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| Lucky Cluckey |
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| McCluskey - £133,916 a year at risk |
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| Hicks could win |
You can see the "desecration of a war memorial" at 38 seconds in. Don't blink.
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| Happy Times Stephen Hester |
"There are many people who support [the army] as a stabilising force during this difficult period of political transition."Imagine the BBC coverage if they had been Syrian troops. YouTube and 'Google Videos' have been mysteriously spammed with hundreds of false links to the video.
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| Corporation of the City of London |
We publish today all the lettters from the GMB union about the Unite leadership's attempts to de-recognise the GMB for Unite emplotyees.
"The General Secretary has previously indicated that the Union will provide facilities for one Staff Committee to represent all employees designated as Staff"It continues:
"All Staff employees will receive a communication from the Union outlining
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| Simpson: Wads and Wads of it |
| Salaries up, Subs up, members down |
From: Alastair Fraser
Sent: 22 July 2011 21:27
To: len.mccluskey@unitetheunion.org; tony.woodley@unitetheunion.org
Subject: RE: AR21
Dear Len
I am in receipt of the statements concerning the severance payment for former Joint General Secretary (JGS) Simpson. As a member of the Amicus GPFC meeting, I take exception to any suggestion that I was party to an agreement for severance payments for JGS Simpson.
The facts are these:At the time of the merger between MSF and AEEU, Roger Lyons was awarded a pay increase by the MSF Executive. JGS Simpson made a public point of refusing to accept a similar increase for himself.AGS Ed Sweeney met the Amicus GPFC some time (years) later arguing that GS Simpson’s pension should be based on this higher, notional salary and not on his actual salary. GS Simpson was said to be unconcerned whether this was approved or not. The GPFC did not approve the proposal.
At a later date Assistant General Secretary (AGS) Bayliss met the GPFC and reopened the argument for GS Simpson’s pension to be based on this higher amount. It now appeared that GS Simpson was more favourably disposed to accepting this benefit. We had a discussion, at some points heated, with AGS Bayliss. He presented no new facts to the GPFC and there was no reason for the GPFC to change its position. I recall Mr Bayliss making the point that we had looked after our “enemies” meaning severance payments to officers not sympathetic to GS Simpson, who had been forced out of the union. Mr Bayliss said we should be generous to our friends. The GPFC DID NOT approve the proposed changed to GS Simpson’s pension entitlement.
Severance payments to GS Simpson WERE NOT DISCUSSED at this meeting, or any other I attended.
AGS was the only officer or staff member at this meeting and I do not accept that it was a formally constituted meeting of the GPFC capable of making decisions. I challenge anyone to produce the minutes of this meeting.
For your information, details of the severance packages available to officers and staff in Amicus were never reported to the GPFC or EC. These were dealt with purely as a matter of negotiation between Bro Simpson and the officers’ and staff committees.
I had no reason to believe that GS Simpson would not retire normally at Age 65.
The merger with the T&G resulted, as you know, with agreement that GS Simpson would remain employed for an additional year until he was 66. The GPFC asked questions about the implications for his pension if such a proposal was agreed. I do not recall getting any satisfactory answers about any potential pension, or other, liabilities arising from this extension to GS Simpson’s normal retirement date.
I do not recall, at any meeting, any discussion about a severance package for GS Simpson.
Regardless of any affidavits you may have from individual GPFC members I would like to make it clear that I was not party to any severance arrangements for GS Simpson nor was I aware of any such arrangements being in existence.
Regards
Alastair Fraser
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| Simpson - Ermine wheelchair |
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| Simpson before raising 2 fingers |
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| members went thataway |
A short-lived web site, apparently set up by a Unite full time officer, appeared last month with great promise. However it disapeared shortly after 11th May. It seems discipline is tight. Fortunately we have saved an exact copy here, for ever. If the owner would like to retrieve it please contact dearunite.com.
