Daily Archives: 30 August 2023

Giant banner dropped at Labour Party HQ to protest Starmer’s position on PR

Spread the love

https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/giant-banner-dropped-at-labour-party-hq-to-protest-starmers-position-on-pr/

Led by Donkeys remind Keir Starmer of his commitment to proportional representation.
Led by Donkeys remind Keir Starmer of his commitment to proportional representation.

Campaigners have draped a giant banner outside the headquarters of the Labour Party to ‘remind Keir Starmer what he once said about proportional representation.’ Led By Donkeys – a group which specialises in creative and high profile political stunts – organised the action.

The group installed a banner with a photo of Keir Starmer and a quote of comments he made during the Labour leadership election. The banner quoted Starmer as saying in February 2020: “…millions of people vote in safe seats and they feel their voice doesn’t count. That’s got to be addressed by electoral reform.”

Led by Donkeys shared a video of their banner drop on Twitter, and said: “We’ve scaled the scaffolding at Labour’s London HQ to remind Keir Starmer what he once said about proportional representation.”

Sir Keir Starmer has since distanced himself from his 2020 comments on electoral reform.

…

https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/giant-banner-dropped-at-labour-party-hq-to-protest-starmers-position-on-pr/

Continue ReadingGiant banner dropped at Labour Party HQ to protest Starmer’s position on PR

Rugby World Cup threatens legal action over Greenpeace protest video

Spread the love

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2023/08/30/rugby-world-cup-threatens-legal-action-over-greenpeace-protest-video

The climate campaigners’ video flooded the Stade de France with oil in protest of TotalEnergies’ sponsorship of the Rugby World Cup – now it’s facing backlash.

In a letter seen by The Drum, a representative from Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL) contacted Greenpeace regarding the video ‘Total Pollution: A Dirty Game,’ which utilizes a number of RWCL’s registered trademarks, including the Rugby World Cup and Rugby World Cup France 2023 logos, as well as the trademarks and logos of its member unions and commercial partners of the tournament.

“Your use of the RWCL IP has not been authorized by RWCL and/or the relevant commercial partner or member unions and therefore infringes RWCL’s and their intellectual property rights,” it reads.

It goes on to order that “in order to avoid the need for formal legal proceedings,” Greenpeace should “immediately cease and desist” on the grounds that the intellectual property of RWCL has been used without authorization and that, if Greenpeace wishes to avoid legal proceedings, it should remove the video and “refrain from any such use again in the future.”

A spokesperson from RWCL told The Drum it is not currently pursuing legal action but said: “There is guidance around the use of Rugby World Cup IP, which Greenpeace could have sought. This can be rectified.”

They added: “The France 2023 organizing committee reached out to engage with leading campaign groups and NGOs on shaping the tournament’s sustainability program. Greenpeace was the only one to decline.”

But Greenpeace maintains that its use of RWCL trademarks in the video is perfectly lawful, writing in its response to RWCL: “You state no legal basis for the demands issued to us and we fail to see that such a basis exists.”

…

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2023/08/30/rugby-world-cup-threatens-legal-action-over-greenpeace-protest-video

Continue ReadingRugby World Cup threatens legal action over Greenpeace protest video

Sadiq Khan rubbishes Tory minister’s Ulez ‘cash grab’ claims

Spread the love
Traffic in South London.
Traffic in South London.

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/sadiq-khan-rubbishes-tory-ministers-ulez-cash-grab-claims

LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan has rubbished claims made by Tory Transport Minister Mark Harper about the extension of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez).

As the expansion of the zone to cover all London boroughs came into force today, Labour mayor told BBC Breakfast that Mr Harper had made factual errors in his criticisms of it.

“If it was a cash grab, as the government is saying, just to raise money, I’d have acceded to their demand to expand the Ulez without proper consultation and a proper scrappage scheme.”

…

Mr Khan said: “In a couple of years’ time, TfL has predicted there will be no additional money made because the number of non-compliant vehicles will decrease.

…

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/sadiq-khan-rubbishes-tory-ministers-ulez-cash-grab-claims

Continue ReadingSadiq Khan rubbishes Tory minister’s Ulez ‘cash grab’ claims

Michael Gove gets rinsed over claim Britain’s waters are cleaner under Tories

Spread the love

https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/michael-gove-gets-rinsed-over-claim-britains-waters-are-cleaner-under-tories/

“The Tories are now going for outright gaslighting on water quality”

Image of a burst water main.
Image of a burst water main.

Michael Gove has faced fierce criticism for attempting to defend his party’s reputation on water pollution by claiming Britain’s water quality has got cleaner, while stating standards had got higher.

It comes as the Levelling Up Secretary scrapped EU-era water pollution restrictions for new homes, which will see taxpayers picking up the bill for pollution caused by housebuilders.

In an attempt to justify the latest Tory assault on environmental regulation, Gove insisted on Times Radio that rivers are ‘cleaner than they have been in the past’.

…

Commentators accused Gove of lying and suggested the reason EU countries were spending less money on improving water supplies was because they do not need the vast scale of improvements required in the UK due to decades of water company mismanagement.

Singer and clean water campaigner Feargal Sharkey offered Gove some assistance in getting the facts straight.

“Let me help with that,” Sharkey replied. “Not a single river in England passes the chemical test, not one, they all fail, every single one.

“The ecology test? In 2009 25% of rivers were in ‘Good’ condition, 2016 fell to 14%, govt’s prediction by 2027 that will have fallen to 6%. Shame on you.”

Furthermore, recent analysis has suggested that illegal levels of toxic pollutant, like ammonia, released into rivers by water companies goes undetected due to a flawed ‘self-monitoring’ system by the Environment Agency.

…

https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/michael-gove-gets-rinsed-over-claim-britains-waters-are-cleaner-under-tories/

Continue ReadingMichael Gove gets rinsed over claim Britain’s waters are cleaner under Tories