On Wednesday morning national president Janice Godrich opened the 2009 annual delegates conference. She started by reminding delegates that we were meeting against the background of the worst economic crisis in living memory and that 11 million adults are now living below the breadline. She went on to say how this was affecting people with rising unemployment, bankruptcies, poverty and house possessions.

Following the opening speech, general secretary Mark Serwotka presented the annual report.  He stressed the importance of the Make Your Vote Count Campaign (MYVC), which encourages members to  find out their local election candidates views on public services.  By getting involved in this way it is hoped that more people will be encouraged to vote and become part of the election process.  He went on to say that the divide was not between private and public but betwee the haves and have nots and concluded by saying:

“I’m proud to be general secretary of this union because I think we get our priorities right. Let’s unite with other people in this country. The alternative is a decade of despair, where we offer a decade of hope.”

The first section of motions all related to the social and economic recession and how PCS members resolved to tackle these issues. The motions sought to provide better public services, regenerate the economy, defend the public sector and ensure that ordinary people don’t bear the brunt of the recession which is not of their making.

The Speeches can be viewed below, the video play time of the speech by Janice is 11 mins 57 secs and the one by Mark 31 mins 58 secs.