Labour Councillors Resign Over
Latest Round of Budget Cuts
As Leeds Labour Council geared up to
pass its latest budget cuts of 75.3m,
the cracks that had been appearing in
the Labour group over the last few
months finally resulted in a split.
First Mark Dobson and Sarah Field in
Garforth & Swillington ward and then
on budget day itself Janette Walker in
Cross Gates & Whinmoor resigned
from the Labour group to become
independents.
In the back half of 2016, there had
been a mini-revolt in the Labour group
over the closure of The Green, a
specialist dementia care home in East
Leeds at the same time the council
was planning on giving 4.5m to
Yorkshire County Cricket Club.
This revolt, undoubtedly influenced by
the anti-austerity mood of the
thousands who rallied in defence of
Corbyn in Leeds over the summer, led
to a group of councillors calling in the
decision to close The Green and a
temporary climb-down by the Labour
Group leadership.
Whilst Dobson had been the council
executive member for the
environment in the past, presiding
over the construction of the polluting
East Leeds incinerator, since returning
to the council back benches last year
he had become a prominent Corbyn
supporter over the summer, speaking
at rallies in the city.
As the Socialist Party has commented,
as austerity continues Labour
councillors will have crises of
conscience as they are asked to do
more and more of the Tory
Join us today - Text: JOIN plus your name and postcode to 07761818206 / Write to Socialist Party, PO Box 24697,
London, E11 1YD / Visit: www.socialistparty.org.uk / E-mail: join@socialistparty.org.uk / Phone: 020 8988 877
governments dirty work of can be fought, drawing on strikes of
implementing cuts. local government workers in Glasgow
and elsewhere. This should be linked
The fact that Momentum and others to drawing up an alternative no-cuts
on the Labour left nationally have not budget that can be campaigned on and
taken this issue seriously, but as with calling on those councillors opposed to
Corbyn gone along with the position of austerity to put forward in the council
the right that nothing can be done is chamber.
responsible for the fact that a wider
struggle hasnt erupted inside the The Trade Unionist and Socialist
Labour group instead councillors Coalition in Leeds has written to the
who wish to challenge has been left three councillors to offer to discuss a
isolated. common approach in challenging
austerity measures locally and
Dobson and Field forming an nationally, as we have offered any
independent group on the council did councillors in the Labour group who
mean the ability to put their own want to fight austerity.
amendments into the budget, with
one amendment around increased Support for no-cuts stand
bulk waste collection charges being
reversed with a cut to the councils in the Independent
advertising budget. Whilst due to the Writing in the Independent on 9th
resignations coming close to the February, Matthew Turner said:
budget meeting meant there was
limited time to submit budget A line often parroted is that any
amendments, it is clear that a serious attempt to resist Tory austerity and
challenge to local austerity measures put forward a no-cuts budget would be
in next years budget would need to be illegal. This would be true if a deficit
much more comprehensive. budget was set but by using councils
extensive borrowing powers and huge
Yet given the backlash over The Green, reserves of funding Labour councils
which also resulted in East Leeds would be able to set legally compliant
Labour Party passing a motion in anti-austerity budgets that save public
favour of a conference to discuss services and jobs.
alternatives to local austerity
measures, there is an appetite Every time a budget of this kind has
amongst Labour Party members and been put forward it has been rejected,
workers in Leeds to challenge these but it has also been upheld as legal.
cuts.
The full article can be found at http://
Whilst the trade union movement has www.independent.co.uk/voices/pmqs-
failed to organise even a lobby of the labour-councils-sweetheart-deal-
budget setting meeting this year, there surrey-theresa-may-austerity-
are growing calls for a conference of a7571156.html
the movement to discuss how the cuts