, which including 12 in and around the town of Royston.
Over 150 teachers and lecturers rallied outside the Civic Theatre, in Horne Lane, in Bedford
against proposed Government to change pensions. 20 schools were closed, but the Jobcentre plus, remained open despite of joining the strike and rally.
The UK Border Agency has put contingency plans in place at passport control Luton Airport after members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) struck. Overseas passengers using Luton Airport were warned to expect delays on arrival. Striking workers also attended a rally in Luton
.
Steve Coghlan, who is a teacher from Luton said: "I work in the public sector and I think we teachers, nurses, dinner ladies, lollipop ladies and people like that were not the cause of the crisis but the government want to punish us and rip us off.” and then went on to say "The government, a cabinet full of millionaires, are quite happy to slash our pensions. They don't need to live on a pension when they're older. We do, we are normal working class people." .
The, Conservative MP for North East Hertfordshire, Oliver Heald, who sits on the government’s’ Work and Pensions Select Committee, told the local media that he thought the Coalition
was still open to negotiating with the union on all issues.
3,500 people took part in a Brighton
rally.
Teachers were on strike
in most schools across Oxfordshire
and several were shut as a result of it.
Over 300 schools were closed across Essex as National Union of Teachers and the Public and Commercial Services Union went on strike and rallied through Chelmsford
town centre, led by Jerry Glazier of the Essex NUT.
The Public and Commercial Services Union
had warned that Dover
’s port was going to be one of the worst affected ports in the country, but the Port of Dover authorities said operations were running as normal.
The Eurostar
company said their trains were not affected by industrial action and planned to run two extra trains that day. The Port of Dover authorities also said their trains were not affected either.
Demonstrations were also held in Chatham, Dover
, Aylesford
, Maidstone
and Sittingbourne
.
Protester Simon Marchant, who worked at Canterbury College
, said “Whatever way you look at it, we are being asked to pay more now to receive less later." and the Conservative MP for Canterbury Julian Brazier called the present unfair to "all those struggling people in the private sector".
A total of 134 of Surrey's 423 schools were either closed or disrupted, due to the National Union of Teachers and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers going on strike.
PCS Union members gathered outside Camberley railway station
and the Camberley Theatre for a rally that afternoon.
and assembled at the city's College Green at 11.00am shouting slogans and banging portable drums. Job centres, tax offices and benefit offices were on strike in Torquay
, Exeter
, and Plymouth
. Other small rallies and marches also occurred in these towns. Truro
had about 350 people march through the town to a trades union rally. Picket lines formed at the St Austell
and Redruth
HM Revenue and Customs buildings, Helston Community College, and at Cornwall College's Camborne
and St Austell campuses, and Truro College. The Liberal Democrat MP for Newquay and St Austell, Steven Gilbert, accused the unions of betraying on-going negotiations with the government.
, which was called by members of the National Union of Teachers, Association of Teachers and Lecturers, University and College Union and Public and Commercial Services union and UNISON. 51 schools saw partial strike action
, with at least 600 disrupted or shut across the West Midlands. A total of 5,000 striking public sector workers gathered for rally in Birmingham city centre making it the third biggest outside of London. Around 72,500 of the collective unions’ members in the Midlands voted in favour of strike action and Birmingham City Council
's workers also joined the strike over a new employment contract issued by Birmingham City Council
. This was one of the few major rallies outside of London
.
The UNISON union warned of further strike action in Birmingham. Birmingham City Council
workers struck in support of their fellow public sector employees and to highlight their own dispute with the council and the Highways Agency
’s staff also protested outside The Cube in Birmingham. About 45% of schools were closed or disrupted by a teachers’ strike which hit Birmingham
, Northfield, Four Oaks, Bornville, Adderly Park, Erdington
, Sutton Coldfield
and Stechford.
Many schools were disrupted and some closed by a teachers' strike in Walsall
, Brownhills
, Sandwell
, Dudley
, Kingswinford
, Stourbridge
and Sedgley
. Some schools were disrupted and some closed by a teachers' strike in Solihull
and Dorridge
.
A pro-pensions protesters gathered outside the Frederick Bird Primary School in Coventry
. Worcester
witnessed a 1 day strike by the NUT, ATL, UCU and PCS that went ahead as planned yesterday. A picket line was formed outside the Worcester College of Technology
as local tax office and Defra staff were protesting. Another picket line formed at Worcester Magistrates Court. The main county rally was at St Peter’s Baptist Church in Worcester. Only a few schools across Warwickshire
were open while over 100 were closed due to striking
teaching staff. The Conservatives‘s Warwick and Leamington MP Chris White condemned the strike. A few schools were disrupted or shut by a teachers strike across Staffordshire
.
Some of East Midlands Airport's immigration staff joined the protests. The teachers’ unions staged protests in Rugby
, Nuneaton
, Leamington Spa
and Stratford-upon-Avon railway station
, before joining the growing public sector rally and march in Birmingham city centre. The Warwickshire protests were led by Jane Nellist, the joint secretary of the Coventry Association of the NUT.
had trades unionists rally in to the town centre to see members chanting slogans from a makeshift stage in the city’s main square.
NUT officials handed out leaflet’s backing the national strike in parts of Derby
and held a small rally in the city center later that day. .
Seven out of the 25 schools in Rutland were disrupted by the teacher’s strike.
Almost 200 schools were shut in Leicestershire
as a whole, with Leicestershire having more than 120 out of 286 schools closed or disrupted and 90 of the authority's 108 schools affected, but not closed in Leicester city. Strikers and their supporters also gathered at the city council offices in Leicester
. Members of the PCS were also manning picket lines outside Regent College, schools, colleges, job centres, courts, the tax office, at Saxon House, in Causeway Lane, and HM Revenue and Customs offices, at City Gate House, St Margaret's Way, and Attenborough House, in Charles Street, Leicester. Approximately 180 prison office staff and workshop instructors mounted a picket line outside HMP Gartree Prison near the town of Market Harborough
. The NUT’s representative at Leicester’s Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth College, Ann Blair, said she was “disappointed that more teaching unions were not involved in today's action.” .
's passport control workers mostly planned to ignore the strike
not expecting strikes on the 30th.
Peterborough Trades Union Council claimed 1,000 people joined the local strike and rally in Peterborough
city, which was one of the largest the city has ever seen. The protests were over the Government’s proposals to alter their pensions. The unions involved included the UNISON
, National Union of Teachers and the Public and Commercial Services Union.
Between 400 and 600 members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), University and College Union (UCU) and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) held a protest rally in Cambridge
. A total of 8 South Cambridgeshire district schools near the Hertfordshire border were closed.
, making it the second biggest outside of London.
Liverpool
's passport office was on strike as 537 of the 550 staff the city's passport office and the civil servants at Ministry of Defence and Criminal Records Bureau
offices also walked out
. Both Liverpool’s World Museum and the Walker Art Gallery
also had to close for the day.
Preston saw addresses from union spokesmen as 400 public sector workers and teachers who gathered at Preston's Flag Market in a show of force against Government pension reforms yesterday. The members of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers
, University and College Union
and the Public and Commercial Services Union
turned out in force at the rally, which started at noon.
A joint National Union of Teachers, PCS and Green Party organised strike, picketing and rally took place in Salford, Greater Manchester
. Both primary and secondary schools closed and there are picket lines at the Salford Tax Office, HMRC (Trinity Bridge House, 2 Dearmans Place, M3 5BG) and Salford County Court. The 11am protest march from All Saints on Oxford Road was to the Castlefield Arena where there was a 12:30 many union speakers in attendance.
