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.