Teacher strikes: NASUWT union raises prospect of strikes during autumn term
Teachers at the NASUWT union have voted in favour of industrial action in a dispute over pay and conditions.
Almost 90% of union members who voted backed strike action.
Nearly 95% supported action short of strike, with a turnout of 51.9% – passing the 50% ballot turnout required by law.
Members of the National Education Union take part in a rally through Westminster to Parliament Square in London last week
NASUWT said it will consider dates for strike action in the autumn term and will coordinate strikes with other unions where possible.
Dr Patrick Roach, the union’s general secretary, said: “Today our members have sent a strong message to the government and to employers that teachers demand a better deal on pay and to address excessive workload and working hours.
“Our members have secured the largest mandate for industrial action by the NASUWT in over a decade, exceeding the government’s anti-trade union ballot thresholds.
“We have today written to the government and to employers confirming the prospect for industrial action in schools the length and breadth of the country from this autumn.”
Dr Roach said teachers’ goodwill has been “taken for granted for far too long”.
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“No teacher should expect to work in conditions damaging to their health and wellbeing. Ministers cannot continue to wring their hands and do nothing,” he added.
“Our members deserve better and pupils deserve better, too. The Government cannot continue to ignore the damaging impact that the teacher recruitment and retention crisis is having on pupils’ education.”
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‘Whose school? Our school!’ – NEU members on strike last week
The NASUWT did not have a mandate to strike during the 2022-23 academic year.
Three other unions – the National Education Union (NEU), Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) and Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) – are currently balloting their members on potential strike action.
If all four unions vote in favour of strikes, it could mean more than 400,000 teachers could walkout on the same days if members coordinate.
Signs at an NEU rally in London last week
NEU members in England have held eight days of strikes since February.
The government previously offered a £1,000 one-off payment to teachers and an average 4.5% rise for staff in the next school year but the deal was rejected.
Assisted dying could become legal in England and Wales after the bill was backed by MPs in a historic vote.
Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill received 330 yes votes compared to 275 noes at its second reading in the House of Commons – a majority of 55.
Politics Live: MPs voting on historic assisted dying legislation
The bill would allow adults who are terminally ill with just six months left to live to request medical assistance to end their lives.
Today’s result means the legislation will now progress to the committee stage for scrutiny, with the Lords also to be given opportunities to express their views on the measure before it potentially becomes law.
MPs were given a free vote – meaning they could side with their conscience and not along party lines, with the government staying neutral on the matter.
The division list showed Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer backed the proposal, as did Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
But other cabinet members like Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood voted against the bill, having previously warned about vulnerable people being coerced and of a “slippery slope of death on demand”.
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MPs debate assisted dying
The vote came after a five-hour debate in the chamber, which drew emotional arguments on both sides.
Conservative former minister Andrew Mitchell revealed he changed his mind on assisted dying after finding himself with “tears pouring down my face” on hearing the stories of constituents whose loved ones had died “in great pain and great indignity”.
On the other side of the argument, veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott said assisted dying could result in sick people “feeling like a burden” on society, adding: ” I can imagine myself saying that in particular circumstances.”
She warned: “If this bill passes, we will have the NHS as a fully-funded 100% suicide service but palliative care will only be funded at 30% at best.”
Bill about ‘choice and dignity’
Opening the debate on the topic, Labour backbencher Ms Leadbeater said the bill was about giving dying people “choice, autonomy, and dignity” – saying the current law was “failing” them.
Kim Leadbeater: PA
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She has insisted her bill contains “the most robust safeguards” of any assisted dying legislation in the word.
This includes two independent doctors having to approve the decision, followed by a high-court judge, with the person having to administer the drugs themselves.
The legislation also includes a maximum 14-year prison sentence for anyone who coerces someone into requesting assisted dying or taking the medicine.
Speaking to Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby after the vote, an emotional Ms Leadbeater said she was “incredibly proud” of the result and parliament must now “take on board everything that’s been discussed in the chamber”, including the state of palliative care and the rights of disabled people.
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