Around Scotland - Tuesday 28 April 2009

(Tuesday 28 April 2009)

Malcolm Burns

In defence of a People's Charter

The People's Charter won enthusiastic cheers around the conference hall in Perth last week, as Scottish TUC delegates heard powerful contributions from numerous speakers arguing in favour.

But the motion was lost on a card vote, as two or three of the larger unions had been persuaded to withhold support.

STUC general secretary Grahame Smith said that the Congress already had a "people's charter" which resided in its past decisions. "We are already progressive and imaginative," he said. "We don't need a charter to make us that."

He said the STUC was pushing hard on its agenda with the governments in London and Edinburgh.

"We're in there, face to face - we have to have consistent, coherent and strategic policies, not diversion, division and distraction."

The STUC certainly does have a progressive and imaginative agenda - one of the more notable aspects of which is that it chimes clearly with the People's Charter.

The charter, especially in its Scottish version, seems to me to distil a lot of the progressive agenda which the STUC has helped to develop through years into a clear, short form of manifesto which millions of people could unite and campaign around.

UNISON Scotland convenor Mike Kirby said that the People's Charter should be used by the unions as a "campaigning tool."

"This is not a charter for an alternative political party," Kirby said, "but for constructing broad alliances in pursuit of our already agreed objectives.

"As politicians lose face, we need to rebuild a degree of credibility with the public, the voters and our members."

Sasha Callaghan of education union UCU said she had been amazed at how much of a response the Charter had found among members.

"It is simple," she said. "The People's Charter represents the audacity of hope rather than the audacity of greed which we've seen over the last few years."

I remain hopeful that the STUC and Scottish unions and others on the political left will pick up the charter's six simple pledges and run with them.

General has some wise words

The Trident replacement should be cancelled and the existing system decommissioned immediately, General Sir Hugh Beach told a conference in Glasgow on Saturday.

The former deputy commander-in-chief of British land forces was speaking at the Crunch time for Trident conference organised by Scottish CND and hosted by Labour Lord Provost Bob Winter of Glasgow City Council.

"It is time to reflect on how thin the justification for Trident really is and to evaluate it fairly and rigorously against the costs," Beach said. "It would be better to cancel the Trident replacement programme now and better still to decommission the existing Trident boats forthwith."

Greens getting in the driving seat

Environmental campaigners were pleased last week after a successful rally and lobby of MSPs at the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday.

The Stop Climate Chaos Scotland campaign group, which brings together civic, trade union, faith and environmental organisations, has been applying pressure to strengthen the Climate Change (Scotland) Bill which is currently going through the parliament.

The Bill, presented by the SNP government, will create a legal framework for cutting greenhouse gas emissions in Scotland, target a reduction of at least 80 per cent by 2050 and require ministers to set annual reduction targets for Scottish emissions from 2010 to 2050. It also aims for an interim target of a 50 per cent reduction by 2030.

The government claims it is already "world-leading climate-change legislation." But the Stop Climate Chaos campaigners want more, so it can be a global benchmark at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit in December.

The rally focused on three "big asks" of the parliament:

• Statutory annual reductions in greenhouse gas emissions of at least 3 per cent year on year, starting now
• The inclusion of emissions from international aviation and shipping from the beginning
• Ensuring that the action to tackle climate change takes place in Scotland and is not "bought in" from overseas.

On Thursday, the Scottish Parliament's lead committee on the Climate Change Bill called for the 2030 interim target date to be brought forward to 2020, a more "robust" framework for the reductions between 2010 and 2019 and other measures in line with the Stop Climate Chaos campaign.

Now, the activists are looking with new hope to the Scottish government's response - the Bill is due to be debated in Holyrood later this week.

Grim reminder of the fight for workers' right to safety

The STUC conference is great for meeting and renewing old acquaintances.

I first met Neil Rothnie, now secretary of the OILC offshore branch of RMT, when the OILC was a new organisation which had co-ordinated a series of highly effective wildcat strikes following the Piper Alpha disaster.

I recall the OILC executive meeting in the college research offices I worked in then, because it was not politic at the time for them to have a meeting in the STUC headquarters.

I am glad the great work the OILC has done on behalf of workers in the hostile North Sea environment is officially recognised and that they are now speaking from the floor as a valued part of the congress of Scottish unions.

Speaking to an emergency motion on the recent helicopter crash, Rothnie paid tribute to the 16 who died, including OILC branch members Gareth Hughes and Raymond Doyle, and also another OILC member David Stevenson, who died in a separate accident while working on an offshore service vessel on the same day.

Rothnie said: "The OILC was born out of anger from Piper Alpha. That anger is rising again and will need to be addressed by government and the North Sea oil industry. We don't have partners except here in this room.

"Two hundred of our members are locked out of the industry. It is entirely unacceptable for the Secretary of State for Scotland Jim Murphy to lecture anyone with his claim about remarkable improvement in offshore safety. It is nonsense."

On Workers' Memorial Day, as we remember all those who have been killed at their work, let's resolve as a united movement to take on the bosses and defeat the bosses, including the rapacious North Sea operators, who value profit more than our workers' lives.