About 1,500 people gathered for a rally, picketing, speeches, a march and a political sing-song in the centre of Sheffield
. A series of trades union speakers addressed the rallying crowd of teachers, civil servants and students outside Sheffield City Hall. There were protests at a few schools in the Sheffield area by students against the teacher's strikes, with several almost descending into violence. There were also small protests at Gleadless Townend
(which caused disruption to bus services and car traffic as they blocked roads, but let trams through), at nearby Manor Top, and near Spring Lane tram stop.
Cumbria
's annual Schoolympics sports day was cancelled as staff downed tools
. Approximately 200 public-sector workers rallied in Carlisle and PCS members picketed the Rural Payments Agency
, in Carlisle, and the British Cattle Movement Service
, in Workington
. A schools strike hit Brampton, so parents hired the community centre between 1230 and 1530 to take their children along for a £2 entry fee.
More over 100 primary schools in Kingston-upon-Hull had voluntary closed their doors
.
Several schools were disrupted by strikes in Middlesbrough
, Guisborough
, Hartlepool
and Redcar
(the UCU) were also taking action at the Coleg Gwent
campuses in Ebbw Vale
, Cross Keys
, Pontypool
, Usk
and Newport
, as well as at the University of Wales, Newport
campuses in the city centre and at Caerleon
.
In Cardiff
700 protesters marched to the Welsh Assembly buildings at Cathays Park.
The South Wales Argus
reported that 1,133 of the ATL union members in Gwent went on strike. About 1,000 NUT staff were also on strike. The Public and Commercial Services union reported that they had 2,000 of their members in the area on strike. Union officials reported about 90% turnouts at the Passport Office and the Newport Department of Work and Pensions contact centre. The Public and Commercial Services union's members were on strike at the Office for National Statistics
, the Intellectual Property Office, the Newport Passport Office, the Department of Work and Pensions contact centre in the centre of the city, the National Shared Service Centre for the prisons service in Celtic Springs, and local Job Centres. There was also a minor trades unions rally in the city.
About 40 of the 400 staff turned up for work at the Cwmbran
DWP pension Centre, Pontypool
's Coleg Gwent
campus saw a minor rally by students with improvised flags and banners.
A single NUT picket stood watch outside Liswerry High School
, where seven teachers chose to go on strike.
Over 5,000 children in Conwy district were out of school at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru
, 4 secondary schools and 34 primary were hit by strike action in Llandrillo
and Conwy
.
Colwyn Bay
’s Town Councillor Christopher Perry condemned the strike as unneedingly disruptive on local lives.
Powys
' teachers joined the strike on 30 June. Neither Welshpool High School nor Maesydre Junior School had any teachers go on strike. A group of NUT members held a rally in Llandrindod Wells
.
’s branch of the Department of Work and Pensions went on strike causing the closure of job centres, local pension providers and the Child Support Agency
in and around Dunfermline
.
Glasgow Sheriff Court was picketed. A rally was held in Glasgow
's George Square that included members of the UNITE
union, University, College Union and PCS members.
A minor rally took place at The Mound in Edinburgh
, while picket lines were formed outside Edinburgh Castle, the Scottish Parliament and outside the government headquarters at St Andrew's House, Edinburgh The PCS claimed that 90% of its 30,000 Scottish members took part in the day of action.
The DVLA was shut in Glasgow
, Dundee
and Inverness
, while Edinburgh
and Aberdeen had reduced service.
The Scottish Courts Service reckoned that about 30% of its 1,622 staff had not gone to work, the Department for Work and Pensions said that the jobcentres in Kirkwall
, Lerwick
, Cambuslang
and Rutherglen
were closed.
There were picket lines at Faslane naval base.
, NI Courts Service, Maritime & Coastguards Agency, Identity & Passport Services, Belfast International Airport
, the Passport Office the British Council
, the Ministry of Defence
, Tax offices and courts. Most of this action was focused on Belfast
.
Belfast International Airport
and several government offices were picketed and had partial walk outs
as a trades union rally took place in the city centre.
PCS picketing was also be mounted outside government offices in Enniskillen
, Derry
, Coleraine
, and Newry
.
and Education budget, the main causes of the union's simmering malcontent with the government of that time
. The government commented later that day and on 1 June that they thought the strike had failed to live up to what the unions had claimed would have been on the 29th. The UNISON union warned of further strike action
in Birmingham
.
, and 75 made in the capital.
poll, published 26 March 2011, found that a 52% majority supported the protests "to campaign against public sector spending cuts" while 31% expressed opposition. 55% of voters believe that the cuts are necessary, against 32% who think they are unnecessary, but most feel the cuts are too deep and too fast. The same YouGov poll showed that 38% blame Labour for the cuts, 23% blame the coalition and 26% blame both. The results contained a strong partisan divide, with 83% of Labour supporters and only 19% of Tory supporters backing the protests. YouGov
had surveyed 2,720 adults online between 20–21 March 2011.
However, a Reuters/Ipsos MORI poll in June 2011 found around an even divide over whether public sector workers are right to strike about cuts.
said on BBC's Radio 4 Today early on the morning of 26 March , "Of course people will feel a sense of disquiet, in some cases anger, at what they see happening, but the difficulty we have as the Government inheriting a terrible economic mess, is that we have to take steps to bring the public finances back into balance." He also speculated that the march could "move from being [a] family event into being something darker".
Daniel Hannan
, a journalist and the Conservative
MEP
for South East England
, stated that the protesters "have decided to indulge their penchant for empty, futile, self-righteous indignation." He wrote, "After “No Cuts!” the marchers’ favourite slogan was “Fairness!” Alright, then... How about being fair to our children, whom we have freighted with a debt unprecedented in peacetime?"
Deputy Prime Minister
Nick Clegg
told Reuters
news service, "If I was a demonstrator in London, I would be furious with the Labour leadership, because they are whipping up people's fervour and they are being utterly dishonest... We have an opposition party that has retreated into the worst kind of infantile opposition politics, which is to score lots of tactical points and not level with people about what they would do instead."
The Home Secretary
, Theresa May
, told Parliament that she would consult the police on giving them new powers to remove face coverings and balaclavas. As well as banning orders, similar to those used to ban football hooligans
from football matches. The Shadow Home Secretary
, Yvette Cooper
, strongly backed the minister's stance.
In Gulf News
, columnist Dr. Ayman Mustafa remarked about anti-austerity strikes and protests that "People still see the financial sector not being punished although it was the main culprit of the financial crisis and the subsequent recession". He also wrote that "most of the government cuts are targeting workers, while big businesses and financial businesses in particular are being incentivised with the cliché that Britain must encourage bankers and fund managers to stay".
Anti-austerity protests
Anti-austerity protests, chiefly taking the form of massive street protests by those affected by them and some of them also involving a greater or lesser degree of militancy, have happened regularly across various countries, especially on the European continent, since the onset of the present-day...
that took place in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in early 2011. While agreeing that the country faced a financial crisis, organisations including some UK trade unions, argued that the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government
United Kingdom coalition government (2010–present)
The ConservativeLiberal Democrat coalition is the present Government of the United Kingdom, formed after the 2010 general election. The Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats entered into discussions which culminated in the 2010 coalition agreement, setting out a programme for government...
was pushing deep spending cuts rapidly and without proper consultations or consideration for the impact on the public. They believed that most of the government cuts were targeting workers, while big businesses, and financial businesses in particular, were going unpunished, despite the latter being the main reason for the financial crisis
Late-2000s financial crisis
The late-2000s financial crisis is considered by many economists to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s...
and the subsequent recession.
Earlier demonstrations led to a major event, the March for the Alternative, on March 26, 2011 coordinated by the Trades Union Congress
Trades Union Congress
The Trades Union Congress is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions in the United Kingdom, representing the majority of trade unions...
with a crowd of 500,000 people taking to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's streets.
Further smaller demonstrations led up to a second big event, J30, on June 30. This was marked by major rallies in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
and Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, and massive strike actions by teachers and public sector workers.
