‘The Future of the NHS" - Seconding Composite B #LabLink!7

This is the speech by London Ambulance Service Paramedic, Jason Anderson, at Labour Link National Forum last week. 

"Firstly I would like to say Happy 69^th Birthday to the NHS – ‘Labour's Proudest Achievement’.

I am a front-line Paramedic, and like my colleagues around the country continue to provide emergency services while facing dire financial states. 

With poor staff retention and working conditions, and still no sign of a fair pay deal.

I and colleagues were on the front line on the days of the attacks in London. Dealing with horrific injuries, in chaotic and horrifying scenes.

We continue to be stuck with an under inflation or zero pay cap, for 7 years in a row.

Recent major events in London and Manchester have highlighted the hypocrisy of the Government. Theresa May,  shaking hands with emergency service workers, thanking them for their heroic work, yet at the same time refusing to lift the 1% pay cap and therefore cutting our pay, year in, year out.

The Government is continuing to push budget cuts in our emergency services, causing cuts to training for staff and cuts in equipment. Causing strain to provide emergency cover when attending Major incidents as well as routine daily operational calls.

As the Motion states we need;

A properly funded, publicly owned NHS, right for purpose, so that myself and colleagues around the country can continue to deliver the services the patients and public deserve.

Please support this Motion".

Ditchling Beacon Walk June 2017

Off message but this was a great recovery walk that Gill and I did after the UNISON NDC conference in Brighton last month.

The National Trust car park at Ditchling Beacon is pretty small so either get there early or be patient. There is no cash car parking machine and you have to pay for a space (once you find one) on line with a credit card, so be prepared. It is a bit of a pain but not that difficult.

The walk itself is wonderful. A fantastic feeling of  isolation, big skies and fabulous views on this walk.

Who says we live in an overcrowded country?

It is sad and poignant that that Ditchling Beacon itself was donated to the National Trust in memory of the 21 year old son of the landowners, who was killed in action while serving in the RAF during the Battle of Britain in 1940.

But what a wonderful gift to the nation and memorial for their boy. 

Why we need to build a housing consensus for affordable and decent homes for all - Motion 11 #LabLink

Yvonne Green, Regional convenor & Greater London delegate moving motion 11. Why we need to build a housing consensus for affordable and decent homes for all

"Chair, delegates, the housing crisis is getting worse under this Tory government as the number of social housing shrinks year by year.

While rents and house prices outstrip pay rises also year in, year out.

Forum, the reasons for this are clear and not rocket science.

- if you don’t build enough homes for sale and rent,

- if you cut housing benefits and allowances,

- if you privatise and deregulate environmental protection and security of tenure

- then this results in a housing crisis.

How many of you here have grown up children living with you, not through choice but because they simply cannot afford to rent or buy a home of their own.

Or how many of you have to commute long distances to work since you have to live in a cheaper area.

As our leader Jeremy Corbyn recently remarked “The system is rigged, with housing treated as an investment for the few, not housing for the many”. He goes on to say “seven years of conservative failure with house building at the lowest level since the 1920s shows that they will never fix the housing crisis which is holding so many people back”

So Forum what is the solution? I am sure that many of you will be astonished to hear that despite my youthful looks, in my own life time Tory and Labour politicians use to compete on how many homes they would build if they were in power.

Forum, we must work to rebuild this consensus. Labour, thankfully, is committed to building really affordable homes for rent and for sale. We need to elect a future labour government not only in order to enable this but teach the Tories a lesson that this is what will happen to them if they do not recognise and ensure that it is the absolute duty of the state to make sure its citizens are adequately and safely housed.

Finally conference, as a London delegate and London Council worker, I would like to pay tribute not only to the emergency services who did so much at Grenfell but also the front line Kensington & Chelsea Council staff, who contrary to some media reports, have worked their socks off for residents during this terrible time. They are not to blame for the failure and negligence of their political masters.

So Forum, please support this motion and please support affordable, decent and SAFE homes for all. Thank you".

The Future of the NHS - Composite B #LabLink17

This is the speech from yesterday's debate at UNISON Labour Link Forum on "The Future of the NHS". 

Mitsy is a a care worker, NHS nurse, branch, regional and national UNISON activist. 

. 

"Chair, Forum, Mitsy Harmon-Russell, Greater London region, supporting  Composite B.  

This motion highlights that the "Sustainability and Transformation Plans" (STPs) are being pushed forward within the NHS England as a way of improving services and outcomes.

As stated,  any improvements within the NHS are welcome, however STPs, as the motion states, has not been inclusive or transparent.

At our local meeting in East London, a visiting GP reported that this process was being pushed forward without any system being in place for those who are affected to raise objections

The fall out continue to be reported, as early this week, the nursing & midwifery council reported that the strain on the NHS continues to affect its staff. 

A comparison of the last 6 months with last year, shows that double the numbers of nurses had left the NHS this year than the whole of last  year.

We call on the Labour link to action the points listed in this motion and continue to support us in highlighting  issues with STPs, which are not in the best interest of those using and working in the NHS.  

Please support this motion.

Angela Rayner MP speaks at UNISON Labour Link Conference 2017

Our first guest speaker was former UNISON activist and now Shadow Secretary for Education, Angela Rayner MP, who gave a relaxed and inspiring speech on her politics, the recent General election campaign and how proud she was to be a UNISON member.

I particularly liked her commitment to the Labour Party being a broad church and that this is a strength. Angie argued for the Party to unite and pull together in order to win.

Makes sense to me.

UNISON Labour Link National Forum 2017

Picture from this evenings UNISON Labour Link London region delegation meal.

