Resources

In September 2025, the largest far-right gathering in Britain in living memory marched through London, while anti-asylum protests have spread throughout the country. The Labour government has recklessly fanned the flames - joining in on transphobic, xenophobic and racist rhetoric.

A Reform-led government would likely mean an unprecedented assault on working conditions and living standards – draconian clampdowns on the right to organise in unions, the end to any pretence at seeking equality of opportunity and outcomes and cuts to our jobs, pay and benefits.

In the face of this threat, trade unions will become critical as workers self-defence organisations. Over the past two decades, however, anti-far right activity has been outsourced to external groups that by their nature and size are not able to offer structural responses to the far right’s rise or to provide the necessary stewarding to keep demonstrators safe. 

We believe that the TUC and union leaderships should be leading antifascist activity. We must therefore support rank-and-file efforts by trade unionists in both self-organising and pushing the TUC to action, and support becoming active participants in this struggle ourselves. This will include not only mobilising for counter-demonstrations, but actively fighting the political arguments in our workplaces as trade unions, and pushing our national leaderships to action through democratic and external pressure. Trade Unions Fighting the Far Right was set up in 2026 by rank-and-file trade unionists to coordinate driving this forward.

We must present an alternative not just to the existing anti-fascist movement, but to fascism itself. Our campaign material should present a socialist response based on workers’ unity across racial and national lines, for jobs, homes, and healthcare, while refusing to give an inch to prejudice - against migrants, trans people, or any minority.

The branch therefore resolves to:

1. Conduct or cohost an educational series on opposing far right politics, including practical steps for members to support and build anti-far right campaigns in their local areas and providing campaign materials;

2. Encourage affiliation to Trades Councils, mandating delegates to submit motions calling for local worker-led antifascist organising;

3. [For Public Sector employers] develop a ‘Day 1’ strategy for a Reform-led Department, to be presented for vote at a members meeting or the next AGM;

4. Identify and support any members affected by new visa restrictions, backing anti-deportation campaigns;

5. Mobilise for upcoming far right counter demonstrations in trade union blocs, recruiting stewards, offering protest and ‘know your rights’ guidance and training;

6. Become active participants in regional or national grassroots anti-far right trade union initiatives, including but not limited to joining the Trade Unions Fighting the Far Right network, attending its meetings, and contributing to and promoting its activities;

7. Support calls for trade unions to lead antifascist mobilisations, and organise democratically within our union for this purpose;

8. Commit up to £[500] per year to fund the above activities.

Conference strongly condemns:

• The fascist-led riots and attempted pogroms in August 2024 across the UK, the attempted pogrom in Ballymena in June 2025, the Tommy Robinson-led violent protest of 150,000 people on 13 September 2025, and the broader increase in racist and nationalist views, street activity, and harassment.

• The far-right rhetoric and far-right policies of this Labour Government.

• The increasing popularity of Reform and their victories in the 2025 local government elections.

Conference notes:

• Our union’s existing anti-racist and anti-fascist strategy.

• The anti-fascist mobilisation of [this union’s] members across the UK, including attending counter-demos and defending migrants housed in hotels.

• The failure of unions to consistently and effectively mobilise against the far right, exemplified by the far smaller counter demonstration on 13 September 2025.

Conference believes:

• An injury to one is an injury to all. We must resist the far right and any attempts to divide marginalised people, whether in our government or other governments, political parties, our workplaces, our union, our communities, or in the streets.

• We must both mobilise to counter far right, fascist, and nationalist activity and do the longer-term proactive work of anti-fascist organisation and education, offering a political alternative to rightwing politics. 

• Top-down approaches, outsourcing our anti-fascist and anti-racist work, and relying on words alone are ineffective. Instead, we should embrace rank-and-file organising within our own union and foster practical solidarity through our activities to mount an effective counter to fascism and racism.

• Unity marches are not, by themselves, an effective counter and there is not an ‘anti-racist majority’ that we can magically mobilise. We must instead commit to the hard work of organising and we should be clear-eyed in assessing our failures or gaps. 

• Branches, regional committees, and trades councils are essential tools in facilitating anti-fascist mobilisation, organising, and education within members.

 Conference instructs the NEC to:

• Facilitate the delivery of in-house stewarding training for reps to develop stewards from within [our union].

• Facilitate the delivery of ‘know your rights’ training and guidance to reps, equipping them to cascade this to wider membership.