Background
In May 2010, the United Kingdom general election resulted in no political party achieving sufficient support to form a working majority government on their own. For this reason, the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and Liberal Democratic Party
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
entered into a coalition government
United Kingdom coalition government (2010–present)
The ConservativeLiberal Democrat coalition is the present Government of the United Kingdom, formed after the 2010 general election. The Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats entered into discussions which culminated in the 2010 coalition agreement, setting out a programme for government...
together. The Conservative leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
became Prime Minister whilst Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
became Deputy Prime Minister.
The government planned to put into action sharp spending cuts, stating that they were necessary to address the UK's record peacetime deficit, with the UK finance minister, George Osborne
George Osborne
George Gideon Oliver Osborne, MP is a British Conservative politician. He is the Chancellor of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom, a role to which he was appointed in May 2010, and has been the Member of Parliament for Tatton since 2001.Osborne is part of the old Anglo-Irish aristocracy, known in...
, saying that Britain risks suffering a debt crisis like those seen in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
if it fails to reduce the budget deficit. The cuts that they planned proved to be the toughest in the United Kingdom since the Second World War. The new administration has proposed an austerity
Austerity
In economics, austerity is a policy of deficit-cutting, lower spending, and a reduction in the amount of benefits and public services provided. Austerity policies are often used by governments to reduce their deficit spending while sometimes coupled with increases in taxes to pay back creditors to...
program intended to fight the nation's debts, virtually eliminating budget deficits by 2015. The planned spending cuts include most government departments, which involves around 300,000 public service jobs ending and other civil servants receiving pay freezes.
The organisers of the protest say that the Government's plans to eliminate the deficit in four years, and to focus on cutting spending rather than raising tax, do not have national support. They say they want to give a voice to all the people affected by the cuts, and to demonstrate to Westminster that the public rejects the argument that there is no alternative. They and many protesters argue that the cuts will threaten the country's economic recovery. They suggest that since the government recently spent billions bailing out indebted banks, the government should create new taxes for banks and close loopholes that allow some companies to pay less tax. Labour MP Chuka Umuuna declared that it was "shocking" to learn that Barclay's Bank paid only 1% of its 2009 profits in taxes while the corporate tax in the UK is 28%. Max Lawson, of the Robin Hood Tax Campaign, said: "If banks paid their fair share we could avoid the worst of the cuts and help those hit hardest by the financial crisis they did nothing to cause." Dave Prentis, general secretary of UNISON
UNISON
UNISON is the largest trade union in the United Kingdom with over 1.3 million members.The union was formed in 1993 when three public sector trade unions, the National and Local Government Officers Association , the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service...
, remarked that "These are ordinary families and working people, many with their children to send a strong message to David Cameron to halt the damaging cuts which are leading to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and the closure of services including libraries and care homes."
The march followed the student protests
2010 UK student protests
The 2010 UK student protests were a series of demonstrations that began in November 2010 in several areas of the United Kingdom, with the focal point of protests centred in London. The initial event was the largest student protest in the UK since the Labour government first proposed the Teaching...
of November and December 2010, which focused on cuts and changes to the funding of higher and further education in England. A previous student protest had descended into violence when students attacked the automobile in which Charles, Prince of Wales
Charles, Prince of Wales
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...
and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall were riding. According to The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, the protests represent "the biggest public backlash against the Government's spending cuts since it came to power."
January and February protests
On 29 January, the NCAFC (National Campaign Against Cuts & Fees) held a small protest in London. Some minor violence was reported. In Manchester there was a protest of around 5000 people called by the TUC, UCU and the NUS against fees and cuts, billed as "a future that works" rally. On 1 February, a disused building at the University of GlasgowUniversity of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
was occupied and re-opened as the Free Hetherington anti-cuts space. It has since attracted much controversy due to heavy-handed attempts to evict the students, staff and community members from the building, which resulted in multiple injuries and arrests. On 12 February, council workers in Darlington
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, part of the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It lies on the small River Skerne, a tributary of the River Tees, not far from the main river. It is the main population centre in the borough, with a population of 97,838 as of 2001...
, including members of the unions UNISON
UNISON
UNISON is the largest trade union in the United Kingdom with over 1.3 million members.The union was formed in 1993 when three public sector trade unions, the National and Local Government Officers Association , the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service...
and GMB, staged a We Love Darlington protest against council cuts in the North-East town. On 24 February a Hull City Council meeting was interrupted by protests. On the previous evening, a Sheffield City Council meeting was invaded by protesters over proposed cuts to local children's centres.
March protests
On 3 March, the GMB and UK UncutUK Uncut
UK Uncut is a United Kingdom-based protest group established in October 2010 to protest against tax avoidance in the UK and to raise awareness about cuts to public services. Various sources have described the group as left-wing in its political orientation...
held a protest on Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge is a road which gives its name to an exclusive district lying to the west of central London. The road runs along the south side of Hyde Park, west from Hyde Park Corner, spanning the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
against tax evasion. A protest was also held on the same day by UK Uncut outside the Barclays bank in Victoria Square, Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
, opposite Bolton Town Hall. The protest was against tax evasion. On 5 March, there was a protest of around 2,000 people in Manchester about cuts being implemented on the city. UK Uncut held protests in Perth
Perth, Scotland
Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
, Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, and Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
. Protests in Perth were against the Scottish Liberal Democrats
Scottish Liberal Democrats
The Scottish Liberal Democrats are one of the three state parties within the federal Liberal Democrats; the others being the Welsh Liberal Democrats and the Liberal Democrats in England...
and tax evasion; protests in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, and Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
were anti-austerity in general; protests in Liverpool were against the Big Society
Big Society
The Big Society was the flagship policy idea of the 2010 UK Conservative Party general election manifesto. It now forms part of the legislative programme of the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement. The aim is "to create a climate that empowers local people and communities, building...
; protests in Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
and Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
were against tax evasion and big bonuses for bankers; protests in Edinburgh were against the closure (by the government) of two nursery schools in the city, and tax evasion; and protests in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
were against the closure of a library in the city. On 6 March, UK Uncut arranged to hold a protest in Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
against government cuts. UK Uncut held protests in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
on 7 March, mainly around the Barclay's Bank headquarters in Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
. During the protest, a group of around a dozen people gathered in front of a sculpture in the bank lobby, and chanted, "Barclays Bank pays no tax, Tower Hamlets gets the axe," and, "Barclays, pay your tax." According to protest organizer UK Uncut, "Around twenty people, all living or working in Tower Hamlets, occupied the foyer of Barclays HQ while startled bankers were directed out a side entrance." UK Uncut held a protest on 9 March, at a budget cuts council meeting in the London Borough of Bexley
London Borough of Bexley
The London Borough of Bexley lies in south east Greater London, and is a borough referred to as part of Outer London. It has common borders with the London Borough of Bromley to the south, the London Borough of Greenwich to the west, across the River Thames to the north it borders the London...
