–> …And the second of the group reviews of both International and Fringe shows was published in the Morning Star on Saturday. It is available here. It covers reviews that I posted in my…Read more…
Ride to the Somme, Passchendaele & Arras 2017
The Battle of Passchendaele in the First World War took place from 31 July 1917 to 10 November 1917. There were an estimated 250,000 British causalities, killed or wounded during this battle.
The picture above on the left is of my maternal Grandfathe…Read more…
UNISON NEC 2017 at NDC
Great picture of elected UNISON National Executive Council members at our National Delegate Conference in Brighton in 2017. Read more…
Business rates review – tame but sensible reforms
The long awaited Barclay review of business rates hasn’t exactly set the heather alight, but its recommendations are, in the main, pretty sensible.
The reviews main recommendations are set out in…Read more…
Brave new world?
Receiving a parcel on your doorstep from Amazon or any of the number of online retailers often disguises what’s going on behind the scenes where your order is processed. But a quiet revolution…Read more…
Beholden to fat cats
Tory donors gave the Conservative’s £25m – more than double the £9.5m Labour received – before this year’s general election and the party still lost 13 MPs. Donor lists released by the…Read more…
Over-regulation is not the problem a post-Brexit Britain would face
Yesterday’s report The Economy After Brexit by Economists For Brexit includes a section by Tim Congdon on EU regulation, essentially blaming all the evils of the British economy on excessive red tape and inferring that our economy could do so much better if it were unshackled from it all. The…Read more…
‘Economists for free trade’ contradicted by today’s GDP data
In a provocative piece this week (‘From Project Fear to Project Prosperity’), Professor Patrick Minford made a number of claims about the post-referendum economy. Apparently “the devaluation brought on by Brexit is acting as a powerful stimulus to the economy …”. Here’s how: … switching demand away…Read more…
Blog: It’s time to raise wages for all public sector workers
This morning I was in Glasgow at the QE hospital to meet our biggest branch, who also happen to be one of our best. Glasgow Health branch epitomise the dedication of our activists around the country,…Read more…
First ever strike
Catering staff working for Baxterstorey at the Fawley oil refinery canteen in Hampshire are set to strike for the first time tomorrow (August 25) in a dispute over a below inflation 1.5 per cent pay…Read more…
Grant leads health visitors
Unite has warmly welcomed the appointment of broadcaster and presenter Carrie Grant as the new President of the Community Practitioners’ and Health Visitors’ Association (CPHVA). The CPHVA is…Read more…
Fair Fringe win
Edinburgh City Council has today (August 24) backed the Fair Fringe campaign, which will see the living wage and minimum hour contracts introduced at all Council-run venues including the Assembly…Read more…
‘Bogus apprenticeships’
School leavers receiving their GCSE results today (August 24) are looking forward to what the future holds in store. Unfortunately many young people are served a raw deal after they finish…Read more…
‘Dickensian disgrace’
Hairdressers were among the worst culprits in illegally failing to pay their workers the minimum wage in Scotland. In total, 19 companies in Scotland were ‘named and shamed’ by the government…Read more…
Low pay nation
The shocking extent to which low pay has gripped the entire country was laid bare today (August 24) in new figures published by the Labour Party. The analysis of workers in the UK earning less…Read more…
UNISON’s African Migrant Workers Seminar 14 October 2017
I will circulate amongst Branch members. Monica is a top union organiser and it is really great that UNISON provides such support for members.Read more…
Blog: Women members at the heart of our union
The commitments that were made to women members almost a quarter of a century ago matter as much today as they did then – and as we approach our union’s 25th anniversary celebrations, we must return…Read more…
‘No signs of ending’
Every week more than ten high street bank branches close across the UK. According to research from consumer group Which? more than 550 branches are to be shut this year alone. More than…Read more…
Cartrouble? sub-prime auto lending hits the real world
Have you ever had a ride in a light blue car? Have you ever stopped to think who’s the slave and who’s the master? Have you ever had trouble with your automobile? Have you ever had to push push push push? Car trouble oh yeah. Adam Ant For those of a certain age, it turns…
The…Read more…
Bank holiday bus chaos
London bus passengers face potentially severe disruption this weekend as peace talks, designed to resolve a pay dispute concerning support staff, broke up without agreement. Over 400 Unite…Read more…