I have posted here recently about the proposed changes in welfare, the so called 'reforms'. It is vitally important the all progressive minded people come to the defence of some of the most vulnerable people in our society, who are going to be the targets of these measures.
The PCS union and the TUC are organising a lobby of parliament on Tuesday and I intend to go along with the Green Party Trade Union Group and others to lobby MPs and to speak out against these appalling measures which are in effect the introduction of US style workfare.
Further details are here on the PCS website http://www.pcs.org.uk/en/campaigns/welfare-reform/welfare-for-all.cfm
It is vitally important that these proposals are stopped in their tracks. With thousands being thrown on the dole queues each day and many disabled people finding themselves at the back of the line for finding employment, it is crucial that efforts to genuinely help people are put in place and not profiteers charter, which these proposals will produce.
Details of the protest here http://www.pcs.org.uk/en/campaigns/welfare-reform/welfare-for-all.cfm
Will see some of you next Tuesday at noon there and don't forget to contact your MP.
Friday, 27 February 2009
LGBT History Month and the Trade Unions
Last night SERTUC (South East Region Trades Union Council) which represents the trade unions in London and South East England organised a 'Pride in our legacy' event at Congress House. This is the second year that SERTUC had done this and the event has been a huge success. It is meant to coincide with Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender History Month, which is February, and brings LGBT trade unionists, together with their partners and friends together. So Congress House goes pink for the evening and there are generous offerings of free food and drink. Some prominent (and not so prominent) LGBT performers take to the stage but there is also a serious side to the event and the festivities are punctuated by speakers representing both the trade union movement and various aspects of the worldwide campaign for LGBT rights.
This year Anna Eagle MP, who last year celebrated a civil partnership with her partner who is a trade union activist, spoke about the important rights which have been gained in the UK over the last ten years but also pointed out that there are still some elements of resistance to progress on LGBT rights in the House of Lords. There was also a speaker from the Sex Workers Union, who are campaigning hard against the Policing and Crime Bill, which would have the effect of criminalising the clients of sex workers. The Green Party is opposed to this and believes that the best way of tackling prostitution and sex work is to legalise it and to have licensed brothels where sex workers can work safely and legally, with proper medical and social resources to hand. The Sex Workers Union agrees with this and the speaker introduced himself as "a prostitute, whore, sex worker and provider of sexual services." He argued forcefully that by criminalising either sex workers or their clients, the industry would be driven underground with all sorts of dangerous consequences. The issue of sex trafficing is a completely different issue and the problem is that the two are often conflated. By legalising prostitution and allowing sex workers to join a recognised trade union, they would be protected from exploitation and able to be represented by the union movement in the way that any other group of workers can be.
But by far the most interesting speaker last night came from Latvia and was introduced by a speaker from Amnesty International. He is a very brave gay man who started organising Pride marches in Riga in 2005. He described how only 25 people had marched in the first Pride and how at the time it had been illegal, and there had been several hundred police sent to protect the marchers. The campaigners persisted and now the Pride is legal but there are still huge counter demonstrations which often spill over into violence. Many LGBT activists from across Europe have gone to support the Latvians and this has helped a great deal. He described the level of homophobia he encountered in Latvia as being terrible and finally after he was forced out of four jobs, he came to work in London. The job he now has in a coffee shop in Soho only pays 30% of what he earned in Latvia, but he pointed out that for the first time in his life he felt "truly free."
The ironic thing is that he is a Lutheran pastor and was excommunicated by his church in Latvia because of his sexuality. He commented that religion should be about joy and if it is not, then there is something wrong with it. Both he and the Amnesty speaker appealed for LGBT people from across Europe to attend Baltic Pride this year, where the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian LGBT groups will come together to march through the streets of Riga. It is really shameful that in 2009 the citizens of a EU member state are treated in such a shameful fashion because of hatred and intolerance. And we should never forget that progress has only been made because of the brave actions of people such as this Latvian campaigner.
I spoke to him afterwards and introduced myself as a gay European Parliamentary candidate for the Green Party in London and congratulated him on his courage. It turns out that he lives in the same area of London as me (Camberwell) and he is interested in speaking at a fringe meeting I am organising at the Green Party spring conference next month on 'Homophobia in Eastern Europe and the Green Response'. I really hope he comes and that we can give him a big welcome.