Israel boycott at last

The STUC conference has endorsed a campaign of boycott, disinvestment and sanctions against Israel. This decision followed a long period of investigation into the effects of such a campaign, culminating in the serious report of a recent STUC delegation to Palestine and Israel.

The report recommended boycott, disinvestment and sanctions against Israel because "it was very clear to the delegation that the daily violations of human rights were as a direct result of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories."

You can read the report and its recommendations online at the STUC website.,

The Jerusalem Post reported the STUC's boycott call in fairly straight terms, but included a peculiar quotation attributed to STUC general secretary Grahame Smith which implied that he said the campaign would be "divisive." I'm sure he never did say that.

Shady dealings

Visitors searching for the STUC site through Google late last week would have found themselves redirected to a number of less than reputable web pages advertising various sexual services and medications. Others trying to email the STUC would have had their messages bounced.

Denial of service attacks? Possibly. Disinformation? Perhaps. The STUC's decision on the basis of lengthy and detailed consideration of the facts appears to have irritated some people.

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STUC supports "magnificent struggle" of workers in Prisme Dundee occupation

(Friday 24 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

The final act of the 2009 STUC Congress in Perth was to pledge support for the workers who have occupied the Prisme packaging premises in Dundee over the last 7 weeks.

Mike Arnott of Dundee TUC said: "When we were told about the Prisme sit-in, our first reaction was to have a whip-round. This is the first factory occupation for 13 years and the first in Dundee since Timex in 1993."

Arnott said the management had told the workforce with no notice that the company was bust, there was no money for redundancy and they were all dismissed.

"Faced with this," he said "the decision of the workers was a spontaneous and courageous act worthy of support, which is why we support them, even though they were not members of a union. Most workers in Britain aren't. It's not a perfect world yet."

Arnott said that the strikers have received support and donations from trade union branches. "These workers are much closer to the trade union movement and its ethos of solidarity now.

They still have not received their redundancy payment but all donations are going into a fund to start a new company named Discovery, after Dundee's iconic ship.

"Today the workers have been involved in talks to save their company but finance is still needed - please send donations," Mr Arnott appealed. "Cheques payable to TUC Lobby Fund, c/o Dundee TUC, 141 Yarrow Terrace, DD2 4DY."

Calum Murray of UCU said that the Prisme workers occupation was "really quite outstanding and inspirational" and had touched a spark with people in Dundee.

"Occupation is the new fashion," he said. "Here is small non-unionised factory, there is a group of parents in Glasgow, sparks are beginning to spread round the labour movement. When people facing redundancy or closures fight back, suddenly we find levels of support amongst the wider community. We all know that when we ballot for strike we get flooded with membership applications. When we fight back, people flock to us. That's why we should flock to them when they fight back."

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Scotland's unions demand Trident cancellation

(Friday 24 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

Congress reaffirmed its opposition to the Trident submarine missile system, calling on the government to cancel the programme of Trident replacement and work with the Scottish government and others to diversify Scotland’s economy.

Tommy Morrison of Clydebank TUC said: "Trident is weapon designed for a bygone era, irrelevant to our security needs today. And with the economy facing meltdown, rising unemployment and repossessions, Trident is bordering on the insane."

Mr Morrison said: "We need a job diversification programme to protect the defence workers. The STUC and CND have provided evidence to prove this is possible."

Congress also demanded full parliamentary debate and scrutiny on the issue of Trident replacement.

Arthur West of Kilmarnock & Loudoun TUC said: "The cost of replacing Trident is truly eye-watering, now estimated at over £66bn to replace and maintain. A really worrying aspect is the lack of parliamentary debate and scrutiny. The government is moving onto what is known as the Initial Gate stage, and a report is due to go to ministers in September while parliament is in recess. Given the new Labour government's track record it is important there is pressure put on them to allow parliamentary debate and scrutiny."

Earlier in the international debate, Joy Dunn of PCS set the demand for abolition of Trident in a global context.

Ms Dunn told delegates: "I am sure you welcomed the moves by new US President Barack Obama to enter in to talks with Russia's President Medvedev on nuclear weapons. This sent a significant signal around the world. There is growing support for the Global Zero campaign to rid the world of nuclear weapons. Against that background, the UK government's persistence in investing in Trident looks out of step."

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Congress calls for reinstatement of forced-out newspaper staff

(Thursday 23 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

Congress passed an emergency motion from the National Union of Journalists on Wednesday condemning the actions of Daily Record and Sunday Mail directors for cutting a quarter of editorial jobs.

NUJ Scottish organiser Paul Holleran said: "What can I tell you about the Daily Record and Sunday Mail directors?

"Their greed is surpassed only by their vindictiveness, which is surpassed only by their incompetence."

Mr Holleran said the directors had reneged on a deal following industrial action over workplace stress last year.

"We have 250 journalists in the Daily Record and Sunday Mail," he said.

"A cut of 75 is a huge hit for us. We compromised over redundancies and new technology and shift patterns, but they rejected our offer and went ahead with selections for compulsory redundancies using completely inappropriate criteria."

