As voters go to the polls in the constituencies of Clacton and Heywood and Middleton today, the media hyperbole about UKIP is continuing apace.
The media reportage is nothing short of scandalous, with the public being fed a constant stream of articles about how UKIP poses a threat to both the Conservatives and Labour.
UKIP’s extremist policies are glossed over, even embellished by most media outlets. Their outrageous policies are rarely challenged and the details of what they believe in only surface very infrequently.
This approach to ‘news’ coverage of UKIP is doing a huge disservice to our democracy by failing to inform the electorate to enable people to make an informed choice.
I can understand why a Conservative supporter might vote UKIP, but I can’t see why Labour supporter would when UKIP’s values are completely at odds with Labour’s.
The truth that the media will not tell the public is that UKIP are more Tory than the Tories.
The interests of democracy demands that the truth about UKIP is exposed to public scrutiny.
I wonder how many people realise that UKIP’s policies include charges to see your GP, more tax breaks for the wealthiest and tax rises for everyone else.
I wonder how many Labour voters, who are considering voting UKIP, know that earlier this year Nigel Farage described himself as “the only politician keeping the flame of Thatcherism alive”
The truth is UKIP are a more extreme version of the Conservative Party and have nothing in common with the values of Labour voters.
Last year UKIP’s health spokesperson, Jonathan Stanley, said they wanted to introduce charges to use key NHS services, including your GP.
http://www.public-sector.co.uk/news/article-426
Just after the Coalition came to power UKIP’s deputy leader, Paul Nuttall, said: “I would like to congratulate the coalition government for bringing a whiff of privatisation into the beleaguered National Health Service.”
http://www.paulnuttallmep.com/?p=712
UKIP want even deeper cuts than those already delivered by the Tory-Lib Dem Coalition. Speaking on BBC News in December 2012 Nigel Farage said: “You know we keep hearing this big debate about the cuts, where are the cuts? … I just don't think [David Cameron] is being radical enough at all."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20612624
Tim Aker, UKIP’s Head of Policy, said in August this year that UKIP they would abolish the top rate of tax giving 16,000 millionaires a break of over £100,000
http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/opinions/exclusive-what-will-ukips-election-2015-manifesto-look-like
A 2010 UKIP policy document on small businesses said they would abolish workers’ rights, including parental leave, maternity pay, holiday pay, sick pay, and even redundancy pay.
And is if all that wasn’t bad enough, UKIP want even higher bankers’ bonuses. In January this year Nigel Farage told the Daily Telegraph: ”We don’t need official caps or limits.”
Thursday, 9 October 2014
Tuesday, 30 September 2014
STATEMENT OPPOSING OPPOSITION VIOLENCE IN ECUADOR
On Wednesday 17th September, a series of violent street protests took place in Ecuador. Centring on schools and universities in Quito, the disturbances resulted in injuries to 34 police officers (with no reported injuries to the demonstrators) and damage to historic public buildings. The violence is suspected to be a result of a far-right infiltration, and neo-nazi drawings were found at the scene.
The violence took place during a demonstration against proposals for a series of constitutional changes including measures that would allow President Correa to stand for election again should he choose to, and proposals for a progressive new labour law aimed at reducing wage inequality. If passed, the labour law will grant new economic rights for women and provide protection against discrimination at work for disabled people, African-Ecuadorians and the LGBT community. It will also set a new maximum wage to follow on from the measures already taken on banker bonuses.
President Rafael Correa has called the destabilisation attempts a ‘conservative onslaught’ designed to undermine a democratically elected government, and derail Ecuador’s Citizens’ Revolution. Describing it as part of an international movement to break progress in Latin America, he said the disturbances were: “A test to find out if they can do to us as they did to Venezuela: A ‘soft coup’, a long term war that consists in weakening the government with national and international support.“ You can watch a video of President Correa’s reaction here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYdYJHNVLQo
As in other parts of Latin America, Ecuador is faced with threats to its sovereignty due to external interference. A series of cables recently released shows repeated attempts by the United States to interfere with Ecuador’s government and oppose President Correa from the beginning. A cable from the US Ambassador in 2006 stated: “we have warned our political, economic, and media contacts of the threat Correa represents to Ecuador's future, and have actively discouraged potential alliances which could balance Correa's perceived radicalism.”
The events of 17th September stir memories of a violent coup attempt against President Correa on 30th September 2010. Carried out by a conservative section of the police force, the violence left eight dead, 274 wounded, and almost succeeded in toppling a democratically elected government. Sections of the mainstream private media had privileged information about the events and presented misleading information about the scale of support for the coup.
