Life expectancy increased as world addressed major killers including diarrhea, lower respiratory infections, and stroke

Poor management of pandemic curtailed progress in many places

INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH METRICS AND EVALUATION

Global life expectancy increased by 6.2 years since 1990 according to a new study published in The Lancet. Over the past three decades, reductions in death from leading killers fueled this progress, including diarrhea and lower respiratory infections, as well as stroke and ischemic heart disease. When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in 2020, however, it derailed progress in many locations. This is the first study to compare deaths from COVID-19 to deaths from other causes globally. 

Despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers found that the super-region of Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania had the largest net gain in life expectancy between 1990 and 2021 (8.3 years), largely due to reductions in mortality from chronic respiratory diseases, stroke, lower respiratory infections, and cancer. The super-region’s strong management of the COVID-19 pandemic helped preserve these gains. South Asia had the second-largest net increase in life expectancy among super-regions between 1990 and 2021 (7.8 years), primarily thanks to steep declines in deaths from diarrheal diseases.  

“Our study presents a nuanced picture of the world’s health,” said Dr. Liane Ong, co-first author of the study and a Lead Research Scientist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). “On one hand, we see countries’ monumental achievements in preventing deaths from diarrhea and stroke,” she said. “At the same time, we see how much the COVID-19 pandemic has set us back.” 

The study also highlights how COVID-19 radically altered the top five causes of death for the first time in 30 years. COVID-19 displaced a long-dominant killer – stroke – to become the second-leading cause of death globally. The research presents updated estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2021. The authors found that the super-regions where the COVID-19 pandemic hit hardest were Latin America and the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa, which lost the most years of life expectancy due to COVID-19 in 2021. While documenting the enormous loss of life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers also pinpointed the reasons behind the improvements in life expectancy in every super-region. Looking across different causes of death, the study reveals sharp drops in deaths from enteric diseases – a class of diseases that includes diarrhea and typhoid. These improvements increased life expectancy worldwide by 1.1 years between 1990 and 2021. Reductions in deaths from lower respiratory infections added 0.9 years to global life expectancy during this period. Progress in preventing deaths from other causes also drove up life expectancy around the world, including stroke, neonatal disorders, ischemic heart disease, and cancer. For each disease, reductions in deaths were most pronounced between 1990 and 2019. 

At the regional level, Eastern sub-Saharan Africa experienced the largest increase in life expectancy, which jumped by 10.7 years between 1990 and 2021. Control of diarrheal diseases was the leading force behind improvements in this region. East Asia had the second-largest gain in life expectancy; the region’s success in slashing deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease played a key role. 

The GBD 2021 study measures mortality by cause of death and years of life lost at global, regional, national, and subnational levels. The analysis links specific causes of death to changes in life expectancy.  

The study illuminates not only the diseases that have driven increases and decreases in life expectancy, but also looks at how patterns of disease have shifted across locations over time, presenting, as the authors write, an “opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies…[which] might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented.”   

GBD 2021 highlights places that have made huge strides in preventing deaths from major diseases and injuries. It also emphasizes how some of the most burdensome diseases are now concentrated in certain locations, underscoring opportunities for intervention. For example, in 2021, deaths from enteric diseases were largely concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. For another disease, malaria, the researchers found that 90% of deaths occurred in an area inhabited by just 12% of the world’s population in a stretch of land ranging from Western sub-Saharan Africa through Central Africa to Mozambique.  

“We already know how to save children from dying from enteric infections including diarrheal diseases, and progress in fighting this disease has been tremendous,” said Professor Mohsen Naghavi, the study’s co-first author and the Director of Subnational Burden of Disease Estimation at IHME. “Now, we need to focus on preventing and treating these diseases, strengthening and expanding immunization programs, and developing brand-new vaccines against E. coli, norovirus, and Shigella,” he added.  

In addition to providing new insights on COVID-19, the study reveals growing threats from non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes and kidney diseases, which are increasing in every country. The researchers also point to uneven progress against conditions such as ischemic heart disease, stroke, and cancer. High-income countries have driven down deaths from many types of non-communicable diseases, but many low-income countries have not. 

