Scottish Television News
At the Scottish Socialist Party conference in Edinburgh, leader Tommy Sheridan has called on the president of the council organisation COSLA to resign for his disgraceful handling of the nursery nurses strike.
Mr Sheridan also told the 400 delegates that the Prime Minister Tony Blair ' was a deceitful liar' over the war in Iraq. Tommy Sheridan gave a passionate show of support for the striking nursery nurses and called for the resignation of the man in charge of the council umbrella organisation COSLA who is refusing to settle the dispute on a national basis.
He stated: "He calls on the one hand for national pay for councillors of £25,000 a year but he is not prepared to support national pay for nursery nurses of even £14,000 a year. It is time for Pat Watters to resign."
Tommy Sheridan also attacked the STUC: "Four weeks of all out strike action. Why has there not been a national demonstration in support of the nursery nurses. That is what we should be saying."
Finally, Mr Sheridan launched an attack on the Prime Minister, Tony Blair on the war on Iraq: "He is a deceitful liar. There is no doubt about that."
And Mr Sheridan, bouyed by the RMT union transferring its affilitation from Labour to the SSP asked other unions to do the same: "The message to the other trade unions brothers and sisters is please consider the warm welcome, the open arms, the solidarity you will get if you join up with this party."
Tommy Sheridan gave a barnstorming speech which delighted delegates. There were twice as many people here to listen to the Socialist leader speak than there was yesterday in Dundee to listen to the Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy.

Scottish Television News
Scottish Socialist Leader Tommy Sheridan is making his key note speech at the party's annual conference in Edinburgh.
Mr Sheridan pledged to continue the fight against poverty and the council tax. Delegates include members of the UK's biggest rail union the RMT which recently broke it's links with the Labour party. Supporters also debated the party's European manifesto ahead of the forthcoming elections

Daily Record
STRIKING nursery nurses took their battle for better pay to Jack McConnell's doorstep yesterday.
More than 100 staff from North Lanarkshire Council nurseries protested outside the First Minister's constituency office for more than two hours.
McConnell was holding his weekly surgery inside the office in Wishaw as demonstrators brought traffic on the Main Street to a standstill.

Scottish Socialist Party MSP for Central Scotland Carolyn Leckie joined last night's tea-time demonstration.
She said: 'It's encouraging to see so much support this far down the line.
People normally have better things to do on a Friday night so it just shows how determined the girls are.
This strike is unique and certainly the first one I've come across in which both the employers and the Government can say that the case is just.
'No one has said the demands of the nursery nurses are unreasonable, no one has said they are being greedy.
'So why not give them what they're asking for?'

Daily Record: SACK CALL IN NURSERY STRIKE ROW

NURSERY nurses have been sold out by local authority boss Pat Watters and he must resign, an MSP said yesterday.
Scottish Socialist MSP Frances Curran has tabled a no confidence motion in Watters, president of the council's body COSLA.
She said yesterday: 'I have talked to nursery nurses and the overwhelming opinion is Pat Watters has sold them out.
'He has failed in his duty to provide for the under-fives and he should make way now for someone who will.'
Curran's call came as COSLA and the striking nurses' union Unison clashed again in the bitter pay dispute.

Motion to Scottish Parliament
*S2M-1110# Frances Curran: President of COSLA Should Resign—That the Parliament has no confidence in the president of COSLA, Pat Watters, and considers that his refusal to negotiate a national pay and careers structure with the nursery nurses’ union UNISON has provoked a national strike, now in its fourth week; believes that, as the leader of local authorities in Scotland who deliver the age three to five curriculum, Mr Watters has responsibility for ensuring excellent standards in our pre-five sector for both children and staff, and believes that Mr Watters has failed in this responsibility and should tender his resignation.

BBC: MSPs approve PR election move

The Scottish Parliament has voted in principle for the introduction of proportional representation (PR) for local government...

An amendment in the name of Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan, which called on the parliament to support between three to five councillors per ward, was defeated by 83 votes to 36...

Mr Sheridan said: "Here we have Labour MSPs who are threatening to break the whip in an attempt to keep their local councillor pals in a job and yet they dutifully toed the line when they were told not to vote for a national, just, settlement for the nursery nurses two weeks ago."

YOUTH HIT BACK IN PROTEST

WISHAW youth took to the streets on Saturday to highlight their campaign for a skateboard facility.

Around 50 young people took part in the protest, organised by the Scottish Socialist Party.

Donnie Nicolson, national youth organiser for the SSP, claimed that recent anti-social behaviour displayed by teenagers in the area stemmed from a chronic lack of youth facilities in Wishaw, coupled with the generally grim employment prospects facing young people.

Donnie said: “It is clear that what is needed is not electronic tags for 12-year-olds and stricter punishments, but real investment in our communities.

“Having had several meetings with local young people, I have learned that there is a strong desire for better facilities, including a skatepark and youth centre but very little enthusiasm from the local authorities when contacted about this.”

BBC: Peace march marks Iraq anniversary

Hundreds of people have joined a peace march in the centre of Glasgow to mark the first anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq.

Police estimated that between 500 and 600 took part in the protest.

The event, organised by the Scottish Coalition for Justice not War, was part of an international day of action.

Scottish Socialist Party leader Tommy Sheridan said there had been a "fantastic" turnout despite the heavy rain.



He said those who opposed the war were "100% right" while UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W Bush were wrong.

"They have delivered a world that is less secure now than one year ago," he said.

"We are determined, throughout the world, to bring a new peace in place of the destruction and hate that emanates from Bush and Blair.

"This war was not about weapons of mass destruction, this war was not about Saddam Hussein.

"This war was about dividing up the world in the interests of the US and making sure they had another cheap source of oil."