. During the emotionally charged and noisy meeting, there were shouts of "shame" and "cutting respite care is not right" from the residents in the gallery numbering about 165, and protesters at the back doors chanted "care, not cuts" as councillors entered. Police were brought in to guard the civic offices and residents had their bags searched; those with cameras were banned from entering. On 12 March, around 5,000 people marched from Devonshire Green
Devonshire Green
Devonshire Green is a small public open space at within Sheffield city centre in South Yorkshire, England. It covers an area of approximately 9000 square metres and is designated as a district park by Sheffield City Council. It stands in the Devonshire Quarter of the city centre, bordered on its...
to the venue of the 2011 Liberal Democrats spring conference, where one man was arrested for public order offences and discharge of a firework in a public place. Barricades were set up on Fargate
Fargate
Fargate is a pedestrian precinct and shopping area in Sheffield, England. It runs between Barker's Pool and High Street opposite the cathedral. It was pedestrianised in 1973...
and Surrey Street following several incidents, including a group of protesters running into a Topshop
Topshop
Topshop is a British clothes retailer with shops in over 20 countries and online operations in a number of its markets. Its sales come primarily from women's clothing and fashion accessories...
store on Fargate. The event has been "good-natured on the whole", police said. A large group of protesters, separate from the main group, caused violence along the march, including trying (and failing) to set fire to a police car. This group declared the day as the Day of Rage, and this group was clearly inspired by the Arab Spring
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
unlike most of the recent United Kingdom protests. Much smaller protests were held by UK Uncut in Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
and Poole
Poole
Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
, with five protesters attending the latter. Protesters also occerd in Barker's Pool
Barker's Pool
Barker's Pool is a public plaza and street in the centre of the City of Sheffield, England. The focus of Barker's Pool is the Grade II listed First World War memorial that was unveiled on 28 October 1925...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, on the Day of Rage (12 March). UK Uncut arranged to hold anti-cuts protests in Basildon
Basildon
Basildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
on 14 March. On 22 March, Around 4,000 people from Universities and Colleges across Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
marched down the Royal Mile
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets which form the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.As the name suggests, the Royal Mile is approximately one Scots mile long, and runs between two foci of history in Scotland, from Edinburgh Castle at the top of the Castle...
to the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
and staged a rally against introduction of tuition fees and cuts to education. Politicians, student leaders and trade union representatives, including Education Secretary Mike Russell, Labour Party's Des McNulty and Margaret Smith, of the Liberal Democrats addressed the protesters at the rally. On the same day the University of Glasgow management evicted the Free Hetherington occupation. The occupation then moved to the University Senate, before the occupiers were eventually offered their original location back, this offer was accepted. Protesters preparing ahead of the 26 March protests broke into 61 Curzon Street in London and occupied the building, calling it a "meeting place". On 26 March, 500,000 people attended a protest in central London
2011 anti-cuts protest in London
The 2011 anti-cuts protest in London, also known as the March for the Alternative, was a demonstration held in central London on 26 March 2011...
. Further outbreaks of violence were reported in London on 27 March. Several hundred people protested in Barker's Pool, Sheffield; the branch of John Lewis was damaged by rioters throwing smoke bombs and rocks. As of 27 March 201 people have been arrested. The two men charged have been released on bail ahead of court appearances. The other 199 are being held in various police stations around London.
May protest
On 28 May, hundreds of protesters at 40 locations across the country staged protests against proposed cuts to the NHS. Dubbed "Emergency Operation", protesters organized by UK Uncut and trade unions converged on high street banks and held demonstrations to draw attention to the bank's role in creating the deficit.June J30 protest
On June 30, a one-day strike, officially called "J30", was held by public sector workers to protest the government's planned uncoventional changes to pension plans and retirement policies, including raising the retirement age from 60 to 66 and the replacing of final salary pension schemes with a career-average system. The Driving Standards AgencyDriving Standards Agency
The Driving Standards Agency is an executive agency of the UK Department for Transport .DSA’s vision is 'Safe Driving for Life'. Its overall mission is to contribute to the public service agreement objective to achieve 40% reduction in riders and drivers killed or seriously injured in road...
had recently announced that it was to launch a localised trial to determine whether delivering examiners from non-established test centres could help with growing pupil demand, starting in Warrington
Warrington
Warrington is a town, borough and unitary authority area of Cheshire, England. It stands on the banks of the River Mersey, which is tidal to the west of the weir at Howley. It lies 16 miles east of Liverpool, 19 miles west of Manchester and 8 miles south of St Helens...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and Dumbarton.
In the one-day strike, pickets and a series of anti-cuts rallies by the National Union of Teachers (NUT), Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), University and College Union (UCU) and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) went ahead largely as planned. Over 11,000 schools in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
were affected by the strike, according to the data released by the Department for Education (DfE). Nearly 400 schools were closed in greater Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
and the Black Country
Black Country
The Black Country is a loosely defined area of the English West Midlands conurbation, to the north and west of Birmingham, and to the south and east of Wolverhampton. During the industrial revolution in the 19th century this area had become one of the most intensely industrialised in the nation...
, with another 70 partially shut. According to union reports, across the rest of England, 3,200 schools were shut and 2,200 were partially closed, out of about 22,000 state-funded schools. Only 18 out of 750 Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus was a government agency for working-age people in Great Britain. The agency was formed when the Employment Service, which operated Jobcentres, merged with the Benefits Agency, which ran social security offices, and was re-named Jobcentre Plus on 1 April 2002...
offices in the country were closed due to the lack of strike activity by their staff, while 90% of the civilian call centre staff at the Metropolitan Police did strike. The Coastguard also reported some minor walkouts. According to the Department for Transport, some 76 per cent of driving examiners went to work. Approximately 180 prison office staff and workshop instructors mounted a picket line outside HMP Gartree Prison near the town of Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
. The event was officially called the "J30" after the date it was held on.
Greater London
The main march and Trades Union events were in central London on the 30th and attracted 15,000 to 20,000 people to their cause. At one point public service employees marched past Big Ben and the Palace of WestminsterPalace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
during their rally There were marches and picket lines across London including at the Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
. Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
and Marylebone
Marylebone
Marylebone is an affluent inner-city area of central London, located within the City of Westminster. It is sometimes written as St. Marylebone or Mary-le-bone....
saw a few Camden Council employees hold a local strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
and picket over the council's employment terms. There were queues at Border Control in Heathrow Airport's Terminal Five as some of the immigration and customs staff joined the strike. Pickets targeted the head office of the department for Communities and Local Government in central London and stopped around 20 people from crossing one of the picket lines at Eland House.
There were 35 arrests in central London and 2 in outer London. Arrests were made in Whitehall
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...
as police and protesters clashed.
South East England
A toal of 59 schools across BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
were either disrupted or closed due to strikes that day in a protest over the Government pension reform plans. 42% per cent of the Bucks Free Press readers had to stay at home to look after their children as a result of the action, according to a Bucks Free Press online poll that day. Most schools were either closed or disrupted in Slough, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
145 schools were closed in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, 61 school closured in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
and a further 27 were closed in Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
according to the County Councils. 30 schools had closed in Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created from the merger of Bedfordshire County Council, Mid Bedfordshire and South Bedfordshire on 1 April 2009...
, while 23 were closed in Luton Borough the local Councils said. Most schools in Royston, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
were shut. The majority of of the county’s state schools and several independent schools had been hit by industrial action, which including 12 in and around the town of Royston.
Over 150 teachers and lecturers rallied outside the Civic Theatre, in Horne Lane, in Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...
against proposed Government to change pensions. 20 schools were closed, but the Jobcentre plus, remained open despite of joining the strike and rally.
The UK Border Agency has put contingency plans in place at passport control Luton Airport after members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) struck. Overseas passengers using Luton Airport were warned to expect delays on arrival. Striking workers also attended a rally in Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
.
Steve Coghlan, who is a teacher from Luton said: "I work in the public sector and I think we teachers, nurses, dinner ladies, lollipop ladies and people like that were not the cause of the crisis but the government want to punish us and rip us off.” and then went on to say "The government, a cabinet full of millionaires, are quite happy to slash our pensions. They don't need to live on a pension when they're older. We do, we are normal working class people." .
The, Conservative MP for North East Hertfordshire, Oliver Heald, who sits on the government’s’ Work and Pensions Select Committee, told the local media that he thought the Coalition
Cameron Ministry
David Cameron is Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, after being invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new government after the resignation as Prime Minister of Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010. Leading a coalition government formed by the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats, the coalition...
was still open to negotiating with the union on all issues.
3,500 people took part in a Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
rally.
Teachers were on strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
in most schools across Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
and several were shut as a result of it.
