Douglas Alexander's response to the situation in Egypt
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00
Responding o the situation in Egypt, Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary, Douglas Alexander MP, said:
Tory-led Govt puts price competition at heart of NHS plans
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00John Healey MP, Labour's Shadow Health Secretary, speaking ahead of the first full-scale Parliamentary debate on the Health and Social Care Bill, said:Tories haven't realised their reckless plan is not working
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Angela Eagle MP, Labour's Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, responding to this afternoon's statement from Matthew Hancock MP, said:'We're all in this together' means 'it's your problem, not ours'
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Tessa Jowell MP, Labour's Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, said today at the launch of Lambeth as the UK’ first Co-operative Council:Gove is taking huge gamble with the life chances of our children
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00In response to Michael Gove's formal approval of eight Free Schools, Labour's Shadow Education Secretary, Andy Burnham MP, said:Home Secretary ‘in denial’ over effects of police cuts - Cooper
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Yvette Cooper, Labour's Shadow Home Secretary, said:PM's brother-in-law is one of doctors who disagree with NHS plans
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00John Healey MP, Labour’ Shadow Health Secretary, speaking following David Cameron admitting that his brother-in-law – a cardiologist at Basingstoke and North Hampshire NHS Trust – disagrees with his reorganisation of the NHS, said:Police forces are being heavily hit by the 20 per cent cuts
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Yvette Cooper MP, Labour's Shadow Home Secretary, said:Instead of clarity we have had nothing but confusion - Murphy
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Jim Murphy MP, Labour's Shadow Defence Secretary, in response to more concerns raised about the Government handling of Nimrod, said:Local Govt Finance Settlement is neither fair or progressive
Updated: 2011-01-31 20:17:00Caroline Flint MP, Labour’ Shadow Local Government Secretary, responding to the publication of the Government’ final Local Government Finance Settlement, said:labour and capital: Joining the 21st Century
Updated: 2011-01-31 18:58:00I'm on twitter now, here.
Green Party Trade Union Group: Solidarity with Egyptian workers
Updated: 2011-01-31 18:35:00I'm on twitter now, here.Green Party Trade Union Group: Solidarity with Egyptian workers
Updated: 2011-01-31 18:25:00I'm on twitter now, here.New Grassroots Intern Joins RESULTS
Updated: 2011-01-31 17:38:10We would like to welcome our new grassroots intern, Mariam El Azm, who recently joined RESULTS and will be working with us over the next three months. Mariam will be working closely with Felix Jakens to provide support to our … Continue reading →ToUChstone blog: Enterprise Clubs: meh
Updated: 2011-01-31 16:42:54
Today the DWP opened the first “Enterprise Clubs” and publicised a trailblazer for the “New Enterprise Allowance”, due soon. (A ‘trailblazer’ is what the Labour government called a ‘pathfinder’ – launching a new programme or policy on a limited...The Syndicalist: Majority of NSSN Officers resign en-bloc
Updated: 2011-01-31 16:10:05At a meeting immediately following Saturday 22nd January’s NSSN anti-cuts conference, the majority of NSSN/Shop Stewards Network national officers-all of those not in the Socialist Party- have...UNISON East Midlands: Andy Murray
Updated: 2011-01-31 12:16:08
Like many we were disappointed that Andy Murray lost in Australian Open.
We've heard that on advice from George Osborne Andy Murray has blamed his defeat on "the mess left by Tim Henman."Our NHS, Our Future: Oppose the Health & Social Care Bill
Updated: 2011-01-31 07:52:00
Today (Monday 31 Jan) there will be the second reading at the House of Commons of the The ealth and Social Care Bill. Nurses at St. George's Hospital in Tooting, South London demonstrate support for our NHS.UNISON East Midlands: Wellinghborough Trades Council Rally - Sat 12 March
Updated: 2011-01-31 04:15:50Wellingborough Trades Council Rally are organising a rally on Sat 12 March 1:30 - 3:30 at Tithe Barn.Rosie the Riveter - RIP
Updated: 2011-01-30 23:07:00
"Geraldine Hoff Doyle of Lansing, Mich., the woman behind an iconic image of a bandana-clad, muscle-flexing Rosie the Riveter during World War II died last month. Doyle was 86 upon her death, a lifetime older than the 17-year-old factory worker who was captured in a United Press International photo...Council budgets and unallocated reserves in London
Updated: 2011-01-30 00:16:00
"Dear Jon
I am responding on behalf of the council administration. I appreciate your appeal is sent in the spirit of a constructive suggestion, and I will respond in the same vane.