"These are not loss-making companies," Mr Holleran continued.

"The Daily Record and Sunday Mail have made in excess of £20 million profit a year.

"This dispute is about jobs but also about the quality of newspapers - these directors have driven down and sacrificed quality journalism by making huge cuts in search of further profit."

Arguing for more democratic ownership and control of the press, Roddy Robertson of the FBU said: "The question that should be asked in public is are these papers safe in the hands of the directors?"

Congress called for the reinstatement of the 23 NUJ members at the Daily Record and Sunday Mail who have been selected for the compulsory redundancy.

The NUJ chapel has been taking strike action against the forced-through compulsory redundancies.

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Restore pension link now, demands STUC

(Thursday 23 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

The Scottish TUC urged the government on Wednesday to immediately increase pensions above the poverty line - currently at £151 per week - and restore the earnings link.

The pensions motion rejected the idea that there is a pensions crisis because people are living longer, not least because the National Insurance scheme has excesses of more than £35 billion.

Congress also rejected attacks by employers on occupational pensions. Train drivers' union ASLEF delegate Chris Barrie said that there were few more important issues before congress.

"The current economic situation means that the Labour government should be doing all in its power to help pensioners," he said.

"We will not accept crocodile tears from politicians."

North Lanarkshire TUC delegate Tommy Brennan said: "We should immediately restore the link to earnings and increase the basic state pension to more than £151.

"There is no dignity for many of our pensioners in trying to live on today's basic state pension. There is no dignity in having to decide whether to eat or heat.

"It's an indictment on this supposedly Labour government."

And GMB delegate Charlie Robertson demanded additional resources for older pensioners.

"The derisory 25p a week paid to over-eighties has not increased since its introduction in 1971," he said.

"This is the generation which protested for the right to work, defeated fascism and built the welfare state and are the poorest - they are less likely to have occupational pensions and more likely to have additional expenses."

UNISON delegate Catriona Beveridge told congress that public-sector pensions were currently under attack from the right.

"Do you think council and health and government workers retire early on pensions like Sir Fred Goodwin?" she asked.

"The actual level of the average pension for UK local government workers is £3,800 a year."

Unite delegate Stevie Deans, a shop steward at Ineos in Grangemouth, thanked the STUC for its support in last year's pension strike.

"We were faced with a greedy employer who, despite making millions of pounds in profits, intended to take our members' pensions rights away from them," he said.

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Way for democracy

(Thursday 23 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

A packed STUC fringe meeting in the Salutation Hotel heard RMT general secretary Bob Crow make the case for the new left-wing, anti-EU electoral alliance No2EU.

"The EU was sold to people on the basis of its social benefits after the war," Mr Crow said on Tuesday.

"The capitalist states were petrified that the Soviet Union would expand.

"But after it collapsed, they believed there was no need to offer benefits to the workers. Instead, the EU has become all about competition, trying to race everyone down to the bottom."

Mr Crow argued that the European institutions were an extension of global capital.

"In reality, the EU institutions can't be changed. MEPs meet once a year to talk about the Budget, but, in reality, they have no power."

"We believe there is a massive protest vote out there against the EU," Mr Crow said.

"But who can people vote for? The Tories, the Lib Dems and new Labour all support the EU capitalists, they all support the European Court of Justice judgements. If we don't pick this issue up, the BNP will pick up votes."

Mr Crow stated that some people had criticised No2EU by saying it was another new political party, but he pointed out that it was an electoral alliance to mobilise opposition in the European election of June 4 - finishing on June 5.

"If we win any seats, we will not take them up - we'll call a convention to discuss how to take the issue forward."

Mr Crow argued that No2EU wants a different kind of Europe.

"It's not European workers who we oppose - we want to link up and show solidarity with other workers in Europe - it's the European Union that we oppose."

"Let's get out of Europe and back into the world," Mr Crow concluded.

No2EU candidate in Scotland John Foster told the meeting: "The EU is a concentration of capital. That means its power is concentrated and so it attacks workers.

"We can see this in the terms of the Lisbon Treaty and the European Courts of Justice cases of Viking, Laval and Luxembourg.

"It is nothing less than a frontal attack on workers' rights."

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Salmond supports Scottish bank idea

(Thursday 23 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

SNP First Minister Alex Salmond told the STUC Congress in Perth that his government would act to establish a Scottish Investment Bank, as called for in the STUC agenda for rebuilding collective prosperity.

Mr Salmond said: "In the aftermath of the financial crash, we have to look at every economic lever available to us.

"The Scottish government has studied very carefully the STUC agenda and we find that the proposal for a Scottish Investment Bank has substantial merit. We are now working to establish exactly that."

He added that he was looking to Scotland's main economic development agency Scottish Enterprise to form the basis of the bank and announced that £20m would be found to support the initiative from the Scottish Venture Fund.

"This is very much a first step, an acorn from which a mighty oak might grow," he said.

"We will look to pull in substantial resources from the European Investment Bank," he said.

