Banking and financial services reform should not be just in reaction to each scandal - Leslie
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20
Chris Leslie MP, Labour’ Shadow Treasury Minister, responding to the independent review of LIBOR, said:
Ed Miliband’s message for banks: provide real change or we’ll break you up by law
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20Britain’ banks need to change if we are going to come through this crisis and build an economy which works for working people.Iain McNicol's speech to Labour Party Annual Conference 2012
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Iain McNicol, General Secretary of the Labour Party, said today at Labour Party Annual Conference 2012:Michael Dugher MP writes to Cabinet Secretary to raise questions over Cameron's Brazil visit and JCB
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20Michael Dugher MP, Labour’ Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, has written to the Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood to raise a number of questions over the propriety of David Cameron’ decision to provide public support to JCB and its Chairman, Sir Anthony Bamford.NewBuy stats - Government needs to drop the hype and change course - Dromey
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20Jack Dromey MP, Labour's Shadow Housing Minister, commenting on official statistics released today on the Government’ NewBuy scheme:Motorists welcome decision to refer insurance industry to the Competition Commission - Woodcock
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20John Woodcock MP, Labour’ Shadow Transport Minister, commenting on the OFT’ decision to refer the motor insurance industry to the Competition Commission, said:Mitchell still doesn't get it - Dugher
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20Michael Dugher MP, Labour's Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, ollowing Andrew Mitchell’ comments in an interview with the Sutton Coldfield Observer that the row over his altercation with Downing Street police officers was "blown out of all proportion", said:Incredible that Michael Gove continues to wash his hands of GCSE mess - Stephen Twigg
Updated: 2012-09-30 16:36:20Stephen Twigg, Labour's Shadow Education Secretary, responding to reports on GCSEs, said:Dave Watson: Welcome to the new world of Scottish policing
Updated: 2012-09-30 15:24:00
If Stephen House was not aware of the political sensitivities in his new job as Chief Constable, it was brought sharply into focus at his first press conference.read more
John's Labour blog: Lab12: Some pre conference thoughts?
Updated: 2012-09-30 11:52:00
I'm in Manchester for the 2012 Labour Party Conference which starts today at 2pm. nbsp;I'm here as a Ex-officio (Councillor) not a trade union or CLP delegate.
On the one hand the Party looks iread more
Unison Scotland: UNISON response to Sunday Herald report giving detail on "horrendous" cuts to police support staff
Updated: 2012-09-30 11:01:00This week, African leaders hailed a new emphasis on combating [...]Unison Active: Child Abuse by Dave Bryan
Updated: 2012-09-30 10:11:00If we are all God’s children, isn’t it about time the Social Services paid him a visit?Unison Active: Italian unions protest against austerity
Updated: 2012-09-29 20:06:00Italian trade unionists demonstrated in Rome yesterday against the unelected Prime Minister Mario Monti's relentless programme of public spending cuts. The strike and protest was called by the...Outsourcing and austerity: civil society and the coalition government
Updated: 2012-09-28 22:55:00
Friday 5 October 2012 in Congress House. "A conference jointly hosted by TUC, NAVCA, NCIA, UNISON and Unite, this conference aims to bring representatives of charities, trade unions, voluntary, community and faith groups and other civil society partners together to look at the impact that the ...Ban Ki-Moon launches ‘Education First’
Updated: 2012-09-27 11:02:20
At the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon launched Education First, his new global initiative. At the launch, the Secretary-General highlighted that 250 million children cannot read, write or count well – even after four … Continue reading →Council Pension fund to build homes
Updated: 2012-09-26 20:45:00Congratulations to Greater Manchester Pension fund (GMPF) for running a pilot scheme investing n 240 new homes for affordable rent and discounted sale. I'm still not fully aware of all the full details but what I understand so far it just makes perfect sense.
Councils have land, planning...What is Lamont doing to Scottish Labour?
Updated: 2012-09-26 16:25:32Stephen Curran and Johann Lamont campaign in Glasgow Southside Originally uploaded by Scottish Labour If you’ve been hiding under a stone, you might have missed Johann Lamont’s recent speech. Amongst other things, she said: A council tax freeze, for example, costs. It’s cheap to say, but expensive to fund. And if you don’t fund it [...]October action launched! Call on the new DFID team to support saving millions of lives through the Global Fund
Updated: 2012-09-26 14:27:30Our October action is here! Continue reading →Newham Council supports TUC March and calls for alternative economic policy
Updated: 2012-09-26 07:51:00
On Monday evening ewham Council supported unanimously a motion to support the TUC anti-austerity March n Saturday October 20th and for the next Labour Government to deliver an
alternative economic policy for a future that works.