Firstly, Labour councillors are as angry about the Tory led Coalition Government’s attack on local government as...King’s new inflation target
Updated: 2011-01-29 20:13:20Mervyn King addresses Congress 2010 Originally uploaded by tuc.org.uk It’s is well-known what the Bank of England’s inflation target is: The Bank’s monetary policy objective is to deliver price stability – low inflation – and, subject to that, to support the Government’s economic objectives including those for growth and employment. Price stability is defined by [...]What will you do when I'm gone?
Updated: 2011-01-29 10:12:00
"..Gave away our nursing jobs to some private companyThey say it will be cheaper, but this much I am sureFor the people that I care for, profit is not the cure"
This superb anti-privatisation video was produced by Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU). I am afraid that it may well...Liverpool sign Suarez but will he play with Torres?
Updated: 2011-01-28 17:19:33Could Liverpool's signing of Luis Suarez be the sort of statement of intent Fernando Torres needs to convince him to stay? Or does it mean Liverpool can now afford to let the Spaniard go?
Transforming Labour: Newham Compass event 10 March
Updated: 2011-01-28 17:10:00
The Newham branch of Compass are holding another event on Thursday 10 March.
Starting 8pm at the West Ham Supporters Club in Castle Street, E6 1PP.
This is also where Newham trade union council use to meet for many years.
Local East Ham MP Stephen Timms and Gavin Hayes (Compass)...Stram norsk retskrivning?
Updated: 2011-01-28 01:33:30Orthographe/y Originally uploaded by jcbear2 Der er et interview med professor Jens Normann Jørgensen på P1, der iflg. linket mener, at “der sagtens kunne være flere måder at stave et ord på – i stedet for bare en korrekt udgave.” Jeg har ikke haft tid til at lytte til indslaget, og så skal man passe [...]New South Wales Election Website Now Live!
Updated: 2011-01-28 00:58:16All the details of the election at http://www.abc.net.au/elections/nsw/2011/ You can always access any ABC Election page via the elections link at www.abc.net.au/electionsLondon Labour Housing Group Launch
Updated: 2011-01-27 09:03:00
Last night’s launch of the London Labour Housing Group went really well. The Grand Committee room was overflowing with people. Standing room only.
Great speeches and a great debate about housing issues (both in the committee room and the pub afterwards).
Including new Shadow Housing...O'Farrell set to become Fourth Longest Serving NSW Liberal Leader
Updated: 2011-01-27 00:21:00On Tuesday 1 February, NSW Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell is set to become the fourth longest serving leader in the history of the NSW Liberal Party. In the 66 years since its formation in 1945, the Liberal Party has had...Nurses Vote on Action to Stop Cuts at St Georges Hospital
Updated: 2011-01-26 18:07:00
"Four hundred Theatre Nurses and Practitioner members of health care union UNISON at St Georges hospital, South London, have started balloting in an “indicative” ballot that could, if agreed lead to official industrial action at St Georges by nurses for the first time in twenty three years.
UNISON...More parliamentary answers on education in Nigeria
Updated: 2011-01-26 17:54:12
Further responses to parliamentary questions on education in Nigeria reveal that the UK government is committed to supporting increased accountability and transparency measures in the Nigerian education sector, as well as increasing girls' access to education. Continue reading →February conference call announced: Vaccination, a public health ‘best buy’
Updated: 2011-01-26 17:01:14
On Tuesday the 1st of February at 8pm we will be having our next conference call which is titled 'Vaccination: A public health 'best buy'. This month we are asking our grassroots to write to their MEPs to support continued funding for the GAVI Alliance, Continue reading →Flour
Updated: 2011-01-26 06:14:59Flour for 7 Originally uploaded by PhylB One of the good things about having a large family (there’s seven of us two thirds of the time) is that you can sometimes buy products in quantities that average families can only dream about. For instance, I recently noticed that Shipton Mill had some really interesting types [...]My Heart's in the Highlands
Updated: 2011-01-25 22:09:00
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here
My heart's in the Highlands a-chasing the deer,
A-chasing the wild deer and following the roe
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go!
Farewell to the Highlands, farewell to the North
The birthplace of valour, the country of worth!
Wherever I...LAPFF Conference 2010: Diversity by Laura Liswood
Updated: 2011-01-24 23:17:00Still playing catch up on my posts from last year. I did enjoy Laura Liswood, a senior American consultant with Goldman Sacks, talk on “Diversity”.
Her basic argument is that there is a compelling business case for Diversity. If you add someone with the same background to a group you get some...The Tragic Launch of HMS Albion
Updated: 2011-01-24 20:56:00
"On 21 June 1898 the public launch of the warship HMS Albion at Blackwall in London was attended by over 30,000 spectators.
