The toll of Lambeth's cuts

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We, the undersigned, condemn Vanessa Redgrave's and the WRP's use of the courts against the labour movement press. We support the proposal that a labour movement inquiry be set up to investigate the statements made in the Socialist OrganCheung THIS APRIL, the left-wing Labour council in Lambeth - after years of saying there was 'no alternative' to rate rises - decided there was 'no alternative' to cuts.

Now Carisbrooke House, the council's training unit for its own staff, is under occupation by its 20 workers. The action has been taken to prevent the Council from closing the unit and selling the site.

Either by mistake

design, the council budget apparently included no estimate for the centre, according to Lambetn NALGO.

The Council's social services training programme has been cut by 66%, with secondments, external and internal courses heavily, reduced. Commitment to equal opportunities and raising levels of staff qualification are now undermined by the cuts in training.

The direct action taken by the unit's workers follows on other council workers' fight against cuts. Last month, residential homes workers were provoked into banning overtime. According to a Lambeth NALGO social services cuts bulletin, 'When the council fintroduced the present round of cuts, it said that priority for recruitment would be given to children's residential and day care. How had this worked out? One in every five posts was deliberately left vacant, and no jobs in children's homes were filled... homes are nearly on the point of collapse due to acute staff shortages"

Within 24 hours of the action, the council backed down. It agreed to advertise 40 posts and to carry out no changes in designated use of children's homes without agreement.

NAIGO members' no cover action has also unfrozen another post -fostering placements officer.

Staff in Borough Development have been threatened with compulsory redeployment. They have taken action by refusing to fill in time-sheets. The council has now agreed to negotiate voluntary redeployment with NALGO for this department.

The social services department has so far come under the heaviest pressure. Apart from cuts in children's homes, a new Day Centre at Kennington, part of a new estate development, was to have been scaled down to a luncheon club. After protests by both NALGO and tenants, the decision has been deferred to the next Labour group The Lambeth NALGO branch sent a delegation up to the récent march in Lothian. Lambeth Council leader Ted Knight was there too, and made a mechaniams are still grindspeech calling for a fight- ug away, sowy bu back. Yet in Lambeth he xpensively, and we neer put pressure on the NALGO branch to accept voluntary severance and justified it by listing all the powers now in Heseltine's hands:

Direct action and increasing vigilance will be necessary in the coming months. This must be combined with a political fight in the GMCs to bring the Council to account for its iser article. recent actions. NAME The April budget might not have been passed so easily if the Labour Parties had realised the extent of the cuts and the free hand given to council officers to roam around departments looking for 'aavings' ORGANISATION l0 Labour Movement P esa Deferze Fund, e/o 214 Court, London N1 2SY.

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Pega deeply held persa

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A LABOUR INQUIKI, NOT THE COURTS