Labour councillors vote to slash funding to Glasgow mental health project

Around 250 people gathered outside Glasgow City Chambers yesterday for a protest against the proposed 40% reduction in funding for the Glasgow Association for Mental Health (GAMH) project in Glasgow.

Support workers, service users and the board of the GAMH, together with representatives from the Glasgow care crisis campaign and the Glasgow City Unison branch were present to lobby the council funding committee that was sitting to make the funding decision.

The protest was noisy and upbeat, and was well supported with cars tooting their horns and passers by showing their support. Chants of ‘cuts kill’ were heard across George Square When the news filtered through that the committee had voted for the cut there was visible anger.

The Labour Party councillors forced this through with the SNP and Greens opposing. But any opposition by the SNP at council level is totally undermined by the role the party plays in handing on the cuts from Holyrood.

After the lobby the protesters marched under Unison banners to the union offices to discuss where next for the campaign.

The first speaker at the rally was a service user who spoke about how important the service was to him, and what a difference it had made to his life. He spoke of the importance of the support he received and how that enabled him to lead a normal life.

The trade union speakers committed Unison to fighting this decision by any means they could. They spoke of the legal challenges that would be forthcoming, as the union disputes whether the cut is legal.

Brian Smith, Glasgow Unison branch secretary, explained the nature of social work spending, and how every penny spent by social work is statutory, dispelling the myths put forward by the Labour councillors that this is a cut to non-statutory care.

The discussion from the floor was vibrant, with the wider Glasgow care crisis being brought into focus. There was also points made that the care crisis wasn’t confined to Glasgow, and that cuts to social care were happening in all local authorities.

Speakers repeatedly made points on the need for this campaign to apply pressure on Glasgow City Council and to bring pressure to bear at Holyrood. This could inspire other social care projects into struggling against local authority cuts, and would enable the GAMH project to link in with other struggles.

This campaign suffered a setback today, but with the unity that has been built the fight looks far from over.