It was to become one of the worst peacetime disasters in Thames history. The Duchess of York (later Queen Mary) tried 3 times to break the champagne bottle on the steel hull...RESULTS recruiting four regional fundraising interns
Updated: 2011-01-24 17:54:45
This year RESULTS is taking part in a major national fundraising campaign. In order to maximise the exposure this will offer and to make the event as successful as possible, we are recruiting four regional volunteer fundraising coordinators. Continue reading →Price inflation, wage inflation and stagflation
Updated: 2011-01-24 04:05:42inflation … Originally uploaded by Ferdinand Reus A few recent articles have suggested that the UK is entering stagflation. (For a definition of the term, see Wikipedia.) I’m not actually disputing this, but the only real experience this part of the world has had of stagflation was the 1970s, when both price inflation and wage [...]Netroots UK 2011 - Beyond Obama: Stories and lessons from across the pond.
Updated: 2011-01-23 23:43:00
I know that posting late about new media events is a little bit shameful and definitely uncool, however my view is better late than never. This was one of the 5 lunchtime fringes on offer at this month’s successful Netroots conference. This fringe was facilitated by our American cousins Julielyn...This is what Tories do...So why are you surprised they are selling our forests?
Updated: 2011-01-23 22:01:00Hat-tip to Country Standard blog for this report about the Condems plan to privatise 15% of the land (correction it is now not 15% but all of our land) owned by the Forestry Commission.
Someone I met today, traditional Tory supporter, as absolutely utraged by this plan...Bangladesh: Free Moshrefa Mishu
Updated: 2011-01-22 20:34:00
I've just sent an email via Labourstart to various Bangladesh government and Police bodies about the arrest of Moshrefa Mishu, President of the Garment Workers Unity Forum (GWUF).
Check out details on screen print.
Click here to send protest emails.Speaking backwards
Updated: 2011-01-22 12:03:02It can be really useful to have studied phonetics: Share and enjoy! Hide Sites $$('div.d3211').each( function(e) { e.visualEffect('slide_up',{duration:0.5}) });Why EMA was Important to Children in Poverty
Updated: 2011-01-22 10:04:14The Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) has been cancelled by the Tory led coalition government. Why The Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) Was Important to Poor Children I’m forty years old which means when I was 16 there was nothing like EMA (under a Tory government), the same is true for my wife (a few years younger). [...]Friday Frippery: Militant John and the Labour Attack Puppies
Updated: 2011-01-21 23:35:00
You couldn't make this up ut the Newham toryminitrue site run y hin-skinned ory, Neil "Skinhead" Pearce, is accusing moi of being a Labour "attack dog". nbsp;As if.
Apparently I have "orchestrated" a letter writing "crusade" against this 'orrible ConDem government in...John's Labour blog 200,000 visitors
Updated: 2011-01-21 08:10:00Last night according to Site meter I had my 200,000 visitor to this blog since Feb 22 2007.
I posted this in December 2008 when it was 50,000 "The readership is tiny compared to some other blogs but as long as I enjoy posting I will keep it up.
I admit that I do indulge myself from time to time....Damien Day joins BBC London News
Updated: 2011-01-20 22:48:00Last night according to Site meter I had my 200,000 visitor to this blog since Feb 22 2007.
I posted this in December 2008 when it was 50,000 "The readership is tiny compared to some other blogs but as long as I enjoy posting I will keep it up.
I admit that I do indulge myself from time to time....So what is Labour's economic policy, exactly?
Updated: 2011-01-20 17:59:05
, : SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Thursday 20th January 2011 So what is Labour's economic policy , exactly Er , right . So on Saturday Ed Miliband unveiled his U-turn on Labour's economic record , acknowledging that the last government made a mistake in not talking about the need for cuts in order to reduce the deficit . And today , not five days later , he's appointed as his new Shadow Chancellor the only senior Labour politician who , until now , has maintained that spending cuts are completely unnecessary . Unless Ed Balls has had a change of heart in the last 24 hours , it looks very much as though Miliband has performed another U-turn on the economy . To read more , click here This level of ineptitude is so unusual in British politics that the terminology toAnti-Muslim bias now the social norm, UK cabinet minister says
Updated: 2011-01-20 16:38:52
Prejudice against Muslims has "passed the dinner-table test" and become socially acceptable in Britain, says the Conservative Party's chairwoman Baroness Sayeeda Warsi.Is the IMF Damaging Health?
Updated: 2011-01-20 16:35:38Earlier this week the Guardian published an article titled 'Poor countries with IMF loans divert aid from public health', highlighting the relationships between IMF borrowing and spending on public health and showing that there is a high correlation between countries taking IMF financing and very low levels of public expenditure on health. Continue reading →Stop TB Partnership Announces New Executive Secretary
Updated: 2011-01-20 13:04:55
This week the Stop TB Partnership announced its’ newly appointed Executive Secretary, Dr. Lucia Ditui, following the departure of Marcos Espinal in August 2010. Continue reading →TUC Trustee Pensions Conference 2010: “Shareholder Resolutions”
Updated: 2011-01-19 23:34:00This post is yet another very late "catch-up". The annual TUC Pension Conference is the "Trustee" event of the year. It was held at Congress House in London on 22 November 2010 and was packed out.
