Just Pay: Fair Pensions (and the bleeding obvious)

 I missed the launch of the "Just Pay: Living Wage Campaign" by Fair Pensions last Monday. I hope it goes well.  What a fantastic campaign.  It calls on all the UK FT 100 companies to agree to being a Living Wage

employer.

Check out Tom who points out that 3.5 million workers in the UK earn less than £7 per hour and 53% of kids who live in poverty have a parent in work.  A coalition of investors with assets under management in excess of £13 Bn will contact the CEOs of FTSE 100 companies calling for the application of Living Wage standards across all UK operations. The campaign is also asking small shareholders, policy holders and customers of these companies to take part in the campaign. 

Personally, I do not understand how the senior executives of these companies who earn huge, and often staggering amounts of money each year can enjoy their dosh when significant numbers of the people they employ have to support their families on poverty wages.  Apart from the moral argument over poverty pay I found this "bleeding obvious" comment below compelling.

"We've found that paying the Living Wage is a smart business move as increasing wages has reduced staff turnover and absenteeism, whilst productivity and professionalism have subsequently increased." - Guy Stallard - Director of Facilities, KPMG Europe.

One Year on...West Ham Ward Election Declaration 7 May 2010

Tempus fugit. It's been a year to the day since I was elected with Freda and Ron as Labour Councillors for West Ham Ward in Newham, London.  The term actually began officially on May 10.  While in London (especially in the East) we defeated the Tories and wiped out the BNP, nationally of course, it was a disaster which we are now paying the price.

Pistyll Rhaeadr

I won't comment on the UK Council, Assembly or AV election results out today. Instead I will suggest that I have a hinterland by posting pictures from last weekend of beautiful (Labour!) Wales.

Pistyll Rhaeadr Waterfall is in the Berwyn Mountains, Powys and is one of the seven wonders of Wales.

It is the tallest single drop Waterfall in the UK. Well worth a visit and a ramble. When we were kids the Gray family use to camp here and in the mornings
my sisters and I use to go and stand (very briefly) under the waterfall (bloody cold but invigorating).

The countryside around this hidden valley is simply gorgeous. 

Check out Facebook photos here

Knocking up in Thurrock

This evening I was “knocking up” Labour supporters in Thurrock, Essex and reminding/encouraging/cajoling them to go out and vote for Labour candidate, Phil Smith.

I was in a canvass team with fellow West Hammers (CLP) vanguardists (and Newham Cllrs) Forhad Hussain and Ellie Robinson.  We were joined by Ron from Hackney South CLP (see main photo left to right). There were a number of Newham Party members out and about in Thurrock today, including the Mayor Sir Robin Wales (and in recent weeks).

Since there are no elections in London this year the Regional Labour Party have allocated each CLP a key Council election outside London to help out.

We were working in Stanford East & Corringham Ward. During the Election last year the Tories won the council seat by only 1649 votes to 1620. So this should be winnable but I do worry about the turn out in such local elections when compared to the General election.

It was all quite quiet. I didn’t see a single political poster in any window or garden. I didn’t see any other canvassers. All the people I met were very polite but those who had already voted were unusually hesitant in admitting to me who they had actually voted for. I had a good conversation with a Ford worker about the NHS, pensions and “Sending a message to Downing Street” about his concerns.

The most excitement of the night came from the traditional arguments amongst canvassers of all political persuasions helping out in new places about “we are lost” and “what way should we go?” (see photo left above) I think from now on, West Ham Labour Party should describe the direct route to anywhere as the “Ellie Way” and the going totally in the wrong direction route as the “Forhad way” :).  I was too lazy to do any map reading tonight.

It was still a good day. We met up with London Assembly John Biggs, Cllr Bill Turner from Tower Hamlets and Cllr Josephine Channer from Barking and Dagenham.

Update: check out some more photos on FB here

Update: Phil wins by 136 votes! Well done.

Vote Labour: Thursday 5th May 2011

Vote Yes: Let's 'AV a beer!

"vote with your head and your heart at the same time".  Hat tip Mr Biggs. nuf said?

Ken helps mobilise Labour Vote outside London

This evening I went to an "eve of poll" telephone canvass bank at the Labour Party headquarters in Victoria. This was hosted by Labour London Mayor Candidate, Ken Livingstone. 

This year there is no elections in London. The London Labour Party has twinned CLP's with target seats in Councils outside London.

The telephone bank on the ground floor was packed. I understand that the much bigger one upstairs was also full of Party members who had also volunteered to help out.
I was ringing voters in Kent. The response was very, very good. There seems to be an appetite out there for people to send the Tories and the Lib Dems a powerful message. Or "a good kicking" as one person I spoke to tonight put it. When I suggested to a voter that the indications are that it will be really close. She responded sharply by saying "What do you mean it will be close. We are going to win!"

I also spoke to a retired UNISON member who told me proudly that his Labour Link poster was in his front window.

