Recent Articles

NSPCC volunteer ‘stood down’ over reference for Hall

by Newswire     June 17, 2013 at 7:23 pm

The CEO of NSPCC today said it was “unacceptable” that anyone at the charity had provided a character reference for Stuart Hall, the former presenter convicted of sexually abusing girls.

Let's be clear, the #nspcc did not give Stuart Hall a character reference. @NSPCC deplores his crimes and the misery they caused.

— Peter Wanless (@PeterWanless) June 17, 2013

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Providing a character reference for a convicted sex offender is unacceptable by any #nspcc volunteer even in a personal capacity 1/2

— Peter Wanless (@PeterWanless) June 17, 2013

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The #nspcc volunteer has stood down. Our priority must be the victims of abuse and we will not allow anything to get in the way of that 2/2

— Peter Wanless (@PeterWanless) June 17, 2013

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@Evertondivvy a volunteer did so in a personal capacity without any authorisation from the @NSPCC

— Peter Wanless (@PeterWanless) June 17, 2013

Canadian PM ambushed by tar sands protest in London

by Newswire     June 14, 2013 at 8:00 am

Canada’s controversial leader Stephen Harper was yesterday met by three separate protests as he attempted to deliver a speech to both Houses of the UK Parliament.

He arrived in the UK on Tuesday, and has been using the trip to lobby against the ‘Fuel Quality Directive‘.

This key piece of EU climate legislation would – rightly – label tar sands oil as more polluting than conventional oil. 50 campaigners representing various groups gathered outside Parliament to greet Harper’s car with anti-tar sands banners, placards and chants.

Meanwhile, in a separate protest two activists from a group calling themselves “Love Canada, Hate Tar Sands” attempted to block the Sovereign’s Entrance Gate to the room where Harper was speaking. They poured “oil” on themselves and the ground, and their anti-tar sands shouts were heard inside the room as Harper stood up to begin his address. They were then arrested by police.

Yesterday, 6 MPs from four different political parties tabled an Early Day Motion calling on the UK government to resist Canada’s lobbying campaign, support the Fuel Quality Directive and discourage future tar sands imports.

Other MPs will now be encouraged to sign, in the run-up to an EU Member States’ vote later this year.

The protest outside Parliament had transatlantic support from 30 organisations, including Greenpeace UK, Friends of the Earth – England, Wales and Northern Ireland and World Development Movement in the UK, the Council of Canadians and the Canadian Indigenous Tar Sands Campaign in Canada, and 350.org and the Gulf Coast Fund in the US.

Poll shows the British public hate politicians

by Newswire     June 13, 2013 at 11:28 am

A poll by YouGov for University of Southampton out today illustrates the extent of public disillusionment with MPs.

Only 33% agree MPs have the leadership to tell the public about the tough decision necessary for the economy.

80% agree they are too focused on short term headlines.

72% agree politics is dominated by self-seeking politicians protecting the interests of the powerful.

But only 26% think that politics itself is a waste of time.

People also want stronger action on tax avoidance though

62% of people think it is unacceptable for people and companies to LEGALLY avoid paying tax, 29% think it is acceptable.

Labour are currently seen as the party that would do most to cut down on tax avoidance, but even they are only on 21%. 31% think none of the main parties would tackle tax avoidance.

Watch: US Congressman calls for Glenn Greenwald’s arrest

by Newswire     June 12, 2013 at 8:35 pm

In an interview with Fox News this afternoon, US Republican Congressman Peter King called for Guardian reporter and commentator Glenn Greenwald to be arrested.

He says it should be on the basis that Greenwald is “threatening” to reveal names of CIA agents, but offers no proof for this assertion.

Watch

Crowd turns on woman ranting about immigration – video

by Newswire     June 12, 2013 at 6:39 pm

The writer and author Seth Freedman just sent me this video… taken in Camden, London.

A woman start ranting about immigrants coming into the UK to a mime artist. No, seriously.

Then she boots over the man’s collection box, at which point the crowd turned on her

2.4 million Brits deserted UK’s big banks after scandals

by Newswire     June 12, 2013 at 6:22 pm

2.4 million customers left the UK’s five biggest banks in 2012, according to new figures announced by Laura Willoughby MBE, at the City and Common Good debate in St Paul’s Cathedral this evening.

The figures show strong movement away from the big banking groups: Lloyds, RBS, Barclays, HSBC and Santander. It illustrates a move by people to vote with their feet by switching who they bank with.

The news comes as a boost to local, ethical and mutual financial service providers who increased their customer base significantly.

Launching the findings, Laura Willoughby MBE, Chief Executive of campaigning website MoveYourMoney.org.uk, said:

The constant slew of scandals last year has opened the floodgates, and people are beginning to realise that they don’t have to put up with the arrogance of the big banks.

People are switching because they are angry about the lack of reform in Britain’s broken banking system, and have decided to take matters into their own hands.

This shows that real change won’t come from Westminster or the boardroom, but from ordinary people putting their foot down and saying ‘enough is enough’

The data is drawn from industry studies and based on quarterly publicly available polling.

From September the rules governing switching bank accounts will change, limiting the time it will take to change banks to only 7 working days.

Separate research from YouGov predicts that the number could be as high as 14 million.

Activists get ready for Canary Wharf demo Friday

by Newswire     June 12, 2013 at 2:52 pm

Activists from the group They Owe Us who plan to converge on Canary Wharf on Friday have condemned the heavy handed policing of the Stop G8 protests on Tuesday.

Rachel Thomas, an activist involved in They Owe Us said:

We condemn the heavy handed policing at the Stop G8 action on Tuesday and maintain our intention to gather at Canary Wharf on Friday.

