Interesting piece on local TV News tonight. John O’Dowd, Sinn Féin Minister for Education is imposing cuts of 5% (the prediction had been 3% ) on School Budgets. This will lead to pooorer services and of course unemployment for teachers and other school staff.

Oddly John O’Dowd voted for budget cuts in the Executive………but……..claims to be supporting the public sector workers, who are taking part in a one day strike on Wednesday. This might be interpreted as “having his cake and eating it” but I prefer the Belfast saying “he has more faces than the Albert Clock”.

Tonights news report featured Gerry Murphy, Secretary of the (trade union) Irish National Teachers Organisation and Paul Barry, Head Teacher of La Salle School in West Belfast. When I was a young man, many teachers were rank and file members of SDLP. The fact that the SDLP NEEDS members and Teachers NEED political influence with those supportive of them should be an incentive to BOTH.