"There is huge potential for investment and innovation in high-growth Scottish businesses. In taking forward the ideas initiated by this congress and others, we can make sure prosperity is realised."

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Forget the bankers - focus on the workers, Barber tells government

(Thursday 23 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

In a fraternal address to the STUC in Perth, TUC general secretary Brendan Barber urged the government to show "the same determination in protecting working people from the worst of the recession as it has in protecting banks from the greedy excesses of their bosses."

Mr Barber issued a warning to the government and the Chancellor.

"The idea that there are £15 billion worth of painless cuts is quite mistaken. To claim this is to play into the hands of the small-state right who lose no opportunity to attack the public sector, its staff and their pensions," he said.

"Governments must over the long-term ensure that they can run sustainable public finances.

"But if we let the country's productive base waste away now through a short-term refusal to let the deficit grow, it will be much more painful to get the public finances in order, with millions on the dole and whole industrial and service sectors hollowed out."

Mr Barber argued that the union message is clear - we can't go back to business as usual.

"We don't want to go back to the idea that the market always knows best and that deregulation is the only game in town," he said.

"We don't want to see inequality grow as a new class of super-rich float away from the rest of us - a group who think tax is for the little people."

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Health and safety 'needs transparency'

(Wednesday 22 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

STUC Congress demanded a new culture of transparency in health and safety on Tuesday to address the high level of fatalities in Scottish workplaces.

Construction union delegate Harry Frew said: "In the last five years, 148 workers including 35 self-employed have died as a result of workplace accidents, yet not one director has been successfully prosecuted."

Mr Frew called for dramatically increased funding of the HSE so it can inspect and prosecute companies that break health and safety laws and a greater emphasis upon worker involvement in health and safety, including a strengthening of the role of safety representatives and ring-fenced funding for workplace safety advisers.

Speaking to a motion condemning the Scottish government's civil justice reform agenda, Unite union delegate Hugh Scullion added: "This is a crossroads moment for our justice system. The Scottish government is taking steps towards making citizens pay directly for the court they use.

"The Civil Court review taking place under Lord Justice Gill is a 150-page document. You'd imagine there would be some mention of trade unions in it. There was one reference - and it got it wrong.

"Despite the new law on corporate manslaughter introduced in Westminster, the law needs to go further to make sure company directors are fully responsible for the health and safety of workers."

In Scotland, you are more likely to die or be injured at work than elsewhere and, when that does happen, compensation is lower than elsewhere. That is just wrong."

Public-sector union UNISON delegate Dave Watson said: "This is not just a technical argument - it is a fundamental attack on the legal systems we use to protect our members. Making the public pay full cost is treating justice like a commercial operation rather than a public service."

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Delegates call for a balanced energy policy

(Wednesday 22 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

STUC renewed its commitment to a balanced energy policy on Tuesday based on a diversity of fuel sources, to enable secure, affordable energy supplies and help cut emissions.

Unite union delegate Marie Vannet said: "A balanced energy policy is absolutely vital to ensure stability of supply."

She argued that action is needed now to ensure that replacement capacity is available when existing power stations close.

Public-sector union UNISON delegate Dave Watson said that the market trumpeted by both Scottish and Westminster governments has dismally failed consumers.

"Regrettably, a coherent policy is not what we always get from these governments," he said.

"We either get more market madness from the UK or a crude 'no nukes at any price' from the Scottish government. We shouldn't wait until the lights go out before we recognise that market madness is no way to run a vital public service like energy."

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STUC demands cash for public services

(Wednesday 22 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

THE Scottish TUC passed a series of resolutions on Tuesday supporting well-funded public services and protecting society's most vulnerable.

Public-sector union UNISON convener Mike Kirby slammed the rush to outsource public services as "a tax scam that abandons democratic control and allows the council to avoid its legal duty to pay men and women equally."

He described Glasgow council's increasing reliance on outsourced trusts and Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) to deliver public services. Currently, around 15,000 staff are employed by nine LLPs, trusts and partnerships in Glasgow.

"A recent Glasgow Council report into these arm's-length external organisations‚ or ALEOs, admits that they are a tax scam, that they lead to loss of democratic control by councillors and they can avoid more equal pay claims because they have fewer comparators. So much for the Labour government's public-sector equality duty," he said.

Teaching union EIS delegate David Drever said: "We must not underestimate the political fight we face.

"The papers are speaking about an 'obese' and 'inflated' public sector and the Chancellor is preparing for billions of pounds of 'efficiency savings' in the Budget. But we must not allow public service workers being posed against our colleague the private sector."

Civil Service union PCS delegate Cheryl Gedling added: "We listened carefully to Harriet Harman on Monday when she said that you can't cut your way out of recession.

"Maybe she was just off message, but we think she needs to go knock on the door at 11 Downing Street to let Alistair Darling know what he should do.

"After the previous chancellor announced 104,000 job cuts in 2004, we launched a campaign of industrial action and ensured no compulsory redundancies. If this budget announcement means public-sector cuts, be assured that our union will defend our members' jobs and their terms and conditions."

General union GMB delegate Linda Miller called for action on equal pay in the public sector.

