Defend philosophy at Middlesex University! Defend Barnet College jobs! Fight for education!

Middlesex University decided recently to axe its philosophy department. I don't know the ins and outs, but I understand it is a highly regarded department. The reasons for axing it probably boil down to cost-cutting. There will be a lot more of this in the coming months.

Some of the students had arranged this morning to meet the Dean to discuss this, but he did not turn up! They are "waiting for him" in his office at the Trent Park campus right now.

Visit the campaign website: http://savemdxphil.wordpress.com.

The students have also planned a demonstration tomorrow, Wednesday 5 May, at the Hendon campus. They are meeting at 9.30am at Hendon Central tube and demonstrating at the campus from 9.45am. It is an essay handing in day so there should be plenty of students about. If you are able to get along, please go.

And tomorrow, Wednesday 5 May, 11 London FE colleges - Barnet College among them - and four universities have strikes organised by the University and College Union, against cuts that could result in thousands of lecturers' jobs being cut and mean tens of thousands fewer college places for students.

Please support these strikes. There will be a central London UCU demonstration on Wednesday, assembling at 1pm at King's College on the Strand and marching to Parliament Square for 2.30pm.

Barnet College - tonight's meeting cancelled

The public meeting about planned cuts at Barnet College scheduled for this evening has been cancelled. See the notice on the college website front page.

What a shame. I hope that there will still be some campaign around this. I'll share any news I get.

A week of action for Barnet trades council

An astonishing range of activities this week (commencing Saturday). Barnet trades council's diary is pasted below to give a sense of what we have done already and will be doing for the rest of this week. Please join us if you can!

20-22 March. BA cabin crew strikes. Picket line visits.

Saturday 20 March. Demonstration against the far-right English Defence League in Bolton.

Saturday 20 March. Demonstration against college cuts organised by the lecturers' union UCU. (Picture below courtesy of Barnet Unison.)

Monday 22 March. Demonstration to support sheltered housing wardens, central London, assemble: noon, Parliament Square; at 1pm we will deliver letters to the main party leaders. Barnet residents of sheltered housing schemes are central to organising this event.

Tuesday 23 March. Staff and public meeting against planned cuts at Barnet College. 5.30pm, Building 3, North London Business Park. More information: 020 8200 8300. This meeting has been cancelled, alas.

Wednesday 24 March. Budget day strike by civil servants in the PCS union, as part of their campaign to defend their redundancy scheme. Information about picket lines and strike support will be posted on the Barnet TUC website.

Thursday 25 March. Barnet TUC AGM, 7-9pm, Council Chamber, Hendon Town Hall, the Burroughs, London NW4 4BG. All welcome, including trade unionists and local campigning groups.

27-30 March. BA cabin crew strikes. Picket line visits.