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

More Broad Left Network videos for the PCS NEC Elections

Paul Guinnane:

Two more Broad Left Network candidates for the PCS National Committee

 Katrine Williams

 

PCS leadership ballot underway

by Katrine Williams, Vice-president PCS DWP group (personal capacity)
(copied from The Socialist, 21 April 2021)

The ballot for PCS president and national executive committee opens on 22 April and runs to 13 May. PCS is the union for government workers in the civil service and public and private sectors.

The PCS left rank-and-file group, the Broad Left Network, is standing Socialist Party member Marion Lloyd for president and candidates for vice-presidents and the national executive committee.

Marion Lloyd has received 42 branch nominations. She is currently BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) group president and on the union's national executive committee. Marion's nominations put her in the strongest position to defeat the current president, Fran Heathcote.

I support Marion Lloyd for PCS President — This is her video!

I wrote recently about why you should support Marion Lloyd and the other candidates running under the “Broad Left Network” ticket in the PCS Elections which begin on 22nd April 2021. Here is a video that Marion recorded recently about her candidature.

Workers’ Team to Billionaire's Plaything — Arsenal’s fall from grace

The football team we know today as Arsenal, was founded by munition workers at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, in 1886. There’s plenty of history online and it’s not my intention here to repeat it. But one of the reasons that the munition workers themselves formed a football team is rarely mentioned.

Other work-based Football Clubs were founded by owners whose purpose was to give workers an alternative to going to Trade Union meetings. An example of this was West Ham United, originally founded 9 years after Arsenal, which was formed by the Thames Ironworks company.

Since its formation as Dial Square FC in 1886, of course, Arsenal has ceased to be owned by the workers. But in recent years it has been one of many teams that has been taken over by billionaires, now Stan Kroenke. The sport of the working class has been taken over by big business, and the fans are no longer considered at all.

Football taken over by Greed

My friend, fellow Socialist, and Football nut John Reid, wrote in the 2019 version of his pamphlet, “Reclaim the Game”, about the talk of a breakaway European Super League. I have adapted this from his recent post on Facebook where he quotes from his pamphlet. Some details have been updated, one or two may be out of date.

❝Yet again there is talk of a breakaway European Super League. It should be named the Corporate Greed League.

John Reid’s Pamphlet, 2014 Cover

A number of Clubs including 13 times European Champions Real Madrid, and Five Premier League teams have discussed forming a 16 team European Super League that could begin as soon as 2021.

Inexplicably, Tottenham Hotspur have been added to the so called Super 5 as have mid-table Arsenal (my team), neither have ever been crowned European Champions. The other four are Chelsea, Liverpool, and the two big Manchester clubs.

So far only 12 clubs have signed up, they hope for 20. So far, mighty Bayern Munich have declined as have all German clubs. Paris Saint Germane of France have also declined, although talks continue.

The League would comprise of two pools of 10 (A Women’s League would also be set up) playing mid week, it is unclear whether or not there would be relegation, or would a core of 15 be perpetually in this League.

PCS elections: Support the Broad Left Network for a democratic, fighting union leadership

The ballot for PCS president and national executive committee opens on 22 April and closes 13 May. PCS is the union for government workers in the civil service and public and private service workers.

The PCS left rank-and-file group, the Broad Left Network, is standing Socialist Party member Marion Lloyd for president and candidates for vice-presidents and the national executive committee.

BEIS strikers joined on the picket line by
Marion Lloyd (right), photo Paula Mitchell (SP)

Our coverage of this important election includes an interview with Marion Lloyd along with the full Broad Left Network slate and an outline of the Broad Left Network programme — more details about the Broad Left Network are available at pcsbln.wordpress.com.

I’m urging support for the Broad Left Network in this election for a democratic, fighting union leadership.

Marion Lloyd has received 42 branch nominations. She is currently BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) group president and on the union’s national executive committee. Marion is in the strongest position to challenge the incumbent, Fran Heathcote. Marion spoke to The Socialist Newspaper and explained why she believes PCS members should vote for her and the other Broad Left Network candidates in these elections. I have copied the interview below:

Meet the Candidate, Pete Mason, Zoom Meeting!

Meet Pete Mason on Zoom on Monday April 19th at 7:30pm

ALL WELCOME!

“I’m standing for councillor in Thames ward and I’d like to invite you to a meeting where I’ll explain why I’m standing and invite you to ask questions.” – Pete Mason

Click on THIS LINK to join the meeting on Zoom, or using the Zoom app:

Meeting ID: 835 8545 2037

Passcode: 167309

Pete says: “I’m proud to be chair of the Barking Reach Residents Association and very glad the committee asked me to stand. I think it is vital that residents have democratic control over everything to do with their housing, the estate they live on, and in their working lives as well, as a matter of fact.” 

Legal notice: Promoted by election agent Shabana Qazi, 34 Lawes Way, Barking, IG11 0PD, on behalf of Pete Mason, 29 Riverdale Close, Barking IG11 0GQ.

This is not a hustings (a debate between candidates), for which alternative laws apply.

Support Pete Mason in Barking Thames ward!

I live on the Thames View Estate in Barking. To the south, another estate of the Thames ward in Barking, is Barking Reach. A local Residents’ and Tenant’s Leader and Socialist who lives there, Pete Mason, is standing for the Council, and also the List in the Greater London election, as part of TUSC (Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition). I will be supporting him in the forthcoming election. I recommend you do, too. He’s a brilliant campaigner, and it would be great if we put his talents to work across the entire ward, as well as the Estate he lives on! This is what he has to say:

Bring the building companies to account!

I’m standing in Barking’s Thames ward, where I live, firstly because the Barking Reach Residents Association committee have unanimously urged me to stand. We believe it is time to elect someone who truly represents our estate.

Pete Mason speaks at Residents Protest, Caspian Quarter, Barking

As chair of the residents association, I have campaigned on countless issues on the Barking Riverside estate. But we know that without political change, there will always be landlords bringing problems we have to fight. We are in the process of winning “Right to Manage” for blocks of flats, and official recognition for the residents association from landlords.

Why I'm Voting TUSC

Council Housing

Here in London, the cost of housing is going through the roof. The old Tory Government policy of selling off council housing has gone beyond selling them at a discount to tenants. In many cases, councils, including Labour councils, are selling off whole blocks to developers. Close to where I live, in Barking, a council block of maisonettes and a low-rise block of flats is being sold off. This block is of the same design as the one I live in. What is planned to replace it, is a block with a certain number of supposedly affordable homes, however, these homes are flats without gardens, with rents far higher than the council rent we pay, and most flats will cost a lot more.

Hello World

This is not so much a “Hello World”, as a “Hello Again, World”. After years of posting nothing, I’ve decided to re-launch this site. All previous content has been removed as it’s out of date.

It’s been roughly a year since the Coronavirus lockdowns started. Three months ago, I decided to re-join the Socialist Party after a long absence. During this year, we’ve seen: