While the Tory government descends ever further into chaos, our own Labour Party National Executive this week prioritised refusing to support the proposal that Labour MP, Jeremy Corbyn, should be readmitted to the Parliamentary Labour Party and also ag…Read more…

Contrary to what you might think from watching the television news or listening to the UK government, Ukraine in 2021 is neither Belgium in 1914 nor Poland in 1939. Nothing like a bit of a scare to distract attention from problems at home…I don’t often…Read more…

 In the spring of 2020, as I blogged is here at the time, my father died.We had his funeral, such as it was, on the 19th of May 2020.
A dozen of us were allowed to be there. We couldn’t have a wake. 
Not everyone who should’ve been there to c…Read more…

I have been letting down regular readers of this blog (Sid and Doris blogger) because on top of my other health problems I have serious problem with my shoulder and can’t use the keyboard.However, I have now discovered how to use the dictation software…Read more…

I was pleased to read the opinion of Lord Henry QC on the propriety of motions discussed at the last meeting of the UNISON National Executive Council (NEC) (available online here).
The Presidential Team of the Union, on behalf of the NEC, have sought t…Read more…

It is not often that Brighton and Hove gets a mention on the national evening news, but this evening – as industrial action (now set to escalate) by GMB members in refuse collection enters its second week we were mentioned by the BBC.It’s not difficult…Read more…

Labour’s leader has chosen to take the tired old path of demonstrating his leadership credentials by picking a fight with the left of the Party at this year’s Conference. One part of this project is a proposal to change the system for electing Party Le…Read more…

Paul Holmes is one of the most dedicated – and decent – trade unionists I have ever met. He is the long standing Branch Secretary of one of UNISON’s largest branches ( Kirklees large by virtue of a high UNISON density rather than the size of th…Read more…

Whilst I was away for a few days I missed (for the first time in a couple of years) a meeting of the General Committee of Brighton Pavilion Constituency Labour Party (CLP), of which I am proud to be Chair. I was also proud to hear that our GC expressed…Read more…

For anyone associated with Lambeth Council (by whom I was employed for 33 years from 1987 onwards) yesterday’s publication of the report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse is a significant moment. The report sets out a litany of the mos…Read more…

I have been blogging here for fifteen years now and (without checking back) I think I can fairly safely say that I have never blogged anything that was – even tangentially – about football.I don’t really follow football, any more than I follow any othe…Read more…

Having recently blogged about several of the Committees of the UNISON National Executive Council (NEC) – from the jaundiced perspective of a longstanding NEC member who was carefully kept away from almost all Committees during my fourteen years – it’s …Read more…

If you’re reading this blog you may have wondered how often it happens to me that someone accosts me in the street and asks me what I think about the Policy Committee of the UNISON National Executive Committee (NEC). I am pleased to be able to put your…Read more…

Since I seem to have taken to blogging about the various Committees of the UNISON National Executive Council (NEC) I think it only right that I should turn my attention to the one Committee on which I served for fourteen years – the Development and Org…Read more…

UNISON has announced the election of a Presidential team for 2021/22. The first job of the Presidential team is to make some recommendations to the NEC (to be endorsed at its next meeting)(which should be very soon) for the composition of the various C…Read more…

Regular readers of this blog (Sid and Doris UNISON-Centre) sometimes wonder which of UNISON’s many Rules are most interesting and important.
UNISON Rule D.2.12 is one of the most important rules in the UNISON Rule Book. It deals with the employment of …Read more…

Sometime soon the newly elected UNISON National Executive Council (NEC) will meet to allocate its members to its various Committees. Most of the NEC’s Committees exist pursuant to the right of the NEC – under Rule D.2.9 “to appoint such Committees from…Read more…

I was very pleased to hear that the newly elected UNISON National Executive Council started today as (I hope) they mean to go on, by electing a new Presidential Team.This blog exists, however, not so much to make the “big picture” political commentary …Read more…

Much commentary on trade union elections focuses on the implications for the Labour Party (which is more than a little irritating since trade unions are about a lot more than simply our relationship with our Party). However, as a Labour Party member (f…Read more…

One things with which the new UNISON NEC (with a large majority of members elected on the #timeforrealchange slate) will have to deal at its July member is the making of nominations to the TUC General Council and the selection of NEC members to attend …Read more…