Over 300 schools were closed across Essex as National Union of Teachers and the Public and Commercial Services Union went on strike and rallied through Chelmsford
Chelmsford
Chelmsford is the county town of Essex, England and the principal settlement of the borough of Chelmsford. It is located in the London commuter belt, approximately northeast of Charing Cross, London, and approximately the same distance from the once provincial Roman capital at Colchester...
town centre, led by Jerry Glazier of the Essex NUT.
The Public and Commercial Services Union
Public and Commercial Services Union
The Public and Commercial Services Union is the sixth largest trade union in the United Kingdom. Most of its members work in government departments and other public bodies although some work for private companies.- Membership and organisation :...
had warned that Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
’s port was going to be one of the worst affected ports in the country, but the Port of Dover authorities said operations were running as normal.
The Eurostar
Eurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
company said their trains were not affected by industrial action and planned to run two extra trains that day. The Port of Dover authorities also said their trains were not affected either.
Demonstrations were also held in Chatham, Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, Aylesford
Aylesford
Aylesford is a village and civil parish on the River Medway in Kent, 4 miles NW of Maidstone in England.Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly shops. One pub, a Post Office and four small independent shops remain...
, Maidstone
Maidstone
Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...
and Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne is an industrial town about eight miles east of Gillingham in England, beside the Roman Watling Street off a creek in the Swale, a channel separating the Isle of Sheppey from mainland Kent...
.
Protester Simon Marchant, who worked at Canterbury College
Canterbury College, Kent
Canterbury PEN IS College is a major provider of Further and Higher Education courses and training in Kent, England with more than 12,000 students each year Canterbury PEN IS College is a major provider of Further and Higher Education courses and training in Kent, England with more than 12,000...
, said “Whatever way you look at it, we are being asked to pay more now to receive less later." and the Conservative MP for Canterbury Julian Brazier called the present unfair to "all those struggling people in the private sector".
A total of 134 of Surrey's 423 schools were either closed or disrupted, due to the National Union of Teachers and the Association of Teachers and Lecturers going on strike.
PCS Union members gathered outside Camberley railway station
Camberley railway station
Camberley railway station is a railway station in the town of Camberley in Surrey, England. It is situated on the Ascot to Guildford line. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by South West Trains...
and the Camberley Theatre for a rally that afternoon.
South West England
Over 1,000 protesters spent hours slowly walking over the streets of BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and assembled at the city's College Green at 11.00am shouting slogans and banging portable drums. Job centres, tax offices and benefit offices were on strike in Torquay
Torquay
Torquay is a town in the unitary authority area of Torbay and ceremonial county of Devon, England. It lies south of Exeter along the A380 on the north of Torbay, north-east of Plymouth and adjoins the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay. Torquay’s population of 63,998 during the...
, Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
, and Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. Other small rallies and marches also occurred in these towns. Truro
Truro
Truro is a city and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The city is the centre for administration, leisure and retail in Cornwall, with a population recorded in the 2001 census of 17,431. Truro urban statistical area, which includes parts of surrounding parishes, has a 2001 census...
had about 350 people march through the town to a trades union rally. Picket lines formed at the St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...
and Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
HM Revenue and Customs buildings, Helston Community College, and at Cornwall College's Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....
and St Austell campuses, and Truro College. The Liberal Democrat MP for Newquay and St Austell, Steven Gilbert, accused the unions of betraying on-going negotiations with the government.
The West Midlands
In Birmingham, 220 city schools closed and care workers, street cleaners, job centre staff, court staff and a general rafting of other public workers joined the one-day strikeStrike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
, which was called by members of the National Union of Teachers, Association of Teachers and Lecturers, University and College Union and Public and Commercial Services union and UNISON. 51 schools saw partial strike action
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
, with at least 600 disrupted or shut across the West Midlands. A total of 5,000 striking public sector workers gathered for rally in Birmingham city centre making it the third biggest outside of London. Around 72,500 of the collective unions’ members in the Midlands voted in favour of strike action and Birmingham City Council
Birmingham City Council
The Birmingham City Council is the body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local authority in the United Kingdom with, following a reorganisation of boundaries in June 2004, 120 Birmingham...
's workers also joined the strike over a new employment contract issued by Birmingham City Council
Birmingham City Council
The Birmingham City Council is the body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local authority in the United Kingdom with, following a reorganisation of boundaries in June 2004, 120 Birmingham...
. This was one of the few major rallies outside of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
The UNISON union warned of further strike action in Birmingham. Birmingham City Council
Birmingham City Council
The Birmingham City Council is the body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local authority in the United Kingdom with, following a reorganisation of boundaries in June 2004, 120 Birmingham...
workers struck in support of their fellow public sector employees and to highlight their own dispute with the council and the Highways Agency
Highways Agency
The Highways Agency is an executive agency, part of the Department for Transport in England. It has responsibility for managing the core road network in England...
’s staff also protested outside The Cube in Birmingham. About 45% of schools were closed or disrupted by a teachers’ strike which hit Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Northfield, Four Oaks, Bornville, Adderly Park, Erdington
Erdington
Erdington is a suburb northeast of Birmingham city centre, England and bordering Sutton Coldfield. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee...
, Sutton Coldfield
Sutton Coldfield
Sutton Coldfield is a suburb of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Sutton is located about from central Birmingham but has borders with Erdington and Kingstanding. Sutton is in the northeast of Birmingham, with a population of 105,000 recorded in the 2001 census...
and Stechford.
Many schools were disrupted and some closed by a teachers' strike in Walsall
Walsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
, Brownhills
Brownhills
Brownhills is a town in the West Midlands, England. Located on the edge of Cannock Chase near the large artificial lake Chasewater, it is north-east of Walsall and a similar distance south-west of Lichfield. It is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall and the Aldridge-Brownhills...
, Sandwell
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
, Dudley
Dudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
, Kingswinford
Kingswinford
Kingswinford is a suburban area in the West Midlands.Historically within Staffordshire, the area is mentioned in the Domesday Book its name relates to a ford for the King's swine - Latin Swinford Regis. The current significance is probably in tourism, education and housing...
, Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
and Sedgley
Sedgley
Sedgley is an urban village within the West Midlands county of England. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Sedgley was formerly an ancient manor composed of several smaller villages, including Gornal, Gospel End, Woodsetton, Ettingshall, Coseley and Brierley...
. Some schools were disrupted and some closed by a teachers' strike in Solihull
Solihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
and Dorridge
Dorridge
Dorridge is a village in the West Midlands borough of Solihull, England, with a population of 7800.-Location:Dorridge is to the East of the M40 and the South of the M42 which, along with a small but important green belt area, separates Dorridge and its neighbours of Knowle and Bentley Heath from...
.
A pro-pensions protesters gathered outside the Frederick Bird Primary School in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
. Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
witnessed a 1 day strike by the NUT, ATL, UCU and PCS that went ahead as planned yesterday. A picket line was formed outside the Worcester College of Technology
Worcester College of Technology
Worcester College of Technology is a Further Education College situated in the city of Worcester in the United Kingdom. It also has a Construction Centre located in the nearby town of Malvern.- History :...
as local tax office and Defra staff were protesting. Another picket line formed at Worcester Magistrates Court. The main county rally was at St Peter’s Baptist Church in Worcester. Only a few schools across Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
were open while over 100 were closed due to striking
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
teaching staff. The Conservatives‘s Warwick and Leamington MP Chris White condemned the strike. A few schools were disrupted or shut by a teachers strike across Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
.
Some of East Midlands Airport's immigration staff joined the protests. The teachers’ unions staged protests in Rugby
Rugby, Warwickshire
Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...
, Nuneaton
Nuneaton
Nuneaton is the largest town in the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth and in the English county of Warwickshire.Nuneaton is most famous for its associations with the 19th century author George Eliot, who was born on a farm on the Arbury Estate just outside Nuneaton in 1819 and lived in the town for...
