Education workers lobby their MP's in London.

Yesterday, 26th October 2011, thousands of education workers went to London to lobby their MP's against the education cuts. RAC's Ralph Dyson went down and provided a few pictures. 

Ralph Dyson - on the left!

The following articles are taken from the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and University and College Union (UCU).

National Union of Teachers (NUT)

"Thousands of teachers, lecturers and support staff visited Parliament today (Wednesday, 26 October) to lobby their MPs about pension cuts in the education sector.

Over 150,000 petition signatures were handed to the government.

Staff from the maintained, academy and independent sectors in England and Wales as well as from colleges and post-92 universities, lobbied their MPs and handed in petitions from their workplaces.

This lobby and the large number of petitions returned should serve as a wake-up call to the Government. If Ministers don’t recognise that pensions are both affordable and sustainable, many teachers and lecturers will be left with no option but to take further action, including supporting the planned TUC day of action on 30 November."

University and College Union (UCU).

"Thousands of members of the UCU and other education trade unions will descend on parliament today to lobby their MPs about potential changes to their pensions.

The joint action by seven education unions is part of attempts by unions to resolve the pensions dispute without the need for further industrial action. To avoid disruption to classes, the lobby has been organised in the half-term holiday.

As well as speaking to their MPs, union members will hand a petition in to the schools minister, Nick Gibb MP, at 10.30am at the department for education.

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: 'We are meeting with MPs today to dispel government myths about the need for pension reform. Our members are unlikely militants but they will not stand by while their pensions are raided to pay for a crisis they did not create.'"