Letter: Unions and Labour

Sir: Firemen's leader Ken Cameron is right to condemn the Government when it takes backward steps, for example, for rejecting a decent minimum wage and accepting instead the low figure pressed by the employers (report, 14 September). But it is a mistake to suggest the separation of the unions from the Labour Party. This would only intensify new Labour's moves to the right.

It is vital that the unions stick with the Labour Party; this is of mutual benefit. It is the way to progress in both the industrial and political fields, and the two would be far weaker if divided. To avoid this, however, the party leaders must respect the progressive views of members of both on such vital issues as pensions, public ownership, union rights and protecting democracy in the party.