Chilean miners visit gala in UK

TWO of the Chilean miners who survived being trapped underground for more than two months visited a UK miners' gala yesterday.

Carlos Barrios Contrera and Carlos Bugueno Alfara attended the 127th Durham Miners' Gala, which took place in Durham city centre.

Dave Hopper, general secretary of the Durham Miners' Association, said: "These men came through an incredible episode in their lives very successfully. The spirit and the comradeship of the miners underground was typical of miners throughout the world."

Len McCluskey, leader of trade union Unite, told visitors to the event: "The values embodied at the Durham gala of solidarity, community, equality and justice are not museum pieces. They have survived the onslaught of Thatcher and the patronising contempt of New Labour - and they will survive the attacks of the present pantomime-horse coalition because they are rooted in all that is best in our society."

He urged the government to think again about cutting public spending to help solve the financial crisis. "Who says this government has the right to privatise our NHS, to close our libraries and hospitals, to destroy our kids' education and scrap home helps, to make the poorest public servants pay more and work longer for their modest pensions - all to get the big banks back on their feet?"