Since President Correa assumed office in 2007, Ecuador has reduced inequality four times faster than the average in Latin America, provided free healthcare and education to its citizens for the first time, and dramatically increased wage levels while reducing unemployment. Key to these gains has been taking on powerful vested interests on issues such as tax evasion, outsourcing, oil revenues and low-quality private schools. In a speech after the disturbances, President Correa said “Those who destroyed education are now talking about rescuing it, and those who allowed the theft of our oil, now call us traitors”
These tactics are designed to destabilise a popular, progressive government which, since 2006, has won ten consecutive elections including two presidential elections in the first round. The annual Latinbarometro poll places Ecuador first in support for democracy, fairness in the distribution of wealth and trust in the State, and approval ratings for the government are consistently over 70%. This is despite the mainstream private media consistently distorting events to portray a negative image of President Correa and the Citizens’ Revolution.
We therefore:
- Condemn the violence perpetrated by right-wing infiltrators during the opposition demonstration, and condemn any undemocratic, illegal and unconstitutional actions against the democratically elected and constitutional government of President Rafael Correa.
- Reject attempts by external forces such as the United States to undermine the sovereignty of the Ecuadorian people and destabilise Ecuador’s government.
- Express our support for President Rafael Correa and his democratically elected government, and commend the outstanding progressive social achievements of Ecuador’s Citizens Revolution.
Please send statements of support to friendsofecuadoruk@gmail.com
The violence took place during a demonstration against proposals for a series of constitutional changes including measures that would allow President Correa to stand for election again should he choose to, and proposals for a progressive new labour law aimed at reducing wage inequality. If passed, the labour law will grant new economic rights for women and provide protection against discrimination at work for disabled people, African-Ecuadorians and the LGBT community. It will also set a new maximum wage to follow on from the measures already taken on banker bonuses.
President Rafael Correa has called the destabilisation attempts a ‘conservative onslaught’ designed to undermine a democratically elected government, and derail Ecuador’s Citizens’ Revolution. Describing it as part of an international movement to break progress in Latin America, he said the disturbances were: “A test to find out if they can do to us as they did to Venezuela: A ‘soft coup’, a long term war that consists in weakening the government with national and international support.“ You can watch a video of President Correa’s reaction here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYdYJHNVLQo
As in other parts of Latin America, Ecuador is faced with threats to its sovereignty due to external interference. A series of cables recently released shows repeated attempts by the United States to interfere with Ecuador’s government and oppose President Correa from the beginning. A cable from the US Ambassador in 2006 stated: “we have warned our political, economic, and media contacts of the threat Correa represents to Ecuador's future, and have actively discouraged potential alliances which could balance Correa's perceived radicalism.”
The events of 17th September stir memories of a violent coup attempt against President Correa on 30th September 2010. Carried out by a conservative section of the police force, the violence left eight dead, 274 wounded, and almost succeeded in toppling a democratically elected government. Sections of the mainstream private media had privileged information about the events and presented misleading information about the scale of support for the coup.
Since President Correa assumed office in 2007, Ecuador has reduced inequality four times faster than the average in Latin America, provided free healthcare and education to its citizens for the first time, and dramatically increased wage levels while reducing unemployment. Key to these gains has been taking on powerful vested interests on issues such as tax evasion, outsourcing, oil revenues and low-quality private schools. In a speech after the disturbances, President Correa said “Those who destroyed education are now talking about rescuing it, and those who allowed the theft of our oil, now call us traitors”
These tactics are designed to destabilise a popular, progressive government which, since 2006, has won ten consecutive elections including two presidential elections in the first round. The annual Latinbarometro poll places Ecuador first in support for democracy, fairness in the distribution of wealth and trust in the State, and approval ratings for the government are consistently over 70%. This is despite the mainstream private media consistently distorting events to portray a negative image of President Correa and the Citizens’ Revolution.
We therefore:
- Condemn the violence perpetrated by right-wing infiltrators during the opposition demonstration, and condemn any undemocratic, illegal and unconstitutional actions against the democratically elected and constitutional government of President Rafael Correa.
- Reject attempts by external forces such as the United States to undermine the sovereignty of the Ecuadorian people and destabilise Ecuador’s government.
- Express our support for President Rafael Correa and his democratically elected government, and commend the outstanding progressive social achievements of Ecuador’s Citizens Revolution.
Please send statements of support to friendsofecuadoruk@gmail.com
Sunday, 14 September 2014
RIP David Haines
The shocking and brutal murder of David Haines is yet another outrage against humanity by the self-styled Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant or ISIL.
