I am seeking nomination to be re-elected National President of PCS, having been elected to the role in 2024. It has been an honour to serve as the President of our great union, having previously been elected Deputy President since 2019, and also served as DWP Group President from 2019 to 2024. For 30-plus years I have been an activist in PCS, and its predecessor union, CPSA, and have held roles at every level of the union.

I am a socialist and member of PCS Left Unity, standing on the Democracy Alliance slate which is committed to building on the work we have already done for members.

Alongside my Democracy Alliance comrades I understand the importance strategy plays in our campaigns and the need to prioritise organising through campaigning to build our membership. The more we grow the stronger and more vibrant our union becomes, increasing our chances of winning for members.

The national campaign, under the strong leadership of the Democracy Alliance, was based on a strategy devised by and supported by members of Left Unity. A departure from the more traditional one or two-day national action, the Left Unity dominated leadership of our union, developed and implemented a strategy that maximised the pressure on government while minimising the financial cost to our members, through targeted and sustained action. That strategy, based on engaging with members, while not winning everything we wanted, more than doubled the Treasury remit in 2023, and achieved our first above inflation pay remit in decades last year. The strategy also forced a climb down by the government on their plans to slash our compensation scheme and redundancy terms by 60%, and delivered over 300 days of strike action across our union.

It also saw our union grow, as thousands of new members joined the fightback for decent pay, pensions justice, job security and against the threat to our redundancy rights. Under our leadership, membership of our union reached the highest level in nearly a decade.

The Left Unity leadership of PCS was also at the forefront of building a coalition of unions to fight back against the cost of living crisis engulfing society.

Not just limited to the national campaign, I have been a major part of the senior leadership of our union that has also supported and built for industrial action in group wide disputes both in the civil service and private sector, and under my Presidency we have continued that action throughout the last 8 months.

I was proud to be play a senior role in the important decisions we took to protect the most vulnerable in our communities. From pushing for and winning a suspension of conditionality and benefit sanctions during the pandemic, within DWP Group, to supporting and funding the legal challenges at national level, against the abhorrent Channel Pushback and Rwanda Deportation policies, we have taken brave and morally correct decisions following feedback from our members. The legal action against the two Home Office polices has seen an end to both, and without a single deportation. Literally saving lives and helping the most vulnerable.

All of the above shows what can be delivered when our union is fighting, growing, and winning for our members under a Left Unity leadership, within the Democracy Alliance.

It is deeply frustrating, therefore, to see the paralysis that has taken place at the most senior level of our union since a new “NEC majority” won control of the NEC last May.

The so called “Alliance for Change”, have sought to block every progressive recommendation proposed by your elected General Secretary, recommendations that have Democracy Alliance support, and repeatedly voted down attempts by Democracy Alliance candidates, myself, and the General Secretary to pause the Levy under the national campaign. We are clear that without the prospect of meaningful, targeted and sustained industrial action, the Levy should be paused as it is not being used, putting either £5 or £3 back into members pockets every month.

Under their leadership the national campaign has flatlined, we have no national organising plan in place, and we are haemorrhaging members directly as a result of their position on the Levy. A smaller union, weakens our bargaining power and reduces our chances of building on the progress we had made under our leadership.

Their coalition has also sought to personally attack me, with false claims I am a “dictator” and “tyrant”, on the basis I have had to implement the rules of PCS to protect our union and members interests. Each time I have made a ruling it has been to prevent an attempt by the “NEC majority” to implement policies which would be in breach of our rule book and/or standing orders.

I hope members see past their strategy of deliberate misinformation, and the creation of a toxic environment when we debate key issues that matter to our members

If re-elected as your National President, alongside comrades in the Democracy Alliance, I will lead to return PCS to the fighting, campaigning, democratic union our members want and need. One that will build on the successes we have previously delivered, continue pushing for co-ordination with other unions willing to fight against the attacks to our living standards, and continue to listen to members and build their participation in our union.

Please nominate myself and the other Democracy Alliance candidates for a strong and focussed union leadership, that will always put our members needs first, consulting them on all the important issues, and campaigning and taking action when they are prepared to take action, while defending jobs and the vital services our members provide.