![Trade unions, including Unison, GMB, Unite and the EIS, protest against cuts in council jobs and services outside the City Chambers in George Square, Glasgow (Jane Barlow/PA)](https://wpcluster.dctdigital.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2024/02/2.75340467-15d7x7b6g-496x372.jpg)
Unions staged a protest outside the headquarters of Glasgow City Council against planned budget cuts to services, which an official said are already “on their knees”.
Activists gathered outside Glasgow City Chambers on Wednesday ahead of the local authority’s upcoming budget meeting.
The unions said Glasgow alone faces a further budget gap of £150 million in the coming three years, which will impact council services, jobs and wages.
The protest called for Glasgow’s councillors to reject making the cuts, to set a one-year budget and build a mass movement involving trade unions and local communities to secure more funding for the city.
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Keynote speakers stood outside the main entrance of the city chambers and spoke through megaphones to the crowd and the media.
Speakers included Chris Sermanni, of Unison, who told the crowd: “Local government has been cut to the bone. Services are on their knees. Our members, workers, are overworked and exhausted.”
He said the proposed cut in Glasgow alone is £108 million, excluding cuts to social care.
He said that, in reality, the cuts amount to about £150 million in three years.
He added: “We know there will be no progress in the city if they continue along this road of making cuts year after year. Glasgow deserves far better.”
Shona Thomson, of GMB Scotland, lamented that unions gather outside the chambers for the same protest “year after year”, and said the council and government refuse to address their pleas for better funding to Scottish council areas.
Calling on both the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council to stop the cuts, she said: “We have a message … and let us be clear, this is no narrow political point because a cut is a cut, and it does not matter which party is making it.
“But the message from this demo is clear, Glasgow, Scotland’s biggest city, needs a fair deal from the Scottish Government and it is not getting it.
In a plea to Glasgow’s politicians, she added: “You stop making cuts, and we will stop protesting.
“The promise is this: you keep making cuts; we will keep fighting – fighting for every worker, for every community, fighting for every service, for our city.
“People make Glasgow; cuts destroy it.”
Graham McNab, of Unite, said union representatives met with council umbrella body Cosla, which asked if trade unions would partner with them and fight for more funding for local government.
He added: “How ironic that a number of months ago, your joint trade unions put forward a motion asking the council leaders to go with us to the Scottish Government – three times they rejected our pleas.
“So, if the politicians, and I’m talking about politicians of every party, if they’re serious, and are going with the trade unions and taking this forward to find for more funding for our city, then we will welcome that fight.”
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “Local authorities are legally required to set a balanced budget and failure to do so would quickly threaten every local service that Glaswegians rely on.
“We can only close spending gaps by reducing expenditure or generating additional revenue – realistically, councils will generally seek to do both.
“The leadership of the council continually makes the case for sustainable funding of local services and for public spending to be targeted to communities with the greatest need.”
The Scottish Government said the overall share of this year’s Scottish Budget given to councils has been increased, with Glasgow City Council alone receiving an increase of £74.9 million (4.9%).
A spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government recognises the crucial role councils play in their communities, which is why their overall share of the 2024-25 Scottish Budget has been increased.
“In 2024-25, Glasgow City Council will receive £1.6 billion, an increase of £74.9 million or 4.9% compared to 2023-24, to fund local services.
“In addition, all councils will receive their fair share of the currently undistributed sum of £365.3 million following agreement with Cosla.
“In the face of a profoundly challenging financial situation, the Scottish Government is making available record funding of more than £14 billion to councils in 2024-25 – a real-terms increase of 3.2% compared with the previous year if the council tax freeze is accepted.”
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