Why the deficit is being dumped on us
Deliberate policies from successive governments have turned Britain into a debtor country, with foreign credit used to finance imports and mortgages.
News/Views
Sick of capitalism
New research from the worlds leading authority on health inequalities highlights the links between inequity in society, poverty and ill health.
Ambulance emergency
In November the Care Quality Commission gave the London Ambulance Service its lowest rating. What’s going on? And what is the way forward?
1: Caught in the check off trap
Rail unions learned just how vulnerable their finances were many years ago when British Rail summarily ended the check-off facility to RMT during a dispute in 1993.
2: Half a century of attack
“Kill the Bill!” was the slogan adopted by trade unions more than forty years ago, in opposition to the Industrial Relations Bill – which came perilously close to being accepted in toto by British trade unions.
India's loss
Before Theresa May added nursing to the shortage occupation list the Indian Health Ministry was expecting to gain from the implementation of her previous immigration rules which had been due to take effect on 6 April 2016.
Union prophecy proved right
From a Unison Branch Secretary letter in 2014: “The trickle of staff leaving that we saw nine months or so ago has developed into a tidal wave. A tidal wave that, if not stopped, will take our Service down.
Trade gap widens
The latest official figures show that exports of goods and services fell in October while imports rose, leaving Britain in the red to the tune of £4.1 billion.
Borders: Brussels bids for power
The EU is proposing a radical extension of its powers, with plans to take over control of their member states’ borders in “emergencies”.
Postal workers walk out
No law can restrain workers when they choose to ignore it. In Bridgwater, Somerset, Post Office workers walked out without a ballot in protest at the dismissal of a colleague – and no law was invoked.
'Incoherent' teacher plans
A recent Ofsted report talks about local authorities failing to raise school standards – but noted the long-standing difficulties in recruiting teachers.
Local government pay talks under way
The 2016 local government pay negotiations are under way. Unite, GMB and Unison gird their loins for a battle, but the claim is weighted towards the “Living Wage”.