In the interim, I will campaign for the rights of the many LGBT Eastern Europeans living in London who are refugees here from the bigotry of their own countries and hope that together we can create a better and more progressive Europe with more pro-LGBT Green MEPs such as Caroline Lucas and Jean Lambert.
This year Anna Eagle MP, who last year celebrated a civil partnership with her partner who is a trade union activist, spoke about the important rights which have been gained in the UK over the last ten years but also pointed out that there are still some elements of resistance to progress on LGBT rights in the House of Lords. There was also a speaker from the Sex Workers Union, who are campaigning hard against the Policing and Crime Bill, which would have the effect of criminalising the clients of sex workers. The Green Party is opposed to this and believes that the best way of tackling prostitution and sex work is to legalise it and to have licensed brothels where sex workers can work safely and legally, with proper medical and social resources to hand. The Sex Workers Union agrees with this and the speaker introduced himself as "a prostitute, whore, sex worker and provider of sexual services." He argued forcefully that by criminalising either sex workers or their clients, the industry would be driven underground with all sorts of dangerous consequences. The issue of sex trafficing is a completely different issue and the problem is that the two are often conflated. By legalising prostitution and allowing sex workers to join a recognised trade union, they would be protected from exploitation and able to be represented by the union movement in the way that any other group of workers can be.
But by far the most interesting speaker last night came from Latvia and was introduced by a speaker from Amnesty International. He is a very brave gay man who started organising Pride marches in Riga in 2005. He described how only 25 people had marched in the first Pride and how at the time it had been illegal, and there had been several hundred police sent to protect the marchers. The campaigners persisted and now the Pride is legal but there are still huge counter demonstrations which often spill over into violence. Many LGBT activists from across Europe have gone to support the Latvians and this has helped a great deal. He described the level of homophobia he encountered in Latvia as being terrible and finally after he was forced out of four jobs, he came to work in London. The job he now has in a coffee shop in Soho only pays 30% of what he earned in Latvia, but he pointed out that for the first time in his life he felt "truly free."
The ironic thing is that he is a Lutheran pastor and was excommunicated by his church in Latvia because of his sexuality. He commented that religion should be about joy and if it is not, then there is something wrong with it. Both he and the Amnesty speaker appealed for LGBT people from across Europe to attend Baltic Pride this year, where the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian LGBT groups will come together to march through the streets of Riga. It is really shameful that in 2009 the citizens of a EU member state are treated in such a shameful fashion because of hatred and intolerance. And we should never forget that progress has only been made because of the brave actions of people such as this Latvian campaigner.
I spoke to him afterwards and introduced myself as a gay European Parliamentary candidate for the Green Party in London and congratulated him on his courage. It turns out that he lives in the same area of London as me (Camberwell) and he is interested in speaking at a fringe meeting I am organising at the Green Party spring conference next month on 'Homophobia in Eastern Europe and the Green Response'. I really hope he comes and that we can give him a big welcome.
In the interim, I will campaign for the rights of the many LGBT Eastern Europeans living in London who are refugees here from the bigotry of their own countries and hope that together we can create a better and more progressive Europe with more pro-LGBT Green MEPs such as Caroline Lucas and Jean Lambert.
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
Selling off the family silver
Another day, another demonstration. This time it is against the government's hairbrained scheme to sell off one third of the Post Office. I was down at Westminster Hall, together with Rupert Read, lead Green Party European Parliamentary candidate in the East of England region, and members of the Green Party Trade Union Group to support the rally organised by the Communication Workers Union against these moves. Armed with placards and GPTU Group leaflets we expressed our support for the union and our opposition to the government's plan.
The rally was packed with postal workers from all over England and the doors had to be closed for health and safety reasons as no more workers would fit in the hall. Political reporters from all the television channels were everywhere and there was a palpable feeling of anger and hatred against Peter Mandelson and the government for doing this. In a special edition of the Mirror newspaper (free copies available at the back of the hall) there was an image of the beloved red post box on the front cover with the headline 'Save the Post Office'. Things are bad when even John Prescott plus 125 Labour MPs have come out publicly against this move.
The move to use the deficit in the Post Office pensions fund as a clincher arguement for privatisation and the release of the letter to that effect by the Chair of the Pension Fund Trustees is also very suspect. As Billy Hayes, the General Secretary of the CWU said, it is effectively blackmail and an attempt to bounce both MPs and the unions into privatisation.