"Low-pay is still a real issue for many women. On average, 27,000 - mainly female - part-time local government workers in Scotland earn less than £6.50 per hour and 14,000 in the NHS earn less than £7 per hour," she said.

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Scottish Labour leader: I want unions to be partners

(Wednesday 22 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

SCOTTISH Labour Leader Iain Gray told the STUC Congress on Tuesday that he wanted his party to be a real partner with the unions in working towards their policy agenda for collective prosperity.

"We will continue to campaign alongside the unions as we have against the sale of forests, against cuts in the voluntary sector, against cuts in teacher numbers, for better protection of workers against abuse and for stronger regulation of the bus industry," he said.

Despite the financial chaos which has engulfed the world, Mr Gray argued that the big banks are not beyond our control.

"We made the banks and we can control them." he said.

"And that is why the Labour government has led concerted international action to strengthen banking regulation, closing tax haven loopholes that drain wealth out of the countries that produce it.

"Many people feel that the high aspirations for the recent G20 hosted by the Labour government have not been met, but real progress was made."

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Congress backs UCATT call for an immediate ban on blacklisting

(Wednesday 22 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

IN a passionate speech on an emergency resolution on blacklisting, construction union UCATT general secretary Alan Ritchie won the unanimous support of congress to call for immediate legislation to outlaw the practice.

"Last month, it was proved that blacklisting is endemic in the construction industry," he told delegates.

"Forty major companies have been paying an affiliation of £3,000 a year to The Consulting Association to get personal details of workers. And, because our members are trade unionists, companies have been blacklisting them and stopping them from being employed."

Mr Ritchie said that, for decades, UCATT has raised the issue, but the companies had denied the practice took place and the government always claimed there was no evidence. Now the evidence has been provided in a report from the Information Commissioner.

The resolution calls for a new law to prohibit the making, keeping or circulation of a blacklist and put employers under a legal obligation to disclose any lists that they hold.

"This Labour government has a moral obligation to this movement to make sure blacklisting is ended," he said.

"We also call on the Scottish government, which gives multimillion-pound contracts to these companies, to make it illegal to operate a blacklist."

Congress also passed a resolution calling for improved employment rights for migrant and vulnerable workers.

CWU delegate John Brown said: "Some of the most vulnerable workers are also migrant workers and are often exploited by unscrupulous employers."

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Scottish UNISON condemns 'get rich quick' philosophy and calls for fairer tax

(Tuesday 21 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

SCOTTISH UNISON secretary Matt Smith told delegates on Monday that the economic crisis must be paid for by fairer taxation and more investment in public services.

In a hard-hitting speech, Mr Smith pointed out that the crisis has been caused by relying on a get-rich-quick philosophy and that the proponents of that philosophy are still arguing for the failed policies of deregulation and attacks on the public sector.

"The richest 1 per cent in our society have doubled their share of total income since the 1980s," he said.

"Today, they pocket more money than the entire workforces of the NHS, state education and local government put together. And they pay back nothing like their fair share of tax.

"Almost £20 billion is lost from the money to pay for our services every year because of the use and abuse of tax havens."

Mr Smith added: "There is no more efficient way to promote a better society than by directing funds to meet unmet needs and to employ those who are cast aside by the actions of others.

"Government must listen when working people call for a just society that rejects free-market economics."

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Harman insists Labour must not 'repeat the mistakes of the past'

(Tuesday 21 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

LABOUR's deputy leader Harriet Harman affirmed to the STUC congress on Monday that "you cannot cut your way out of a recession" and promised to ensure that "help in difficult times must go to those who need it most."

Ms Harman told delegates that the priority for government at all levels must now be to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past."

She said that the recession in the 1980s and '90s had "left Scotland with a legacy of lives ruined by persistent economic inactivity and communities decimated by the hollowing out the industrial core.

"Scotland continues to pay a very high human and economic cost for the policy failures of the past. We are determined not to repeat those mistakes," she said.

Ms Harman also argued that, while Labour had been in government, it had striven to cut unemployment, helped the poor with tax credits, child benefits and extra for pensioners, introduced the national minimum wage, legislated for trade union recognition, invested in health education and transport and enacted laws to protect people from discrimination.

"Those are all things that couldn't happen while Tories were in government but we know we need to do more," she added.

The speech also argued the case for the Union in the recession.

"As well as the strength that devolution has brought, we need to stand together throughout the United Kingdom - Scotland, Wales and England," she said.

STUC general secretary Grahame Smith welcomed Ms Harman's statement, saying that he had hoped that political speakers would address the changing economic times and the need to assist those hardest hit in the recessions.

"The STUC looks forward to this proactive agenda being fully reflected in Wednesday's budget," he said.

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STUC president attacks 'reckless' bankers

(Tuesday 21 April 2009)

by Malcolm Burns in Perth

SCOTTISH TUC president Fiona Farmer set the tone for this year's congress with a stinging attack on Monday on the financial elite who have caused the global economic crisis.

Ms Farmer told delegates that the prevailing economic system based on financial innovation, deregulation and a race to the bottom on business taxation has collapsed with appalling consequences for workers and their families across the developed and developing world.

