Left Archive: NIPSA General Secretary election leaflet c2007? July 25, 2022
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Many thanks to the person who forwarded this to the Archive.
As noted previously the Archive is keen to expand its collection of documents relating to trade union campaigns and activism.
This is a leaflet from the election for General Secretary of NIPSA, the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance. As wiki notes:
The Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance (NIPSA) is a trade union in Northern Ireland affiliated to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. It is the largest trade union in Northern Ireland, with around 46,000 members, and is organised into two groups, the Civil Service Group, for the staff of public bodies employed on civil service terms and conditions, and the Public Officers Group, for employees of education and library boards, health and social services boards, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, district councils, other public bodies and voluntary organisations.
Carmel Gates ran for General Secretary in 2007 and more recently was elected to that position. The Time for Change group was a ‘campaigning group fo NIPSA activists who want to build NIPSA into a fighting democratic union’. We’d appreciate any further information on the timeline of this.
Interestingly Carmel Gates won election as General Secretary of NIPSA last year. She is a supporter of Militant Left (CWI in Ireland).
The Cedar Lounge Revolution 
Carmel Gates was not General Secretary in the early 2000s as claimed above. She stood unsuccessfully for election for the first time in 2007. She was successful at her second attempt in 2021, despite gaining only a minority of total votes cast. “ Time for Change” was a Trotskyist front group, which from time to time changed its name to “Nipsa Broad Left”, set up and controlled by Ms Gates and other members of the Socialist Party, formerly known as Militant Tendency. Ms Gates campaigned on the Socialist Party policy that senior officials should take only a “ worker’s wage” but has gone silent on this pledge since election.
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Thanks for the clarification, the post has been amended to reflect she wasn’t General Secretary in the early 2000s.
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