The public is opposed to it and the mess which other privatisations such as rail have created stand as a grim warning. As a rebel Labour MP said today: "Privatisation is going out of fashion." It was Mac Millan, the former Tory Prime Minister who warned during the Thatcher privatisations that the government was "selling off the family silver". Once again New Labour demonstrate that if necessary they will use Cameron's Tories if necessary to vote through this disastrous policy with the consequent loss of jobs and decrease in service. The public are opposed to it as are the Green Party. Will the Lib Dems find their consciences or will they troop into the pro-privatisation lobby with Mandelson and Cameron?
The CWU has warned that the one million pound funding for the Labour Party could be at stake if this goes through. I would advise the union to wake up and smell the coffee. We are witnessing the betrayal of the trade union movement and public sector workers by New Labour on a large scale.
The rally was packed with postal workers from all over England and the doors had to be closed for health and safety reasons as no more workers would fit in the hall. Political reporters from all the television channels were everywhere and there was a palpable feeling of anger and hatred against Peter Mandelson and the government for doing this. In a special edition of the Mirror newspaper (free copies available at the back of the hall) there was an image of the beloved red post box on the front cover with the headline 'Save the Post Office'. Things are bad when even John Prescott plus 125 Labour MPs have come out publicly against this move.
The move to use the deficit in the Post Office pensions fund as a clincher arguement for privatisation and the release of the letter to that effect by the Chair of the Pension Fund Trustees is also very suspect. As Billy Hayes, the General Secretary of the CWU said, it is effectively blackmail and an attempt to bounce both MPs and the unions into privatisation.
The public is opposed to it and the mess which other privatisations such as rail have created stand as a grim warning. As a rebel Labour MP said today: "Privatisation is going out of fashion." It was Mac Millan, the former Tory Prime Minister who warned during the Thatcher privatisations that the government was "selling off the family silver". Once again New Labour demonstrate that if necessary they will use Cameron's Tories if necessary to vote through this disastrous policy with the consequent loss of jobs and decrease in service. The public are opposed to it as are the Green Party. Will the Lib Dems find their consciences or will they troop into the pro-privatisation lobby with Mandelson and Cameron?
The CWU has warned that the one million pound funding for the Labour Party could be at stake if this goes through. I would advise the union to wake up and smell the coffee. We are witnessing the betrayal of the trade union movement and public sector workers by New Labour on a large scale.
Monday, 23 February 2009
Nuclear Power No Way!
Green Left has issued the following press release today in response to the story on nuclear power in today's Independent. I totally support the statement.
For immediate release
Nuclear energy is a red herring
An article entitled "Nuclear Power? Yes please.." appeared in the Independent newspaper on 23 February, 2009. It states that "four of the country's leading environmentalists" advocate nuclear power as a solution to climate change.
The vast majority of the green movement remain staunchly opposed to nuclear power.
FIrstly, it will take more than a decade for these plants to come on stream, which removes one plank of their argument about nuclear power stations to be ready in time to deal with climate change. Renewables are quicker to build.
Secondly, the large companies ready to profit from this bonanza historically ask for huge government subsidies. Were the renewable energy sector to be subsidised on the same scale, the unit cost of the new technologies would plummet.
Thirdly, very few jobs are created in giant nuclear plants, a central concern today as we stare at the abyss of an economic depression.
Fourthly, nuclear power will generate around 8% of our energy needs despite all the projected capital expenditure.
Instead, we propose the immediate implementation of energy efficiency projects up and down the country. We can save many times more energy than that generated by Nuclear. Moreover, we can put tens of thousands of people back into jobs by retooling houses and businesses.
Finally, we should be subsidising UK technology companies to use their talents for solar, wind and tidal energy. We are already falling behind Germany, Denmark and even Portugal in the introduction of renewables.
Instead of the red herring of nuclear energy, the green movement calls for investment in modern, robust, renewable energy.
ENDS
Contact: Farid Bakht
Green Left
www.
Note to editors:
Green Left is a strand within the Green Party of England and Wales.
For immediate release
Nuclear energy is a red herring
An article entitled "Nuclear Power? Yes please.." appeared in the Independent newspaper on 23 February, 2009. It states that "four of the country's leading environmentalists" advocate nuclear power as a solution to climate change.
The vast majority of the green movement remain staunchly opposed to nuclear power.
FIrstly, it will take more than a decade for these plants to come on stream, which removes one plank of their argument about nuclear power stations to be ready in time to deal with climate change. Renewables are quicker to build.