She said that the market-driven model which has held sway for the last 30 years had not just failed - it had "imploded in spectacular fashion.

"The collective prosperity of ordinary workers and their families is threatened by the prodigious cost of propping up financial institutions that were run for the benefit of a self-absorbed and arrogant economic elite whose influence stretched far beyond the financial sector," she said.

Ms Farmer added that the full impact of the recession had yet to be felt in Scotland, as jobs continue to disappear in manufacturing, house building, retail and other service industries, as well as the finance sector.

"There are also increasing moves toward short-time working, pay freezes, cuts and redeployment," she pointed out.

"Once again, it is the people we represent who are carrying the can for the selfishness and recklessness of economic elites and the complacency of government," she said.

On the basis that government cannot be allowed to repeat the mistakes of the past, she also argued for a strong fiscal stimulus in the Budget tomorrow.

"Regulators should take a far tougher line on the bonus culture, capital reserves and the trading of securities," Ms Farmer argued.

She also had a clear warning for the Labour administration.

"The current situation where the government is a majority stake holder without exercising control is wholly unsustainable, politically and economically," she said.

"We have made the case for a low-carbon industrial strategy, a Scottish Investment Bank, increased investment in science, technology, engineering and maths, enhanced research and development credits, sectoral procurement strategies and increased state aid for manufacturing."

Ms Farmer also told conference that one of the highlights of her presidential year had been a visit to Venezuela in November, a country with "genuine socialist policies, where there has been major investment in health, education and housing."

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I seem to have won £7 in the Scottish Grand National

Can this be true? I never win anything :-) like absolutely never, but I picked out Gone to Lunch in a £1 sweep yesterday...

"BBC SPORT | Other sport... | Horse Racing | Hello Bud powers to Scots win:
Hello Bud powers to Scots win

Hello Bud held off Tony McCoy's mount Gone To Lunch after a bold front-running display to win the Scottish Grand National at Ayr."


So apparently I just missed out on £14 for an actual number one spot... but second will do nicely, ta...

Not sure about this No2EU thing

It doesn't seem well thought through. Even the website http://no2eu.com/ has the unfortunate slogan "It's a black and white issue." Do they really mean that, given the BNP and all?

Hmm.

Around Scotland - Tuesday 14 April 2009

(Tuesday 14 April 2009)

Malcolm Burns

Ground the Super Puma L2s

Still they fly. Last week I wrote about North Sea helicopter company Bond suspending Super Puma L2 operations for a mere 48 hours "out of respect" for 16 killed after one of its aircraft plunged out of the sky on April 1.

Bond resumed operations even before all the bodies and flight data information had been recovered from the wreckage and before any report on the accident could be done.

On Friday April 10 the initial report of the air accident investigation branch (AAIB) concluded that the helicopter had crashed following a catastrophic failure of the main rotor gearbox, which resulted in the "detachment of the main rotor head from the helicopter and was rapidly followed by main rotor blade strikes on the pylon and tail boom, which became severed from the fuselage."

The aircraft immediately lost all power of flight and plunged into the sea.

The 16 men aboard had no chance. Imagine being trapped in a metal box accelerating down towards the North Sea from 2,000 feet.

It's a chilling thought that the two pilots and 14 oil workers would have known exactly what was about to happen in the final seconds before they died.

Workers going offshore now live with the real possibility of catastrophe every time they get on a Super Puma L2.

But the AAIB has not called for all these aircraft to be grounded pending a full investigation of why this catastrophe happened, merely for extra checks to be made.

The RMT union, which includes the OILC offshore workers branch, is calling for Super Pumas to be grounded.

Following the publication of the AAIB report, general secretary Bob Crow said: "Our position is pretty clear. They should be grounded for a full inspection to take place before our members are absolutely satisfied that those Super Pumas are OK to fly. As far as we're concerned, we're saying to our members: 'If you don't feel safe about going into those Puma helicopters, then they should refuse to work on the grounds of health and safety'."

Yet still they fly.

There is always massive pressure from the oil companies on all agencies, including those we rely on to ensure safety. The profit motive is more important to oil bosses than any concern for the lives of the people who make that profit for them.

Politicians of all parties and the Scottish and Westminster governments should be joining the oil workers' union to call for the grounding of the Super Puma L2s until we can find out what caused the crash.

Against sexism at St Andrews university

The annual Kate Kennedy procession will take place at the quaint Fife university town of St Andrews on Saturday.

The jolly romp down the high street named after a "niece" or possibly daughter of 15th century Bishop Kennedy of St Andrews celebrates the coming of spring and aims to improve relations between town and gown.

Each year, a male first-year student is chosen to dress up as the reputedly beautiful Kate and lead a parade of characters from the history of the town and university.

But this year, the exclusive, men-only Kate Kennedy Club which organises the event is the target of a feminist campaign by none other than the new female principal of the posh university.

Dr Louise Richardson has stated that the university will not participate in the procession this year and will no longer officially recognise the Kate Kennedy Club.