For them to claim that their pitiless acts of barbarism are committed in the name of Islam is a grotesque twisting of Islamic teaching and a blasphemy against Islam.
David Haines was a humanitarian aid worker. What kind of sick minds are capable of sadistically murdering someone whose prime motivation was compassion and humanitarianism?
And the fact that David's killer was apparently British makes the horror even more difficult to comprehend.
These murderers should not be dignified by referring to them as jihadists, they are savage serial killers.
The UK’s first priority must therefore be to stop any more young British people succumbing to this warped ideology and work with allies to cut off ISIL’s access to military hardware.
But Britain will also have to talk to Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria to ensure ISIL is ultimately defeated.
For them to claim that their pitiless acts of barbarism are committed in the name of Islam is a grotesque twisting of Islamic teaching and a blasphemy against Islam.
David Haines was a humanitarian aid worker. What kind of sick minds are capable of sadistically murdering someone whose prime motivation was compassion and humanitarianism?
And the fact that David's killer was apparently British makes the horror even more difficult to comprehend.
These murderers should not be dignified by referring to them as jihadists, they are savage serial killers.
The UK’s first priority must therefore be to stop any more young British people succumbing to this warped ideology and work with allies to cut off ISIL’s access to military hardware.
But Britain will also have to talk to Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria to ensure ISIL is ultimately defeated.
Friday, 29 August 2014
PUBLIC OPINION HAS MOVED TO THE LEFT ON KEY ISSUES
FOR much of its period in office, this Tory-led Government has stood accused of being out of touch with the British people.
When I made my maiden speech in the House of Commons on 25 May 2010, I implored the Government to learn the lessons of history. I said the power of the state can be a force for good, but my words fell on deaf ears.
Now, four-and-a-half-years after my parliamentary debut, it isn’t just opposition politicians like me who are calling for a progressive alternative – the public are calling for it too.
A range of opinion polls have indicated that the public’s verdict on this Government’s policies has resulted in public opinion moving to the left.
Take the issue of income tax. One of the Coalition’s most shameless moments, was when struggling families saw their tax credits slashed, on the same day that people earning over £150,000 were handed a 10 per cent tax cut.
That decision defined this Government. Tory MPs, aided and abetted by Liberal Democrats, reverted to a quintessentially Conservative Party doctrine of rewarding the rich, at the expense of everyone else.
Labour has pledged to reinstate the 50p tax rate on incomes above £150,000, but a YouGov poll shows a majority would go even further, introducing it at £100,000 instead. Moreover, 56 per cent of the population would welcome a 75 per cent tax rate on annual salaries above £1m.
At the other end of the earnings scale, a poll by Survation shows six in 10 people want the minimum wage increased to the Living Wage rate of £7.65 outside London.
On zero hours contracts too, the public is longing for change. Labour plans to give employees the right to demand fixed-hours contracts after working for the same employer for six months. But this Government won’t contemplate such a move, even though YouGov shows 56 per cent want a complete ban on these contracts, compared to just 25 per cent against.
As for private rented housing, YouGov says 45 per cent want the state to cap private sector rents, compared to 43 per cent against.
In education, an ICM poll also shows that most people oppose academies, preferring local councils to be accountable for schools instead.
There are many other areas too where the public seems to have moved to the left. According to YouGov, an overwhelming majority want to see the energy companies, railways and Royal Mail renationalised and more than half support a ‘Robin Hood’ tax on financial transactions.
So do these changes represent a political reawakening, or are they just indicative of a nation that’s had enough of being savaged by four-and-a-half years of Tory policies?
People can make their own minds up, but the conclusion that this Government is hopelessly out-of-touch with the British people is increasingly difficult to dispute.
When I made my maiden speech in the House of Commons on 25 May 2010, I implored the Government to learn the lessons of history. I said the power of the state can be a force for good, but my words fell on deaf ears.
Now, four-and-a-half-years after my parliamentary debut, it isn’t just opposition politicians like me who are calling for a progressive alternative – the public are calling for it too.
A range of opinion polls have indicated that the public’s verdict on this Government’s policies has resulted in public opinion moving to the left.
Take the issue of income tax. One of the Coalition’s most shameless moments, was when struggling families saw their tax credits slashed, on the same day that people earning over £150,000 were handed a 10 per cent tax cut.
That decision defined this Government. Tory MPs, aided and abetted by Liberal Democrats, reverted to a quintessentially Conservative Party doctrine of rewarding the rich, at the expense of everyone else.
