ATL

Pay, pension and patent propaganda

Martin Freedman, ATL's head of pay, conditions and pensions, sets out the union's position on education expenditure

We are in a time of heightened political activity. Not only has the party conference season just finished, but the run-up to the general election (due no later than June next year) added a definite edge to speeches by Gordon Brown, David Cameron and various ministers and wannabe ministers. If the worst recession for 70 years is stirred into the mix, we have a recipe for vague promises, half-truths and patent propaganda.

Public expenditure is one area where all the political parties and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) had a great deal to say. The resources available for education are enormously important to ATL and it is especially keen that the debate on public expenditure doesn't deteriorate into an argument about who can promise the biggest cuts in public services.

The crisis in the finance sector and the subsequent huge injection of money into the banks and some industries to keep the economy afloat has undoubtedly had an effect on the government's financial position. The recession has also meant that tax receipts have fallen and this has exacerbated the deficit in public finances.

While all this means that there is a legitimate reason to examine spending priorities, some people have used the situation to call for immediate and large-scale cuts in public expenditure that would have a detrimental impact on teachers, lecturers and other workers in the public sector. It is disappointing that the debate has moved from a necessary discussion of public finances to demands for swingeing cuts, without any political party making a strong enough case for the protection of public services.

In particular, both the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats (together with the tabloid press and sundry other lobbying groups) have branded public sector pensions as unaffordable. The government itself has indicated a need for 'more realistic' public sector pay rises, including a proposed freeze on top salaries. The shadow chancellor went further, calling for a total freeze in all public sector pay for 2011, while the CBI published a report saying that future students should not only have to pay higher fees but also have their loans and grants cut.

ATL believes that education plays a vital role in providing the knowledge and skills that both enable young people to participate in the economy and help to regenerate an economy that is coming out of recession. We believe that it would be folly to cut expenditure on education at this time. We were pleased to see that the Prime Minister has committed his government to increased investment in schools over the next five years, although we wait to see the impact of this on other areas of education.

The salient points of the current position on public finances are:

• ATL believes that a high-level debate on public finances is necessary but that this should include all aspects of public income and expenditure - not just a list of public services that can be cut.

• The proposal to protect so-called 'frontline services' is spurious. Schools, for example, couldn't operate without the critical back-up of education support workers and local authority administrative staff.

• Public sector pensions were revised very recently to take account of changing circumstances. The normal retirement age in teaching is now 65 and the average pension currently paid to teachers is around £9,500. These are neither unaffordable nor unsustainable.

• Teachers in England and Wales accepted a three-year pay deal that runs until September 2011. There should be no question that this deal is honoured, whichever party is in power next year.

• To help with the high-level debate, there must be more transparency in the allocation of pay and bonuses to leadership staff in schools; in particular, the Freedom of Information Act should be extended to cover salaries in academies.

In the months leading up to the general election, there is plenty of time for goalposts to be moved and u-turns to be made. ATL will try to use its influence to ensure that education is given the priority it deserves and that members' interests are protected. We can be certain, at any rate, that these are just the opening salvoes in what might prove to be a very long debate indeed.