Brendan will be debating the future of employment regulation against the BCC’s David Frost at a lunchtime event on July 15. You can read a response from David Frost here, or come to the debate itself by registering online at isderegulationdead.org.uk. Over the last few decades the business lobby has never been slow to tell [...]

Filed under: Employment law | 1 Comment »

This Budget got the big judgement about the economy wrong. The economy is still fragile, and today’s measures will certainly slow recovery and could well stop it in its tracks. Spending and benefit cuts together with the VAT increase will take much needed spending power out of the economy. The private sector has been hit [...]

Filed under: Budget, Economics | 1 Comment »

Looking at the papers today, Ministers are presenting the costs of public sector pensions in a highly selective way. They aren’t comparing like with like, and have not been clear that a main cause of the increased net cost of public sector pensions is their decision to freeze public sector pay.

Filed under: Pensions | 1 Comment »

We’re concerned about this morning’s announcements of a new review of health and safety legislation. Lord Young of Graffam plans to: ‘investigate concerns over the application and perception of health and safety legislation, together with the rise of the compensation culture over the last decade’. This doesn’t look to be an open and frank review [...]

Filed under: Safety | 1 Comment »

Today’s Queen’s Speech contains important issues to welcome – restoring the state pension link with earnings, cracking down on high-risk activities in the City, and an extra push on green energy. Extending flexible working rights and further action to close the pay gap could also bring positive changes to UK workplaces. But plans to scrap [...]

Filed under: Public spending | 1 Comment »

The £6.2bn of spending cuts announced by the Government today are deeply worrying. With the UK economy and the economies of our trading partners in Europe so fragile, this is not the right time to be cutting back. According to the Treasury document, the Government intends to save: “£320m from ending ineffective elements of employment [...]

Filed under: Public spending | 1 Comment »

This post is taken from my speech to Progress‘ annual conference today. You can read a full copy of my speech on the TUC website. Elections should be great debates about competing visions and priorities, when parties show they understand peoples’ real lives and are on their side, both in their daily struggles and long [...]

Filed under: Election, Politics | 1 Comment »

This new Government comes to power at a very difficult time for the economy. As today’s unemployment figures show, we’re still suffering from the effects of the deep recession. The recovery is fragile and the public finances gap needs to be closed. An inconclusive election has certainly not provided a mandate for swingeing cuts in [...]

Filed under: Election, Politics | 2 Comments »

Alistair Darling has delivered a measured Budget that took no risks with the recovery and showed that the Government’s handling of the recession is working. Better than expected tax income and lower unemployment has given the Chancellor scope to extend the jobs guarantee for young people and provide some extra money for tackling poverty. Support [...]

Filed under: Budget | Comments Off

My last minute plea to the politicians debating the Budget today is that if they call for cuts in spending they should spell out exactly what they mean and not hide behind phrases such as ‘efficiency savings’ and ‘protecting frontline services’. Genuine efficiency savings should always be part of managing the public sector. But offering [...]

Filed under: Budget, Public services, Public spending | 4 Comments »

Policy Exchange have a new report out today, Health and Safety: Reducing the Burden. It’s about as close to being relevant to the needs of the modern workplace as Alice in Wonderland. Anyone who seriously believes that there is a culture of over-compliance needs some basic lessons in the reality of working life in the [...]

Filed under: Safety | 2 Comments »

Unions are the largest voluntary sector organisations in Britain today, with well over six million members in the unions that affiliate to us at the TUC, and 200,000 workplace activists. In workplaces up and down the country, unions are working hard to ensure that people get a voice at work. Much of this never makes [...]

Filed under: Inequality, Recession | Comments Off