Vote for a socialist recovery from the Covid crisis!

The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition annual conference is on the 6 February. It was the sixth biggest contender when it last stood widely.

Unite the Union, the biggest trade union has formally deputised their Lead for Local Government, Onay Kasab, a long-standing Socialist Party member, to represent the union.

The President of the Bakers Union, Ian Hodson, who was expelled from the Labour Party, is a lead speaker. The Bakers Union voted to leave the Labour Party due to its failure to support trade unionists, after he was unjustly expelled.

Meanwhile general secretary-elect Sharon Graham turned down an invitation to attend Labour Party conference in September, due to members' disputes with Labour-led Councils.

TUSC's core policies for the May elections: https://www.tusc.org.uk/17587/10-12-2021/vote-for-a-socialist-recovery-from-the-covid-crisis-tusc-core-policies-for-mays-elections

To register, follow this LINK:

Lorry Driver Shortage exposes Capitalism

I have copied this Facebook status from Nancy Taaffe here with her permission. It perfectly sums up the current lorry driver shortage, its causes and its effect. 

🙶The lorry driver shortage does reveal how wages were kept low by the neo liberal EU trading block for 20 years. These EU treaties wanted free movement of labour (not people) so they didn’t have to invest in training or pay workers a decent wage. They were all about cheap labour being moved around for the bosses’ profits. The bosses don’t want to create conditions in the industry where young workers with families can do it — the current lorry driving crisis reveals this.

NHS: GP Provision Crisis in Thames Ward, Barking

With thanks to Pete Mason, Chair of Barking Reach Resident's Association

The Thames View Health Centre was designed for the original Thames View housing estate around Bastable Avenue, but in recent years, more housing has been built, both in the original estate, and on reclaimed land to the East and South, but there has been no new health provision.

Our GPs cannot overcome a desperately underfunded NHS, whose staff are underpaid and have just rejected by some 80% an insulting 3% pay offer, a situation exacerbated in Thames Ward, Barking, by the huge increase of the population in the area, with no additional NHS facilities.

There are thousands of new residents of the Barking Riverside estate and surrounds, soon to reach 10,800 homes in addition to the original Thames View Estate, but there is no new health centre, nor any additional provision at Thames View Health Centre.

Marion Lloyd: Last chance to vote in PCS Elections

National BLN Candidates

Links take you to a page with a video by that person.

President

• Lloyd Marion: BEIS

Vice presidents

• Brittle Fiona: Scot Gov
• Brown Sarah: Met Police
• Semple Dave: DWP
• Rosser Jon-Paul: HMRC

National executive committee

• Bartlett Dave: MOJ
• Bridges Andi: HMRC
• Brittle Fiona: Scot Gov
• Brown Alex: Health
• Brown Sarah: Met Police
• Davies Jaime: HMRC
• Denman Kevin: Met Police
• Dennis Alan: DSG
• Doyle Nick: HMRC
• Foxton Gill: DfE
• Francis Sue BEIS
• Guinnane Paul: DfE
• Heemskerk Rachel: DWP
• Lloyd Marion: BEIS
• Lowry Tom: DWP
• McDougall Rachelle: HMRC
• Parker Nick: BEIS
• Rees Dave: DWP
• Ritchie Rob: Met Police
• Rosser Jon-Paul: HMRC
• Semple Dave: DWP
• Suter Paul: DWP
• Tweedale Saorsa-Amatheia: DWP
• Williams Katrine: DWP
• Worswick Craig: DWP
• Young Bobby: HMRC
• Young Colin: DfE

DWP and HMRC Group BLN Candidates

These ballots are by E-mail and you have to vote by 18th May:

Click here for these candidates.

PCS National Ballot closes Thursday 13th, Post your ballot paper Today!

We have another four videos supporting the Broad Left Network candidates in the PCS Elections. Your ballot paper needs to arrive by 13th May 2021. So get posting!