, Leamington Spa
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or Leamington or Leam to locals, is a spa town in central Warwickshire, England. Formerly known as Leamington Priors, its expansion began following the popularisation of the medicinal qualities of its water by Dr Kerr in 1784, and by Dr Lambe...
and Stratford-upon-Avon railway station
Stratford-upon-Avon railway station
Stratford-upon-Avon railway station is a railway station that serves the town of Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, England. It was once a through station on the Great Western Railway route from Birmingham to Cheltenham, but has been the terminus of the line since 1976.There are plans for a new...
, before joining the growing public sector rally and march in Birmingham city centre. The Warwickshire protests were led by Jane Nellist, the joint secretary of the Coventry Association of the NUT.
The East Midlands
NottinghamNottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
had trades unionists rally in to the town centre to see members chanting slogans from a makeshift stage in the city’s main square.
NUT officials handed out leaflet’s backing the national strike in parts of Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
and held a small rally in the city center later that day. .
Seven out of the 25 schools in Rutland were disrupted by the teacher’s strike.
Almost 200 schools were shut in Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
as a whole, with Leicestershire having more than 120 out of 286 schools closed or disrupted and 90 of the authority's 108 schools affected, but not closed in Leicester city. Strikers and their supporters also gathered at the city council offices in Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
. Members of the PCS were also manning picket lines outside Regent College, schools, colleges, job centres, courts, the tax office, at Saxon House, in Causeway Lane, and HM Revenue and Customs offices, at City Gate House, St Margaret's Way, and Attenborough House, in Charles Street, Leicester. Approximately 180 prison office staff and workshop instructors mounted a picket line outside HMP Gartree Prison near the town of Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
. The NUT’s representative at Leicester’s Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth College, Ann Blair, said she was “disappointed that more teaching unions were not involved in today's action.” .
East Anglia
A joint NUT, ATL, UCU, PCS strike rally took place outside The Forum in Norwich against "draconian" government cuts in their pension conditions. Norwich International AirportNorwich International Airport
Norwich International Airport , also known as Norwich Airport, is an airport in the City of Norwich within Norfolk, England north of the city centre and on the edge of the city's suburbs....
's passport control workers mostly planned to ignore the strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
not expecting strikes on the 30th.
Peterborough Trades Union Council claimed 1,000 people joined the local strike and rally in Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
city, which was one of the largest the city has ever seen. The protests were over the Government’s proposals to alter their pensions. The unions involved included the UNISON
UNISON
UNISON is the largest trade union in the United Kingdom with over 1.3 million members.The union was formed in 1993 when three public sector trade unions, the National and Local Government Officers Association , the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service...
, National Union of Teachers and the Public and Commercial Services Union.
Between 400 and 600 members of the National Union of Teachers (NUT), Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), University and College Union (UCU) and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) held a protest rally in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. A total of 8 South Cambridgeshire district schools near the Hertfordshire border were closed.
Northern England
About 6,000 campaigners rallied in Newcastle upon TyneNewcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, making it the second biggest outside of London.
Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
's passport office was on strike as 537 of the 550 staff the city's passport office and the civil servants at Ministry of Defence and Criminal Records Bureau
Criminal Records Bureau
The Criminal Records Bureau , is an Executive Agency of the Home Office, which provides wider access to criminal record information through its Disclosure service for England and Wales...
offices also walked out
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
. Both Liverpool’s World Museum and the Walker Art Gallery
Walker Art Gallery
The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England, outside of London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group, and is promoted as "the National Gallery of the North" because it is not a local or regional gallery but is part...
also had to close for the day.
Preston saw addresses from union spokesmen as 400 public sector workers and teachers who gathered at Preston's Flag Market in a show of force against Government pension reforms yesterday. The members of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers
Association of Teachers and Lecturers
The Association of Teachers and Lecturers is a trade union, teachers' union and professional association, affiliated to the Trades Union Congress, in the United Kingdom representing educators from nursery and primary education to further education...
, University and College Union
University and College Union
The University and College Union is a British trade union formed by the merger in 2006 of the Association of University Teachers and the National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education ....
and the Public and Commercial Services Union
Public and Commercial Services Union
The Public and Commercial Services Union is the sixth largest trade union in the United Kingdom. Most of its members work in government departments and other public bodies although some work for private companies.- Membership and organisation :...
turned out in force at the rally, which started at noon.
A joint National Union of Teachers, PCS and Green Party organised strike, picketing and rally took place in Salford, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
. Both primary and secondary schools closed and there are picket lines at the Salford Tax Office, HMRC (Trinity Bridge House, 2 Dearmans Place, M3 5BG) and Salford County Court. The 11am protest march from All Saints on Oxford Road was to the Castlefield Arena where there was a 12:30 many union speakers in attendance.
About 1,500 people gathered for a rally, picketing, speeches, a march and a political sing-song in the centre of Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
. A series of trades union speakers addressed the rallying crowd of teachers, civil servants and students outside Sheffield City Hall. There were protests at a few schools in the Sheffield area by students against the teacher's strikes, with several almost descending into violence. There were also small protests at Gleadless Townend
Gleadless Townend
Gleadless Townend is an outer city district of Sheffield centred on the junction of the ring road, White Lane and Gleadless Road .-Transport:Gleadless Townend is served by bus by First and TM Travel, and the Sheffield Supertram.-Buses:...
(which caused disruption to bus services and car traffic as they blocked roads, but let trams through), at nearby Manor Top, and near Spring Lane tram stop.
Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
's annual Schoolympics sports day was cancelled as staff downed tools
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
. Approximately 200 public-sector workers rallied in Carlisle and PCS members picketed the Rural Payments Agency
Rural Payments Agency
The Rural Payments Agency is an executive agency of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs .The RPA was created on 16 October 2001 from the amalgamation of the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce and the Defra Paying Agency as a single paying agency for most Common...
, in Carlisle, and the British Cattle Movement Service
British Cattle Movement Service
The British Cattle Movement Service is the organisation responsible for maintaining a database of all bovine animals in the United Kingdom...
, in Workington
Workington
Workington is a town, civil parish and port on the west coast of Cumbria, England, at the mouth of the River Derwent. Lying within the Borough of Allerdale, Workington is southwest of Carlisle, west of Cockermouth, and southwest of Maryport...
. A schools strike hit Brampton, so parents hired the community centre between 1230 and 1530 to take their children along for a £2 entry fee.
More over 100 primary schools in Kingston-upon-Hull had voluntary closed their doors
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
.
Several schools were disrupted by strikes in Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...
, Guisborough
Guisborough
Guisborough is a market town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Redcar and Cleveland and the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England....
, Hartlepool
Hartlepool
Hartlepool is a town and port in North East England.It was founded in the 7th century AD, around the Northumbrian monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew during the Middle Ages and developed a harbour which served as the official port of the County Palatine of Durham. A railway link from...
and Redcar
Redcar
Redcar is a seaside resort in the north east of England, and a major town in the unitary authority of Redcar and Cleveland in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire. It lies east-northeast of Middlesbrough by the North Sea coast...
Wales
Almost 40,000 public-sector workers in Wales joined the one-day strike and Trades Union-led rallies hit Cardiff as an estimated 1,000 schools and some Government buildings were closed by the walk-outs and picketing. Approximately 40,000 public sector workers were called out to strike. Around 1,000 schools closed as more than 17,000 teachers walked out and dozens of government buildings and services were also shut. The lecturers at the University and College UnionUniversity and College Union
The University and College Union is a British trade union formed by the merger in 2006 of the Association of University Teachers and the National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education ....