I moved the motion and below is the speech I gave. This...Jobs wasn’t there to say no to Apple Maps
Updated: 2012-09-25 11:44:56iPhone 5: Bigger Screen Adds a 5th Row of Apps Originally uploaded by methodshop.com Steve Jobs was great at saying no: “Focus is about saying no. And the result of that focus is going to be some really great products. Where the total is much greater than the sum of the parts.” When I read [...]Oxford Economics or Mickeymouseonomics?
Updated: 2012-09-25 08:08:00I enjoyed this demolition in "Redbrick" of the so-called "report" issued yesterday by the CBI on apparent cost savings in the public sector from outsourcing. nbsp; Steve Hilditch pulls it to pieces with regard to Social Housing management.
The Right are coming out with some really desperate...James Keir Hardie: 120 Years
Updated: 2012-09-24 22:56:00
This evening Labour MP, Hilary Benn, shadow secretary of state for communities and local government, opened an exhibition at the Old Town
Hall in Stratford on the life of Keir Hardie.
This was to mark the 120th anniversary of eir being elected for West Ham as the first ever independent...International support for Scottish independence
Updated: 2012-09-24 22:40:12Màrsail agus Cruinneachadh airson neo-eisimeil Alba Originally uploaded by Màrtainn The March and Rally for Independence in Edinburgh last Saturday was full of people from all over Europe supporting Scotland’s quest for independence: There were fifty Flemings, a large group of Venetians, and smaller groups of people from Catalonia, the Basque Country and Padania (North [...]Dr Hari Mann: RSA Tomorrow's Investor programme
Updated: 2012-09-24 21:48:00
Dr Mann was the first speaker at last weeks meeting of the Association of Member Nominated Trustees (AMNT).
He spoke about the 4 year research programme into investments by the Royal Society Arts/Tomorrow's Investor Programme. He and co-author David Pitt-Watson published his report in July...RESULTS activists join Paralympians to call for end of Polio
Updated: 2012-09-24 01:01:58
Last week, staff and supporters from RESULTS UK joined Paralympians Anne Wafula-Strike and Ade Adepitan, Baroness Anne Jenkin and Elisha London, Country Director the Global Poverty Project UK to hand in a petition to new Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening, to call for the end of Polio. Continue reading →Jack Dromey MP to address UNISON Housing Association Branch
Updated: 2012-09-23 23:07:00
The Greater London Housing Association branch Labour Link has held a number of well attended meetings in the past with ousing Minsters (the good old days) and Shadow ousing speakers. This year Jack has kindly agreed o attend but we are hoping to increase participation by inviting...My latest Sun column
Updated: 2012-09-23 08:19:02
: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Sunday 23rd September 2012 My latest Sun column As a Tory , I’ve been keeping a close eye on the Liberal Democrats gathering in Brighton this weekend for their annual conference . That’s because I desperately want them to get their act together before the next election . So far , Labour has been the main beneficiary of Nick Clegg’s unpopularity , with roughly two-thirds of disillusioned Lib Dem voters turning left and only a third turning right . If follows that if the Lib Dems start to recover in the polls it will hurt Labour more than the . Conservatives Some Lib Dem activists think the Deputy Prime Minister should step aside in favour of Vince Cable . Not only is the Business Secretary well to the left of Clegg , making him anUNISON London Labour Link Training
Updated: 2012-09-22 23:32:00
Picture is from the recent London UNISON Labour Link raining event. Branch officers and activists came together from all over Greater London and ll UNISON service groups.
We are ere holding literature supporting the TUC anti-austerity March on Saturday 20 October.
The training...March and rally for independence
Updated: 2012-09-22 22:45:01Today Phyllis, Léon, Anna, Amaia and I got up early and drove to Giffnock, where we got on a vintage bus that drove us to the Meadows in Edinburgh. Once we got there, Léon and Anna got a face-paint, and we then marched with at least 10,000 other people down to Princes Street Gardens, where [...]'Thrasher' swears at Copper
Updated: 2012-09-21 18:57:00
“Open this gate, I’m the Chief Whip. I’m telling you — I’m the Chief Whip and I’m coming through these gates.”
What a charmer. When they still refused, Mitchell allegedly responded:
"Best you learn your f***ing place. You don’t run this f***ing government.
“You’re f***ing plebs.”
Mitchell is also...mallowstreet pension Awards (& Oct 20)
Updated: 2012-09-20 23:45:00
Last night I went to the very successful mallowstreet 2012 Awards ash near London Bridge. Mallowstreet is a pension social media site which I became a member via the AMNT.