This morning I took part in the National Labour Link Committee pre-Forum meeting. The number one issue was of course the General election and its aftermath.

Our National Forum starts tomorrow morning at 9.30am.

I will now get on with writing my speech on the Housing motion.

Keir Hardie 125th & UNISON NEC

July 4th is a great day to hold a trade union meeting. This day is the 125th anniversary of the election of Keir Hardie, the first ever Labour MP in  my home in West Ham, East London as well as the anniversary of the only successful British Revolution (across the pond).

Today was the first full meeting of the newly elected UNISON National Executive Council in our National headquarters in London. There had been a training and induction day for newly elected members yesterday. I think around a third of the NEC are new. 

The day was dominated by the selection of NEC committees and the election of Chairs and Vice Chairs of these important Committees. I was selected by the NEC Presidental team (senior NEC members elected by the NEC each year) to serve on Policy Development & Campaign, Staff Pension and Welfare Committee. I was also elected as Vice Chair of the UNISON Industrial Action Committee which sounds terribly important (which it is ) but it has only met twice in the last 10 years to decide on contested decisions on action. It does meet, debate and decide on other related issues.  

I was accused at the NEC meeting of being a greedy white male for holding 4 Committee positions (by another white male) but I suspect he did not realise that only one of these committees are "Strategic Committees" (all NEC members are members of at least one Strategic Committee).  I also suspect but do not know that the Presidential team were not overwhelmed with requests to be Staff Pension or welfare trustees. Of course, I hope I am wrong about that.

Later on I was also elected by my fellow NEC members, who are UNISON Labour Link levy payers, to be on the National Labour Link Forum (I am so, so greedy).

After all the elections were over we had our General Secretary report, by Dave Prentis, followed by a number of questions and statements by NEC members.  Probably far more statements than questions but that did include my own contribution that while industrial action, demonstrations and support for the Labour Party etc  is key we have to recruit, represent and organise in the real workplace to win for our members.

Hat tip Stephen Brown for photo

"Ripping off customers is nothing new for asset managers... "

Check the FT article here 30 June 2017

The FCA’s report is a travesty that is bereft of remedies, writes Gina Miller

In 2002, the Sandler Report on the UK retail investment market found “the reporting of product charges is typically neither clear nor consistent”. More than 15 years on and the UK regulator is still allowing the industry to rip off customers by charging excessive fees, which has a huge detrimental impact on the returns investors are getting on their hard-earned money.

Granting people the basic consumer right of knowing how much they are paying appears to be too difficult for an industry that works with complex data, facts and figures. In terms of price competition, there simply cannot be any genuine price competition if the consumer does not know the price.

This is why, as the most recent FCA report reveals, the asset management industry has profit margins of 36 per cent. This is more than double the operating margin of the FTSE pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector (14 per cent), which is based on intellectual capital and extending lives.

When the FCA’s interim report came out in November 2016, it was hard hitting and exposed the numerous dubious practices SCM Direct has been highlighting for years through our True and Fair campaign: closet index tracking, hidden fees, consultants’ conflicts of interest and false reporting of performance.....

check out full report here and get angry if you have any pension or investment plans. You are being ripped off. When you exclude their bonuses the profit of fund managers is not 36% but 48%. 

Newham Great 10k Run 2017

Before (top middle) and after (bottom middle) picture of me taking part in the Newham Great Run (wearing finishing tee shirt and medal)  I will admit to have forgotten that I had entered and due to the General election and UNISON conference, I had not trained specifically for the this run until last week.  Yet I was only 32 seconds slower than last year, when I did train (and training for a triathlon!)

My legs are very sore due to the lack of training and I suspect that I will suffer tomorrow morning.

This was a great run. It was hot but there was a lovely breeze, which I think saved the day. I did not see any runners collapsed on the side of the road which I think is a first for any of the Newham runs I have entered in the last few years.

Some working class history on route is that we ran past what I think is the site of the Chobham Farm container depot, where in 1972 an "unlawful" trade union picket took place which resulted in the imprisonment of 5 London dock workers including Vic Turner, who later on became the Mayor of Newham Council.

This imprisonment resulted in a largely successful General Strike, which led to the Pentonville 5 dockers being released. I have been pushing for a plaque to remember this.

Newham Councillor, James Beckles, also competed as did Hackney Mayor, Philip Glanville.
Update: and Cllr Mas Patel

#NoMandate - Back on the Campaign Trail

After a short break, members of Forest Gate North & West Ham Labour, led by our newly re-elected MP (with 77% of the vote) Lyn Brown, were back on the campaign trail today. As well as the NHS demo in Central London, today was a Labour Party National Campaign Day, on Theresa May, having "No Mandate for Cuts". 

I love this picture above as well. We obviously tried to stage it as a political statement but forgot the adage "Never work with animals or children" :)

This was in the week that the Tories voted and cheered in Parliament on cutting yet again public sector pay,  while at the same time crying crocodile tears about the bravery of our Police, Fire & Ambulance service.

The Labour Party seems to be getting its act together with sending to local parties excellent anti cuts leaflets (with Labour Party membership forms on rear) and placards (even if they arrived let us say "just in time").

There was a superb response today in Forest Gate for Labour, including signing a petition about the Grenfell fire and making sure that the Council does everything possible to make things safe for residents.  There was also unusually in West Ham, a couple of angry Tories, up for a row, but we saw them off.

Before the stall, Lyn went to nearby Market Square to support the very first Forest GAYTE Pride.

Hat tip main picture Mehmood.