Secondly, the large companies ready to profit from this bonanza historically ask for huge government subsidies. Were the renewable energy sector to be subsidised on the same scale, the unit cost of the new technologies would plummet.
Thirdly, very few jobs are created in giant nuclear plants, a central concern today as we stare at the abyss of an economic depression.
Fourthly, nuclear power will generate around 8% of our energy needs despite all the projected capital expenditure.
Instead, we propose the immediate implementation of energy efficiency projects up and down the country. We can save many times more energy than that generated by Nuclear. Moreover, we can put tens of thousands of people back into jobs by retooling houses and businesses.
Finally, we should be subsidising UK technology companies to use their talents for solar, wind and tidal energy. We are already falling behind Germany, Denmark and even Portugal in the introduction of renewables.
Instead of the red herring of nuclear energy, the green movement calls for investment in modern, robust, renewable energy.
ENDS
Contact: Farid Bakht
Green Left
www.
Note to editors:
Green Left is a strand within the Green Party of England and Wales.
Trade Unions and Demos
Heathrow Third Runway Demo
Went to the anti-Heathrow protest last Thursday outside Downing Street and we had a good turnout with speakers from a range of organisations including Hacan Clearskies, Campaign Against Climate Change and both Jean Lambert MEP and Derek Wall from the Green Party. The counter demonstration, which attracted a fair amount of publicity, by the Modern Movement, was very small in comparison.
They seem to be thriving on the publicity, which worries me somewhat, and they recently invited Green Left and the Greens to come to a meeting which they are organising this week and debate the issues with them. Personally I have more important things to do and feel that attending a meeting like that would be the equivalent of having an argument about the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses, if you know what I mean. They have just closed their minds to any rational argument and their response to the Greenpeace member who tried to reason with them at the demo is typical. When asked why they disputed the science around climate change, their response was that they would not be dictated to by scientists! It just reminds me of some of those films made about zany and deliberately cerebrally challenged high school students in the US with unappealing titles such as 'Stupid 4' and 'Even more Stupid 16'.
Anyway, many of the Green Party protesters, led by our sterling London Campaigns Officer, Cllr Romayne Phoenix, managed to get our faces on the front pages of publications which I do not often read like the Daily Star and the Daily Express. I bought the Daily Star on Friday to see the photos, but alas they were not there. And for my sins I had to plough through masses of dreadful right wing dribble blaming asylum seekers and immigrants for unemployment and singing the praises of the likes of UKIP and Migration Watch.
http://www.dailystar.co.uk/latestnews/view/70200/Downing-Street-demo-over-runway/
Trade Union Conference
On Saturday I was at the conference on 'Greening the Workplace and the Just Transition' organised by the Green Party Trade Union Group, whose Treasurer I am. We had a very good line up of speakers including Jean Lambert MEP, Tony Kearns from the CWU, Sian Jones, a member of the Trade Union Sustainable Development Advisory Committee Working Group; and Ann Elliot-Day, PCS communications officer. The Press release we issued is below.
During the question and answer session, I asked about the proposal being put forward by the Dutch Greens that there be a statutory right to work from home one day per week. I thought that this would be good in terms of reducing transport with the resulting decrease in pollution and congestion. However, the trade union speakers were very suspicious of this, regarding it as a an attempt by employers to offset 20% of their overheads (heat and light etc) on to the employee. Their view was that it would be ok if there was a resulting agreement by the employer to provide relevant equipment and costs to the employee.
I also asked about the two Warwick Agreements, which were signed between the Labour government and the trade unions. Warwick I was signed just before the last general election and included a commitment to increasing bank holidays for UK workers - the UK has the lowest number of public holidays in the EU. However, nothing whatsoever happened as a result of that and the number of bank holidays remain the same. I then asked what had happened to the Warwick II Agreement and what hope there was of implementing it when Warwick I had not even been implemented. And I quoted Bob Crow, the RMT General Secretary who commented on the relationship between the trade unions and the Labour Party as being similar to necrophilia.
Tony Kearns replied that he was not surprised that the terms of Warwick I had not been adhered to and that one of the central terms of Warwick II was a commitment not to privatise the Post Office. His union were now at the forefront of the struggle to prevent the New Labour government from doing this, as per Mandelson's latest plan. He questioned how long his union could remain linked to the Labour Party. A very good question indeed and one which many trade union leaders should consider. Stand by for Warwick III when Gordon Brown promises the trade unions on the eve of the next general election that any tax increases resulting from the massive government bailouts and debt will fall most heavily on the rich!