Ken came around and thanked activists for their support (see college).  The star of the show was of course the lovely and very well behaved (guide?) dog who slept under the chair throughout (top left of college). 

Update: We were canvassing voters in Dover/Deal in Kent.  Labour increased its seats by 4 but the Tories still control the Council.  The Lib Dems were wiped out.  Two of the new Cllrs are the Mum and Dad of former Tower Hamlets Cllr, Clair Hawkins, who I met in 2006 when they were helping Clair canvass in Mile End and Globe Town ward. 

Association of Member Nominated Trustees

Recently I joined the "Association of Member Nominated Trustees".  The AMNT was only launched last year and has already 150 members who serve as trustees or representatives on pension funds with over £50 billion of assets. 

On Wikipedia the AMNT is described as being "composed of pension trustees selected by employees or members of private and public sector pension funds in the United Kingdom. It a non-profit group which seeks to organise employee representatives through sharing information, expertise and coordinating policies for pensions and corporations in which money is invested".

I went to its AGM in March and was very impressed.  In particular I went to a work group on Defined Benefit pension schemes and was pleased to be in a room full of people who were genuinely positive and supportive about DB. I was also the only person from a public sector scheme.  At the meeting it was decided to form a working group defending and promoting DB pensions schemes which I will Chair.

I have always thought that despite the good work of the TUC Pension Trustee network and LAPFF there needs to be some form of national forum for all member nominated trustees and representatives. Our schemes are all different but we all have particular pressures and problems common to all. The founding joint Chairs are Janice Turner, Member Nominated Trustee of the BECTU Staff Retirement Scheme and Barry Parr, Member Nominated Director of the Orange Pension Scheme.

If you are interested in getting more information or becoming a member check out its temporary website here.   The next open meeting will be on 7 July in London.

Tax Payers Alliance take on death of Bin Laden...

"Greedy Public Sector Workers with their Gold Plated Pensions, Kill Prominent Saudi Tax Paying Millionaire"

BBC Picture of USA troops watching President Obama's TV announcement while in Afghanistan.

Hat tip Col Roi.

West Ham Labour Party AV Debate: 28.4.11

On Thursday evening former Labour Party deputy leader, Margaret Beckett and John Denham, former Labour Secretary of State for CLG took part in a Hustings on AV. Margaret was Against AV and John For. This was organised by West Ham Labour Party and our local MP, Lyn Brown. It was held in a new University of East London Lecture theatre in Stratford E15 and was sponsored by UNISON London Labour Link.

The meeting went very well. When you organise such events there is always a worry beforehand about how many people would turn up on the night. It was the eve of a Bank holiday and the media have been going on about how people are not interested in the AV referendum. However, when we went there to help set up at 6.15pm (for a 7.30pm start) some guests had already arrived at 6.30pm. Around 150 turned up and at the close of the debate at 8.50pm there was still a mass of hands still raised to ask the panellists questions or make points.   

Both John and Margaret had 10 minutes each to set their respective cases then there was the Question and Answer.  
This was thankfully an intelligent and even tempered debate unlike the rather puerile one that the national Yes and No campaigns have descended into at times. It was still a little sharp - with John or Margaret shaking their heads at what the other had just said and writing notes on counter arguments furiously. 

I am of course completely bias since I am a convinced YES supporter (who had already cast his vote by post) but I felt that John did have the edge.  

Margaret argued persuasively for retaining the First Past The Post (FPTP) yet was less convincing to me, in her attacks on AV. I accept many of her arguments since I do think that FPTP does have merits. However, many of her arguments against AV were in fact credible arguments against Proportional Representation (PR) which AV is not. I would agree with her that PR is unsuitable and flawed. To me AV is just a updated and modern version of FPTP.

It’s not perfect.  But the world will not end if it is introduced. I think AV is fairer and we do need to shake up our parliamentary political system after the mire over expenses.

I agree with her argument that all electoral systems are unfair to some and flawed to some degree and that this should be about principle not political advantage.  

While I support AV because I think it is right. I think that John made a telling argument about how the Tories had benefited from FPTP. The Tories dominated British politics in the last century in part due to FPTP. That is why Cameron is so opposed.   

I made a contribution about the level of support for AV in the Newham Labour Group and also made reference to The Today interview I heard with John Curtice, Professor of Politics, at the University of Strathclyde. He had number crunched that if we had AV in the last election, there could have been a Labour led Coalition government.  So I offered my update on the old saying that “the worst day of a Labour led Government is better than the best day of a Tory one”.  

We then had the traditional Labour Partry raffle and auction. Next was down to the "Black Lion" for drinks with John and Lyn. A good night was had by all.

Many thanks to UEL and the very helpful campus staff and all those who helped out to arrange such a successful event.

I will post photos on Facebook later but check out the professional snaps by Dan McCurry here.