• Produce and distribute literature in [our union’s] own name which makes the political case against Reform and the far right including topics such as: debunking far right myths about migration; materially linking equality and liberatory struggles with wider workers’ struggles and history; challenging climate change denial; and building working class solidarity and industrial power.

• Support branches, groups, and regional committees to host anti-fascist political education sessions, co-developing these with the reps and members in those areas. 

• Support and foster regional, rank-and-file led anti-far right initiatives and networks, including working with branches and regional committees to promote worker-led anti-far right organising through trades councils.

• Enable branches and regional committees to map their local areas to develop better communication and transport networks and use phone-banking systems for anti-fascist mobilisations.

• Submit a motion to TUC 2026, calling on it to take the lead in organising and mobilising for counter-demonstrations against the far right, rather than relying on external organisations.

In September 2025, the largest far-right gathering in Britain in living memory marched through London, while anti-asylum protests have spread throughout the country.

A Reform-led government would likely mean an unprecedented assault on working conditions and living standards – draconian clampdowns on the right to organise in unions, the end to any pretence at seeking equality of opportunity and outcomes and cuts to our jobs, pay and benefits.

In the face of this threat, trade unions will become critical as workers self-defence organisations. Over the past two decades, however, anti-far right activity has been outsourced to external groups that by their nature and size are not able to offer structural responses to the far right’s rise or to provide the necessary stewarding to keep demonstrators safe. 

We believe that the TUC and union leaderships should be leading antifascist activity nationally, with trades councils leading the struggle on a local and regional level. We must therefore support rank-and-file efforts by trade unionists in both self-organising and pushing the TUC to action, and support becoming active participants ourselves. This will include not only mobilising for counter-demonstrations, but actively fighting the political arguments in our workplaces as trade unions, and pushing our national leaderships to action through democratic and external pressure. Trade Unions Fighting the Far Right was set up in 2026 by rank-and-file trade unionists to coordinate driving this forward.

We must present an alternative not just to the existing anti-fascist movement, but to fascism itself. Our campaign material should present a socialist response based on workers’ unity across racial and national lines, for jobs, homes, and healthcare, while refusing to give an inch to prejudice - against migrants, trans people, or any minority.

The branch therefore resolves to:

1. Call a meeting of trade unions, tenant’s unions, residents and other organisations to set up a network for coordinating local anti-far right activity;

2. Produce campaign material under the name of the trades council, and where possible affiliated union branches, to agitate on a socialist basis against the politics of the far right;

3. Reach out to local migrants’ organisations to promote unionisation;

4. Mobilise for upcoming far right counter demonstrations in trade union blocs, recruiting stewards, offering protest and ‘know your rights’ guidance and training - including for the upcoming Tommy Robinson demonstration on May 16th;

5. Become active participants in regional or national grassroots anti-far right trade union initiatives, including but not limited to joining the Trade Unions Fighting the Far Right network, attending its meetings, and contributing to and promoting its activities;

6. Commit up to £[500] per year to fund the above activities.

The branch notes:

1. On May 16, Tommy Robinson has called another far-right rally in central London. This may be as large or even larger than the 100,000-150,000 who marched in September 2025. The police have banned the Nakba demonstration from its preferred route, granting it to the far right instead. Currently, there has been no counterdemonstration called to directly challenge Robinson. 

2. A group of rank-and-file trade unionists in the Trade Unions Fighting the Far Right network (TUFF) have called for a trade union mobilisation against Tommy Robinson on 16 May, meeting at 10:30 in Trafalgar Square. They are calling for as many local branches, trades councils and tenants unions to back and mobilise for the demo as possible and will also call on the national leaderships of all trade unions to back the call. Details are in flux and will be finalised by participating union branches and activists over the coming weeks.

The branch believes:

1. The police repression of the Nakba Day demonstration, and favouring of the far right, must be condemned.

2. If the far right continues to grow – and gain power – the UK will abandon even the minimal expressions of support it has made for the rights of Palestinians. Racism will increase and state repression will intensify. The far right will roll back workers’ rights and attack our right to organise.

3. Trade unions must lead, as they have in the past, to defeat the far right.

4. Robinson cannot be allowed to march through central London without a counterpresence. There is limited time and mobilisation has to begin immediately.

The branch resolves:

1. To back the TUFF call for a trade union counter presence against Tommy Robinson.

2. To become involved in the planning to finalise details, attending TUFF-organised coordination meetings where possible.

3. To organise a delegation for the counterdemonstration, leafleting our membership, producing banners/placards, identifying stewards and circulating ‘know your rights’ information.