New RMT president, Sean Hoyle, speaks to the Socialist
Interview with new RMT president
Sean Hoyle, seafarer and Portsmouth RMT member and TUSC supporter, has been elected national President of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union RMT. He spoke to the Socialist – the paper of the Socialist Party England and Wales – about his victory.
What are the main tasks facing the RMT?
The Anti-Trade Union Bill is unfair, how can we respect the law of the land when it’s one law for politicians and one law for the rest of us? As part of the TUCG [trade union coordinating group] we will be voicing our support for coordinated strike action by all trade unions to defend our rights at work.
Across our membership we are under attack. 20,000 jobs are under threat from the McNulty report, commissioned by right-wing Labour and implemented by the Tories, to get rid of the guard on every train and undermine passenger safety.
Similarly on the London Underground, where a passenger was stabbed in Leytonstone this week, half the staff face redundancy.
At sea we face low pay and deregulation, on the buses cuts to subsidies and services and offshore in the oil industry massive job losses and attacks on terms and conditions. Offshore workers currently do two weeks on, three weeks off but now face an increase to three and three which we oppose.
What is your view towards the election of Jeremy Corbyn?
We backed Jeremy Corbyn’s election campaign but we need a socialist front bench alongside him and John McDonnell. That won’t come by appeasing the right wing and giving the floor to Hilary Benn and those who voted for war.
I have spoken out against the bombing of Syria and the suffering it will mean. We didn’t leave the Labour Party, the Labour Party left us. Bring back Clause 4, welcome all back into the party, we would support that tomorrow.
Labour councils must oppose all Tory cuts, if you want to carry through cuts, you are no friend of ours.
We continue to give support to the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition and to anti-cuts councillors like Kevin Bennett in Warrington, Keith Morrell and Don Thomas in Southampton, who back RMT policy.
The debate will continue at our AGM next year.
What would you like to say to your supporters who helped with your campaign?
That the socialist left in the RMT is alive and well to continue the work of outgoing president, Peter Pinkney.
