Zero hours: Interesting definitions…
In response to a query from Unison, service company ISS has provided an interesting definition of zero hours contracts.
News/Views
Meat safety: Abattoir action
Vets and hygiene inspectors working in abattoirs on behalf of the Food Standards Agency have voted for industrial action after a below inflation pay offer coupled with a refusal to negotiate.
Shipbuilding: Disaster on the Clyde
Scotland’s last non-military shipbuilder, Ferguson’s on the Clyde, is heading for bankruptcy, with the loss of 70 jobs – despite a promise from SNP leader Alex Salmond to maintain it
Bill to open up land grab
An amendment to the Infrastructure Bill going through parliament will allow Boris Johnson or his successor as Mayor of London to acquire land held by all public bodies in London. The prime target for this land grab will be the estates of NHS properties in London estimated as being worth over £50 million.
Museums: Closure threat
The world-famous Oliver Cromwell museum in Huntingdon is under closure threat after Cambridgeshire County Council withdrew funding as a direct result of government cuts.
Sport billionaires welcome
No sooner is the World Cup a mere dot on television screens than Boris Johnson, soon to be forgotten Mayor of London, is jostling for space in the sporting arena by promoting Formula One racing on London’s streets.
Audit abolition on the quiet
In March next year the Audit Commission will be abolished. With it will go an important principle of public life – that the audit of money spent by public bodies should be as genuinely independent as possible.
Pit faces early shutdown
The withdrawal of Hargreaves Services from the funding package to keep Kellingley pit in West Yorkshire open for a further two years of managed closure has brought to the fore the prospect of an early shutdown.
Scotland’s false flag
The Scottish referendum is an attempt to turn the growing desire in Britain to be an independent country into its opposite, for Britain to be partitioned instead.
Researchers speak up over threat to Scottish science
Scotland is a world leader in the highly competitive arena of biomedical research – and it is becoming increasingly clear that separation could cause immense harm to Scotland’s research base.
Eurovision’s orchestrated abuse
All harmless fun? There’s another side to the Eurovision song contest, and it’s not pretty…
Government renews rail franchise chaos
The franchise to run the heavily used Thameslink service for seven years has gone to a company partly owned by French state railway operator SNCF...