51³Ô¹Ï

This settlement is regarded as a sellout and a betrayal by those of us who fought long and hard on the ground. We are not radical "spartists". We are experienced academics with a knowledge of both university and AUT history in these matters. The settlement will be voted down and the negotiators will be voted out.

In the meantime, we go back to marking and will bide our time. Many of us will leave the union. Some of us will vote for David Cameron's agenda for professionals, if only as a means of skewering Tony Blair and all his Thatcherite works. Watch this space.

M. J. N. McDonagh

Birmingham University