(the UCU) were also taking action at the Coleg Gwent
Coleg Gwent
Coleg Gwent is Wales' largest further education college.It has more than 35,000 students ranging from secondary school leavers to mature students...
campuses in Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale is a town at the head of the valley formed by the Ebbw Fawr tributary of the Ebbw River, south Wales. It is the largest town and the administrative centre of Blaenau Gwent county borough...
, Cross Keys
Crosskeys
Crosskeys is a small village in Caerphilly county borough in Wales.- Location :Crosskeys is seven miles north west of Newport, just past Risca off the A467 road. Located near to the confluence of the Ebbw River and the Sirhowy River, it was originally called Pont-y-cymer...
, Pontypool
Pontypool
Pontypool is a town of approximately 36,000 people in the county borough of Torfaen, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in South Wales....
, Usk
Usk
Usk is a small town in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated 10 miles northeast of Newport.The River Usk flows through the town and is spanned by an ancient, arched stone bridge at the western entrance to the town. A castle above the town overlooks the ancient Anglo-Welsh border crossing - the river can...
and Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
, as well as at the University of Wales, Newport
University of Wales, Newport
The University of Wales, Newport is a university based in Newport, South Wales. The university has two campuses; Caerleon on the northern outskirts of the city and a £35 million campus on the banks of the River Usk in Newport city centre opened in 2011...
campuses in the city centre and at Caerleon
Caerleon
Caerleon is a suburban village and community, situated on the River Usk in the northern outskirts of the city of Newport, South Wales. Caerleon is a site of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman legionary fortress, Isca Augusta, and an Iron Age hill fort...
.
In Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
700 protesters marched to the Welsh Assembly buildings at Cathays Park.
The South Wales Argus
South Wales Argus
The South Wales Argus is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Newport, south Wales. The Argus is distributed in Newport and the historic area of Monmouthshire....
reported that 1,133 of the ATL union members in Gwent went on strike. About 1,000 NUT staff were also on strike. The Public and Commercial Services union reported that they had 2,000 of their members in the area on strike. Union officials reported about 90% turnouts at the Passport Office and the Newport Department of Work and Pensions contact centre. The Public and Commercial Services union's members were on strike at the Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
, the Intellectual Property Office, the Newport Passport Office, the Department of Work and Pensions contact centre in the centre of the city, the National Shared Service Centre for the prisons service in Celtic Springs, and local Job Centres. There was also a minor trades unions rally in the city.
About 40 of the 400 staff turned up for work at the Cwmbran
Cwmbran
Cwmbrân is a new town in Wales. Today forming part of the county borough of Torfaen and lying within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, Cwmbrân was established in 1949 to provide new employment opportunities in the south eastern portion of the South Wales Coalfield. Cwmbrân means Crow...
DWP pension Centre, Pontypool
Pontypool
Pontypool is a town of approximately 36,000 people in the county borough of Torfaen, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in South Wales....
's Coleg Gwent
Coleg Gwent
Coleg Gwent is Wales' largest further education college.It has more than 35,000 students ranging from secondary school leavers to mature students...
campus saw a minor rally by students with improvised flags and banners.
A single NUT picket stood watch outside Liswerry High School
Liswerry
Liswerry , also spelt Lliswerry, is both an electoral district and community of the city of Newport, South Wales. The area is governed by the Newport City Council.- Community boundaries :...
, where seven teachers chose to go on strike.
Over 5,000 children in Conwy district were out of school at Coleg Llandrillo Cymru
Coleg Llandrillo Cymru
Coleg Llandrillo Cymru is the largest College in North Wales with around 22,000 learners studying either on campus, in the community, in the workplace or over the Internet....
, 4 secondary schools and 34 primary were hit by strike action in Llandrillo
Rhos-on-Sea
Rhos-on-Sea also known as Llandrillo-yn-Rhos in Welsh, or Rhos or Llandrillo , is a seaside resort in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The population was 7,110 in 2001. It is a mile to the north but effectively a suburb of Colwyn Bay, on the coast of North Wales...
and Conwy
Conwy
Conwy is a walled market town and community in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales. The town, which faces Deganwy across the River Conwy, formerly lay in Gwynedd and prior to that in Caernarfonshire. Conwy has a population of 14,208...
.
Colwyn Bay
Colwyn Bay
- Demography :Prior to local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974 Colwyn Bay was a municipal borough with a population of c.25,000, but in 1974 this designation disappeared leaving five separate parishes, known as communities in Wales, of which the one bearing the name Colwyn Bay encompassed...
’s Town Councillor Christopher Perry condemned the strike as unneedingly disruptive on local lives.
Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
' teachers joined the strike on 30 June. Neither Welshpool High School nor Maesydre Junior School had any teachers go on strike. A group of NUT members held a rally in Llandrindod Wells
Llandrindod Wells
Llandrindod Wells , colloquially known locally as "Llandod", is a town and community in Powys, within the historic boundaries of Radnorshire, mid Wales, United Kingdom. It was developed as a spa town in the 19th century, with a boom in the late 20th century as a centre of local government. Before...
.
Scotland
FifeFife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
’s branch of the Department of Work and Pensions went on strike causing the closure of job centres, local pension providers and the Child Support Agency
Child Support Agency
The Child Support Agency is a delivery arm of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission in Great Britain and the Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland...
in and around Dunfermline
Dunfermline
Dunfermline is a town and former Royal Burgh in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. According to a 2008 estimate, Dunfermline has a population of 46,430, making it the second-biggest settlement in Fife. Part of the town's name comes from the Gaelic word...
.
Glasgow Sheriff Court was picketed. A rally was held in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
's George Square that included members of the UNITE
Unite
- Labor unions :*Unite the Union, a British and Irish trade union, formed by the merger of Amicus and T&G*Unite Union, a trade union in New Zealand*Unite Union , a trade union in Australia...
union, University, College Union and PCS members.
A minor rally took place at The Mound in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, while picket lines were formed outside Edinburgh Castle, the Scottish Parliament and outside the government headquarters at St Andrew's House, Edinburgh The PCS claimed that 90% of its 30,000 Scottish members took part in the day of action.
The DVLA was shut in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
and Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, while Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and Aberdeen had reduced service.
The Scottish Courts Service reckoned that about 30% of its 1,622 staff had not gone to work, the Department for Work and Pensions said that the jobcentres in Kirkwall
Kirkwall
Kirkwall is the biggest town and capital of Orkney, off the coast of northern mainland Scotland. The town is first mentioned in Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046 when it is recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty...
, Lerwick
Lerwick
Lerwick is the capital and main port of the Shetland Islands, Scotland, located more than 100 miles off the north coast of mainland Scotland on the east coast of the Shetland Mainland...
, Cambuslang
Cambuslang
Cambuslang is a suburban town on the south-eastern outskirts of Glasgow, Scotland. It is within the local authority area of South Lanarkshire. Historically, it was a large rural Parish incorporating nearby hamlets of Newton, Flemington, and Halfway. It is known as "the largest village in...
and Rutherglen
Rutherglen
Rutherglen is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. In 1975, it lost its own local council and administratively became a component of the City of Glasgow. In 1996 Rutherglen was reallocated to the South Lanarkshire council area.-History:...
were closed.
There were picket lines at Faslane naval base.
Northern Ireland
Up to 3,000 local members of the Public and Commercial Services union went on strike. The staff in local government departments and agencies including HM Revenue & Customs, UK Border AgencyUK Border Agency
The UK Border Agency is the border control body of the United Kingdom government and part of the Home Office. It was formed on 1 April 2008 by a merger of the Border and Immigration Agency , UKvisas and the Detection functions of HM Revenue and Customs...
, NI Courts Service, Maritime & Coastguards Agency, Identity & Passport Services, Belfast International Airport
Belfast International Airport
Belfast International Airport is a major airport located northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It was formerly known and is still referred to as Aldergrove Airport, after the village of the same name lying immediately to the west of the airport. Belfast International shares its runways with...