Labour has pledged to reinstate the 50p tax rate on incomes above £150,000, but a YouGov poll shows a majority would go even further, introducing it at £100,000 instead. Moreover, 56 per cent of the population would welcome a 75 per cent tax rate on annual salaries above £1m.
At the other end of the earnings scale, a poll by Survation shows six in 10 people want the minimum wage increased to the Living Wage rate of £7.65 outside London.
On zero hours contracts too, the public is longing for change. Labour plans to give employees the right to demand fixed-hours contracts after working for the same employer for six months. But this Government won’t contemplate such a move, even though YouGov shows 56 per cent want a complete ban on these contracts, compared to just 25 per cent against.
As for private rented housing, YouGov says 45 per cent want the state to cap private sector rents, compared to 43 per cent against.
In education, an ICM poll also shows that most people oppose academies, preferring local councils to be accountable for schools instead.
There are many other areas too where the public seems to have moved to the left. According to YouGov, an overwhelming majority want to see the energy companies, railways and Royal Mail renationalised and more than half support a ‘Robin Hood’ tax on financial transactions.
So do these changes represent a political reawakening, or are they just indicative of a nation that’s had enough of being savaged by four-and-a-half years of Tory policies?
People can make their own minds up, but the conclusion that this Government is hopelessly out-of-touch with the British people is increasingly difficult to dispute.
Wednesday, 20 August 2014
FAUX CONCERN FOR FAMILIES CAN’T CONCEAL IMPACT OF GOVERNMENT’S DAMAGING POLICIES
WHEN I heard the news yesterday I wasn’t sure if I was listening to an updated adaptation of George Orwell’s ‘1984’ for one of Radio 4’s ‘Book of the Week’ series.
I thought it must be Rory Bremner or Alistair McGowan doing a particularly good impression of the Prime Minister’s voice making a newspeak announcement.
He said: “Every single domestic policy that the Government comes up with will be examined for its impact on the family…For me, nothing matters more than family. It's at the centre of my life and the heart of my politics”.
I was astonished when I realised that it really was the Prime Minister and not a fictional spokesman from the Ministry of Truth.
I’m sure people won’t be hoodwinked by this faux concern when the average working family will be £2,073 a year worse off by the next General Election thanks to this Government’s tax and benefit changes.
Alarming new data shows that, in total, David Cameron’s government has taken £15bn in support away from children and families.
These figures are no surprise when you consider the policy prospectus Mr Cameron has put in place since his Tories joined forces with the Lib Dems to form a government in 2010.
There was the bedroom tax, which affected some 220,000 households across the country, impacting directly on as many as 375,000 children.
Cuts to maternity pay, tax credits and support for new families show that the average family with a new born baby is £2,000 worse off, according to the House of Commons Library.
Then there were the cuts to claimable childcare costs through the working tax credit, meaning some families lost £1,500 per year.
All this, at a time when childcare costs have risen five times faster than wages, and when there are 628 fewer Sure Start Children’s Centres offering some 35,000 fewer places.
Add into the mix the fact that the average family has seen their energy bill rise by more than £300 since the last General Election, and it’s easy to see why many have faced a tough few years.
In fact the £2,000-plus that the average family finds itself short-changed by, is likely to be just part of the story. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that any family which falls into two or more of the categories detailed above will find itself significantly worse off.
That is what’s so totally unfair about this Government’s counterproductive austerity programme. Millions have had their standard of living diminished by a Cabinet stuffed full of millionaires who have enhanced their own privileged circumstances through the policies this Government has pursued.
The only sense in which this Government has put families first is by placing them right at the front of the queue for cuts, somewhere up there with the NHS and other public services.
It is only when a Labour Government returns to power that those families who the Prime Minister feigns to care about so deeply, will feel any sense of respite; and it is a day which can’t come quickly enough.
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
THE FUTURE OF BRITAIN’S YOUNG PEOPLE DEPENDS ON LABOUR
INTERNATIONAL Youth Day came and went last week without too much media attention. And yet unemployment, low pay, zero hour contracts and access to housing have hit young people particularly hard and this Government’s cuts programme is making matters far worse.
However, in contrast to the media’s failure to acknowledge International Youth Day, the public service union, UNISON, published a new report on cuts in youth services, as part of its ‘Damage’ series.
The UK’s youth services: how cuts are removing opportunities for young people and damaging their lives, is now available online at http://www.unison.org.uk/catalogue/22532
The report is based on two pieces of research: a Freedom of Information request sent to every council in the UK, to find out the extent of the cuts in youth services since 2012, and a survey of UNISON members, asking questions about the impact of the cuts on young people and the communities they live in.
