News from the NEC
Deadlock Ends 8th July
After more than a month of delay and near silence the PCS President finally met with General Secretary, Fran Heathcote, and a joint statement has now been issued to all members.
This discussion could and should have taken place immediately following the June NEC, avoiding weeks of uncertainty and allowing the union to focus on the business that matters most to members. Instead, valuable time was lost and PCS business unnecessarily held back. The President has now accepted a way forward based on the proposal Fran Heathcote put forward from the outset.
This meant the NEC held an emergency meeting on 7 July and voted to accept Standing Orders. The meeting was followed by the issue of a prepared statement from both Fran and the new President - A message from the PCS General Secretary and National President | Public and Commercial Services Union
However this progress comes at a cost. Despite receiving clear advice from the union's solicitors, the President and Assistant General Secretary have chosen not to accept it. Instead, the President has commissioned independent legal advice, with PCS footing the bill, thereby the cost falling on PCS members.
By agreeing Standing Orders, the position taken by the Democracy Alliance has effectively been vindicated. Yet it is difficult to celebrate what amounts to a pyrrhic victory. Weeks have been wasted, members' hard earned money has been spent, and unnecessary division has distracted the union from its core purpose, all to arrive at a position that was available from the beginning.
Throughout this period those of us committed to democracy have remained focused on what matters most: delivering for our members. PCS Democrats have continued to represent, organise and support members, ensuring it has been business as usual despite the disruption. Our Left Unity colleagues have done the same.
The remaining question is whether the independent legal advice will finally bring this regrettable episode to a close, or whether further time and members' money will be spent pursuing a dispute that could have been resolved weeks ago. Only time will tell.
Why I Joined PCS Democrats
By Tom Wise Public Sector Group Vice President & ONS Branch Chairperson
Joining the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in January 2022, straight after completing my studies, I knew from day one that joining PCS was the right decision. Trade unionism is fundamental to creating workplaces that are safe, fair and respectful, and I wanted to play my part in making that a reality.
After speaking with workplace reps, I was co-opted onto my branch committee in 2023. It opened the door to a whole new side of industrial relations, giving me the opportunity to support members while seeing first-hand the work that goes on behind the scenes to protect their rights. I quickly found my niche in Health and Safety. It was an area that genuinely interested me and one where I could use my analytical skills to identify practical improvements that would make our workplaces safer and better for everyone.
Since those early days, my role has grown considerably. While H&S remains a key area of interest, the natural turnover of reps through retirement and career changes has meant stepping into new responsibilities. I have led the development of a standardised casework triage system for my branch, taken up a seat on our Group Executive Committee (GEC), and supported new reps as they build their confidence and develop the skills needed to represent members effectively.
In 2026, I was fortunate enough to attend both the PCS Group Delegate Conference and Annual Delegate Conference (ADC). I had heard about the scale and significance of ADC, but I arrived with little understanding of the different factions within the union, what they stood for or the role they played. Being there changed that.
PCS is a large and diverse union. Branches, groups and individual members inevitably bring different experiences and perspectives, but our strength comes from finding common ground and working together in the interests of our members. During breaks and quieter moments at conference, I took the opportunity to speak with delegates from across the union. Those conversations were invaluable.
What particularly stood out to me were the delegates involved with the Democracy Alliance, and especially the PCS Democrats. Time and again, I found people whose focus was firmly on listening to members, understanding their priorities and ensuring those voices shaped the decisions being made. That resonated strongly with my own experience of working alongside outstanding Group representatives such as Paula Brown and Jeni Reid. They demonstrated that the best outcomes are achieved when members' interests remain at the heart of everything we do. It was about practical solutions and effective representation, not political point-scoring or outside agendas.
For me, that is one of the real strengths of PCS Democrats. They create opportunities to meet reps and activists you would never otherwise encounter, share experiences, debate ideas constructively and work together to tackle the issues facing members in our workplaces and beyond.
Another thing I came to appreciate at ADC was the value of building relationships between branches. Although we often work in different departments and locations, many of the challenges we face are remarkably similar. I left conference having met some fantastic people and become part of a wider network committed to ensuring that members' voices remain at the centre of every discussion and every decision. After all, they are the people we are elected to represent.