“The global community must ensure that the lifesaving tools that have cut deaths from ischemic heart disease, stroke, and other non-communicable diseases in most high-income countries are available to people in all countries, even where resources are limited,” said Eve Wool, senior author of the study and a Senior Research Manager at IHME. 

For interview requests, journalists may contact media@healthdata.org. For full study results, including the paper and related tables, finalized PDFs are available at https://bit.ly/2021CoD, embargoed until 23.30 UK, 6:30 p.m. EDT on April 3, 2024. The post-embargo link for the paper is  https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)00367-2/fulltext. An infographic summarizing the study’s findings can be found at https://bit.ly/3TDwsce. 

 

About the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation 

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) is an independent research organization at the University of Washington (UW). Its mission is to deliver to the world timely, relevant, and scientifically valid evidence to improve health policy and practice. IHME carries out its mission through a range of projects within different research areas including the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD), Injuries, and Risk Factors; Future Health Scenarios; Cost Effectiveness and Efficiency; Resource Tracking; and Impact Evaluations. 

IHME is committed to providing the evidence base necessary to help solve the world’s most important health problems. This requires creativity and innovation, which are cultivated by an inclusive, diverse, and equitable environment that respects and appreciates differences, embraces collaboration, and invites the voices of all IHME team members. 

About the Global Burden of Disease Study 

The Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) is the largest and most comprehensive effort to quantify health loss across places and over time. It draws on the work of more than 11,000 collaborators across more than 160 countries and territories. GBD 2021 — the newly published most recent round of GBD results — includes more than 607 billion estimates of 371 diseases and injuries and 88 risk factors in 204 countries and territories. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation coordinates the study. 

 

Tables 

Table 1: Leading causes of death, global, 1990 

Cause	Rank	Age-standardized rate per 100,000
Ischemic heart disease	1	158.9
Stroke	2	144.3
COPD	3	71.9
Lower respiratory infections	4	61.8
Diarrheal diseases	5	60.6
Neonatal disorders	6	46.0
Tuberculosis	7	40.0
Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer	8	27.6
Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias	9	25.1
Cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases	10	24.4
Stomach cancer	11	22.0
Road injuries	12	21.8
Hypertensive heart disease	13	20.9
Diabetes mellitus	14	18.2
Colon and rectum cancer	15	15.6
Congenital birth defects	16	15.2
Self-harm	17	14.9
Chronic kidney disease	18	14.9
Malaria	19	12.5
Measles	20	11.0
Falls	21	10.9
*HIV/AIDS	34	5.9

*Cause shown to display changes over time. 

Table 2: Leading causes of death, global, 2019 

Cause	Rank	Age-standardized rate per 100,000
Ischemic heart disease	1	110.9
Stroke	2	89.3
COPD	3	46.1
Lower respiratory infections	4	34.7
Neonatal disorders	5	30.7
Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias	6	25.0
Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer	7	23.7
Diabetes mellitus	8	19.8
Chronic kidney disease	9	18.6
Diarrheal diseases	10	17.1
Cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases	11	17.1
Hypertensive heart disease	12	16.9
Road injuries	13	15.1
Tuberculosis	14	14.9
Colon and rectum cancer	15	12.6
Stomach cancer	16	11.5
Falls	17	10.3
HIV/AIDS	18	9.8
Malaria	19	9.3
Self-harm	20	9.2
Congenital birth defects	21	8.9
*Measles	67	1.4

*Cause shown to display change over time. 