I missed most of the morning due to a regional committee meeting and came in...Tower Hamlets Homes Lobby
Updated: 2011-01-18 23:47:00
This evening I went along to a noisy but largely cheerful lobby by UNISON members of a Tower Hamlets Homes Board meeting in the Toby Club in Bethnal Green. Tower Hamlets Homes is a ALMO which has run into let us say "problems".
I use to be an assistant branch secretary of the UNISON...Have your say on UK aid spending
Updated: 2011-01-18 17:07:45The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) launched a public consultation calling on stakeholders and the public to give input on which areas of UK aid they would like to have reviewed. The consultation will run for 12 weeks from the 14th January until the 7th April 2011. Continue reading →Inflation is rising … again
Updated: 2011-01-18 14:03:3711 months ago, I wrote the following about the UK’s inflation rate: Many commentators clearly believe the Bank of England’s forecast that inflation will come down sharply during 2010. This is not really my expectation – so long as this country is depending on imports, and so long as the pound continues to be weak, [...]RSA Debates "The Spirit Level" 22 July 2010
Updated: 2011-01-17 18:37:00
I am a little early at Congress House waiting for tonight’s seminar by one of the authors of “The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better”. Checking my netbook I see that I still have my note from the Royal Society of the Arts (RSA) debate last year which I haven’t got around...Magic Moments
Updated: 2011-01-16 22:49:00I had a letter published recently in the Newham Recorder as West Ham Labour Party agent criticising Tory East Ham Chair, Neal Pearce, or being abusive about West Ham P Lyn Brown and using Remembrance Day to make cheap political points. A number of Newham residents also wrote in...Stop the jobseeker injustice
Updated: 2011-01-16 13:30:00Well done to the NHF for carrying on with their "Don't mention the housing crisis" campaign post General election. Also, for annoying Coalition ministers for pointing out the inequities and injustices of their policies.
This screen print from their website encourages you to contact your MP...Happy 50th Montrose Matty!
Updated: 2011-01-15 16:13:00
Happy Half Century to Montrose (Monty) Matty. Former top UNISON Caretaking steward and Safety rep.
A staunch (but born again) Labour Party member.
Seen here on the picket line outside 723 Commercial Road E14 during the month long Tower Hamlets Housing Strike 1999.
His...Paul Myners LAPFF 2010: The Capital Market Crisis two years on
Updated: 2011-01-14 07:54:00This report is a just a little late but better late than never...Former fund manager, Chair of Marks and Sparks and Labour Government Financial Services Secretary, Lord Paul Myners, speaking at the ocal Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) onference in December last year. Myners gave..."We band of brothers"
Updated: 2011-01-13 07:27:00
Major Richard "Dick" Winters - the original American Paratrooper who with his Easy Company comrades was featured in the superb book and film "Band of Brothers" died recently.
He lived to a ripe old age of 92 despite the awful combat experiences he had gone through in is youth. nbsp;He...Statsminister Uffe Ellemann, og andre fortrudte sejre
Updated: 2011-01-13 04:13:00Uffe Ellemann-Jensen Originally uploaded by Radikale Venstre Politiken havde for et par dage siden en kontrafaktisk-historisk artikel om, hvad der ville være sket, hvis Uffe Ellemann havde vundet i 1998. Den påpeger, at “Uffes nederlag var meget værre for det moderne Danmark omkring centrum-højre og centrum-venstre, end hans sejr ville have været. Thi tre år [...]SWPer finds God while its Officers become Royality
Updated: 2011-01-12 07:26:00"
This is actually a rather interesting radio interview with a former leader of Respect and the SWP (I understand) n Birmingham about why this former theist converted to Islam. David Asif Hughes comes over as being pretty level headed and reasonable. 'm not sure who are the...From 8 mm film to YouTube
Updated: 2011-01-11 02:43:05My maternal grandfather, Otto Nielsen, was a keen photographer, and he also recorded the family on 8 mm film from 1973 till around 1978, when he had to stop due to illness. As an example, here is a brief recording from my first birthday (which is quite appropriate, given that my youngest daughter will be [...]Classifying NSW State Seats based on Past Election Results
Updated: 2011-01-10 04:54:42Over the Christmas-New Year break I've been preparing a publication for the NSW Parliamentary Library looking at the state's 93 Legislative Assembly districts and estimating which party would have won each seat at state and federal elections over the last...