Getting involved in Democrats felt like a significant step, from being one activist in a single branch to becoming part of a wider community of reps who share the same values and commitment to member-led trade unionism. Speaking to PCS Democrats from across the union reinforced that belief. We all want a stronger PCS that is accountable to its members, driven by their priorities and independent of pressure from external political interests.
Some people argue that factions are inherently divisive. My experience has been very different. PCS Democrats provide a space for members and reps who share common values to come together, exchange ideas, support one another and strengthen our union. By keeping members' voices at the heart of everything we do, we can build a PCS that is more united, more effective and better equipped to deliver for the people we represent.
Why the Insourcing Agreement is So Important
In June PCS announced the insourcing of facilities management contracts managed by the Government Property Agency which will bring around 2,000 workers back into the civil service.
This is a significant victory for the General Secretary and PCS. It is not only a win for the PCS members directly affected, but also for the thousands of members across the civil service who can now point to this decision and demand that the government follows suit in their own workplaces.
The government promised the biggest wave of insourcing in a generation. PCS intends to hold ministers to that promise.
For decades, our union has argued that outsourcing the services provided by our members is short-sighted and ultimately fails workers, service users and taxpayers alike. The policy was introduced by Conservative governments in the 1980s, primarily as a means of reducing the number of civil servants. It was justified on the basis that private sector competition would drive down costs and improve efficiency. Yet successive governments, including New Labour continued to expand outsourcing, transferring billions of pounds worth of public services into private hands.
Today, private companies are deeply embedded across the public sector. Prisons are run by private contractors. Local authorities outsource everything from housing benefits and revenue services to street cleaning and school support functions. Across government, major IT and administrative contracts are routinely awarded to private firms.
The reality of outsourcing is very different from the promises made on its behalf. Every pound spent on a contract is expected to generate a return for shareholders. That means money that could be invested in services, infrastructure and staff is instead diverted into profits. Workers face downward pressure on pay and conditions, while public services often suffer from underinvestment and declining quality.
There is also growing concern about the role of private equity in the delivery of essential services. Private equity firms frequently acquire independent businesses using large amounts of borrowed money. That debt is then transferred onto the company itself. If the business succeeds, investors take the profits. If it struggles, the company is left carrying the burden and can collapse under the weight of its debts.
We have seen the consequences of this model in sectors such as childcare and social care. When businesses fail, parents can lose access to childcare, vulnerable older people can lose vital care services, and workers can lose their livelihoods.
The problems associated with outsourcing are also evident in civil service pensions and payroll administration. Capita, one of the UK's largest outsourcing companies, has a long history of delivering public sector contracts. Yet it lost the Royal Mail pension contract this year and has faced repeated criticism over its performance on a number of major government contracts, including NHS England's Primary Care Support Services, the Ministry of Defence's Army Recruitment Partnership, and administration of firefighters' pensions.
PCS has consistently campaigned for pension and payroll services to be brought back in-house. Members have experienced problems with pension administration for years, yet despite this record the government awarded Capita the new Synergy payroll contract in March.
That decision is wrong.
It is bad for our members and their families. It is bad for the public services they support. And it represents poor value for taxpayers' money.
Public services should be run in the public interest, not for private profit. This victory demonstrates that change is possible, but there is much more to do. PCS Democrats will continue to campaign for insourcing, accountability and high-quality public services delivered by directly employed staff.
The government has made a commitment to bring work back in-house. It is now time to deliver on that commitment.
News from the 11th June NEC Meeting
By Jackie Green, PCS National Vice President
I was deeply saddened by the events at the National Executive Committee meeting on 11 June, which prompted a response from PCS General Secretary Fran Heathcote, as outlined in Branch Briefing BB-40-26 on PCS Digital.
I am a PCS Democrat, but I have always advocated working collaboratively with colleagues from other groupings within PCS. I never thought I would witness the behaviour displayed by the new President and her Coalition colleagues, who, in my view, broke the rules of our union. This led me to challenge their actions during the meeting.
