The TUC recently published a new policy document, ‘Powering Ahead: How UK industry can match Europe’s environmental leaders’. This document sets out a path to a sustainable industrial strategy, in which ‘sustainable’ describes the economic, social and environmental challenges facing companies,…Read more…
Housing crisis solved at #CPC16?
Perhaps not quite yet, I fear. Sajid Javid, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government announced a new scheme to support house-building at the Conservative Party Conference yesterday, saying that: “We want to ensure everyone has a safe and secure place to live and that means we’ve got…Read more…
As Portugal tries to take back control of Metro Lisbon, Mexican privateers turn to #ISDS
One of the main complaints unions make about the investment protection elements of trade deals known as Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) is that it would be used against governments trying to bring privatised services back into public ownership. “Oh no it won’t!” cry…Read more…
Is the decline of manufacturing really ‘natural evolution’?
According to conventional wisdom, industrial trends follow a natural evolution from agriculture to manufacturing and finally to services. Fascinating long-run data from the ONS (based on employment information from census records since the mid-C19) sug…Read more…
100 days after the #Brexit vote & we’re still in the dark on workers’ rights
It’s been 100 days since Britain voted to leave the EU, and still we’re no clearer about what Brexit means. In particular, despite Remain and Leave voters agreeing that workers’ rights should be maintained, the Prime Minister has failed to commit to that. The TUC is calling today…Read more…
IMF warn of global deflation
The precarious condition of the global economy is back in the spotlight. Last week the OECD issued their interim economic outlook, headed: “global growth warning: weak trade, financial distortions’. This week it is the turn of the IMF, who are leading on the threat of global deflation and the…Read more…
Our communities need ambitious action on climate change as part of any post-Brexit plan
Theresa May says ‘Brexit means Brexit’, yet no one knows what Brexit will look like. The lack of a plan has caused unprecedented levels of political and economic uncertainty. It has also cast doubt of the future of the UK’s – indeed the EU’s – environmental and climate change policy. In…Read more…
Lord Price, show CETA the door at Bratislava castle
On Friday Lord Price, the UK’s minister for trade, will meet with ministers across the EU in Bratislava castle and the EU-Canada trade deal (CETA) is top of the agenda. This week the TUC General Secretary wrote to Trade Secretary Liam Fox calling for the UK government to oppose CETA and for…Read more…
Leavers ♥ NHS. Remainers ♥ NHS. Isn’t it about time to fund it properly?
The NHS funding crisis is well documented – descriptions of ambulances queuing to get into A&E, drastic cuts to budgets and the unprecedented numbers of NHS providers in the red (to name but a few) continue to dominate news headlines. The NHS – and how much money it gets – was a key issue…Read more…
Today’s economic data strengthens the case for a fiscal boost in the Autumn Statement
Economic commentators have been kept busy today by a welter of publications. The ONS published their brief assessment of the post Brexit economy; summary – the UK economy appears to have weathered the shock of the decision to leave, but it’s too early to tell the long term impacts. The Bank of…Read more…
Tackling teacher shortages is not only about migration policy
The TUC has submitted evidence to the Migration Advisory Committee’s review of teacher shortages, highlighting that shortages that are currently being experienced in primary and secondary schools across the country require urgent action by the government. Migrant workers play an important role as…Read more…
Total bonuses reach record high
Government figures out today show that total bonuses across the economy have reached the highest level ever, surpassing the previous high seen just before the financial crash in 2007-8. While the financial sector accounts for nearly one third of the to…Read more…
#MayMonitor: A new campaign to track progress of Theresa May’s government
Theresa May became Prime Minister promising ‘a country that works for everyone’. She committed to fight the ‘burning injustice of inequality’, to support those who are ‘just managing’ but find life hard and to prioritise ‘ordinary working class families’ over the wealthy few. As Parliament returns…Read more…
Tackling debt is about more than personal responsibility
In the latest edition of the ESRC’s Society Now journal, Victoria Boelman from the Young Foundation discusses the need for greater education in order to help households avoid becoming trapped in high-cost debt. Well-intentioned as such work may be, it ignores the role of structural forces on…Read more…
EU citizens’ right to remain & all workers’ right to respect
The TUC has submitted evidence to the British Future inquiry into the status of EU nationals in the UK. We are calling for the government to make a clear commitment to give citizens from all 27 EU countries living and working in the UK the right to remain. This is one of the five tests…Read more…
Railway infrastructure: a no-brainer for Britain
Since at least the financial crisis the TUC has argued for increased infrastructure spending as part of a coherent industry plan. From 2010 the coalition government did the opposite, cutting spending with no coherent strategy. In economic terms the con…Read more…
Economic Update: Brexit means… not having to say what Brexit means (yet)
“Brexit means Brexit” is likely to top the list of most repeated phrases of 2016 (at least in the press). But what does Brexit (means Brexit) mean for the economy, and working people’s jobs, rights and pay? In a new report, we attempt to survey the evidence. The problem is, there’s not that much…Read more…
Government must do more to tackle the investment gap if we’re to make Brexit work
Leaving the EU has raised many significant questions for our economic future. We have to do all we can to protect jobs that may be at risk from this uncertainty. We have already seen hiring freezes and the Bank of England has predicted almost a quarter…Read more…
The 45-minute salary: Why we need worker reps on boards
Sir Martin Sorrell is the Chief Executive Officer of WPP, the multinational advertising and PR firm. He’s also retained his place this year as Britain’s highest paid CEO, drawing nearly £70 million in 2015. For those who are used to somewhat fewer zeroes on their pay slips, this might…Read more…
Taking back control of our borders. Unless you’re a city fat cat.
There are over three million EU citizens living and working in the UK who are concerned about their future right to remain in the UK. Many Brits currently living and working in the rest of the EU have the same concerns about their own future. Organisat…Read more…