Left Foot Forward

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Left Foot Forward is one of this blog’s favourite blogs and is recommended. A selection of current stories from Left Foot Forward for your delectation ;)

Transport secretary called out over rail dispute mistruths on BBC Question Time

The transport secretary Mark Harper has been accused of “muddying the waters” by presenting misleading narratives in the rail dispute, on BBC Question Time last night.

When answering questions on resolving the rail strikes, Mark Harper attempted to shirk responsibility by referring to train drivers pay and unused ticket offices.

It comes as the RMT union smashed their latest mandate for strike action, meaning members working for 14 train operating companies could strike again over the next six months. 

It is their third mandate in the National Rail Dispute, with the latest receiving a 91% yes vote.

Mick Lynch, RMT general secretary said the mandate sends a clear message to employers of the “huge anger” amongst rail workers.

Union leader accuses government of ‘punishing’ civil servants in pay dispute

‘Why are they treating their own staff worse than anyone else?’

The government has been accused of ‘punishing’ their own staff and ‘making an example’ of civil servants by the leader of the union for civil service workers.

In an ongoing dispute over pay, job losses and redundancy terms, civil servants with the union Prospect are on strike today for a second time in what is the largest industrial action the union has taken in over a decade.

Their members’ pay has declined by up to 26% in real terms since 2010, with civil servants on some of the worst pay settlements in the public sector, having been dealt a recent 4.5% pay offer by the government.

The union have called for a ‘serious pay offer’ that recognises the cost-of-living crisis that their members are facing.

Rishi Sunak slammed for using taxpayer-funded helicopter for trip that would have taken just over an hour by train

The train ticket would’ve cost Sunak £30 return, yet he opted to travel by air, at a cost to the taxpayer in the region of £6,000.

The Tories would like you to believe that they care about climate change and the effective use of taxpayers’ money, yet their actions show the complete opposite.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is fond of taking helicopters and private jets for short trips and is now once more being slammed for using a taxpayer-funded helicopter to make a journey that would have taken little more than an hour on the train.

Sunak took a chopper to Southampton to attend a GP surgery and pharmacy to promote the government’s latest intervention to reduce the strain on GP practices.

According to train timetables, had the Prime Minister taken the 8:35am train from Waterloo he would have arrived in Southampton at 9:50am. That Sunak decided to fly to the port city and back via helicopter has led to some Tory MPs fearing that it will cement Sunak’s image as an out of touch Prime Minister.

The train ticket would’ve cost Sunak £30 return, yet he opted to travel by air, at a cost to the taxpayer in the region of £6,000.

One Tory MP told the Guardian: “Is it unfair to say that the weekend was about a powerful unelected individual who is unfeasibly wealthy and lacks the common touch … and King Charles III?”

Bid launched to revoke GB News’ broadcasting licence

‘The segment of concern gave a wholly biased account of the verdict in the trial of Donald Trump for sexual assault’

Ofcom has been sent a strongly worded letter from two leading Green Party politicians, calling for the media regulator to revoke the broadcasting licence given to GB News after the scandal hit channel was once again found to have breached broadcasting regulations.

Molly Scott Cato, Green Party Speaker on Economy and Finance and Councillor Jack Lenox, Parliamentary Candidate for Lancaster, have shared a picture of their letter on Twitter, with Lenox tweeting: “Jacob Rees-Mogg’s defence of Donald Trump’s sexual abuse is disgusting. And his brazen attempt to mislead the public is a grotesque abuse of our broadcasting regulations.

“Today @GreenPartyMolly and I have written to Ofcom asking them to revoke GB News’ broadcasting licence.”

Ardent Brexiteer Rees-Mogg has been slammed for his GB News broadcast on the Donald Trump sexual assault trial. Rees-Mogg emphasised that Trump had been found ‘not guilty of rape’, and also questioned the US legal system. Rees-Mogg was joined on the programme by Kari Lake, a top Republican and well-known 2020 Election denier, as well as Nigel Farage.

A jury found that Trump had sexually abused magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll in a New York department store in the 1990s. The jury also found Trump liable for defamation for calling the writer’s accusations “a hoax and a lie”.

