AROUND 250 people will attend today’s People’s Assembly conference at Friends House, Euston, meeting against a background of growing political and social upheaval and facing with government on the defensive on two major issues.  

We see headlines about the NHS and social care being at breaking point, of children going hungry and being refused free school meals, of millions of people — often those with health and disability issues — freezing because they cannot afford to heat their homes. We cannot allow this to continue. 

Inequality is greater than it has been for over a century in Britain and the past months have seen a growing confidence, with increasing numbers of workers going on strike in order to defend their living standards and to protect our public services from the ravages of profiteering and privatisation.  

During the morning session, starting at 11am, there will be a panel session, chaired by Helen O’Connor of the GMB, on Fighting For Our NHS and  Social Care and we will hear from workers and leading figures from the front line who are battling to protect and save our NHS and social care services. 

Following this, there will be a session on Building Trade Union Solidarity where we will hear from trade union leaders, including Fran Heathcote of PCS and Kevin Courtney of NEU, plus strikers from a number of unions that organise across the public and private sectors.

The People’s Assembly was formed a decade ago to fight government imposed austerity. Today we face an even bigger struggle and the People’s Assembly is hoping that this conference will encourage discussion of shared experiences and information, and where those attending gain inspiration from being part of a larger collective. 

This is its first conference for some time and one of its key tasks is to build unity across the movement. 

One of the Enough is Enough organisers, Rhys Harmer, who is also a RMT striker, will speak in the trade union solidarity session, as an example of the unity needed for the struggle ahead.

Trade union and community activists from across the country will discuss the many issues facing us and how to unite in a movement to defeat the profiteering of monopoly businesses and their political representatives in government.  

The afternoon session will debate around 20 motions to set policies and agree actions for the period ahead.  

Delegates and visitors will leave encouraged to build the People’s Assembly locally, regionally and nationally, after speeches from Jeremy Corbyn MP, John Rees of the People’s Assembly and RMT president Alex Gordon.

Andy Bain is Morning Star rep on the People’s Assembly steering committee.