PCS: Civil service union offers full support to UK Uncut action

Wednesday, 25 May 2011 12:00 AM

The main trade union for civil and public servants, the Public and Commercial Services union, has issued a statement offering full support to UK Uncut and its planned action targeting banks on Saturday 28 May:

'PCS fully supports the protests and peaceful civil disobedience tactics used by the grassroots campaigners UK Uncut.

'In using its innovative campaigning ideas to highlight tax avoidance and evasion by corporations and rich individuals, UK Uncut has changed and popularised the debate about how we fund public services and what value they have in our society.

'PCS has campaigned for tax justice for many years and we are delighted that UK Uncut has raised the profile of this issue and taken the campaign into shops and onto our high streets.

'UK Uncut activists have attended many PCS protests and events, and have willingly shared with us their innovative approach to campaigning and communications, particularly their use of social media.

'We are now working together on more specific campaigning ideas and look forward to continuing to press for tax justice and for proper resourcing of public services.

'PCS also fully supports the campaign to drop the charges against the UK Uncut activists arrested at Fortnum and Mason on 26 March in what was a shameful piece of political policing after the police had assured activists they were free to leave.

'UK Uncut's latest planned action, 'The Emergency Operation', will see its activists peacefully occupying banks on Saturday 28 May, turning them into big society hospitals.

'This is to highlight the injustice of the billions of pounds worth of tax breaks that the banking sector receives every year. This money could and should be invested to ensure that not a single cut needs to be made in the NHS.

'PCS is publicising this day of action to its members and encouraging them to download and use the UK Uncut leaflet outside these occupations.

'As well as inspiring many people - young and old - to take action for the first time, UK Uncut has also inspired organisations with long and proud records of campaigning, including PCS, and we look forward to working with them in future'.

The union yesterday (24) started balloting more than 250,000 of its members in civil and public services for a national strike over cuts to jobs, pensions and pay: www.pcs.org.uk

ENDS

Notes

- For information and interview requests contact PCS national press officer Richard Simcox on 020 7801 2747 or 07833 978216

- The Public and Commercial Services union represents civil and public servants in central government. It has more than 300,000 members in over 200 departments and agencies, and in parts of government transferred to the private sector. PCS is the UK's sixth largest union and is affiliated to the TUC. The general secretary is Mark Serwotka and the president is Janice Godrich - on Twitter @janicegodrich

- Follow PCS on Twitter @pcs_union

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