Politics
Gerald Kaufman In His Own Hard Hitting Quotes
Honouring Sir Gerald Kaufman MP who has died aged 86, many tributes today mention the pugnacity as well as intellectual might, influence, length of career, kindness and concern for those most marginalised by society of the outspoken former frontbencher. The controversial Labour was unafraid to tell truth to power even if that occasionally meant embarrassing powerful officials who came before the committees he served in, figures in his own party, or sometimes fellow members of Britain's Jewish community with whom he...
Millions of Brits plunged into food poverty – and we think it’s a good idea
Early last year Jeremy Corbyn was roundly laughed at in the House of Commons for suggesting food poverty, inequality and climate change should also be included in the Government's national security review. The list of priorities had been reserved to armed military responses in the event of an attack and increasing spending on Britain's Trident nuclear detterent from £25 billion to £31 billion. The notion that a deepening crisis was happening right in front of our eyes was, in the eyes of...
PMQs 22nd Feb – A dab hand on a furrowed brow
It is a huge week for Labour battling the Stoke and Copeland by-elections. In normal circumstances they shouldn’t worry about it, but these are not normal times. Even with UKIP’s Paul Nuttall shooting himself in the foot virtually every day, Labour could easily find themselves shell-shocked when the votes are counted. So today’s PMQs was a chance to offer those wavering Labour voters a chance to hear the Corbyn roar. Perhaps he could even pretend to like nuclear power for...
Rise of deadly super bugs in hospitals linked to Tory austerity cuts
An ‘appalling’ rise in deadly super bugs E.coli and MRSA is linked to the Conservatives cutting and outsourcing cleaning contracts, according to GMB. Three thousand cleaners have been slashed from the NHS wage bill since 2011/12, new figures reveal - despite hospitals treating more than a million more patients every year since then. Meanwhile in the past year cases of E.coli, MRSA and MSSA – a strain of the MRSA bacteria – have rocketed by more than 8,000. Between 2004...
Mexico wall has already been breached more than 9,200 times
The 654 miles of fence already lining the border between the US and Mexico have already been breached more than 9,200 times between roughly 2010 and 2015, according to a report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) citing records from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). As plans to develop a full-border wall between the two countries are developed, new figures show that even when in place the costly development may not even be that effective. Donald Trump's...
Sickening! Austerity killing 30,000 people a year
After years of Tory rule and harsh austerity measures the UK is on its knees. The Red Cross called the NHS was facing a “humanitarian crisis,” and waiting times are now at the highest levels recorded. Drastic cuts to the social care fund has left local authorities barely able to provide basic care to elderly people in the UK. Instead of being treated at home, elderly and frail people are clogging up hospitals A & E departments for relatively minor...
“Global Europe” secures trade deal with Canada as UK gets shut out
The European Union has agreed a trade deal with Canada that could be worth €72 billion. Negotiated for nearly five years and four months, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada was overwhelmingly voted in by the European Parliament. In 2015 EU-Canada trade accounted for more than €60 billion and Ceta is expected to boost this by 20 per cent. But the trade deal could have dire consequences for the UK, which looks likely to be pushed to the...
Accountability: Post-Brexit Britain takes a step back into the dark ages
Britain will take a step back towards the dark ages in regards to governance in post-Brexit Britain. The European Parliament yesterday voted in favour of a report calling for the protection of whistleblowers across the EU. At the same time, the Conservative government is desperately attempting to defending its proposals to launch a 'full frontal attack' on whistleblowers in the UK, setting a worrying precedent for accountability when we leave the European Union. Commenting after today's vote, Jean Lambert, Green...
Poll indicates that Remain would win if referendum carried out today
The UK would opt to stay in the EU if the vote was carried out today, according a poll conducted by the The Mirror. The study discovered that 51 per cent would decide that EU membership was the right choice. In the actual vote 52 per cent of voters wanted to leave the European project. It appears that a significant minority have suffered with “Bregret” and would have swung the result towards Remain, if they had voted differently in the...