 

Table 3: Leading causes of death, global, 2021 

Cause	Rank	Age-standardized rate per 100,000
Ischemic heart disease	1	108.7
COVID-19	2	94.0
Stroke	3	87.4
COPD	4	45.2
Other COVID outcomes	5	32.3
Neonatal disorders	6	29.6
Lower respiratory infections	7	28.7
Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias	8	25.2
Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer	9	23.5
Diabetes mellitus	10	19.6
Chronic kidney disease	11	18.5
Cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases	12	16.6
Hypertensive heart disease	13	16.3
Diarrheal diseases	14	15.4
Road injuries	15	14.6
Tuberculosis	16	14.0
Colon and rectum cancer	17	12.4
Stomach cancer	18	11.2
Malaria	19	10.5
Falls	20	9.9
Self-harm	21	9.0
HIV/AIDS	22	8.7

 

 

 

 

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JOURNAL

The Lancet

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

3-Apr-2024

 

Research shows direct link between state income taxes and migration

A new study looks at 110 years of income tax history across the U.S. and notes out-migration by wealthy Americans

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA - RIVERSIDE

After the introduction of the income tax in the United States, there has been a migration of higher income earners toward states with lower or no income tax, a new study reveals.

This first-ever systematic analysis of 110 years of state income tax implementation throughout the United States also highlights the consequences of taxpayers fleeing to low or no-tax states. Published in the American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, the study is titled “The Introduction of the Income Tax, Fiscal Capacity, and Migration: Evidence from U.S. States” and was coauthored by Ugo Antonio Troiano, economist and associate professor at the University of California, Riverside. The analysis looks at pre-World War II and post-World War II personal income tax impacts.

The state-level tax policies from 1900 to 2010 examined in the paper reveal that income tax adopting states increased revenue per capita by 12% to 17%, but that increase does not correspond to an increase in total revenues for the government in monetary terms. This is because the introduction of income tax in the post-World War II era led to out-migration by wealthy Americans. 

“Personal income tax means a tax upon labor income, first introduced for the purpose of redistribution of wealth,” said Troiano, whose expertise includes politics and economics. “The idea was to provide services to poorer parts of the population and reduce inequality between low-income and high-income residents.” 

According to study results, implementing higher taxes was not well accepted by many wealthy Americans — their higher income allows them to be more mobile, and therefore able to seek new residency in states with lower personal income tax or no tax. 

Historically, mobility in the U.S. has been higher compared to European countries, mainly because people here speak the same language, making it easier to settle in a new city, Troiano said. The analysis also showed that out-migration began to slow down in the 1980s. 

Income taxes are important for states because they allow governments to increase revenue per capita, but pre-World War II, these tax policies came with waves of legal court challenges. Pennsylvania, for example, attempted to amend the state constitution eight times. Other states such as Indiana and Washington also tried, but all failed. To date, six states: Texas, Florida, Nevada, Washington State, Wyoming, and South Dakota, have never introduced permanent individual income tax.

California introduced the personal income tax in 1935, it was one of 18 states that implemented the tax between 1930 and 1940. 

“In New Mexico, the legislature repealed its first income tax law in 1920. In Iowa, the state assembly passed an income tax bill in 1932 that was subsequently defeated in the state senate. In Colorado, the governor vetoed an income tax bill passed by the legislature in 1935. With the exception of Washington, however, all of these states would eventually introduce an income tax,” the authors state in the paper. 

Through analyzing U.S. Census datasets, Troiano and his colleagues, Traviss Cassidy, assistant professor of economics at the University of Alabama, and Mark Dincecco, associate professor at the University of Michigan, found that wealthier Americans tended to move out of state when income taxes were too high, but remained when income tax increases were minimal.  

Troiano said that when states consider how to reduce income inequality, they should also be mindful of mobility responses.  

“Raising taxes too much might backfire, as the state might lose too many relatively wealthy contributors,” Troiano said. 

 

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JOURNAL

American Economic Journal Economic Policy

DOI

10.1257/pol.20210388 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

The Introduction of the Income Tax, Fiscal Capacity, and Migration: Evidence from U.S. States

Climate change impacts terrorist activity

UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE

 

IMAGE: 

MONSOON CLOUDS OVER A MOUNTAIN RANGE IN INDIA.

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CREDIT: RABHIMB BARDHAN

Changing weather patterns induced by climate change are contributing to shifts in the location of terrorist activity, according to new research.

An exploratory study led by extremism expert Dr Jared Dmello, from the University of Adelaide’s School of Social Sciences, found some climatological variables affected terrorist activity in India.

