It was the UK’s first woman Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, who said “It’s a funny old world” as she was about to take her leave of Downing Street. Now the second woman to enter the UK’s most famous address, Theresa May, is setting out her policy stall and has advocated both an active industrial…Read more…
If it was safe enough to choose our new PM, online voting is safe enough for trade unions
The Conservative Party leadership election has been rapid, dramatic and completely bewildering. And now with the withdrawal of the last remaining challenger to Theresa May it looks like there won’t even be a vote at all. But there’s one thing in this campaign that has been overlooked in…Read more…
Defending Corbyn and Freedom of Movement
Unite’s National Industrial Sector Committee (NISC) for my sector (GPM&IT) met this week and agreed to submit the following as emergency motions to the Unite Policy Conference this month.
It is likely that the “leadership” will try to avoid either…Read more…
Johnson’s real agenda coming clearer: watch out for your rights!
Boris Johnson is at least the bookies’ favourite to become Conservative Party Leader and therefore Prime Minister, and, as the leading Conservative on the Leave side, he fulfils one key criterion for PM in post-referendum Britain (“you broke it, you bought it!“) So it’s…Read more…
Why I’m voting remain: Like you wanted to know…
First up, I obvs have a day job which involves trying to stop people from getting screwed over by bad bosses. So if I have to declare a personal interest in the outcome, it’s that leaving and…Read more…
James O’Brien On The Murder Of Jo Cox MP
James O’Brien of LBC (the guy who nailed Nigel Farage) on the murder of Jo Cox perfectly captures the state of debate in Britain today The LBC presenter James O’Brien gave a monologue on his radio…Read more…
Unite to fight ‘buy American’ procurement policy
Defence secretary Michael Fallon has serious questions to answer about the UK’s secretive procurement policy – the latest controversy being the decision to buy nine maritime patrol aircraft from…Read more…
No ‘snooping’ allowed
The Tory government’s sinister agenda aiming to silence all opposition is having a harder time getting through the legislative process than some might have thought. After concessions and…Read more…
Government drops law letting police spy on unions
There was a major climbdown from the government in last night’s parliamentary debate on the Investigatory Powers Bill, in response to an opposition amendment. The minister conceded changes that will protect unions from police warrants to seize phone records or emails. The Bill, which more people…Read more…
Trade union members should vote to stay in the EU
Letter in The Guardian June 6th As general secretaries who represent a large part of Britain’s trade union movement, we are writing to make our position clear and urge our collective membership,…Read more…
ETUC General Secretary Says Scots Should Vote Remain
Luca Visentini General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation writes in the Scottish Daily Record, May 29th The people of Scotland are no strangers to momentous decisions and on June…Read more…
Obituary: Ken Cameron
By Peta Steel Ken Cameron, the stalwart socialist General Secretary of the Fire Brigades Union who has just died at the age of 75 was one of the most charismatic and effective figures in the trade…Read more…
Len McCluskey: Labour’s fresh thinking on investment will lead to a stronger economy
Labour must put the brakes on the `Sports Direct economy’ caused by a discredited political dogma which has down-graded industrial strategy, rejected the investment that is vital to growth and has…Read more…
Tories will try anything to shackle unions, but ultimately they will fail
Government attempts to stop public sector staff paying union subs through payroll check-off were political and wrong, according to the high court
A high court judgment last week against the largest…Read more…
Tories will try anything to shackle unions, but ultimately they will fail
Government attempts to stop public sector staff paying union subs through payroll check-off were political and wrong, according to the high court
A high court judgment last week against the largest…Read more…
Who let the cats out? Priti Patel suggests we could lose half our EU work rights after #Brexit
Prominent Brexiteer Priti Patel MP joined the growing number of her colleagues who’ve let the Leave campaign’s cats out of their bags yesterday, in her speech to the Institute of Directors. “If we could just halve the burdens of the EU social and employment legislation we could…Read more…
Len McCluskey On Why Unite Supports EU Remain
A history lesson for Iain Duncan Smith
Iain Duncan Smith has attempted to appeal to the Left with today’s argument that the EU and “uncontrolled immigration” has caused a downward pressure on wages. Despite being at the forefront of taking from the have nots and giving to the haves for years, he’s now blaming the…Read more…
Union campaign scores a win with big changes made to #TUbill
It’s been a difficult 10 months since the Government introduced the Trade Union Bill. The co-ordinated campaign against these damaging proposals has taken a huge effort from across the union movement. But the bill that passed the Commons today was hugely reduced from what the government had…Read more…
Steel Crisis: A Good First Step, But Government Must Steel Itself For Further Action
By Professor David Bailey It’s great news that the government seems to at last ‘get it’ and is ready to part-nationalise Tata’s UK steel assets and offer debt financing if a private buyer can be…Read more…