Greg Hands has sent a letter to Starmer formally requesting that Labour call on trade unions with links to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, or its weekend marches, to disaffiliate from it. The letter echoes one sent by the Campaign Against Antisemitism last week and labels the PSC an “extreme activist” organisation which “espouses views that encourage the anti-Semitism and violence we are witnessing“. Hands specifically attacks Aslef, GMB, the NEU, and Unite for their intimate interaction with the PSC. Their links are deep and long-held…
Hands points out that trade union leaders are “outwardly disobeying advice from Labour’s General Secretary” by speaking at the weekend marches and are therefore bringing Labour into disrepute. Meanwhile RMT head Mick Lynch, along with the heads of the National Education Union and Fire Brigades Union, have released a video announcing their support the “National March for Palestine” on Saturday. Starmer’s hands-off approach is resembling a tightrope act…
Read the full letter below:
A Whitehall co-conspirator sent Guido these images from inside the Department for Levelling Up this morning. So far, the Public and Commercial Services union have leafletted three floors of the department, though it’s not clear whether they’ve also struck the Home Office yet. This isn’t the first time PCS have done this in recent months. Must be struggling to bring in the dough. That’s the way the cookie crumbles…
Of course there’s nothing stopping union members campaigning in their place of work. Good to know at least someone is in the office today, though…
As strikes continue to derail transport service today, Britain’s rail system is still on a Taxpayer-funded life support. Research from the Taxpayers’ Alliance finds that government subsidies since the pandemic have totalled a staggering £42 Billion. That’s an average of over £1,300 from every taxpayer.
The figures grew significantly during the pandemic, and still remain at historically high levels. In 2022/23 alone subsidies will amount to £11 billion. That’s almost triple the pre-pandemic level of £4.7 billion in 2018/19. This puts union demands into context. As the cost of living bites, British Taxpayers are being held to ransom for yet more handouts to the rail industry. Phil Basey, Head of Research at the TPA, said:
“Soaring subsidies demonstrate the unsustainability of current pay demands. For years taxpayers have been covering the costs of the rail industry, yet militant union bosses are now biting the hand that feeds them. Ministers must stand firm and protect taxpayers in upcoming pay deals.”
For £42 Billion, you might expect to get a functional service…
As ASLEF has announced new train strikes on January 5th, to fall between already announced RMT strikes, public opinion has reacted to Mick Lynch’s Christmas disruption. Just 12% of voters hold a favourable view of the railway baron, compared to 28% who view him negatively.
According to YouGov, this unpopularity has also extended to rail strikes more generally. 49% of voters now oppose rail strikes whilst, by a margin of 5%, they also hold unions and not the Government responsible. That’s one less headache for Rishi Sunak…
The BBC is back to old tricks. While covering ongoing NHS strike ballots, they bought in Andrew Meyerson, introduced simply as “an accident and emergency doctor in London”.
Andrew isn’t just a doctor. He’s also a prolific union activist.
It only takes a brief flick through Andrew’s social media to find evidence of his Corbynista credentials. From posing with Mick Lynch and members of Labour’s parliamentary Socialist Campaign Group (and Barry Gardiner); to promoting both Novara Media and Momentum content and posting a protest sign with the thoughtful slogan “Piss off Rishi”. Hardly an objective commentator…
Andrew’s segment was filled with all the talking points you might expect. He called for a wealth tax, he made the claim that the government had failed to listen to a single health expert, and then catastrophised over four separate NHS “crises”.
His views, however questionable, are not the issue. The problem is that the BBC presented a partisan activist simply as an ordinary working professional. As always, transparency is key…
