The commentators 10-07-14...on public sector strikes
Beep for Britain...hoot for the dustmen...and let's hear it loud for the firefighters, the government employees and teachers who are giving up a day's pay to tell the Tories 'Enough is enough'.
Enough of the mean, cruel austerity directed at public service workers. Enough of the pay freezes, job cuts, redundancies, privatisation, attacks on pensions and propaganda against those who work for us. - Paul Routledge, Daily Mirror 
There is always a war of words in politics but what people care about are the facts. On the one hand there is a stunning jobs recovery under way across the UK, with most of these new jobs being created outside London. On the other hand there is a school-shutting strike today with a tiny group of Labour’s paymasters trying to wreck the recovery and harm our children’s education. Consider what is at stake in this battle.
- Grant Shapps, Daily Express
Privatisation isn't working. We were promised a shareholding democracy, competition, falling costs and better services. A generation on, most people's experience has been the opposite. From energy to water, rail to public services, the reality has been private monopolies, perverse subsidies, exorbitant prices, woeful under-investment, profiteering and corporate capture.
- Seumas Milne, The Guardian
I believe there was a Labour Party consensus that the days of the Big State were over. This week, as the arguments about rail renationalisation begin, and the strikes against the Government’s public sector reforms bite, it has become the battleground once again. It’s not a battleground from which the Labour Party will emerge victorious.
- Dan Hodges, Daily Telegraph
The 1970s seem to be back with a vengeance. Public sector unions are on strike and a Tory prime minister vows to curb their power. Meanwhile a powerful union baron is trying to force Ed Miliband to nationalise the railways. Now, hold on, don’t rush off to stockpile food and candles. Union militancy is truly a thing of the past — days lost in strikes have been at record lows for 20 years.
The real Back to the Future moment is the debate in the Labour party about reversing railway privatisation. - John McTernan, The Times 
Vote for your favourite commentators Stevie Spring
The annual Editorial Intelligence comment awards were officially launched yesterday with the announcement of the seventy-strong panel of judges to be led by Stevie Spring, chair of Children in Need.
They include Lorraine Heggessey, Nihal Arthanayake, Karren Brady, Damian Barr, Lynne Franks, Nicky Gavron, Laura Kuenssberg, Adrian Monck and Kirsty Lang. Anyone is invited to nominate their favourite commentators for the awards, which are divided into 16 categories. There is no charge for entry.
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June 13
Iraq June 12 Oxfam, baby buggies June 11 British values June 10 Extremist education June 9 May v Gove 
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