"The official endorsement of any club or society which excludes people because of their gender or race," Dr Richardson announced, "would be completely at odds with the values of this university and our commitment to foster an open and inclusive international community of scholars and students in St Andrews."

Well said, that woman.

Meanwhile, Dr Richardson is also involved with the fight against sexist traditional practices in the Fife town's other famous institution.

The previous two (male) principals of the university were given honorary membership of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club.

But Dr Richardson, the first-ever female principal, has not been offered the same, despite a public controversy over the issue and even a call by First Minister Alex Salmond.

The Royal and Ancient, which was established in 1754, has never had a female member, though it has admitted women to its clubhouse during big competitions. Big deal.

St Andrews is due to host next year's Open Championship. Let's have a campaign to kick the sexists out of golf before then.

Teaching the rich and powerful a lesson

I think it's time we started to revive the tradition of issuing rotten fruit to ordinary people to throw at the useless rich as they pass by.

At the end of a long line of infuriating tycoons including Sir Fred Goodwin is self-styled philanthropist Sir Tom Hunter, who has called for Scottish teachers to be put on performance-related pay - and be sacked if they don't meet targets.

Writing in Scottish business magazine Insider this month, Hunter argues for his idea because "great teachers and institutions would rise or fall on performance, as judged by their customers and independent analysis."

Hunter made his pile from selling sportswear and now, a bit like Prince Charles, he has a gofer to do everything for him, including speak.

His spokesman Ewan Hunter - no relation - explains his master's article thus. "Teachers who are not performing ... we need to find a constructive way for them to leave the profession.

"We can't jeopardise the life of a young child by a poor teacher. Thankfully, Scotland doesn't have many. Sir Tom hugely admires and respects the profession."

So why does Sir Tom feel qualified to pontificate about teachers? Well, basically, he's rich.

As such, he was unsurprisingly feted by the previous Labour-led Scottish Executive and he put some money into a programme called Schools of Ambition, which was later canned by the incoming SNP government.

As well as the rotten fruit, we should ban the rich from making stupid public pronouncements and instead force them on to a performance-related pay scheme of punitive taxation. That would learn them.

NUJ fights for jobs

The 48-hour strike over the weekend by the NUJ at the Daily Record and Sunday Mail in Glasgow was the latest battle in the continuing war against redundancies and cuts in the Scottish media.

Over 200 NUJ members passed a motion of no confidence in the Scottish management of Trinity Mirror, which owns the once market-leading titles.

A mass meeting in Glasgow before the strike expressed disgust about the way that individuals had been told they were compulsorily redundant. Union members called for the reinstatement of more than 20 journalists selected for redundancy and demanded the union pursue every means at its disposal to challenge the dismissals.

NUJ Scottish organiser Paul Holleran backed the call and told the meeting: "We will step up industrial action, taking more strike action next week as well as pursuing all legal action possible, both collectively and on behalf of individuals.

"It is also time for the politicians to put more pressure on the people at the top of the table at the Record and Mail and demand reinstatement of our members."

Donations to the Record and Mail NUJ chapel should be made payable to the Alan Hutcheson Fund and sent to NUJ Scotland, Third Floor, 114 Union Street, Glasgow G1 3QQ.

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Stars in the Star

Neil and Hugh and I went to the Star Inn on Thu 9 April to see Willie Campbell play and also got treated to a wee free concert with Willie and Fiona as they rehearsed for the 3 Fiona Mackenzies show in An Lanntair on Friday 10 April...

Will the real Fiona Mackenzie please stand up?

An Lanntair: "Fiona 'Chasm' Mackenzie A beautiful singer and impressive guitarist and pianist, Fiona is best known for playing with acclaimed singer-songwriter Willie Campbell in his contemporary rock band Our Small Capital and his folk/rock band Open Day Rotation. She has performed on a number of television shows as a musician and lead vocalist and is currently also a presenter for the new Gaelic channel, BBC Alba."

www.myspace.com/williecampbellopendayrotation
www.myspace.com/fionachasmmackenzie

Around Scotland - Tuesday 7 April 2009

(Tuesday 7 April 2009)

Malcolm Burns

Boycott support

I WENT along to a showing of some films by UNISON Scotland international committee on Friday. The bill included The Iron Wall, a recent documentary about the apartheid barrier on Palestinian territory illegally occupied by Israel.

As I watched the bulldozers destroy Palestinian villages and Israeli soldiers uproot and steal ancient olive trees from family land, I was reminded just how brutal the occupation is.

The plan to establish colonising settlements, in complete defiance of UN resolutions and international law, was executed by successive Israeli governments, including the butcher of Shatila Ariel Sharon.

The aim was to create an increasing number of "facts on the ground" which would have to be dealt with in any negotiations.

And now I witnessed the wall snaking its way around the illegal Israeli colonies, stealing yet more of Palestine even as it divides and separates the communities of the oppressed. The aim is clear - to drive out the Palestinians from yet more of their land.

The situation is becoming ever more urgent.

I have just downloaded from the STUC website further evidence of the "facts on the ground" - the recent delegation to Palestine and Israel's newly published report.

