Friday brief: ‘The support from the public is tangible’
Friday brief: ‘The support from the public is tangible’
As trade union membership soars, Corby re-establishes its TUC branch, plus another Northants police officer dismissed and a demotion for Wellingborough MP Peter Bone
Good morning,
This week we have run a series of articles looking at the county’s left behind areas, a year on from our first articles.
It’s been a mixed picture, with some areas seeing new initiatives and funding coming in, but it is clear there is still much to do to improve life for people living there. Over the coming year we will continue to focus on the areas and bring you updates about things happening there.
If you missed any of them you can catch up here with what’s happening in Hazel Leys and Kingswood in Corby, the Grange in Kettering, Wellingborough’s Queensway and Kings Heath and Talavera in Northampton.
In today’s brief we bring you a story about the reinvigoration of the unions amidst the cost of living crisis.
We went along to a community hall in Corby this week, where members from a variety of trade unions gathered together to form the Corby branch of the Trade Unions Council. Read our full report below.
Also, ahead of a story we plan to run shortly, we would be grateful if you could spare a couple of minutes to take part in our survey about how visible you think policing is in the area where you live.
Have a good weekend, and if you have any stories or other events you would like to let us know about you can email us here.
The cost of living crisis is causing a huge turn to the county’s union branches with people looking for support in the workplace as inflation puts living standards further behind.
At a relaunch of Corby’s Trades Unions Council branch on Wednesday night, unions officials from across the industries spoke of hundreds of new signups of county residents as workers are feeling the financial pressure amid below inflation pay rise offers.
The well attended meeting at Corby’s Ennerdale Centre, heard short speeches from TUC Midlands regional secretary Lee Barron; CWU regional secretary Mark Harper, Usdaw Northamptonshire organiser Stevie Cassidy; Unite East Midlands regional secretary Paresh Patel; National Education Union regional organiser Nick Raine and Gordon Glassford from Corby TUC.
A significant number of the country’s unions are currently in dispute around pay, with the rail workers currently on strike, alongside action from barristers, nurses are set to ballot on strike action over requests for an inflation matching pay rise and the National Education Union is balloting members next month about industrial action.
The National Union of Journalists also won a pay dispute with local newspaper company Reach (owner of Northants Live) last month, which will see increases of between 14 and 44 percent for many editorial staff, after decades of low pay.
At the Corby meeting Mark Harper from the CWU said national feeling towards the unions was warming.
“You do feel a softening towards us. Normal people are turning back towards us. People joining unions is going up. The right wing press is not attacking us as much.”
A number of the union representatives told NN Journal they were also seeing solidarity from the public with those taking industrial action, which has not been the case in recent years.
Paresh Patel from Unite told the meeting, his union (which is the second largest in Britain) had seen 4,000 new members a week joining throughout August.
“We are beginning to see a national influx of people joining the unions.”
Tensions that have been present in the past between the union movement and the Labour Party was referenced at the meeting, with many expressing the hope it could be put to bed saying the emphasis should be on helping to get the Labour party elected and remove the conservatives from their long held seat of power.
Lee Barron said that the last Labour government had viewed the trade union movement as the ‘embarrassing aunt or uncle in the corner’ but rather than hark back to industrial legislation that had been lost in recent decades, the unions now need to lobby for laws relevant to the 21st century worker.
The relaunch of the Corby branch of the TUC was instigated by Frank Smyth-Britt (one of the steelworkers who took part in the infamous 1979 march to London) and journalist Ann Wallington, with Gordon Glassford taking on the secretary role and Martyn Reuby becoming interim chair. This week’s rally called Corby Demands Better, is part of a national series of events by the TUC which includes calling for a national minimum wage of £15 to be introduced.
Information provided by the TUC said its own analysis based on Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts, shows the value of wages in Corby will fall by around £1,135 as soaring inflation outstrips the increase in wages. This is based on a median wage of £25,750 in the town.
The new Corby TUC branch will now set out some meeting dates and look at the issues it wants to campaign on. A suggestion was to put the conditions of agency staff in Corby back on the agenda.
If you want to find out more about the new branch you can contact midlands@tuc.org.uk
News in brief:
Another Northamptonshire police officer has been found guilty of gross misconduct. Allegations against PC Peter Halonka were found proven at a disciplinary hearing last month and have now been published by the Northamptonshire force.
Halonka was found to have given false information claiming a suspect had hit him and dislocated his jaw, had lied to a sergeant about completing work and had also lied about checks carried out at a road traffic accident. The report says:
“The three allegations are proven individually and cumulatively and amount to gross misconduct. The panel found the behaviour of the former officer was intentional, deliberate and serious. The panel concluded that if the officer had still been serving, he would have been dismissed.”
Food banks in the north of the county will receive a £20,000 grant passported by the unitary authority from a £2.46m government grant.
The holiday food voucher will also run again this October and Christmas half terms and as many as 4,000 low wage households will be able to apply for further financial relief. The funding will be discussed by the council’s executive this Thursday and the report can be read in full here.
Women’s services run by St Andrews Healthcare have been rated as ‘requires improvement’ following the latest inspection by the CQC. In 2020 the CQC placed the independent Northamptonshire mental health service in special measures and when insufficient improvements were found at an inspection last year enforcement action was taken and conditions were placed on the care provider.
Although the most recent rating, which was based on an inspection carried out in April and May this year, is an improvement there were still significant concerns raised. These included problems with staffing levels, gaps in patient record keeping, medicines not always being managed safely and issues with the use of seclusion.
The forensic inpatient or secure wards have remained as an overall rating of inadequate and therefore the location remains in special measures.
NN Journal recently highlighted the cramped living conditions of a family of five living in a small two bedroom flat in Northampton. The family told us the situation had led to their son’s mental health declining which had ultimately led to him being placed in temporary care following a violent outburst.
This week we learned that a council inspection of the property found that it was not overcrowded and that only ‘minor improvements’ were being recommended to the private landlord. Local councillor Danielle Stone who has been trying to help the family said the outcome was ‘absolutely outrageous’ and that the local authority needs to take some responsibility for the conditions the family is living in.
Northampton and Kettering hospitals have introduced new measures making it mandatory for all visitors to adult inpatient wards to wear face masks. Visiting will also be restricted to one person for one hour per day. This comes as Covid infections continue to rise in England and Wales.
Westminster Watch
If Wellingborough MP Peter Bone was hoping his support for Liz Truss would result in him keeping his government position as deputy leader of the house he’ll be disappointed. His updated GOV.UK shows that he no longer holds the position.
Bone was appointed to the role in July following mass resignations from frontbenchers in protest against Boris Johnson’s leadership. The MP consistently defended Johnson’s actions over ‘partygate’ and insisted voters didn’t care.
NN Journal has previously reported that Bone was looking at a £10,000 loss of office payment if he didn’t retain the position. He held the role from July 8th to September 27th - during that time the house didn’t sit between July 21st and September 5th due to the summer recess.
NN Culture
🦇 Get into the Halloween mood a little early with a bat walk at Burton Latimer pocket park from 7pm tomorrow
🎤There are still tickets available for the Diana Ross story at the Deco Theatre in Northampton tonight at 7.30pm
😆Stand-up comedian and comedy writer Scott Bennett who makes regular appearances on The News Quiz and The Now Show is performing at the Lab space at the Corby Cube tonight at 7.30pm. Tickets available here
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His reward from Johnson for the blind loyalty he displayed. Just lined his pockets for a few months for no work.