PCS is a democratic organisation. We are governed by rules agreed by the membership. Those rules are not there for convenience, they exist to protect both our members and the union itself. Principle Rule 1(a) states that:
"The Union's objects shall be: to protect and promote the interests of its members."
This principle has served us well for many years.
No individual grouping should be allowed to ignore or override the union's rules without challenge simply because they disagree with them, as happened at the NEC meeting. The consequences of the President's actions are serious, leaving PCS in the unprecedented position of having no functioning NEC.
That is why the General Secretary has had to issue a statement, and why PCS Democrats support the swift action she has taken. I know that rules and procedures are not the most exciting subjects for most members, but rules matter. They underpin PCS democracy and help protect the staff employed by PCS.
Fran has shown strong and principled leadership throughout the past two years, and particularly during this recent difficult period.
To every member reading this, please be reassured that our commitment to you remains unwavering. We will still be there to support you in your workplace and negotiate on local issues whilst this situation unfolds.
PCS belongs to its members, democracy is its cornerstone, and we will continue to act with integrity and defend both.
News from the May NEC Meeting
Why Strategy Must Match Reality
At the PCS National Executive Committee (NEC) emergency meeting held on 29 May, few would dispute the central issue facing members is pay. After years of erosion in living standards, a 3.5% remit figure, although one of the highest across the public sector, is still widely recognised as insufficient. PCS Democrats share that assessment. The desire for more is not controversial, it is universal across the union.
However, recognising that members deserve better pay is only the starting point. The real test is whether the union adopts an industrial strategy capable of delivering that outcome. It is here that serious concerns emerge about the direction proposed at the meeting.
Ambition Without a Plan
The motion considered by the NEC, and, Annual Delegate Conference Motion A375 seek to rapidly coordinate a national dispute across a Civil Service landscape that is anything but unified. Bargaining structures differ from department to department, employer to employer. Readiness for industrial action is uneven. Crucially, member sentiment is not consistent across the union.
Attempting to align all of this within a matter of weeks is not a coherent strategy - it is an unrealistic timetable. And, no mention is made of plans to renew Fighting Fund/levy arrangements to support any national campaign action.
PCS Democrats warned that instructing the General Secretary and National Officers to orchestrate such rapid coordination risks creating expectations that cannot be met. A timetable for escalation does not, in itself constitute a plan for winning. Without the necessary groundwork, it becomes performative rather than effective.
The Reality in Departments
The motion suggests delaying pay negotiations to create a unified front, the practical reality is far more complex. In major departments such as HMRC, the DWP, and the Ministry of Justice, other unions are not aligned with this approach. In some NDPBs Prospect is the larger union so will be unlikely to wait for PCS to take a seat at the table. PCS cannot act in isolation without weakening its position, and risking empty seats at the negotiating table.
Furthermore, feedback from members in these areas indicates a more cautious mood. Many see the current figure, while inadequate, as a step forward compared to recent years. That sentiment cannot simply be overridden by national instruction. Industrial strength must be built, it cannot be declared.
Capacity and Credibility
Another critical issue raised concerns capacity. The motion places an extensive series of demands on already overstretched representatives and branches. Across the union negotiations are already scheduled or ongoing; local disputes and restructuring programmes are active; staffing pressures are intensifying and, facility time remains limited as improvements won are yet to be solidified.
Layering additional requirements such as emergency meetings, national coordination forums, training structures, and dispute preparations within tight deadlines risks overwhelming the very structures needed to deliver them.
The problem is not a lack of commitment. It is a lack of honest assessment about what is operationally achievable.
Organisation, Not Just Activism
PCS Democrats also highlighted a deeper concern: the risk of confusing activity with organisation. A strong industrial campaign is not built through directives alone. It requires:
- Persuading members
- Building confidence and trust
- Increasing workplace density
- Strengthening local organisation
- Supporting Reps on the ground
- Preparing members for escalation
These processes take time. They rely on engagement, not instruction. A further NEC meeting is planned for early June. We will have to see if the new Coalition led NEC is prepared to listen and and address these valid issues.
