Thanks to Tony Foley for this.

On Sunday, 13th September, more than 200 people marched through the streets of Liverpool, with banners raised high, to send the clearest of messages to those who supposedly represent them. Setting off from the Pier Head and arriving outside the BT Convention Centre, the assembled crowd were first of all welcomed by Denis Dunphy, the Chairperson of the Liverpool Trades Council, the organisers of the ‘Time to Fight Back’ meeting at the start of the week where the city plays host to the Trades Union Congress.

Bob Crowe, leader of the RMT, was the first of the speakers with a clear and sound message to those assembled. Pointing to the building to hold the Congress, he predicted that in the future, unless action was taken to protect workers’ interests from the savages of the economic crisis, “they will be meeting in a phone box”. He went on to point out that there was no choice for the working people in voting; saying that between the Tories, Labour and Liberals there was “not a fag paper between them.” He went on to strongly criticise the Government for easily finding the banks £37 million to bail them out of their problems. This was an indication that they had too much power; instead it should be the trade union leaders going to Gordon Brown demanding that their members be protected. Crowe went on to emphasis this strength in business power with his strong condemnation of the Government’s mishandling of the Vestas dispute saying that the workers’ s only crime was to build wind turbines: “It is not MPs that have power, but big multinationals”, and that the Government should take over the production of wind turbines. Referring to the convention centre where the TUC will meet Crowe said: “Joanna Lumley has more power than that crowd in there” and ended to enthusiastic applause by telling the TUC to “get off their knees and start fighting back”.

Keith Gibson, a Lindsey Oil Refinery worker, told the assembled crowd of how the BNP had tried to involve itself with the dispute but were sent on their way. He warned that trade unionists would not take job cuts or a lower standard of living, stating that “The TUC have a responsibility to stand up for the workers”. He also pointed out that he was proud to have stood as a candidate for No2EU in the European elections; New Labour is no longer the party of the working people, he said, stressing the need for a new party to represent them.

Jane Lomas spoke on behalf of the CWU saying that it was outrageous the way young people couldn’t get a job, and it was an utter disgrace that workers are now expected to work “until you are 65 and then you drop”. She condemned the continuous attacks on public services, including the postal service. She asked for support in joining their struggle against them in protecting the postal service reminding everyone that the CWU had a long tradition of not crossing picket lines and that everyone should follow this example.

Other speakers included Tracy Edwards of PCS Young Members, Ian Allison, UNITE convenor at Fujitsu, Glen Kelly of Unison, Mike Abbot of The Shrewsbury 24 and Alex Halligan of the Unemployed Workers’ Union who urged unemployed workers to “get organised and back in the movement”. The final speaker was Yunus Bakhsh, a former Unison representative who has lost his job and has been expelled from his trade union. He went on to explain that a campaign has been started in his defence after it has emerged that there is evidence of collusion between his former employer and former union, and that one of his main accusers is a BNP activist.

At the end of the rally Mark Hoskisson, secretary of the Liverpool Trades Council, had to warn everyone to be careful in departing as the march and rally had been shadowed by a group of BNP activists, many with convictions for violent behaviour. Their continuous presence nearby maybe an ominous sign of the struggles to come.