We are getting near the end of the vote Yes campaign to and hpefully all eligible Unison members get to vote in the ballot to ensure that local government pensions are protected.
It is important...A dignified Sophie Habibis showed up on ITV Daybreak this morning and presented herself in a positive way and avoided the temptation to make any negative comments about any of the other contestants...
Earlier this month I posted here that I was planning to run the London Marathon 2012 and was tarting to train sing this 24 week training rogramme. I plan to post each week on mread more
This is a picture of me addressing the recent SERTUC (South East Regional TUC) Council meeting.
(Yes, I must remember to stick my head up from my speech notes when speaking).
Motion 1 was about the "Response to Government Economic Policies". It was quite a good motion which I spoke in favour of...
Today I listened to Any Questions on Radio 4. There was a question about the outrageous 49% increase in the pay last year of the average FT100 director (about 10 minutes in).
Lib Dem Coalition minister Jeremy Browne
described the company remuneration committees who "set" the pay of such...
"London Hazards Asbestos Conference is taking place at The Abbey Centre, 34 Great Smith Street, Westminster SW1P 3BU on Friday 18th November 2011 at 10am.
The conference is aimed at establishing and developing networks to support asbestos victims in Greater London. The conference will develop a...
On Tuesday Paralympian Anne Wafula-Strike, who was the first East African ever to compete in a wheelchair sprint at the Paralympic games, visited Parliament with RESULTS. Continue reading →
The Chancellor of St Paul's Cathedral in London has resigned after a row among church and local authorities over whether to try to evict a 200-tent protest camp occupying the square outside.Last Saturday morning I went to the South East Regional Trade Union Council (SERTUC) meeting at Congress House. This was before the UNISON International Seminar.
The forthcoming ballot and likely strike action on Public service pensions was the key topic. The President of SERTUC Martin Gould...
Apologies this is a little late. This week is European Health and Safety week. The theme or 2011 s "Safe Maintenance".
You can download the SE poster here. Futher details here and here.
I've just applied for a place at the SERTUC health and safety...
The tireless campaigning, advocacy and energy of our much loved friend and activist, Winston Zulu, was yesterday recognised by the honour of President Sata granting him a posthumous Insigna of Recognition Award. Continue reading →
We are pleased to announce that the November RESULTS conference call will take place on Tuesday, 1st November 2011 at 8pm. Our guest speaker on the call will be Diarmaid McDonald, Coordinator of the Stop AIDS campaign. Continue reading →"UNISON is urging members to vote - and vote YES - in the ballot for industrial action to protect public sector pensions. This ballot closes on Thursday 3 November: Your last chance to vote for action to defend your pension is fast approaching.
We need a big Yes vote and a high turnout to send a..."Rip-off agency fees. Deposits lost unfairly. Rogue landlords evicting tenants with little notice and hiking rent with no warning. Smashed windows, faulty locks and broken fridges not being fixed for weeks or months. Rodent infestations. Damp and mouldy bathrooms being left to rot.
These are just...Picture of the Labour Plaistow North ward canvass team (and a couple of friends) on Saturday.
West Ham MP Lyn Brown and GLA member for City and East, John Biggs, were also on hand to speak to local residents about the importance of getting rid Tory London Mayor Johnson and electing Ken...
The seminar continued on Sunday morning with a presentation by Mairan Power (UNISON International officer) and Mark Beacon (ACTSA) on Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Malawi. It is pretty awful and depressing what is going on in all these countries. They all experience o different degrees...
October 24th marks World Polio Day 2011. Continue reading →
The G20 is coming up and we need your help to fight the global economic crisis. Continue reading →
This afternoon heard the sad news that Richard "Dickie" Fenn passed away yesterday. Dickie used to be the Emergency Liaison Officer for ower Hamlets Council. This wasn't a 9-5 office job. Over the years (or rather decades) Dickie and his team used to be on call 24/7 to...
Sat pm: Last presentation was by Nick Crook, UNISON International Officer, followed by a film on Labour Rights in Egypt.
Nick reported that this is a new area of work for UNISON. nbsp;We se to work on alestine and Iraq (and to a lesser extent Iran). o real mandate ..
Sat pm: Ruby Cox the Chair of UNISON Greater London International Committee (I am vice Chair) spoke next with abriela Queuedo, the Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign Action Group Trade Union Officer (NSC).
Ruby spoke about ow she first became involved in international work in...
Sat pm: UNISON Northern Region Convenor, Clare Williams, together with local organiser, Patrick Kane gave the next related presentation on a project her region had helped set up in Columbia.
Firstly she explained "Why do we do it?" The global neoliberal economic model is responsible for causing...
Saturday and Day 2 of the 2011 UNISON International Seminar. I missed the morning session since I had to attend SERTUC Regional Council. I'll post on that later.