Tackling Division
Populism is on the rise
Many of us in PCS are wondering about how to tackle the far right, and worrying about the increasing division in society, and sometimes in our own workplaces.
As Reps we see first hand the impact low pay can have. PCS prides itself on being a member led union that stands up for members and the most vulnerable in society. To that end we've been thinking about how to respond when faced with peoples real concerns about their future.
We live in a society based on the notion that capitalism (a system where the majority work, earn wages and pay taxes) will redistribute wealth and create systems and institutions (the NHS, schools, H&S, provision of safe water, the army, policing etc.) so that we all can live comfortable, safe and healthy lives.
Inevitably some fair better under capitalism than others. Those who own the companies, the means of production, are the ones the fruit of the majority's labour goes to. So we see some people earning vast amounts of money. But, there is the hope that we can earn more by some stroke of fortune or ingenuity, setting up our own company, earning millions and join the elite.
That system requires the majority buy in to it. But what happens when the poorest start to face hardship? Such as those triggered by the cost of living crisis of 2007/8 where the failure of big banks almost broke western economies, and that no one was ever really held to account for. Well people start looking for who is to blame and for ways to alleviate their situation.
In the West that has taken shape in an increase in populism: a political ideology that divides society into two antagonistic camps, "the pure people" versus "the corrupt elite". Populism champions ordinary citizens against established, often liberal-democratic, institutions, claiming to represent the "general will". Populism is not inherently left or right, but rather an approach used to challenge established power.
In the UK we have seen political figures rise up promising an overhaul of the system in order to set things right and improve the lot of the “pure" people. Reform for example, or Trumpism in the USA. These movements promise change and offer up immigrants as the ones to blame, or, “the Left” elite for enabling woke nonsense that puts “pure" people’s rights to one side.
The problem is populists tend to use language associated with racism and violence, and tend to argue for reforms to curb current legal rights and freedoms - all of our freedoms. And, they tend to set people against each other based on ethnicity. This all leads to the us and them we currently see where ordinary people look at immigrants and want them out. This was visibly demonstrated in the Southport riot and the battle for St Lukes Bridge in the summer of 2024, which was then repeated across the country.
Some parties have said if they get into power they will slash wealth tax, privatise parts of the NHS, cut the size of Government, increase police presence, scrap net zero targets and stop the boats. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has said these plans are highly ambitious and will require substantial cuts to public services, to our jobs. Services we already feel are at breaking point.
We do not have all the answers. But we do think you can make a start by challenging the wealthiest in society who do not pay their fair share of taxes. Because the root cause of the situation we are now in is the failure of capitalism to redistribute wealth more equally, and we worry about where the language of division is taking us.
Change starts with small steps. So if there is one thing you can do it's speak up. Make your voice heard whenever you see the language of division.
National Elections 2026
Down but not out! PCS Democrats want to say thank you for voting for our candidates in the national elections. Whilst not all Democrats candidates were elected to the National Exective Committee, along with the Left Unity colleagues who were, we are determined to hold the incoming NEC to account and stop them reversing the positive changes we have made over the last 12 months.
We achieved some big wins last year – not least a new Facility Time Framework that will pave the way for more flexibility for Reps, who can now use that to campaign and negotiate wins for our members. And PCS is on a sound financial footing, with membership on the increase.
The good news is that all PCS Democrat candidates who stood in Group elections were elected. That means we will continue to represent you – the members. We are not influenced by political dogma or political paymasters unlike other groupings in PCS. We value our political independence and that allows us to listen to members before deciding on policy.
The sad news is however that turnout was at an all time low. 2024 saw 14,382 members voting, which represented 8.6% of members. In this years elections that had fallen to 10,631 valid votes, representing 6.4% of members. 156 more votes each would have seen all our candiates elected to the NEC. So whilst other groupings may infer a resounding victory for their strategy over the national campaign, in fact, voter apathy is the problem we all must tackle in the next few months.
Traditional methods of reaching members by using leafelts around election time and occasional posts on social media no longer cut it. We would be intersted to hear your views about what else we can do.