Then when it suited them, LU, discovered that the “key point” is not that the remit is “derisory” but that 4.5% plus 0.5% “is more than double [the Government’s] originally intended figure of 2%”. Join us for a union that doesn’t spin when it suits: pcsindependentleft.com/join-us/

On the face of it, they ignored this problem for a long time. LU hope that the national talks might solve this system wide problem but that requires extra funding. Following the budget, do you think we will get that extra cash by just asking for it?

Now is the time to correct past mistakes. The upcoming statutory ballot is the opportunity to show our strength. Vote YES for strike action, recruit your colleagues, and demand a new direction on pay, hybrid working, and jobs.

We in the Independent Left believe the only way to escape the trap of being a minority union is to stop fearing the 50% threshold and start organising with the aggression and member-led focus required to smash through it.

By deliberately conducting an unserious campaign and then claiming members weren’t ‘ballot-ready,’ Left Unity manufactured the outcome they wanted: an excuse to avoid industrial action.

The only way to build a fighting union is to actively campaign, give members a clear objective, and work towards a national ballot. We must take risks—failure is better than doing nothing, provided we learn from any failures.

Furthermore, the decision to forego a pay campaign this year has fundamentally weakened our negotiating hand by removing the credible threat of industrial action. Without this leverage, how can we break the government’s prevailing pay cap? A 2.5% settlement is simply unacceptable.

The deepest cuts are planned for 'head office' functions:

Policy: 50% cut (17k staff)

HR: 50% cut (6k staff)

Comms: 70% cut (3k staff)

Kruger notes this aims for a "pyramid" structure again, threatening middle & senior grades. So Reform are a threat to civil servants.

This SR25 constraints is exactly what the Cabinet Office will tell the PCS in the national talks. They may acknowledge system problems, but without breaking the SR cash ceiling, they can't fix them.

So, with the Gov't fixing the limit at 2.5%, can PCS expect a "special deal," better than the NHS? No. This figure is unacceptable. We must prepare to fight in 26.