TURKEYS do not normally vote for Christmas. But that is what many did on May 7 2015, when 11 million voters voted Conservative and gave them a majority government. It could also be argued of course that 63 per cent of voters voted against the Conservatives. 

It would appear Britain has returned to a north-south divide, which I am sure will become more divisive over the next five years. The only time the political landscape will alter is when the cuts start hurting in the Tory heartland of south-east England, where even under Thatcher they were cushioned from the pain and devastation that was inflicted on other areas of Britain. 

The poll tax brought down Thatcher after she trialled it in Scotland a year before the rest of Britain. Eventually it hit traditional Tory voters hard in south-east and south-west England before she was dumped and the poll tax was dropped.

The POA is politically neutral, as it recognises its members are from a broad church. As we head into our annual conference this week we have a new Justice Secretary in Michael Gove after his recent appointment by the Prime Minister. The national executive committee will work with anyone in that position and I offer no preconceived judgement on Michael Gove taking up that position. 

We want a constructive relationship with whoever the post-holder is and I am sure over the next five years there will be areas of agreement and disagreement. The most important issue for me is ensuring that there is a properly funded prison service that makes it safe for the public, staff and prisoners. A prison service will only become successful if it is given the correct resources, and we all know that under the last Budget it was not protected. 

There is nothing else to cut, and I reiterate the point that the POA will not allow its members, the public or indeed prisoners to be placed in danger. Not once during the general election campaign did any political party make reference to our prison service, which quite frankly is a disgrace. Many will argue that it isn’t a vote-winner. But our service is at crisis level and, unless it becomes a priority, I fear tragedy is just around the corner. 

It is a scandal that no-one is talking about the prisoner-on-prisoner murders that have taken place over the last year. There have been numerous murders that are now subject to police investigation, but no-one in political parties or indeed the general public seems to care. 

Sometimes society can been measured by how we treat prisoners. Warehousing them without constructive activity is a recipe for disaster. The stress that the modern-day prison officer faces is unprecedented. The violence against them on a daily basis is unacceptable and getting worse.

The POA is not alone in highlighting the crisis that our service is under. Over the last five years Chief Inspector of Prisons Nick Hardwick has echoed many of the concerns that the POA has — as have the Prison Reform Trust, the Howard League and numerous high-profile individuals.

We will be seeking an urgent meeting with Gove to set out our concerns and what we expect to be addressed over the next five years. We are not looking for conflict with any government, but we will have to stand our ground to protect the POA membership. I am looking forward over the coming months to collective bargaining with the prison service employer over a range of issues which include pay, pension age, health and safety and our Operational Support Grades. I look to the Secretary of State to further endorse those negotiations.

Of course we have many different areas within the POA and our members within Ashworth, Broadmoor, Rampton and Carstairs play a vitally important role within those secure hospitals. The disgraceful way in which the government treated them over pay — with the exception of Carstairs as the Scottish government paid them in full — cannot be tolerated. Our members, along with other NHS workers, had to take strike action to get the government back around the table to negotiate a settlement after it reneged on the recommendations of the NHS pay review body.

POA members in Northern Ireland still have their challenges and are constantly under threat, even though a peace agreement was signed many years ago. It is interesting that the media does not report of the threats to our members in Northern Ireland. Once again the challenges fall on the area committee in Northern Ireland to protect its members’ interests with the full support of the national executive committee.

Since May 7 our members in Scotland have moved to a new political world with an SNP landslide at the expense of Labour members of Parliament. One Scottish Labour MP, along with one Liberal Democrat and one Tory. Not a Ukip MP in sight. It is arguable that this was achieved on policies and a manifesto that were anti-austerity — distinctly different from the other parties in Britain, which have become obsessed by an austerity campaign. The POA in Scotland secured a pay rise for its members after balloting for strike action.

An agreement was reached which was overwhelmingly accepted by the membership to resolve that dispute. The Scottish media, aided and abetted by some, tried to dress it up as a no-strike agreement. Let me make it clear — this was not a no-strike agreement. This was a great result to avoid strike action and one that any union in Britain would have shouted from the rooftops. 

Sadly the media used the POA in Scotland as a political football to snipe at the SNP. I think that failed miserably. I look forward to having constructive dialogue with SNP MPs to remind them of their pledges in relation to the pension age so that they can assist us in Westminster to get that debate back on in the House of Commons.

The POA was once totally a public service union. That is no longer the case as we have many members in the private sector, such as at HMP Birmingham, HMP Oakwood and HMP Northumberland, and indeed the immigration services. We will continue to work with their respective employers, G4S and Sodexo. They have nothing to fear from the POA — as long as they treat our members with respect we look forward to having a constructive and professional relationship with them.

The POA, as part of the wider trade union movement, will have challenges over the next five years. The cuts will be brutal and will fall in all parts of society. 

I believe and have always argued that the only way the trade union movement will be successful is by acting together in co-ordinated action when necessary and with co-ordinated campaigns. Don’t underestimate the strength of the trade union movement. 

The last five years of austerity would have been far worse but for our movement. That is why the right-wing media constantly attack us. One of the right-wing papers reported that the Conservatives owe a great debt of gratitude to the media for helping get them elected. I thought it was deplorable when a reporter stated he would rather trust Jimmy Savile than Ed Miliband. That sort of nonsense is disgraceful. Equally disgraceful were daily personal attacks. Who cares about the manner in which someone eats a bacon sandwich? But this was always going to be part of the big business and non-dom campaign to smear, lie and spread fear.

I am not here to defend Ed Miliband or indeed the Labour Party as they were just as guilty in office as the Tories for having policies that relied on PFI and the private sector. Whoever takes over in the Labour Party as leader will have a difficult task of rebuilding. I note the likes of John Reid, Peter Mandelson and others are coming out the woodwork and putting their tuppence worth in. 

My view is they were part of the problem and should shut up and allow the membership of the party to determine their new leader. With another five years of Tory government POA members and their families, along with millions of others, will come under attack from cuts. 

We will have to be strong, brave and resolute in standing up for ourselves. Trade unions, trades councils and community campaigns and action are now more important than ever to stand up to the onslaught that will be coming our way. 

It is vital that we are all up to the challenges ahead.

• Steve Gillan is general secretary of the Prison Officers Association.