Here are some more candidates speaking about BLN policies and candidates, first our candidate for National Vice President, Dave Semple:

Get Your PCS Vote in NOW! Vote BLN for National Committee!

Time is running out for PCS Members to vote in its National Elections, your ballot paper needs to be in by 13th May. If you have group elections, you can vote on line (you should have got an email), and this needs to be done by 18th May. DWP and HMRC recommendations here.

Here are some more recommendations from some of the candidates:

Who are the Broad Left Network?

The Broad Left Network was formed by socialists in response to the need to challenge and replace the current failed union leadership.

The key issues it is standing candidates on include:

• A national campaign for a safe working environment. Address mental health, stress and well-being as a priority. We won’t pay for the Covid-19 crisis
• Stop the pay freeze. For a 10% pay rise. A national campaign on pay and pensions
• End privatisation, bring services back in-house
• Protect and improve lay democracy
• Protect the future of our union with campaigns that can recruit, organise, build and win improvements, not by mergers and restructures.
• Fight the Tory attacks on our right to protest, strike and picket
• A strong political voice — PCS should only support candidates who back us

BLN Candidates

I support the Broad Left Network and call upon union activists and members to vote for these BLN supported candidates in the ballot 22 April - 13 May.

President

• Lloyd Marion: BEIS

Vice presidents

• Brittle Fiona: Scot Gov
• Brown Sarah: Met Police
• Semple Dave: DWP
• Rosser Jon-Paul: HMRC

National executive committee

• Bartlett Dave: MOJ
• Bridges Andi: HMRC
• Brittle Fiona: Scot Gov
• Brown Alex: Health
• Brown Sarah: Met Police
• Davies Jaime: HMRC
• Denman Kevin: Met Police
• Dennis Alan: DSG
• Doyle Nick: HMRC
• Foxton Gill: DfE
• Francis Sue BEIS
• Guinnane Paul: DfE
• Heemskerk Rachel: DWP
• Lloyd Marion: BEIS
• Lowry Tom: DWP
• McDougall Rachelle: HMRC
• Parker Nick: BEIS
• Rees Dave: DWP
• Ritchie Rob: Met Police
• Rosser Jon-Paul: HMRC
• Semple Dave: DWP
• Suter Paul: DWP
• Tweedale Saorsa-Amatheia: DWP
• Williams Katrine: DWP
• Worswick Craig: DWP
• Young Bobby: HMRC
• Young Colin: DfE

TUSC: Polling Day Tomorrow!

It’s polling day tomorrow, and the establishment parties have nothing to offer working-class and young people.

At the ballot box, you can register your dissent and help build the fightback by voting for the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition. TUSC is standing a list for the London Assembly (orange ballot paper), and in several Assembly constituency seats and borough ward by-elections.

Why you should vote TUSC on 6th May!

Here is the TUSC Party Political Broadcast for the coming local elections. Vote TUSC, standing up for working class jobs, and living standards!

All other candidates will pass on Tory Government cutbacks!

Group Elections in PCS. BLN candidates in DWP and HMRC groups.

DWP Group

Even more videos by BLN Candidates for PCS National Committee

Another day, another pair of videos from candidates standing for the National Committee of the PCS Union, running as part of the Broad Left Network team. Here are some more from Alan Dennis and Jaime Davies. After that, a written statement from another retired member, Alexis Edwards.

Alan Dennis

A retired member speaks about the PCS Elections

One of my peers during my time in PCS, Dave Warren, worked in the Driver Vehicle Licensing Centre in Swansea for much of the time that I was a representative. He speaks here about the current industrial action in his old workplace. If you looked at my article on the history of the left in PCS, and the complacency of its current leadership, then what Dave is saying will be no surprise to you. This is why the Broad Left Network is standing, to try to make a difference, and why retired members with nothing personal to gain, such as Dave, me, and others, are asking you to vote for Broad Left Network candidates!

Dave Warren’s Video