Lee Jeans women on Lothian demo Rail effiBoard, measures railoperation 11101C The new pro the cuts. Government cut council spending by £30 million or face withdrawal of the Because of Lothian's spending policy the Tories Have a succid ¡lalicu the council, so much so that the Lothian battle has now become one of chief points of resistance to the Tories' cuts policy. In June an estimated streets Edinburgh show their support for the council.
Now, Scottish secretarv George Younger is out to stop the rebellion. Socialist Chalenge talked to Lothian councillor JimAvailable from Box 50, London N1. Price 25p plus p&p. Scottish local authorities have exceeded the Secretary of State's cash guidelines and George with them all eventually. To take on Lothian first is, however, a political decision, taken at the highest level, to attack an authority that has been openly political in its opposition to the Government's attempts decimate the working class anc make it pay for the crisis.
Certainly, over the past couple of years Lothian council has resisted lor cuts as few other councils have done. I he tvpe of im. provements that have been Jimmy Burnett - Lothian councillor made include: • Four schools opened and nursery classes established in the last two years; • Eleven primary SCROOS and tour secondary schools have been built. Leacher statting has been raised to 20 mended by the Govern• Five new facilities for education have been developed;
soca sevices. new full-time posts have been created. he numbe of people visited by home help has increased from 8,000 to 10,000 and then be can in ase per cent the numbers of people short-term care in elderly people's homes •Over 120,000 now benefit from free travel passes.
Record Burnett proud this record. Since 1977' • he said have pursued a policy of the tace o cutbacks by both Labour and ory Governments Ir fulfillment of our election elderly who would be lialucol hit. The elderly would suffer through increased charges for homehelps and meals on wheels Nursery classes would disappear, and hundreds of children who now quality free school meals would have to go without.
Campaign Members of the Labour Group on Lothian council have tried to ex plain all this to both thi Noblers lange and ce acil workers. have addressed hundreds of meetings in secondary schools, colleges and other workplaces' explained Jimmy. 'We feel the success of the campaign can gauged by the massiv strike and rally that took place in Edinburgh on 30 June. The vast majority of the Lothian workforce went on strike, and 15,000 marched along Princes Street in one of the biggest demonstrations the capital has ever seen.
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nO CutS, Rob Jones Socialist Challenge PAMPHLETI