“Suitability analyses indicate that all the climatological variables tested – temperature, precipitation, and elevation – relate to shifting patterns of terrorist activity,” says Dr Dmello.

“Urban centres have increasingly grown in population density, particularly in spaces with favourable climates, and some of the more remote areas once used by extremists have experienced such increasingly dynamic climates that they are no longer fit for human habitation, forcing these groups to migrate elsewhere.”

It was not only the intensity of these climatological variables that led to terrorists moving to new locales, this shifting of terrorist activity was also seasonal.

“This research shows that stopping the damaging effects of climate change is not just an environmental issue but one that is directly tied to national security and defence,” says Dr Dmello, who was recently announced as the inaugural recipient of the Early Career Award from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences’ Security and Crime Prevention Section.

“In this study, we focus on attack location, but the data also suggests other forms of extremist behaviour, such as training location, are likely shifting in response to climate change as well.”

The study, published in the Journal of Applied Security Research, concentrated on terrorist activity in India between 1998–2017, a period during which there were 9096 terrorist incidents recorded by the Global Terrorism Database.

“Average temperatures in India reached record highs during our 20-year study period,” said Dr Dmello.

“This time frame represents a broad enough range to demonstrate climate change, while also availing of the most recent reliable data that covers both the climate change and extremism dimensions for the country.”

This new and evolving understanding of how climate change affects patterns of terrorism is important knowledge for governments across the world, including Australia’s, to inform national security and defence strategies.

“While terrorism and violent extremism manifests differently in Australia, with far lower levels of attacks than India, radicalisation is still a salient challenge here and one that the Australian Government has established as a national priority,” says Dr Dmello.

“To effectively mitigate radicalisation, other critical issues, such as homelessness, food insecurity, water and energy crises, and enhanced social equity, are essential for ensuring a more secure space for us all.”

Dr Dmello, who joined the University of Adelaide at the beginning of 2024, also recently co-edited a book examining security in the Arctic from a multi-disciplinary lens and will continue his research into terrorism and extremism in the Australian context.

“Some of my recent projects have been trying to understand how emerging issues impact radicalisation here in Australia in an effort to find ways to partner with government and law enforcement to prevent engagement with extremist ideologies,” he says.

“I am also interested in expanding on my research in this area to investigate the role of water and food inequities on radicalisation around the world.”

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JOURNAL

Journal of Applied Security Research

DOI

10.1080/19361610.2024.2322238 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Monsoon Marauders and Summer Violence: Exploring the Spatial Relationship between Climate Change and Terrorist Activity in India

Teachers in England and Wales could strike again in September, says NEU chief

Sally Weale 

Education correspondent

The Guardian
Wed, 3 April 2024 

Daniel Kebede has accused the government of ‘burning down the house’ as it prepares to leave power.Photograph: Guy Smallman/Getty Images

Teachers in England and Wales could strike again as early as September, according to the head of the UK’s largest education union, who warned of “growing frustration” within the profession as the country heads towards a general election.

Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union, said further strikes were still on the table after nearly 150,000 teachers voted for industrial action in an indicative ballot, the results of which were published last week.

Speaking to the media before a debate on pay at the NEU’s annual conference in Bournemouth, Kebede said education was in a “polycrisis” and urged the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, to “listen deeply” to avoid ending up on a collision course.


Related: Prospect of more teachers’ strikes in England as union ‘insulted’ by pay offer

Kebede, who is attending his first conference as general secretary, did not mince his words, accusing the government of “burning down the house” as it prepared to leave power and describing a recent meeting with Keegan as “absolutely abysmal”.

He was due to address delegates in a private session on Wednesday to give them full details of the preliminary ballot results, in which 90.3% of voting members in England said they supported strike action, with a turnout of just above the legal threshold of 50%, before a full debate on Thursday.

An emergency motion, which will go before conference, falls short of calling for a formal ballot for strike action, focusing instead on building a campaign for a fully funded above-inflation pay rise. However, there are likely to be amendments.

