University of Leeds UCU notes:

1. The Labour government has continued cuts in pay, pensions and benefits with  more to come
2. 15 months of genocide against the Palestinians has left 45,000 dead and Gaza in ruins.
3. The growth of far-right parties like Reform in Britain and abroad, Trump in the states..
4. The depth of the environmental crisis across the globe. 
5. The We Demand Change: Summit of resistance conference on the 29th March.

We believe:

1. The UK is a highly unequal society where the richest are getting richer while more and more working class people live in poverty. In 2024, the wealth of UK billionaires climbed by £35m every day. Labour should be taxing the rich.
2. Starmer’s attacks on benefits, public services, pensions and pay drive working class communities further into poverty, leading to despair in working class communities allowing Reform UK to present themselves as the saviours of the working class. Racism divides the working class.
3. That we need to unite the inspiring movements across Britain including the movement for Palestine, the anti-racist movement, the movement against austerity and the trade union movement to create a movement of hope.

We resolve:

To support and formally back the planned Summit of Resistance.

This resolution was carried by members of the branch at the ordinary general meeting 11 March 2025. The text here is subject to approval of the minutes of that meeting. The original motion was proposed by Megan Povey, moved by Megan Povey, seconded by Jenny Rivas Perez. The meeting amended the motion as proposed by Natalie Koptyko and seconded by Nigel Bubb. The resolution above is the text as amended.

This page was last updated on 11 March 2025