After lunch National officer Ravinder Gill gave an introduction to the UNISON International Development Fund (UIDF).The UIDF was...
Friday evening saw the start of the 2011 UNISON International Seminar at the UNISON centre in Euston, London. There are about 0 registered BIROS (jargin for Branch International Officers which use to puzzle me before I found out what it meant), Regional and National International...
Hat tip SERTUC: What affiliates and others are up to over Strike Ballots and the Day of Action N30. Some I have never come across before.
AEP
http://www.aep.org.uk/home
ASPECT Aspect and the Association of Educational Psychologists will be balloting members on options for dignified and lawful...
London's landmark St Paul's Cathedral closed its doors on Friday because of hazards posed by hundreds of protesters encamped in front of it in a demonstration inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement.
It will be 10 years since y first (and only) marathon. I have now obviously forgotten the agony and pain. Certainly he promise - never, ever to even think of running one again!
I am aiming to ake part n the Virgin London Marathon 2012. This time I will also be raising..."For the 75th Anniversary of the formation of the International Brigades the International Brigade Memorial Trust presented a Gala Evening, supported by Unite the Union and organised by Philosophy Football.
Featuring contributions by writer and broadcaster Robert Elms, singer-songwriter Billy...Today a Parliamentary report recommends reforming our completely rubbish libel laws. There is a lobby of Parliament on Wednesday 9th November at 6 pm. More details about this meeting on www.libelreform.org.
While on Tuesday Jack of Kent published this "Richard Dawkins ("Clinton Richard Dawkins...
Last week there was the first Committee meeting of the London branch of the Labour Housing Group (LLHG) in Camden. nbsp;This was ollowing our AGM ast month.
I think the Branch is doing really well and to take the roverbial has gone from strength to strength. It as a...Off message but I thought I might as well add to the nation's obession with Strictly Come Dancing (which of course I do not share) and there is a union connection!
My UNISON Branch administration officer Sarah and her Partner Paul (who is a union activist as well) are champion Jive dancers.
With...
Yesterday lunchtime there was a debate on the Radio 4 programme "You and Yours" n "Do Strikes Work?"
UNISON General Secretary Dave Prentis was a guest with Ed Holmes, from the hard right Tory think tank "Policy Exchange".
I rang into the programme and was able to say (about 9 minutes in)...
Housing Association Care and Support workers in Kent are pictured with their long standing local representative, im Lennox-Shaw, (centre) showing solidarity with the UNISON Strike ballot o save public service pensions.
Jim ho is planning to retire in 2012 (if he can be...
Good luck to Barnet UNISON who are taking strike action today. Picture is of Regional Secretary Linda Perks addressing last months rally outside Hendon Town Hall. I'm off to erts today so cannot make it.
"300 UNISON members will be taking one day strike action On Tuesday 18 October as part...
: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Tuesday 18th October 2011 Has Labour done another u-turn on Free Schools Poor Stephen Twigg . It seems Labour's new shadow education secretary has been nobbled by Ed Miliband and Ed Balls . After initially expressing his qualified support for Free Schools , he spent last weekend doing the rounds of the television studios explaining that , actually , he's been opposed to them all along . To read more , click here COMMENT COMMENTS SO FAR : 0 FIXED LINK EMAIL TO A FRIEND jamestplunkett Free Schools are accountable to parents , Ofsted and the Secretary of State for Education 11 minutes ago Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Wikipedia IMdb Email BEST OF THE WEB Cameron is facing class war within his own party by Dominic Lawson independent.co.ukRESULTS is sad to announce the death of Winstone Zulu, a leading advocate for the end of tuberculosis. Continue reading →: : SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Friday 14th October 2011 It's official : Labour now supports Free Schools So it's official . Labour is now pro-Free Schools . I've already noted the softening of Labour's line on Free Schools since the appointment of the Blairite Stephen Twigg as the Party's new Shadow Education Secretary , but there was an element of speculation involved . Now , in his first interview since being appointed , Twigg has come right out and said he supports Free Schools . Provided they offer some places to poor children and benefit the wider community which they will , of course he's four square behind them . No politician should be against such schools , he told the Liverpool Daily Post and went on to enthusiastically endorse the Free School proposal: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Thursday 13th October 2011 Arab Spring turns into Arab Winter In February of this year , when almost everyone was treating the anti-Mubarak protests in Egypt as a cause of celebration , I was shocked to read the following verdict by the historian Andrew Roberts in the : Spectator We should abhor policy created by mobs , and assume that all revolutionary change will ultimately be for the worse , especially in a part of the world with so few model democracies . The future seems to be in the hands of the Cairo mob , which has been irresponsibly egged on by an American president desperate to be seen on the side of the nice middle-class liberals who are always the ultimate losers in revolutions . Far better the American president who said