203,979 tell David Cameron: Don’t threaten the right to strike

Thanks to everyone who signed our petition to Prime Minister David Cameron, showing our opposition to the Trade Union Bill

Petition hand in. Photo: Jess Hurd /reportdigital.co.uk

We teamed up with campaign group SumOfUs.org and together handed in 203,979 supporters’ names to Downing Street (Wednesday 10 February). The TUC’s Frances O’Grady and SumOfUs’ Martin Caldwell were joined by union reps Su Patel (Shopworkers’ union USDAW), Natalie Linder (Midwives’ union RCM) and Melissa Jackson (Physios’ union CSP).

The PM has still not agreed to meet with the TUC over this damaging and divisive bill, so it was good to be able to take the message to him so clearly from people right across the country.

And we’ve seen this week that the campaign against the bill is getting the government worried. They’ve been forced into some smaller concessions already, and they’ve lost their first vote on a bill amendment in the House of Lords. Now a leaked letter on Monday shows that they recognise they’ll lose major parts of the bill to opposition in the Lords if they don’t make more concessions.

We need to keep up the pressure now. The concessions the letter shows they’re considering are a step, but they’re certainly not enough, and their proposed solution on online balloting is to try to kick it into the long grass rather than offer any real change. This is a bad bill right the way through, and we’re going to oppose it in its entirety.

This week is heartunions week – a campaign week to celebrate the great work done by unions and their members in workplaces everywhere, and to highlight the damage the trade union bill would do to our rights, our economy and our society if it goes ahead.

There’s lots more you can do to get involved with the week – check out the site at heartunions.org