"London's Green MEP, Jean Lambert, speaks of a hopeful future at Green Party Trade Union Group public meeting
With the world facing a "triple-crunch" -- climate change, peak oil and the credit-fuelled financial crisis - Jean Lambert, London's Green MEP, told a public meeting organised by the Green Party Trade Union group in Euston last Saturday [Feb 21] that the Party was working, in consultation with unions, non-governmental organisations and experts - towards a complete model for a new economy - a complete Green new deal that was "international, intergenerational and inclusive".
Some aspects of what were needed were clear, she said. First, Britain had to make a large investment in green jobs: "There are 22 million homes in the UK that need a comprehensive package of energy efficiency. A complete retrofit of Britain's housing to Green standards would create more than half a million jobs. More jobs could be created by improved public transport."
She continued: "The whole focus of trade policy has to change to focus on production methods and the outcomes for producers, rather than just prices to consumers.
"And there has to be a recognition that we cannot rely on the private sector to delivery core public sector services. Even Peter Mandelson is talking about a post office bank. That's great, if you can still find a post office."
In moving towards a low-carbon, environmentally friendly economy, an effective framework was particularly necessary for vulnerable industries such as coal and vehicle-manufacturing, she said. Those workers needed a structured system of retraining, of subsidies to redirect production. "The rule is to make resources redundant, rather than people."
It was essential to acknowledge that many people were now suffering a deep fear and insecurity about the future, she said. "We have to give them hope that the economy and society can be managed better, that Britons can feel their life belongs to them, rather than their being tied on to a daily treadmill whose speed they can't control. People need to feel that their life is grounded in family and community, rather than a cycle of money chasing non-existent money."
ENDS
For further information contact: Office of Jean Lambert MEP 020 7407 6269 jeanlambert@greenmeps.org.uk
Went to the anti-Heathrow protest last Thursday outside Downing Street and we had a good turnout with speakers from a range of organisations including Hacan Clearskies, Campaign Against Climate Change and both Jean Lambert MEP and Derek Wall from the Green Party. The counter demonstration, which attracted a fair amount of publicity, by the Modern Movement, was very small in comparison.
They seem to be thriving on the publicity, which worries me somewhat, and they recently invited Green Left and the Greens to come to a meeting which they are organising this week and debate the issues with them. Personally I have more important things to do and feel that attending a meeting like that would be the equivalent of having an argument about the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses, if you know what I mean. They have just closed their minds to any rational argument and their response to the Greenpeace member who tried to reason with them at the demo is typical. When asked why they disputed the science around climate change, their response was that they would not be dictated to by scientists! It just reminds me of some of those films made about zany and deliberately cerebrally challenged high school students in the US with unappealing titles such as 'Stupid 4' and 'Even more Stupid 16'.
Anyway, many of the Green Party protesters, led by our sterling London Campaigns Officer, Cllr Romayne Phoenix, managed to get our faces on the front pages of publications which I do not often read like the Daily Star and the Daily Express. I bought the Daily Star on Friday to see the photos, but alas they were not there. And for my sins I had to plough through masses of dreadful right wing dribble blaming asylum seekers and immigrants for unemployment and singing the praises of the likes of UKIP and Migration Watch.
http://www.dailystar.co.uk/latestnews/view/70200/Downing-Street-demo-over-runway/
Trade Union Conference
On Saturday I was at the conference on 'Greening the Workplace and the Just Transition' organised by the Green Party Trade Union Group, whose Treasurer I am. We had a very good line up of speakers including Jean Lambert MEP, Tony Kearns from the CWU, Sian Jones, a member of the Trade Union Sustainable Development Advisory Committee Working Group; and Ann Elliot-Day, PCS communications officer. The Press release we issued is below.
During the question and answer session, I asked about the proposal being put forward by the Dutch Greens that there be a statutory right to work from home one day per week. I thought that this would be good in terms of reducing transport with the resulting decrease in pollution and congestion. However, the trade union speakers were very suspicious of this, regarding it as a an attempt by employers to offset 20% of their overheads (heat and light etc) on to the employee. Their view was that it would be ok if there was a resulting agreement by the employer to provide relevant equipment and costs to the employee.