The key findings discovered that:
• More than 2000 youth service jobs have been lost since 2012
• 350 youth centres have closed as a result of the cuts
• 41,000 youth service places for young people have been cut
• At least 35,000 hours of outreach work by youth workers have been removed
• Youth service spending has been cut by £60 million since 2012, and since 2010 the figure is £259m
The report makes clear that cuts to youth services lead to increased poverty, crime, higher youth unemployment and an increase in teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. These factors will have major knock-on effects on communities, the criminal justice system, the health service and the economy.
But rather than investing in our young people, this Government is hidebound by its neoliberal ideology, which is causing untold damage to Britain’s future generations. It makes the removal of the Tories and Liberal Democrats at the next election absolutely imperative.
But we also need to make sure that we in the Labour Party offer a genuinely progressive alternative. Implementing a radical programme in Government to create a new social democratic consensus similar to what we achieved in 1945 is essential.
The future wellbeing of Britain depends on us being brave and bold, taking on and defeating the corporate interests who have used globalisation to impoverish millions and enrich themselves at the expense of everyone else. Failure is not an option for us!
However, in contrast to the media’s failure to acknowledge International Youth Day, the public service union, UNISON, published a new report on cuts in youth services, as part of its ‘Damage’ series.
The UK’s youth services: how cuts are removing opportunities for young people and damaging their lives, is now available online at http://www.unison.org.uk/catalogue/22532
The report is based on two pieces of research: a Freedom of Information request sent to every council in the UK, to find out the extent of the cuts in youth services since 2012, and a survey of UNISON members, asking questions about the impact of the cuts on young people and the communities they live in.
The key findings discovered that:
• More than 2000 youth service jobs have been lost since 2012
• 350 youth centres have closed as a result of the cuts
• 41,000 youth service places for young people have been cut
• At least 35,000 hours of outreach work by youth workers have been removed
• Youth service spending has been cut by £60 million since 2012, and since 2010 the figure is £259m
The report makes clear that cuts to youth services lead to increased poverty, crime, higher youth unemployment and an increase in teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. These factors will have major knock-on effects on communities, the criminal justice system, the health service and the economy.
But rather than investing in our young people, this Government is hidebound by its neoliberal ideology, which is causing untold damage to Britain’s future generations. It makes the removal of the Tories and Liberal Democrats at the next election absolutely imperative.
But we also need to make sure that we in the Labour Party offer a genuinely progressive alternative. Implementing a radical programme in Government to create a new social democratic consensus similar to what we achieved in 1945 is essential.
The future wellbeing of Britain depends on us being brave and bold, taking on and defeating the corporate interests who have used globalisation to impoverish millions and enrich themselves at the expense of everyone else. Failure is not an option for us!
Monday, 11 August 2014
GOVT'S INDIFFERENCE TO CLIMATE CHANGE INCREASES DERBY’S FLOOD RISK
AN extra 330,000 properties will end up at risk of flooding over the next 20 years, thanks to this Government’s record on flood protection.
That’s another reason why Britain desperately needs Labour Government to protect our climate for families, their homes and businesses.
The problem stems from a mindset within the Conservative Party which has been guilty of indifference, inaction and downright hostility towards the very existence of climate change.
Unless action is taken, the consequences for Britain will be enormous. We’ve seen here in Derby how cuts to funding for flood defence work has left Chester Green exposed in the event of severe weather affecting the River Derwent.
We need to get investment in flood defence back on track as well as taking action on climate change by investing in renewable energy. Reducing demand for energy is also essential by financing a massive home insulation programme.
Such actions will not only reduce exposure to flooding and reduce the UK’s carbon emissions, it will also generate hundreds of thousands of good quality new jobs too.
That’s another reason why Britain desperately needs Labour Government to protect our climate for families, their homes and businesses.
The problem stems from a mindset within the Conservative Party which has been guilty of indifference, inaction and downright hostility towards the very existence of climate change.
Unless action is taken, the consequences for Britain will be enormous. We’ve seen here in Derby how cuts to funding for flood defence work has left Chester Green exposed in the event of severe weather affecting the River Derwent.
We need to get investment in flood defence back on track as well as taking action on climate change by investing in renewable energy. Reducing demand for energy is also essential by financing a massive home insulation programme.
Such actions will not only reduce exposure to flooding and reduce the UK’s carbon emissions, it will also generate hundreds of thousands of good quality new jobs too.
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