“Should conference commit us to a formal ballot, I will absolutely be fighting for that and putting all efforts into that campaign,” said Kebede.

Last year, members took part in a series of strikes, causing widespread disruption, which were finally called off after the government made an improved pay offer of 6.5%.

The motion before conference this year contains a warning for both Conservatives and Labour: “Conference believes the strongest use of the ballot at this moment is to serve notice on Rishi Sunak – and Keir Starmer – that members are prepared to act industrially if they fail to deliver.

“Conference understands that Labour will likely form the next government. Whilst we will be able to work with a Labour government on some policy areas, we will need to campaign against them on others.”

Whatever the outcome at conference, the union leadership can decide to call a formal ballot for strike action at a later date. “The priority is that we win on the issue of pay and funding. The campaign will remain and industrial action will remain a tactic that could be deployed to win on the issue,” said Kebede.

Asked about the potential turnout in any formal ballot, Kebede said: “We have to absolutely consider the amount of work it would take to get through this government’s anti-democratic threshold in the context of a formal ballot. I don’t think, however, the mood is declining. I think, if anything, there’s becoming more and more frustration amongst the profession. They are realising this government is burning down the house as they leave government.”

Asked what the earliest date for future strikes might be, he said: “My view is, if there’s a decision to go for a formal ballot, we should conduct that over a fairly significant period of time, looking to take action in September.”

In February, the Department for Education published its submission to the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB), the independent group that advises on teachers’ pay. Rather than specifying a percentage pay increase, the education secretary asked the STRB to make its recommendation “more sustainable” for school budgets, which has been taken to mean 1%-2%.

Kebede said the NEU would be campaigning alongside other unions on cuts and funding. But it could find itself alone if it presses ahead with a formal ballot. Last weekend, delegates at the annual conference of the NASUWT teaching union passed a motion that called for political campaigning to “take priority over industrial action”.

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “The independent STRB is currently considering evidence for this year’s pay award. Unions should engage with this process instead of striking before they even know what the pay recommendations are.

“Further strike action would cause more disruption to pupils who have already lost over 25m school days due to last year’s industrial action. Overall school funding is rising to over £60bn in 2024/25, its highest ever level in real terms per pupil – and teachers have already benefited from two historic pay awards totalling over 12% in just two years.”

A Welsh government spokesperson said: “The UK government’s austerity agenda places significant pressure on all budgets. As a result, the budget for 2024-25 is now worth £700m less in real terms than when it was set in 2021, and meeting the cost of the teachers’ pay award should be considered in this context.

“We recognise NEU Cymru’s concerns and will continue to work and engage with them as part of the social partnership approach here in Wales.”

Teachers could strike in September, union says

Hazel Shearing,Education correspondent,

@hazelshearing


Teachers in England and Wales could strike again over pay, in September, the National Education Union has said.

Members debating pay, on Thursday, are expected to vote on whether to hold a formal strike ballot.

But the NEU leadership could call such a ballot even without that backing. And a strike would then require a majority in favour, on a turnout of at least 50%

The Department for Education in England said further strikes would "cause more disruption to pupils".

Teacher across the UK went on strike last year, including eight days by NEU members in England.

PE teachers retrain in maths to fill school gaps

Teacher strikes end as unions accept pay deal

Speaking at the NEU's conference, in Bournemouth, general secretary Daniel Kebede said there was "more and more frustration developing amongst" teachers.

"My view is if there is a decision to go for a formal ballot, we should conduct that over a fairly significant period of time, looking to take action in September," he said.

Members have already been asked if they would strike for a fully funded above-inflation pay rise, as part of an informal consultative ballot in recent weeks.

And in England and Wales, most responded, with about 90% saying they would be prepared to strike - a result Mr Kebede called "exceptionally significant", adding England's Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, "has to take that seriously".

NASUWT, the Teachers' Union, also held an informal consultative ballot, in England - but 78% of those who voted rejected a formal ballot.

General secretary Patrick Roach told its conference, in Harrogate, N Yorks: “Our members have weighed that up and their priority right now is not about causing more disruption to lives that are already in tumult, but actually saying we need a government that's on the side of teachers and on the side of children and young people.”