I was up for "the most influential trustee award". There is a ittle bit of flannel eing ominated in...A UKIP/Con pact?
Updated: 2012-09-20 17:24:12: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Thursday 20th September 2012 A UKIP Con pact I appeared on the Daily Politics today to discuss the prospect of a UKIP Con pact as well as Katie Hopkins's new political venture I thought it was an intelligent , well-informed discussion , but someone else described it as the political equivalent of a Monty Python sketch . Make your own mind up by clicking here COMMENT COMMENTS SO FAR : 0 FIXED LINK EMAIL TO A FRIEND GaryJRobinson Dunno . It's bizarre 31 minutes ago Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Wikipedia IMdb Email BEST OF THE WEB Getting rid of Cameron would be electoral suicide by Simon Heffer Daily Mail Naomi Wolf : Dotty and Dim by Zoe Heller nybooks.com Gove Levels Daily Mail The End of Men by Hanna Rosin theatlantic.com The Left-wingRecording of September focus call now available online
Updated: 2012-09-20 10:31:43We are pleased to announce that a recording of our September Focus Call is now available for download. Click here to download the call September 2012 Focus call on DFID Continue reading →Nick Clegg apology a.k.a - lying gob s***e?
Updated: 2012-09-20 00:07:00Nuf said.
Update: and now the usical )
Will the Scottish-English border look like this?
Updated: 2012-09-19 22:49:50There’s an article on Yes Scotland’s website today about border controls in Scandinavia (or rather the lack thereof). At first I thought it was a rather pointless article, given that the absence of actual border controls is the norm in most of Europe these days. However, as the article points out, “for those who travel [...]Searchlight and Hope Not Hate
Updated: 2012-09-19 08:26:00I've been a subscriber to the monthly anti-fascist magazine "Searchlight" for many years and supporter of its campaigning arm "Hope Not Hate". So I was concerned to hear that they had some sort of a dispute and have gone their separate ways. Taking on racists and Nazi's is difficult,...The EU must act now to tackle escalating HIV and TB epidemics
Updated: 2012-09-19 08:00:37
RESULTS UK, in collaboration with leading non-governmental health organisations, has released a report that highlights how the Global Fund funding shortfall and changes in eligibility criteria risk undermining momentous achievements that have been made in the fight against TB and HIV … Continue reading →Workplace Pensions TV advert
Updated: 2012-09-18 22:48:00Apparently it was on TV last night for the first time. I haven't seen it et myself but its now on YouTube.
Auto-Enrolment into orkplace pensions is the biggest thing to happen to pensions in decades. It's not perfect but a welcome start. As the advert says "the bosses" will indeed pay...One Housing "defends" the indefensible
Updated: 2012-09-18 20:57:00This is the 3rd recent post on Housing Association, "One Housing Group". First was in August this year in response to their plans to "Shape Communities" while at the same time slashing the pay and conditions of already low paid care and support staff.
The second was early this month bout...2012 A.C.T. Election Site Now Live
Updated: 2012-09-18 05:37:08Antony Green's election webiste for the 2012 ACT election is now available.Take two minutes to feedback on the work of RESULTS
Updated: 2012-09-18 01:18:11PLEASE TAKE TWO MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS SURVEY TO HELP US IMPROVE THE WAY WE WORK. Continue reading →Norges Riges Grundlov skal oversættes fra dansk til bokmål og nynorsk
Updated: 2012-09-17 23:07:53Stortinget Originally uploaded by kjelljoran Norges grundlov har altid været skrevet på dansk, fordi dansk var Norges sprog, da den første grundlov blev skrevet, og man har ikke hidtil villet gå tilbage og omskrive eksisterende paragraffer. Pudsigt nok sneg der sig i årenes løb mange norvagismer ind, og 2004 rettede man nogle sproglige fejl (PDF). [...]Fair Pensions: Change the World from your Workplace
Updated: 2012-09-17 22:03:00Its a pity but I on't be able to attend this Fair Pensions raining day in November due to a clash. Become a Workplace Responsible Investment Champion
TRAINING DAY: Saturday, 17thNovember 2012 (10am - 4.30pm)
UNISON Centre, 30 Euston Road, ondon NW1...RESULTS Grassroots’ message heard at Global Fund Board meeting!
Updated: 2012-09-17 12:17:19RESULTS Grassroots' message heard at Global Fund Board meeting! Continue reading →TUC 2012: the long march towards the workers idyll?
Updated: 2012-09-16 21:28:00
A week ago the 2012 Trade Union Congress opened in Brighton. I was there as a UNISON delegate although I missed the final day (Wednesday). Here are some random and personal thoughts on this year's Congress.
