Photo report of Tyne and Wear anti-cuts rallies

Spending Review Day sees largest North East anti-cuts demonstrations so far, reports Mark Tyers:

Up to 500 North East trade unionists, students and their supporters rallied outside civic centres across the North East today.

They demonstrated their opposition to the brutal spending cuts announced by George Osbourne in today's comprehensive spending review.

Within Tyne and Wear three different rallies were organised by the Northern Public Service Alliance - in Sunderland, South Shields and Newcastle.

Kate Winship, a student at Newcastle University, said “we're here to protest against tuition fee increases which will discourage poorer students from going to university”.

A civil service worker and PCS member said she was demonstrating because “the coalition government's economic policies are devestating our society and won't work...Ireland and Japan have shown us that you can't cut your way out of a recession.”

None of the demonstrators were in any doubt about who was to blame for Britain's £163bn deficit.

“It's been caused entirely by the irresponsible lending and gambling of the banking community” noted student Michael Burke.

I estimate 400 people attended the demonstration outside Newcastle Civc Centre alone, with sizeable turnouts from Unison, Unite, UCU, PCS, GMB other unions and local university students.

“There's been a really positive atmosphere” observed Newcastle University student Louise Donkin of the largest anti-cuts demonstration yet seen in the North East.

The need for local trade union branches, students groups and anti-cuts community campaigns to continue to work together was clear to all, as was the need to continue to get even more people involved in the fight against the ConDems devestating public expenditure cuts.

Images from top to bottom: Sunderland lunch time rally; Newcastle civic centre in early evening; Coalition of Resistance banner at Newcastle rally; Sunderland again.

Also see this report HERE.

Locally the next major event in the anti-cuts calendar is the public meeting, called by Tyne and Wear Coalition of Resistance, on Wednesday 3 November. The meeting starts at 7pm, at Newcastle Arts Centre, Westgate Road.


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