Eleven Scottish trade unionists visited their opposite numbers in the Israeli Histadrut trade union centre and the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions.

They also met representatives of government and campaigning organisations on both sides and travelled extensively in the West Bank.

The objective of the visit was to gather evidence to help the STUC decide whether to support a campaign for an international boycott of Israeli products, plus disinvestment and sanctions.

The report is an unvarnished account of meetings and discussions that gives a clear indication of the complexity of the political issues faced on the ground by workers, whether Israeli or Palestinian, whether Muslim, Jewish or Christian.

The delegation deliberately sought to engage with the Israeli side as well as the Palestinians. Some of the encounters were "uncomfortable," especially the meeting with Israeli foreign affairs officials.

As well as listening, the Scottish delegation had some issues to raise.

"The delegation questioned the officials on Israel's failure to comply with UN security council resolutions, on the high number of civilian deaths and casualties, the political timing of the attacks on Gaza and Israel allowing the ceasefire with Hamas to expire. We did not receive any satisfactory answers to these questions," states the report.

While considering the undoubted negative aspects of boycott, which were unsurprisingly highlighted by Histadrut, the report concludes by recommending that the STUC should support a campaign for international boycott of Israeli products, disinvestment and sanctions.

The STUC delegation also paid a visit to the tomb of Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader who died in November 2004.

I was fortunate enough to have been on a previous STUC visit to Palestine, just a couple of weeks before the disastrous turn of events in September 2001, when we met the president in the Ramallah compound where he was effectively held under siege by Israeli forces and where he now lies buried.

On that occasion, the message Arafat asked us to take away was simple: "We are not asking for the moon, only what has already been agreed. Let all the world know what is going on."

Having seen at first hand myself the brutal oppression of the Palestinians by the Israeli state and the remarkable dignity with which the ordinary people survive and resist it, I can never forget. I am proud that the Scottish labour and trade union movement continues to stand with them.

STUC demands 2009 budget to save jobs

THE STUC published its budget submission entitled A Budget For Jobs on Friday. As ever, the document is well worth reading.

STUC economist Stephen Boyd didn't share the gushing view of the leader-writers who immediately and almost unanimously declared the G20 meeting in London a huge success. The STUC take is much more sober.

"With the failure of the G20 to agree a co-ordinated global stimulus package and monetary policy having reached the limits of its effectiveness, the STUC believes that budget 2009 must bring forward another substantial fiscal stimulus in order to limit the length and depth of the current recession."

However, the analysis shows that, on current predictions, the UK will fall short on fiscal stimulus this year - and that it could even be negative in 2010. A scary thought.

The STUC is arguing for a fiscal stimulus of around 2 per cent of GDP to bring the UK in line with the international average.

General secretary Grahame Smith said: "This should focus on tax cuts for low-paid workers, benefit increases, public works programmes, short-time working incentives and enhanced support for the unemployed.

"These measures will provide direct support for those hit hardest by recession, boost demand and help prepare the economy for the challenges of the future."

Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling will stand up in the House of Commons in two weeks' time, on April 22 at 12.30pm and present his master's 2009 budget statement.

Nowhere will this statement be more closely watched than in Perth on the third and final day of the Scottish TUC's annual congress.

Check out www.stuc.org.uk to download the budget submission.

Bond has respect for nothing but profit

LIKE many other people whose friends and family have worked in the North Sea oil industry, I scanned the papers last week for the names of the 14 oil workers and two pilots who died in the latest helicopter disaster.

The fact that - this time - none of them were my mates or relatives only meant that some other friends and family have lost someone. It's a bleak feeling.

Which of you would have got aboard the next Super Puma AS332 L2 Mk2 flight as Bond Helicopters resumed normal service on Friday?

This was only 48 hours after the crash and before the retrieval of all the bodies, the wreckage or the flight data recorder - hence before any investigation could guarantee that the other Puma L2s are safe.

Bond said it had suspended flights for 48 hours "out of respect" for the dead men.

It doesn't know the meaning of the word respect.

"In light of the unknown, and the fact that choppers don't fall out of the sky for no reason, it would be appropriate for that model of Puma to be grounded," said Jake Molloy, the OILC branch organiser of RMT.

The recent crash in the oil field off Newfoundland in which 17 died resulted in an entire fleet of Sikorsky helicopters being grounded for safety checks.

But the only thing the oil companies and their attendant subcontractors which exploit the North Sea truly respect is the profit they make.

Join forces against fascists

THE fascist BNP has to be beaten down wherever it raises its ugly little head, so I am always pleased to report anti-fascist activity in Scotland.

The progressive campaigns which run Saturday stalls in Glasgow's Buchanan Street regularly face down the BNP and their like and I understand that Unite Against Fascism has been running a stall in Leith on Saturdays as well.

The BNP will be running candidates in the forthcoming European election in Scotland and elsewhere in Britain, so it is increasingly vital to oppose their vile campaign of racial hatred.

Unite Against Fascism in Scotland has a new email address if you want to get involved in more antifascist campaigning, uafscotland@googlemail.com

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