The union would be "looking carefully at how the government responds" to calls for a pay rise, he said, adding: "2023 was a year of action - this must be the year of change."
Retaining staff

Strikes in England ended last year, after all four teaching unions accepted the government's 6.5% pay rise, in July.

The starting salary rose to £30,000, last year - but experienced teachers' pay this school year remains 12% lower than in 2010-11, once rising living costs are taken into account, according to the National Foundation for Educational Research.

And unions have continued to call for a fully funded above-inflation pay increase this year, to help tackle difficulties recruiting and retaining staff.

No formal offer has been made for teachers' 2024-25 pay award in England or Wales.

In England, the School Teachers' Review Body is expected to give its recommendation this term.

'Austerity agenda'

In a letter to the STRB, last month, Ms Keegan said she supported a return of teacher pay awards this year "to a more sustainable level than the previous two historically high pay awards".

The DfE said the unions "should engage" with the STRB process "instead of striking before they even know what the pay recommendations are".

Overall school funding was rising to more than £60bn in 2024-25 and teachers had "already benefitted from two historic pay awards totalling over 12% in just two years".

A Welsh government official said “the UK government’s austerity agenda places significant pressure on all budgets” and “meeting the cost of the teachers’ pay award should be considered in this context”.

NEU Conference 2024National Education Union conference unanimously votes for strikes against Ofsted workloads


A school teacher looking stressed next to piles of classroom books

BERNY TORRE

MORNING STAR

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3, 2024


DELEGATES at the National Education Union (NEU) annual conference gave their backing today to strikes over excessive workload pressures caused by Ofsted inspections.

Delegates unanimously endorsed a motion calling on Britain’s largest education union to support members taking strike action “where ‘mocksteds,’ deep dives and excessive workload have arisen through Ofsted pressures.”

They also passed a motion calling for Ofsted to be abolished and replaced by a locally overseen system based on self-evaluation, support and collaboration between schools.

Speaking to the media, NEU general secretary Daniel Kebede said: “Only 3 per cent of our teacher members trust Ofsted to be a sound and reliable arbiter of standards.

“The fact of the matter is it has lost the complete trust of the profession and I would say is well beyond ‘requires improvement’ — it is in ‘special measures.’

“It does need to be abolished. It needs to be replaced with an inspectorate that is supportive, fair and lends itself to a collaborative [approach] in which responsibility for education and learning is a shared one.”

Members called on the NEU executive to lobby political parties in the run-up the next general election to endorse the union’s campaign to replace Ofsted and develop a “viable alternative to school accountability.”

The debate at the Bournemouth International Centre came after the inspectorate faced intensive criticism over the death of headteacher Ruth Perry, who took her own life following an inspection report that downgraded her school from the highest rating to the lowest.

A coroner ruled that the inspection had “likely contributed” to her death last year.

Moving the motion, Rochdale delegate David Barter said: “Schools working together with local democratic oversight will create something much more meaningful, much stronger — we should be proud to say ‘abolish Ofsted’.”

Ian Walters, of the City of Derby, argued that the inspectorate should be axed due to the “culture of fear this insidious regime has created.”

Saying that it had been used to force the academisation of schools run by local authorities, he added: “We all know that Ofsted is part of a political game played by the governing party of the day.

“I’ve witnessed judgements clearly being made before the inspection team entered the building.”

Delegates noted that Ofsted has been cited in coroners’ reports on the deaths of 10 teachers in the past 25 years, with the one in Ms Perry’s inquest issuing a section 28 notice of risk of further deaths.

Schools could face teacher strikes in autumn term over pay, union leader warns

Daniel Kebede, the general secretary elect of the National Education Union (NEU)

 (James Manning/PA)

By Eleanor Busby, 

PA Education Correspondent

School strikes over teachers’ pay and funding are not off the table and could be staged as early as September, the leader of a teaching union has warned.


Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), the largest education union in the UK, said there is “more and more frustration” developing amongst the teaching profession.