Reacting to Rees-Mogg’s comments on Trump, James O’Brien tweeted: “When Owen Paterson broke Parliamentary rules, Jacob Rees-Mogg attacked the rules.

“When a jury decided Donald Trump was a sex offender, Jacob Rees-Mogg attacked trial by jury. There’s a pattern here.”

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RMT announces further strike action

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/rmt-announces-further-strike-action

RMT announced further strike action today, as well as an overtime ban in the ongoing battle with bosses over pay, job security and working conditions.

Rail union RMT will take nationwide strike action across the railways on March 16 after employers refused to put any new offers on the table.

The union, which represents 40,000 workers across Network Rail and 14 train operators, rejected offers from employers last week, as they did not meet the needs of members on pay, job security or working conditions.

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/rmt-announces-further-strike-action

Continue ReadingRMT announces further strike action

Public sector strikes row escalates as unions plan coordinated ‘day of action’

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https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/10/trade-unions-to-discuss-coordinated-day-of-action-strike-across-public-sector

The government’s standoff with public sector workers has escalated with plans for a coordinated “day of action” by unions, who have reacted furiously to proposed legislation they say could let ministers in effect ban strikes in some areas.

There is anger among unions about the new anti-strike bill, which will apply in England, Scotland and Wales, and which ministers hope will become law later this year.

Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the RMT rail union, called it “an attack on human rights and civil liberties which we will oppose in the courts, parliament and the workplace”, while Sharon Graham, the leader of Unite, called it “another dangerous gimmick from a government that should be negotiating to resolve the current crisis they have caused”.

Paul Nowak, the TUC’s general secretary, said on Tuesday that the proposed anti-strike legislation was “undemocratic, unworkable and almost certainly illegal” and was a “sack key-workers bill”.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/10/trade-unions-to-discuss-coordinated-day-of-action-strike-across-public-sector

Continue ReadingPublic sector strikes row escalates as unions plan coordinated ‘day of action’

Aslef set to reject same 8% pay offer rejected by RMT

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/aslef-set-to-reject-same-8-pay-offer-rejected-by-rmt

TORY ministers and rail industry bosses will be “incredibly disappointed” if they think the sector’s workforce will accept more real-terms pay cuts, train drivers’ union Aslef said today.

The warning came after reports in the Sun newspaper suggested that the union, which is holding another 24-hour strike across 15 train operating companies on Thursday, will soon be offered an 8 per cent deal, spread over two years.

The offer, amounting to 4 per cent in both 2023 and 2024, has already been rejected by fellow transport union RMT, which is launching its second 48-hour walkout this week at Network Rail and several train operators tomorrow.

Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan told the Morning Star that if Tory Transport Secretary Mark Harper thinks, after “no pay rises since 2019, a further below-inflation deal will be backed by my members, he’ll be incredibly disappointed.

Continue ReadingAslef set to reject same 8% pay offer rejected by RMT

‘We haven’t had a rise for three years’: a striking RMT train guard speaks out

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https://www.theguardian.com/uk

“There are two main elements to why I, and most of my colleagues, are striking. We haven’t had a pay rise for three years – normally we have an annual cost-of-living-based rise roughly in line with inflation. Previously, through negotiation, a compromise would be found. In this particular spate of industrial action, this hasn’t been the case, we feel the government is using it as a political football and to demonise strikers.

“We’re not against modernisation and we have [done so] but it should be a matter of negotiation, not something imposed from on high. We’re realistic – we realise the way people travel has changed but not that significantly, and numbers are bouncing back. We’re also concerned about de-staffing on trains and stations – not everyone wants to use vending machines, some elderly people find them challenging, and they don’t offer the full range of fares. Having no staff on some stations and then no guards on the train will increase fare evasion too.

“We’re genuinely sorry about the [strike’s] negative impact on those travelling before Christmas. [But] for us, it’s not just about pay, we’re making a stand against what we regard as massively negative plans to gut the railways. We don’t want the railway to become like P&O – it seems to be the way everything is going. I’ll lose thousands of pounds this month through striking but we’re going to fight it.”

Continue Reading‘We haven’t had a rise for three years’: a striking RMT train guard speaks out