, the Passport Office the British Council
British Council
The British Council is a United Kingdom-based organisation specialising in international educational and cultural opportunities. It is registered as a charity both in England and Wales, and in Scotland...
, the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
, Tax offices and courts. Most of this action was focused on Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
.
Belfast International Airport
Belfast International Airport
Belfast International Airport is a major airport located northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It was formerly known and is still referred to as Aldergrove Airport, after the village of the same name lying immediately to the west of the airport. Belfast International shares its runways with...
and several government offices were picketed and had partial walk outs
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
as a trades union rally took place in the city centre.
PCS picketing was also be mounted outside government offices in Enniskillen
Enniskillen
Enniskillen is a town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is located almost exactly in the centre of the county between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,599 in the 2001 Census...
, Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
, Coleraine
Coleraine
Coleraine is a large town near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is northwest of Belfast and east of Derry, both of which are linked by major roads and railway connections...
, and Newry
Newry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
.
July protest
The "J30" events were to be followed by a partial one-day overtime ban on 1 July. The PCS chose to have a month-long overtime ban instead The pension cuts and reforms were, like the planned budget cuts in the NHSNational Health Service (England)
The National Health Service or NHS is the publicly funded healthcare system in England. It is both the largest and oldest single-payer healthcare system in the world. It is able to function in the way that it does because it is primarily funded through the general taxation system, similar to how...
and Education budget, the main causes of the union's simmering malcontent with the government of that time
Cameron Ministry
David Cameron is Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, after being invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new government after the resignation as Prime Minister of Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010. Leading a coalition government formed by the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats, the coalition...
. The government commented later that day and on 1 June that they thought the strike had failed to live up to what the unions had claimed would have been on the 29th. The UNISON union warned of further strike action
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
.
November 30 strikes
An additional one-day strike took place across the country on 30 November. The strike was organised by various unions with the Trade Union Congress calling it the biggest strike in a generation. Nearly two-thirds of England's 21,476 schools were closed, all but 33 of Scotland's 2,700 states schools were closed and 7,000 operations in hospitals were cancelled. Twenty-one arrests were made at Occupy LondonOccupy London
Occupy London is an ongoing peaceful protest and demonstration against economic inequality, the lack of affordability of housing in the United Kingdom, social injustice, corporate greed and the influence of companies and lobbyists on government taking place in London, United Kingdom, which started...
, and 75 made in the capital.
Public opinion
A YouGovYouGov
YouGov, formerly known as PollingPoint in the United States, is an international internet-based market research firm launched in the UK in May 2000 by Stephan Shakespeare, now Chief Executive Officer, and Nadhim Zahawi...
poll, published 26 March 2011, found that a 52% majority supported the protests "to campaign against public sector spending cuts" while 31% expressed opposition. 55% of voters believe that the cuts are necessary, against 32% who think they are unnecessary, but most feel the cuts are too deep and too fast. The same YouGov poll showed that 38% blame Labour for the cuts, 23% blame the coalition and 26% blame both. The results contained a strong partisan divide, with 83% of Labour supporters and only 19% of Tory supporters backing the protests. YouGov
YouGov
YouGov, formerly known as PollingPoint in the United States, is an international internet-based market research firm launched in the UK in May 2000 by Stephan Shakespeare, now Chief Executive Officer, and Nadhim Zahawi...
had surveyed 2,720 adults online between 20–21 March 2011.
However, a Reuters/Ipsos MORI poll in June 2011 found around an even divide over whether public sector workers are right to strike about cuts.
Responses
Education Secretary Michael GoveMichael Gove
Michael Andrew Gove, MP is a British politician, who currently serves as the Secretary of State for Education and as the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the Surrey Heath constituency. He is also a published author and former journalist.Born in Edinburgh, Gove was raised in Aberdeen...
said on BBC's Radio 4 Today early on the morning of 26 March , "Of course people will feel a sense of disquiet, in some cases anger, at what they see happening, but the difficulty we have as the Government inheriting a terrible economic mess, is that we have to take steps to bring the public finances back into balance." He also speculated that the march could "move from being [a] family event into being something darker".
Daniel Hannan
Daniel Hannan
Daniel John Hannan is a British journalist, author and politician who is currently a Member of the European Parliament, representing South East England for the Conservative Party and the European Conservatives and Reformists political group...
, a journalist and the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
for South East England
South East England (European Parliament constituency)
South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 10 Members of the European Parliament using the D'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :...
, stated that the protesters "have decided to indulge their penchant for empty, futile, self-righteous indignation." He wrote, "After “No Cuts!” the marchers’ favourite slogan was “Fairness!” Alright, then... How about being fair to our children, whom we have freighted with a debt unprecedented in peacetime?"
Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some counties, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, but is significantly different, though both...
Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
told Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
news service, "If I was a demonstrator in London, I would be furious with the Labour leadership, because they are whipping up people's fervour and they are being utterly dishonest... We have an opposition party that has retreated into the worst kind of infantile opposition politics, which is to score lots of tactical points and not level with people about what they would do instead."
The Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, Theresa May
Theresa May
Theresa Mary May is a British Conservative politician who is Home Secretary in the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition government. She was elected to Parliament in 1997 as the Member of Parliament for Maidenhead, and served as the Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2003–04...
, told Parliament that she would consult the police on giving them new powers to remove face coverings and balaclavas. As well as banning orders, similar to those used to ban football hooligans
Football hooliganism
Football hooliganism, sometimes referred to by the British media as the English Disease, is unruly and destructive behaviour—such as brawls, vandalism and intimidation—by association football club fans...
from football matches. The Shadow Home Secretary
Shadow Home Secretary
In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary is the person within the shadow cabinet who 'shadows' the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government policy on home affairs including policing, national security, immigration, the criminal justice system, the prison service, and...
, Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford since 2010, having previously been MP for Pontefract and Castleford since 1997. She served in the Cabinet between 2008 and 2010. She is the Shadow Home Secretary...
, strongly backed the minister's stance.
In Gulf News
Gulf News
Gulf News is a daily English language newspaper published from Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates with a December 2009 BPA audited circulation of over 117,036 qualified copies...
, columnist Dr. Ayman Mustafa remarked about anti-austerity strikes and protests that "People still see the financial sector not being punished although it was the main culprit of the financial crisis and the subsequent recession". He also wrote that "most of the government cuts are targeting workers, while big businesses and financial businesses in particular are being incentivised with the cliché that Britain must encourage bankers and fund managers to stay".
See also
- Trades Union CongressTrades Union CongressThe Trades Union Congress is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions in the United Kingdom, representing the majority of trade unions...
- 2010 UK student protests2010 UK student protestsThe 2010 UK student protests were a series of demonstrations that began in November 2010 in several areas of the United Kingdom, with the focal point of protests centred in London. The initial event was the largest student protest in the UK since the Labour government first proposed the Teaching...
- 2010 student protest in Dublin2010 student protest in DublinThe 2010 student protest in Dublin was a demonstration that took place in the centre of the city on 3 November 2010 in opposition to a proposed increase in university registration fees, further cuts to the student maintenance grant and increasing graduate unemployment and emigration levels caused...
- United Kingdom general election, 2010
- Cameron MinistryCameron MinistryDavid Cameron is Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, after being invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new government after the resignation as Prime Minister of Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010. Leading a coalition government formed by the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats, the coalition...
- Premiership of David CameronPremiership of David CameronThe premiership of David Cameron began on 11 May 2010 when Cameron accepted the Queen's invitation to form a government. This occurred upon the resignation of Cameron's predecessor as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Gordon Brown...
- Credit crunchCredit crunchA credit crunch is a reduction in the general availability of loans or a sudden tightening of the conditions required to obtain a loan from the banks. A credit crunch generally involves a reduction in the availability of credit independent of a rise in official interest rates...