Teachers at the NEU’s annual conference in Bournemouth will vote on Thursday on whether the union should “build capacity” to deliver national industrial action over pay and funding.

It comes after an overwhelming majority of NEU teacher members in England and Wales who took part in the preliminary ballot said they would strike to secure a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise and improved funding.

Speaking to the media at the union’s annual conference, Mr Kebede suggested strike action in the autumn term was a possibility and he did not rule out the union launching a formal ballot on walkouts.

The priority is that we win on the issue of pay and funding. The campaign will remain and industrial action will remain a tactic that could be deployed to win on the issueDaniel Kebede, general secretary of the NEU

When asked when strike action could take place, he said: “My view is if there is a decision to go for a formal ballot, we should conduct that over a fairly significant period of time, looking to take action in September.”

The NEU leader called on Education Secretary Gillian Keegan to be ready to open up “serious talks” to avoid a “collision course” with the union.

Mr Kebede said: “The preliminary ballot result is exceptionally significant.

“We’ve had nearly 150,000 teachers vote for strike action.

“She has to take that seriously.

“She has to start engaging in a meaningful way.”

He added that the last meeting he had with the Education Secretary was “absolutely abysmal” with “no agenda” and he said it was “wishy-washy”.

The union consulted 300,000 of its teacher members in state schools and sixth forms across England and Wales as part of its preliminary ballot.

In England, where 50.3% of members turned out to vote, 90.3% of those who took part in the survey said they would vote yes to strike action for a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise and improved funding.

In Wales, where 54.1% of teacher members turned out to vote, 87.2% said they would vote yes to strike action over pay and funding.

An emergency motion, due to be debated at the conference on Thursday morning, calls on the union’s executive to “review, and learn from, the indicative ballot to build capacity to deliver local and national industrial action”.

It suggests members are “prepared to act industrially” if Rishi Sunak or Sir Keir Starmer “fail to deliver” on teachers’ pay and school funding.

90.3%

The percentage of teacher members in England who took part in an indicative survey who said they would vote yes to strike action for a fully funded, above-inflation pay rise and improved funding

Mr Kebede said conference delegates could decide to bring forward an amendment to the motion calling for a formal ballot to be held on strike action.

Speaking ahead of the debate, he said: “I think that we have to absolutely consider the amount of work it would take to get through this government’s antidemocratic strike thresholds in the context of a formal ballot.

“I don’t think, however, the mood is declining.

“I think if anything there is becoming more and more frustration developing amongst the profession as they’re essentially realising that this Government is burning down the house as they leave government.”

Last year, members of the NEU staged eight days of strike action in state schools in England in a pay dispute, but members accepted a 6.5% pay rise for teachers in England and voted to end strikes in July.

Speaking on Wednesday, Mr Kebede said: “The priority is that we win on the issue of pay and funding.

“The campaign will remain and industrial action will remain a tactic that could be deployed to win on the issue.”

He added: “Any decision by this union to take strike action will not be a decision taken lightly.

“It’s certainly not gesture politics.

“Education is in a polycrisis at the moment, whether it is recruitment and retention, school estate, crisis in funding, early years, Send (special educational needs and disabilities).”

His comments came after delegates at the annual conference of another teaching union, the NASUWT, passed a motion on Saturday in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, which called for political campaigning to “take priority over industrial action” ahead of the general election.

Overall, 78% of NASUWT teacher members in England who took part in the union’s consultative ballot voted against holding a formal ballot for industrial action over pay and working conditions.

Last month, the Department for Education (DfE) said in evidence to the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) that teachers’ pay awards should “return to a more sustainable level” after “two unprecedented years”.

In July last year, the Government agreed to implement the STRB’s recommendation of a 6.5% increase for teachers in England, and co-ordinated strike action by four education unions was called off.

A DfE spokesperson said: “The independent STRB is currently considering evidence for this year’s pay award, unions should engage with this process instead of striking before they even know what the pay recommendations are.”

She said: “Further strike action would cause more disruption to pupils who have already lost over 25 million school days due to last year’s industrial action.