I suppose the yardstick for deciding if it was successful or not is whether the movement is...My column in today's Sun
Updated: 2012-09-16 09:03:15: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Sunday 16th September 2012 My column in today's Sun The President of the European Commission used the F-word” in a speech about the future of Europe this week , sending shockwaves through . Westminster I’m talking about federalism” , obviously , though I wouldn’t be surprised if a few oaths escaped the Prime Minister’ mouth when he heard the speech . Jose Manuel Barroso , the unelected leader of the EC , announced to a stunned European Parliament on Wednesday that he would bring forward plans for a fiscal , economic and political union before the next European elections . That means changes to the European Union’s treaties could be set in motion at any point after 8 June 2014, something that would automatically trigger a plebiscite inAbbey Gardens Harvest Festival Sat 22 Sept 2-5pm
Updated: 2012-09-15 22:08:00
APPG on Global Tuberculosis launches new inquiry, ‘Britain’s response to drug-resistant tuberculosis’
Updated: 2012-09-14 17:58:14This week the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Global Tuberculosis launched an inquiry ‘Britain’s response to the growing threat of drug-resistant tuberculosis’, and is currently calling for written evidence submissions. The deadline for submissions is 15th October 2012. Earlier this … Continue reading →TUC 12 "Why every trade unionist should be active in the Labour Party" CLPD fringe
Updated: 2012-09-14 17:06:00
Sorry this is a little late but on Tuesday evening I went to the fringe organised by the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (CLPD). This is the first time that I've been to CLPD event and had never seen ts shy and retiring Secretary, Pete Willsman, in action before (see centre)....Vote For Me
Updated: 2012-09-14 13:10:17: SEARCH Blog Journalism Books Film Radio Toby's School Friday 14th September 2012 Vote For Me I'm up against Laurie Penny for Twitter Public Personality of the Year in the Comment Awards You can vote for me here COMMENT COMMENTS SO FAR : 0 FIXED LINK EMAIL TO A FRIEND RT JamesDelingpole Rather glad I'm not anywhere right now which has benefited from the outburst of peace , democracy and liberty result 21 minutes ago Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Wikipedia IMdb Email BEST OF THE WEB The End of Men by Hanna Rosin theatlantic.com The Left-wing posturing of Save The Children by Douglas Murray Daily Mail We must build on the success of academies and free schools by Michael Gove thesun.co.uk Posh-bashing is usually hypocritical balls by Hannah Betts Guardian Five conservative messages smuggled intoAMNT meeting September 20
Updated: 2012-09-13 23:11:00"Dear member,Do you know how much your scheme is being charged, and whether that is too much? Do you know what to look for?
Come along to the open meeting of the Association of Member Nominated Trusteesand find out.
The meeting will be held next Thursday at Barings Asset Management, 155...The wave of new countries 2012-17
Updated: 2012-09-13 22:48:51120911_11s2012_186 Originally uploaded by Assemblea.cat Just as very few people in 1988 expected that during the following five years Germany would be reunified and the USSR, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia would break up, very few people at the moment expect that we might in just five years’ time live in a world in which Quebec, Catalonia, [...]Separated at Birth?
Updated: 2012-09-13 07:09:00Hat tip "I support Public Service don't let the Con Dems destroy them"Housing Voice ‘To Have or Have Not? Taking Responsibility for Tomorrow's Affordable Homes Today"
Updated: 2012-09-12 23:46:00
I eft TUC Congress early today to return to London for this morning's launch of the Housing Voice report at the House of Commons.
Housing Voice is an independent affordable housing alliance with cross party political support. For the past year they have carried out a national inquiry, taking...Sydney By-election - Lessons from Federal Election Results
Updated: 2012-09-12 12:24:03What are the prospects for the different parties and candidates contesting the Sydney by-election? What do federal election results reveal about the contest?Catalunya, nou Estat d’Europa
Updated: 2012-09-11 21:36:33I’m not sure how widely it’s been reported outside Catalonia (Catalunya), but today a huge march in favour of independence took place in Barcelona: According to this article, the number of participants number was “un milió i mig de persones, segons la Guàrdia Urbana i 600.000 segons la Delegació del Govern central”, i.e. between 600,000 [...]Sydney By-election 2012
Updated: 2012-09-11 05:08:42The NSW state seat of Sydney faces a by-election as MP Clover Moore is forced to resign from parliament after her re-election as Sydney Lord Mayor.NSW MPs Forced to Choose Between Local and State Politics
Updated: 2012-09-08 03:56:26At today's local government elections, 27 state MPs had to choose between state and local politics. Only Clover Moore has remained in town hall.