‘The Tories offer nothing’

Unite general secretary Len McCluskey visited the East Midlands today (29 November), to meet with senior shop stewards from the automotive and engineering industries to discuss the impact of a Tory vote on local jobs and communities.

McCluskey spoke to Unite reps, as well as Labour’s Bassetlaw parliamentary candidate Keir Morrison, at Derby County Football Club’s Pride Park stadium.

During the meeting, McCluskey said, “My message to working people in our industrial heartlands is clear. The majority of people in the East Midlands voted to leave the European Union in 2016 because of genuine concerns about the future of their jobs and communities and their voices not being heard.

“Those genuine concerns will not be addressed by another Tory government. The Tories offer nothing for car workers, for every one working in manufacturing, for teachers, for nurses, for young people or pensioners in the East Midlands. The future of their jobs, rights, public services and the communities where they live will not be addressed by the Tories or their bad Brexit deal.

‘Come home to Labour’

“I urge everyone to come home to Labour. Only Labour has policies to invest in our forgotten towns and left behind communities, to rebuild our public services, tackle poverty and inequality and to bring our divided country together.”

Commenting after the meeting, parliamentary candidate Morrison said he spoke with McCluskey about Labour’s plan to lift people out of in-work poverty.

“This includes raising the minimum wage to £10ph, scrapping zero hour contracts and ensuring everyone has a decent pension for later life,” Morrison said.

“Trade unions are a vital ally to workers everywhere, and they’re an expression of the idea that we are stronger together, and that there is strength in unity. Join a union and join the fight for better conditions for us all.”