“Overall school funding is rising to over £60 billion in 2024/25, its highest ever level in real terms per pupil and teachers have already benefited from two historic pay awards totalling over 12% in just two years.”

 

Pro-Palestinian medical activists block entrance to NHS England HQ

 

Pro-Palestinian medical activists have blockaded the entrance to NHS England’s headquarters calling for those in charge to scrap ties with a tech firm linked to Israel. The group demonstrating outside Wellington House, Waterloo, claims the software company Palantir Technologies supplies the Israel Defence Forces with military technology. The protest comes amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, following the October 7 terror attack last year. Palantir was awarded a £330 million contract by NHS England in November last year to create a data management system called the Federated Data Platform. Read the full story here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024...

Arming Israel during a genocide? No problem, says Labour live on Sky News

Shadow minister Pat McFadden claims Israel isn't breaking international law

 by James Wright
3 April 2024
in Analysis

On Sky News, Shadow Minister Pat McFadden affirmed Labour doesn’t “have a boycott of selling arms to Israel” while the International Court of Justice (ICJ) investigates the country for a “plausible” genocide against Palestinian people:

Arming the genocide

As well as the ICJ investigation, UN human rights expert Francesca Albanese recently found that Israel has committed “genocide with the requisite intent”.

The UN Special Rapporteur stated that “the genocide in Gaza is the most extreme stage of a long-standing settler colonial process of erasure of the native Palestinians”.

Since the violence escalated on 7 October, Israel has killed over 33,000 Palestinians, including 13,000 children. It has displaced 80% of the population of Gaza and destroyed over 70% of Gazan homes.
Labour and Israel


Still, Labour are in partnership with this “ally”. Undercover work from Al Jazeera revealed that lobby group Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) has close ties with the Israeli embassy. An LFI officer admitted:

We do work really really closely together. It’s just publicly we just try to keep the LFI as a separate identity to the embassy.

Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer was on Channel 4 attempting to defend the IDF murdering international food aid workers in a drone strike. Mencer is a former director of LFI.

A former minister in David Cameron’s government, meanwhile, has said:

For years… LFI have worked with – even for – the Israeli embassy to promote Israeli policy and thwart UK government policy and the actions of ministers who try to defend Palestinian rights.

Labour leader Keir Starmer, shadow foreign secretary David Lammy, and McFadden are among the parliamentary members of LFI, while shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves is a vice chair.

Pro-Israel lobbyists including LFI have funded two fifths of Starmer’s shadow cabinet, as well as Starmer himself. LFI does not reveal its funding and whitewashes Israel’s apartheid against Palestinian people it occupies.

Additionally, during Starmer’s leadership campaign, he pledged “no more illegal wars… put human rights at the heart of foreign policy. Review all UK arms sales and make us a force for international peace and justice”.

Was that a joke?

Israel’s war crimes

In tandem with its ongoing genocide, there is clear documentation of Israel committing war crimes in Occupied Palestine. Over in the West Bank, Israel is conducting unlawful killings and expanding illegal settlements. And in Gaza, Israel has:Massacred hungry civilians while they queue for bread.
Targeted civilian infrastructure.
Targeted journalists, doctors, and aid workers.
Used starvation as a weapon of war.

Tory and Israel

It’s a similar story with both Labour and the ruling Conservatives.

The government is licensing arms sales to Israel despite UK law stating it should withhold “if it determines there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law”.

And the Tories are licensing arms in the face of their own unpublished legal advice that Israel is breaking humanitarian law, according to a leaked audio recording.

The House of Commons Select Committee on Foreign Affairs Conservative chair Alicia Kearns said:

I remain convinced the government has completed its updated assessment on whether Israel is demonstrating a commitment to international humanitarian law, and that it has concluded that Israel is not demonstrating this commitment, which is the legal determination it has to make

The UK has licensed arms worth over £574 million to Israel since 2008.

Both Labour and Tory are backing Israel’s in-motion genocide against the Palestinians. We must stand up to the political establishment and its complicity.

Featured image via Saul Staniforth – X