This Friday we will assemble in Canary Wharf for three hours of workshops, speakers and entertainment as well as a creative art area. The action will end with an assembly facilitated by Occupy London and then a game around the financial centre. We aim for this action to be accessible to all, and we expect a wide range of people including children and elderly activists to participate.

We stand in solidarity with those who were arrested on Tuesday. We continue to assert our right to assemble on our streets in public and show that other worlds are possible.

The protest organised by They Owe Us will bring together a range of anti-cuts and climate groups including UK Uncut, Fuel Poverty Action, the Greater London Pensioners Association, Disabled People Against Cuts and No Dash for Gas.

Activists will gather outside Canary Wharf tube station at 12.30pm on Friday.

Why didn’t Boris declare flight with Crosby earlier?

by Newswire     June 11, 2013 at 3:10 pm

London Labour has called for an investigation after revelations that London Mayor Boris Johnson failed to declare that his flights to attend Margaret Thatcher’s funeral were paid for by Emirates Airline and Lynton Crosby’s company CT Partners.

The declaration was only made after London Assembly Member Len Duvall made enquiries about why it was not on the Mayor’s register.

It was declared on Wednesday 5th June, 48 days after the trip, despite the GLA Code of Conduct clearly stating that all such gifts must be declared within 28 days.

Mr Duvall has today written to the GLA’s Monitoring Officer calling for an official investigation into why the flights were not declared on time, whether the Mayor has received any other gifts and hospitality that he has failed to declare, and what steps will be taken to ensure that the Mayor upholds the highest standards in public office.

Leader of the Labour Group on the London Assembly, Len Duvall AM, said: “Taking Lynton Crosby on this trip made no sense at all, it looks like blatant cronyism.”

Lynton Crosby is not meant to be working for the London Mayor, instead master-minding David Cameron’s election campaign.

Labour say it’s not clear why Crosby went, what he gained and how this could possibly benefit Londoners.

Duvall AM added: “Why didn’t the Mayor take representatives from London based PR companies with him if he wanted to promote this sector?”

New book looks to ‘Hacking the future of money’

by Newswire     June 11, 2013 at 2:34 pm

Popular anger against the financial system has never been higher, yet the practical workings of the system remain opaque to many people.

So how can people inform themselves and learn what action to take?

Brett Scott is a campaigner and former derivatives broker who knows of life inside and outside the financial sector because he’s been there.

In his first book, published by Pluto Press, he builds a framework for approaching ‘financial hacking’, offering a practical guide for those who wish to deepen their understanding of, and access to, the inner workings of financial institutions.

The book covers aspects frequently overlooked, such as the cultural dimensions of the financial system, and considers major issues such as agricultural speculation, carbon markets and tar-sands financing.

This book provides a unique inside-out look at our financial system, based on the a uthor’s unusual personal adventure. It is not only a user-friendly guide to the complex maze of modern finance but also a manual for utilising and subverting it for social purposes in innovative ways. Smart and street-smart.
– Ha-Joon Chang, University of Cambridge, author of ‘23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism’

It also showcases the growing alternative finance movement, showing how everyday people can get involved in building a new, democratic, financial system.

The Heretic’s Guide to Global Finance aims to bridge the gap between protest slogans and practical proposals for reform.

Brett Scott has worked on climate change, food security and ethical banking campaigns. He is a Fellow at the Finance Innovation Lab and has written for the Guardian, Ecologist, openDemocracy and New Internationalist.

He blogs at www.suitpossum.blogspot.com.

Labour to launch a new disability taskforce

by Newswire     June 10, 2013 at 8:08 am

The Labour party is today launching a new taskforce to look at ways to break the link between disability and poverty.

Launched as Disability Living Allowance is abolished nationally, the taskforce will review ways of helping disabled people meet the extra costs that disability imposes and recommend changes to the social security system to maximise disabled peoples’ control over their own lives. The taskforce will focus on better use of existing resources.

Recent figures revealed disabled people are twice as likely to live in low income households than non disabled people – yet the government’s ‘strivers tax’ will push 50,000 more disabled people into poverty while the DWP’s Work Programme is failing to get 98.7% of disabled people into jobs.

The taskforce will be headed by Sir Bert Massie CBE. Sir Bert is disabled and was previously the CEO of The Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation (now Disability Rights UK) and Chairman of the Disability Rights Commission. He is currently a Governor of Motability and of Liverpool John Moores University.

Anne McGuire MP said:

Many of the Government’s changes to social security aren’t helping disabled people, they are pushing them into poverty. I am delighted that Bert Massie has agreed to chair the taskforce. The members of the group bring a wealth of experience, either as disabled people or those who have worked with disabled people. I am sure they will throw down some interesting challenges to us as we seek to improve the lives of disabled people.

Other members of the taskforce are:

Dr Roger Berry – is a former Member of Parliament and is heavily involved in disability issues. Prior to becoming a Parliamentarian he taught economics at Bristol University.

Agnes Fletcher – advises organisations on equality law, policy and practice. She was a Director at the Disability Rights Commission for five years, has provided consultancy to the Equality and Human Rights Commission and other public bodies and has worked as an advisor to government. She is a disabled person.

Neil Crowther – is an independent expert specialising in human rights, equalities and disability rights. He was previously Director of Human Rights at the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Before joining the EHRC he was Head of Policy at the Disability Rights Commission.

Kaliya Frankin – is a disability activist and blogger at Bendy Girl. She campaigned against changes to disability benefits introduced by the coalition government.

Ian Greaves – is the principle author of the highly respected Disability Rights Handbook.