Campaigning has paid off again. Last week I blogged about a campaign we’d joined to stop the Thai Government’s plans to force prisoners to work in the notorious Thai fishing industry….Read more…
Could the Greeks bring us gifts this Sunday?
This Sunday, the Greek people go to the polls in what must be one of the most important elections not just for Greece but for Europe as a whole. What is at stake is the future of democratic control of the economy, and the European establishment’s love affair with austerity. Nowhere in Europe…Read more…
Red Lines – How to start an Investment Governance Revolution
(this post was pulled in January since I didn’t realise that we had to wait until formal launch of Red Lines which took place yesterday. I will post further on this “revolutionary” proposal)
Picture is from last weeks workshop on “Red Lines” run joint…Read more…
Unite the rank and file in the UNISON NEC elections to reclaim the union
It’s commonplace on “the left” to remark that our trade union organising must be about more than just electing individuals to positions.
And of course it must.
What our union needs most of all is effective networking between activists to maximise suppo…Read more…
Speech: Cornwall Amal branch AGM
It is a privilege to be able to speak to you today. These are difficult times for the trade union and labour movement. In such times it is reassuring that branches like yours stay strong and active….Read more…
The attack on public services
There is no question that public service workers are still paying a heavy price for the recklessness of the bankers all those years agoRead more…
Are the improvements in the labour market recovery being overstated?
Employment levels may be rising to record levels; however, this is partly a result of the rising numbers in the working population. The employment rate at 73.0 per cent only recently returned to its pre-crisis peak; whereas the 6.0 per cent unemploymen…Read more…
Use your vote!
Mark Baker is president of ATL. 99% of ATL’s members cast their vote in this year’s National Presidential election! That would be a nice headline and I encourage everyone who can to make it…Read more…
Which side are you on…
A moving union song by the late and great Pete Seeger… “Will you be a lousy scab or will you be a man”. Read more…
Enfield Chase Walk (and where a Nazi Monster admitted his Guilt)
Today I went for my first country walk of 2015. Trent County Park in Enfield Chase, North London is a remnant of an ancient Royal hunting ground.
This pathfinder walk was only 4 miles (but we got lost and added another couple of miles I think). It was…Read more…
Standards-based voting
Just a quick point I think is worth developing. Many asset owners now use passive management for at least a sizeable chunk of their assets, usually equities in developed markets. This seems likely to grow due to a mixture of disillusionment with active…Read more…
What more will it take to get corporate courts out of the EU-US trade deal?
This week, the European Commission finally released the results of the consultation forced on it nearly a year ago about Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the EU-US trade deal. While …Read more…
IMF: looking on the bright side, or the ‘right side’?
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) doesn’t have a fantastic reputation around the world for the damage it did to developing and Asian economies during the years of the neoliberal ‘Washington consensus’. Confessing to getting its analysis of the Greek economy catastrophically…Read more…
It’s My Party And I’ll Cry if I Want to…
Wonderful song… Read more…
Heritage and Security
SO OFTEN THE BACKDROP for protests, like last September’s march for the NHS, the National Gallery, one of Britain’s biggest tourist attractions, is the centre of a struggle for jobs and a living…Read more…
Austerity cuts are threatening the future of local authority services in England, says TUC
16 January 2015 The future of local authority services in England are under threat from a growing funding crisis, with significant cuts already being made to statutory adult care and children’s…Read more…
REINSTATE CHARLOTTE CAMPAIGN: PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NHS campaigners rally support for sacked Whipps Cross whistleblower during Employment Tribunal Campaigners and trade unionists will gather outside an Employment Tribunal on…Read more…
One step forward, one step back
I was one of more than 120 UNISON activists present at a “Reclaim the Union” meeting this afternoon at the Manchester Mechanics Institute, birthplace of the TUC.
Activists were present from every British Region of the Union, about a third coming from the North West, a quarter from Greater London…Read more…
Election of CIH London Regional Board 2015
I have just voted on-line for a new Chartered Institute of Housing Regional Board for London. I had to support my former Tower Hamlets colleague Jan Taranzuk. The only Chief officer I have ever known who use to work in Housing and at the same time live…Read more…
Don’t let the Tories Kill the Health Service: Vote Labour on May 7th
This has not been commissioned by the Labour Party but by The Independent who invited ad agency companies to think up posters for all political parties. Actually, I hope the Party uses it!Read more…