| For AV | Against AV |
| Tony Benn | Norman Tebbit |
| Ken Livingstone | David Cameron |
| John McDonnell MP | Pretty well the entire Tory party |
| Jeremy Corbyn MP | Nick Griffin BNP |
| Caroline Lucas MP | Caroline Flint MP |
| George Monbiot | Hazel Blears MP |
| Mark Thomas | Lord Prescott |
| Peter Tatchell | The Sun |
| Billy Bragg | The Daily Mail |
| Charlie Brooker | Peter Stringfellow |
| www.dearunite.com | Unite the union |
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| Libyan |
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| 'Vote Early Vote Often' - Al Capone |
| LONDON AND EASTERN | Mark Evans |
| LONDON AND EASTERN (BAEM) | Mohammed Golam Bhuiyan |
| SOUTHWEST | Jon Locke |
| SOUTHWEST | Doreen (Kelly) Roberts |
| WEST MIDLANDS | Martin Hartnett |
| AEROSPACE AND SHIPBUILDING | Neil Armitage |
| NATIONAL SEAT - WOMEN | Lesley Mansell |
"The cost of the four–day operation to date is £28.5million, The Daily Telegraph has learnt. The cost of putting four Tornado GR4 bombers, three Eurofighter Typhoons plus support aircraft into action is an estimated £3,216,000 a day. The Tornado costs £33,000 an hour to operate, including fuel, capital costs and crew training and the Typhoon costs £80,000 an hour."
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| Storm Shadow: Before, £1.1million |
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| Storm Shadow: After, £2.50 |
| LONDON AND EASTERN | Mark Evans |
| LONDON AND EASTERN (BAEM) | Mohammed Golam Bhuiyan |
| SOUTHWEST | Jon Locke |
| SOUTHWEST | Doreen (Kelly) Roberts |
| WEST MIDLANDS | Martin Hartnett |
| AEROSPACE AND SHIPBUILDING | Neil Armitage |
| NATIONAL SEAT - WOMEN | Lesley Mansell |
List of countries the US has bombed/oil reserves by country.
For information we publish a link to the full UN Security Council Resolution number 1973 and a brief explanation of what it does not authorise, courtesy of ex British Ambassador Craig Murray |
| Saudi M113 (made in USA) |
"The same western leaders who happily armed and did business with the Gaddafi regime until a fortnight ago have now slapped sanctions on the discarded autocrat and blithely referred him to the international criminal court the United States won't recognise.
While American and British politicians have ramped up talk of a no-fly zone, US warships have been sent to the Mediterranean, a stockpile of chemical weapons has been duly discovered, special forces have been in action, Italy has ditched a non-aggression treaty with Tripoli and a full-scale western military intervention in yet another Arab country is suddenly a serious prospect".
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| 'Evacuation ship' USS Kearsarge on its way |
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| McCluskey moves to the right |
"The Executive Council decided that you were not eligible to stand for election at its meeting on 29 to 31 January 2011. The minutes of its meeting are not yet available."
"Dear Len,The two have been banned under rule 6.2 and 6.3:
Thank you very much for this. This matter is in the hands of the Certification Officer. For the avoidance of any doubt I assert for the reasons given in my complaint to the Certification Officer that you have, maybe personally, broken the rules of the union.
Let me say also that you are beginning to be reminiscent of Derek Simpson and the employers in the shipyards and the building sites where I used to work.
Why can you not honour your election pledges and return the union to the democracy that previous incumbents have stolen?"
6.2 In order to be eligible to be a candidate for election to, or hold office on, the Executive Council and/or any committee, council, or other body of the Union provided for by these rules, the member in question must be an accountable representative of workers.
6.3 The definition of the term “accountable representative of workers” shall be in the exclusive power of the Executive Council, which is empowered to take into account changing industrial realities and the unique nature of some industries (e.g.construction, contracting, leisure, rural etc) in formulating such a definition. It must nevertheless include Branch office-holders who are in employment, shop stewards, health & safety and equalities representatives.Undeniably David and Ray are branch office holders but McCluskey claims they are not 'in employment'. Ray is a self employed engineer and David a self employed IT consultant. The union had previously taken the extraordinary step of demanding (and receiving), their tax returns, to establish that they were really self employed, which they are.
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| Wikileaks editor Assanage |
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| Guardian editor Rusbridger |
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| Sarah Tisdall - 6 months in jail |
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| Guardian ex-editor Preston |
