… on a quiet day, I can hear her breathing

Tag: TUC general secretary Paul Nowak

  • 13% energy price hike makes ‘workers pay for Trump’s war’

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/13-energy-price-hike-makes-workers-pay-trumps-war

     Go further, faster: Paul Nowak

    HOUSEHOLDS must not bear the brunt of US President Donald Trump’s illegal war, campaigners warned today, as energy bills are set to rise by 13 per cent.  

    Ofgem’s new price cap from July 1 will see the typical household face an annual energy cost of £1,862 — up £221 on current levels, or £18 a month. 

    The regulator said higher wholesale gas prices, “driven by ongoing conflict in the Middle East,” were behind the increase. 

    Energy costs have soared since the US and Israel began their war on Iran and the subsequent blocking of the Strait of Hormuz.

    Calls have mounted for the government to set out action to support the most vulnerable with bills, but Chancellor Rachel Reeves has refused any immediate energy measures in her cost-of-living plan. 

    TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the government must “go further and faster to protect households from punishing energy price rises in the coming months.”

    “Households must not bear the brunt of costs from Trump’s illegal war,” he said.

    “Painful energy price rises are coming down the track — and working people are already feeling the pinch with fuel costs rising because of Trumpflation.

    …

    Eva Watkinson of Debt Justice called it a “scandal” that the cap was rising while energy companies continued to post enormous profits, saying the government must “immediately act to write off debts that have built up during the cost-of-living crisis.”

    Green MP Hannah Spencer demanded immediate government intervention, telling Ms Reeves to freeze the cap before bills go up. 

    “And if she’s wondering how to pay for it, there are some people doing very well out of this crisis,” she said. 

    “The government should start by taxing 100 per cent of the huge windfall profits oil and gas giants have made since the start of the illegal war on Iran.”

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/13-energy-price-hike-makes-workers-pay-trumps-war

    Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
    Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/

  • Unions hit out at ‘epidemic of insecure work’ as economic fallout from Iran war revealed

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/unions-hit-out-epidemic-insecure-work-economic-fallout-iran-war-revealed

     General view of the Job Centre Plus on Benalder St in Glasgow

    UNIONS hit out at an “epidemic of insecure work” as the economic fallout from the Iran war was revealed for the first time today.

    Youth unemployment has risen to its highest rate in more than a decade with one in seven (14.7 per cent) 16 to 24-year-olds looking for work.

    Zero-hours contracts have hit a record high of 1.23 million — up 65,000 on the year.

    The first official statistics since the war broke out in late February also showed job vacancies down to their lowest level for 11 years outside of the pandemic. They fell by 28,000 to 705,000 in the three months ending in March.

    Youngsters looking for their first job face a fiercely competitive jobs market with 22.7 per cent now out of work for more than a year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found.

    …

    TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “The ongoing economic fallout from Donald Trump’s illegal war in Iran risks dashing hopes of a stabilising jobs market.

    “There is an epidemic of insecure work in this country. 

    “That’s why the government needs to deliver on its promise to give all workers a right to a contract which reflects their regular hours and end the scourge of insecure work for good.”

    …

    Article at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/unions-hit-out-epidemic-insecure-work-economic-fallout-iran-war-revealed

  • ‘It’s time for a grown-up conversation about taxing wealth’

    Spread the love

    https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/its-time-grown-conversation-about-taxing-wealth

     model houses on a pile of coins and bank notes

    TUC hits back at banking boss who suggested public-sector pay should be curbed because the economy falling

    …

    TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said that while the government has “taken the right approach” by investing in public services and infrastructure, “the job of securing growth is far from over — and more support is needed to see that investment sustained in the long term.”

    “That’s why it’s time for a grown-up conversation about taxing wealth and financial institutions,” he said.

    “It’s only right that banks, gambling companies and the wealthiest in our society contribute their fair share to fund our schools, hospitals and local authorities.

    “The government needs to ensure it can repair and rebuild our vital public services along with wider critical national infrastructure.”

    Mr Nowak also called on the Bank of England to further Bank of England to “ease the pressure on household budgets and to make it more affordable for businesses to invest.”

    …

    Ooriginal article at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/its-time-grown-conversation-about-taxing-wealth