Solidarity 305, 27 November 2013

Will this report save NHS emergency services?

The first part of the Keogh Report into urgent and emergency care was published last week. It claims it will lead a complete overhaul of the system it acknowledges is at breaking point. The numbers of people accessing urgent and emergency care have risen year on year. Though there is little detailed analysis of what has caused these rise, the report cites an increased elderly population with complex health needs, difficulty accessing out of hours GPs, and the government raising expectations of the system by promoting a market style consumer ethos towards the NHS. Keogh wants fewer people to...

Iran deal

The agreement between Iran and western governments, on Iran freezing its nuclear programme, in return for some relief from economic sanctions, is a good thing. The Geneva deal eases political tensions and reduces the possibility of military action against Iran. Political friction may still ratchet up if either side fails to deliver, if further investigation of Iranian nuclear capability shows military development, or if Israel kicks up enough fuss to undermine the agreement. Lifting sanctions means the Iranian state and bourgeoisie will be able to claw back billions of dollars from frozen bank...

Ireland to vote on gay marriage

Just over two decades after Ireland decriminalised homosexuality, the Irish government announced on 5 November that it will call a referendum on the issue of gay marriage in the first half of 2015. The announcement follows lobbying from the deputy prime minister, Labour’s Eamon Gilmore, and has been given support by the Fine Gael prime minister Enda Kenny. In April, constitutional amendments to allow gay marriage were overwhelmingly endorsed by the Constitutional Convention, a body established in 2012 compromising mostly of randomly-selected citizens and some politicians from both sides of the...

Genoa revolt subsides

After five days of all-out strikes by Genoa’s public sector transport workers, a ferociously contested four-hour mass assembly on Saturday 23 November resulted in resigned acceptance of a shabby deal cooked up by the local mayor and the bureaucrats of the major unions involved. The strike had been launched by rank-and-file workers against the “leftwing” Mayor’s plans to privatise the lcoal public owned transport company, against a background of cuts to wages and conditions. Almost instantaneously the radical momentum of the collective “downing of tools” of nearly 3,000 workers spread across...

Outsourced workers strike for equality

On Wednesday 27 and Thursday 28 November, outsourced workers at the University of London will strike as part of their “3 Cosas” (“3 Things”) campaign for sick pay, holiday, and pension equality with their directly employed colleagues. The strike coincides with the University’s “Foundation Day”, due to be attended by Princess Anne. A protest is planned for 6pm on Wednesday 27 November at Senate House. A University of London worker spoke to Solidarity about the strike. What are the demands of the strike? There are three demands which form the basis of the industrial dispute between our union...

Cinema workers continue fight

Cinema workers employed by the Curzon chain have promised to escalate their campaign if management backtrack from an agreement to voluntarily recognise their union, BECTU. Curzon management have agreed in principle to recognise the union, but for reasons which a campaign statement says are "unclear", have stalled in signing it. The campaign has agreed a truce until 25 November, in which time it expects management to sign the agreement. The statement said: "Despite going through a potential agreement with officials from the BECTU union last week, clause-by-clause and word-by-word, Curzon have...

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