I also asked about the two Warwick Agreements, which were signed between the Labour government and the trade unions. Warwick I was signed just before the last general election and included a commitment to increasing bank holidays for UK workers - the UK has the lowest number of public holidays in the EU. However, nothing whatsoever happened as a result of that and the number of bank holidays remain the same. I then asked what had happened to the Warwick II Agreement and what hope there was of implementing it when Warwick I had not even been implemented. And I quoted Bob Crow, the RMT General Secretary who commented on the relationship between the trade unions and the Labour Party as being similar to necrophilia.
Tony Kearns replied that he was not surprised that the terms of Warwick I had not been adhered to and that one of the central terms of Warwick II was a commitment not to privatise the Post Office. His union were now at the forefront of the struggle to prevent the New Labour government from doing this, as per Mandelson's latest plan. He questioned how long his union could remain linked to the Labour Party. A very good question indeed and one which many trade union leaders should consider. Stand by for Warwick III when Gordon Brown promises the trade unions on the eve of the next general election that any tax increases resulting from the massive government bailouts and debt will fall most heavily on the rich!
"London's Green MEP, Jean Lambert, speaks of a hopeful future at Green Party Trade Union Group public meeting
With the world facing a "triple-crunch" -- climate change, peak oil and the credit-fuelled financial crisis - Jean Lambert, London's Green MEP, told a public meeting organised by the Green Party Trade Union group in Euston last Saturday [Feb 21] that the Party was working, in consultation with unions, non-governmental organisations and experts - towards a complete model for a new economy - a complete Green new deal that was "international, intergenerational and inclusive".
Some aspects of what were needed were clear, she said. First, Britain had to make a large investment in green jobs: "There are 22 million homes in the UK that need a comprehensive package of energy efficiency. A complete retrofit of Britain's housing to Green standards would create more than half a million jobs. More jobs could be created by improved public transport."
She continued: "The whole focus of trade policy has to change to focus on production methods and the outcomes for producers, rather than just prices to consumers.
"And there has to be a recognition that we cannot rely on the private sector to delivery core public sector services. Even Peter Mandelson is talking about a post office bank. That's great, if you can still find a post office."
In moving towards a low-carbon, environmentally friendly economy, an effective framework was particularly necessary for vulnerable industries such as coal and vehicle-manufacturing, she said. Those workers needed a structured system of retraining, of subsidies to redirect production. "The rule is to make resources redundant, rather than people."
It was essential to acknowledge that many people were now suffering a deep fear and insecurity about the future, she said. "We have to give them hope that the economy and society can be managed better, that Britons can feel their life belongs to them, rather than their being tied on to a daily treadmill whose speed they can't control. People need to feel that their life is grounded in family and community, rather than a cycle of money chasing non-existent money."
ENDS
For further information contact: Office of Jean Lambert MEP 020 7407 6269 jeanlambert@greenmeps.org.uk
Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Europe and Gaza
I totally endorse the views of this Irish Labour Party MEP who has just returned from Gaza. As a candidate for the European Parliament I regard it as essential that Europe does not play second fiddle to the US in relation to Israel and Palestine but takes a proactive stance to ensure justice for Gaza and the Palestinians. It is Europe which created the problem in the first place and it has a responsibility to act.
I also give my total support to the Viva Palestina convoy which is making its way towards Gaza with much needed supplies and a generator on board. It is disgraceful that the police here arrested several of those taking part in the convoy but have released most of them without charge afterwards. This is in stark contrast with the city council in Bordeaux which provided food and shelter for those taking part and a state reception being planned in Madrid.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2009/0218/1224241332123.html
I also give my total support to the Viva Palestina convoy which is making its way towards Gaza with much needed supplies and a generator on board. It is disgraceful that the police here arrested several of those taking part in the convoy but have released most of them without charge afterwards. This is in stark contrast with the city council in Bordeaux which provided food and shelter for those taking part and a state reception being planned in Madrid.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2009/0218/1224241332123.html
Tuesday, 17 February 2009
A Freudian Defection
It has been widely reported that investment banker David Freud, a descendant of the great Sigmund, and who is credited with being the architect of New Labour's welfare proposals about to wend their way through parliament in the form of the Welfare Reform Bill, has upped sticks and joined the Tories. He probably felt more at home with the real thing rather than their imitators. It is also reported that Cameron will grant him a peerage and appoint him as Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary. All of this is rather a damp squib for Labour and Purnell about to announce 101 new methods of punishing the idle and feckless.
It is interesting that it requires extra money and bonuses in order to encourage the rich to work but dire penalties and penury in order to encourage the poor.As Brendan Barber of the TUC argued, "At a time of rapidly rising unemployment the government needs to stop talking as if every benefit claimant is a potential scrounger." The proposals put forward by Freud and now supported by the government involve shifting huge amounts of money from the public to the private sector in order to 'incentivise' these companies to get the unemployed back to work. But as we have seen, every time this transfer of public wealth to the private sector occurs, as with PFI or the privatisation of the health service, it is the taxpayer who pays at the end with the only profit being made by those companies ripping off the system. Surely now the failure of this neo-liberal privatisation agenda is clear for all to see? So while the Tories praise Freud and offer to go even further with his 'reforms', New Labour like a sleepwalker stumbles on into the territory of punishing the poor and disabled and increasing the profits of the fat cats and their cronies in the City. This is a hugely regressive agenda and will cause untold damage, as it has already done in the US. One need only see the documentaries of Michael Moore and others to envisage the disaster that lies ahead.
It was Oscar Wilde who wrote in The Soul Of Man Under Socialism: "Under Socialism all this will, of course, be altered. There will be no people living in fetid dens and fetid rags, and bringing up unhealthy, hungerpinched children in the midst of impossible and absolutely repulsive surroundings. The security of society will not depend, as it does now, on the state of the weather. If a frost comes we shall not have a hundred thousand men out of work, tramping about the streets in a state of disgusting misery, or whining to their neighbours for alms, or crowding round the doors of loathsome shelters to try and secure a hunch of bread and a night's unclean lodging. Each member of the society will share in the general prosperity and happiness of the society, and if a frost comes no one will practically be anything the worse." Those words written over a century ago still hold true today. What is happening once again is the victimisation of the poor and the transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. It is effectively the dismantling of the welfare state built up the reforming Liberal government before World War I and the Attlee government after 1945. The Green Party proposes a Citizen's Income, which is an
Make your voice heard - join the lobby of parliament on Tuesday 3 March 2009 from 12.30 - 2.30, committee room 14.organised by the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and the TUC. I will be there.
It is interesting that it requires extra money and bonuses in order to encourage the rich to work but dire penalties and penury in order to encourage the poor.As Brendan Barber of the TUC argued, "At a time of rapidly rising unemployment the government needs to stop talking as if every benefit claimant is a potential scrounger." The proposals put forward by Freud and now supported by the government involve shifting huge amounts of money from the public to the private sector in order to 'incentivise' these companies to get the unemployed back to work. But as we have seen, every time this transfer of public wealth to the private sector occurs, as with PFI or the privatisation of the health service, it is the taxpayer who pays at the end with the only profit being made by those companies ripping off the system. Surely now the failure of this neo-liberal privatisation agenda is clear for all to see? So while the Tories praise Freud and offer to go even further with his 'reforms', New Labour like a sleepwalker stumbles on into the territory of punishing the poor and disabled and increasing the profits of the fat cats and their cronies in the City. This is a hugely regressive agenda and will cause untold damage, as it has already done in the US. One need only see the documentaries of Michael Moore and others to envisage the disaster that lies ahead.
It was Oscar Wilde who wrote in The Soul Of Man Under Socialism: "Under Socialism all this will, of course, be altered. There will be no people living in fetid dens and fetid rags, and bringing up unhealthy, hungerpinched children in the midst of impossible and absolutely repulsive surroundings. The security of society will not depend, as it does now, on the state of the weather. If a frost comes we shall not have a hundred thousand men out of work, tramping about the streets in a state of disgusting misery, or whining to their neighbours for alms, or crowding round the doors of loathsome shelters to try and secure a hunch of bread and a night's unclean lodging. Each member of the society will share in the general prosperity and happiness of the society, and if a frost comes no one will practically be anything the worse." Those words written over a century ago still hold true today. What is happening once again is the victimisation of the poor and the transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. It is effectively the dismantling of the welfare state built up the reforming Liberal government before World War I and the Attlee government after 1945. The Green Party proposes a Citizen's Income, which is an
Make your voice heard - join the lobby of parliament on Tuesday 3 March 2009 from 12.30 - 2.30, committee room 14.organised by the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and the TUC. I will be there.
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