UK

Why I left the Labour Party after 40 years to stand as an independent


We’re at a dangerous moment in history. We need community advocates to speak out against the march to the right


Emma Dent Coad
2 July 2024, 

Emma Dent Coad at the National March for Palestine in Feb 2024 |
Mark Kerrison/In Pictures via Getty Images

The UK’s electoral system creates a two-party race between Labour and the Tories, with smaller parties and independent candidates sidelined and largely ignored by the media. openDemocracy is platforming some of these candidates so you can hear what they stand for. Articles published do not necessarily reflect our editorial stance.

If you’d have told me in 1984 – or at any point over the next 40 years – that I’d be running in an election not for the Labour Party but as an independent candidate, I’m not sure I’d have believed you.

Last year I was forced to quit Labour after four decades of membership. It was a painful decision, but I could feel the values I’d signed up for falling away, dissipating, and finally being dumped.

At the time, I was the leader of the Labour opposition group in Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council, so my resignation was newsworthy. I made a video explaining why I was ending my membership and put it on X (formerly Twitter). It garnered more than a million views. Clearly I had hit a nerve.

There were a number of last straws for me, though a huge one was Labour leader Keir Starmer’s refusal to scrap the two-child benefit cap if elected at this week’s general election. People are always surprised to hear this, but Golborne in North Kensington is the most multi-deprived ward in London. I’ve spent 18 years representing families who desperately struggle to pay bills and have children who go hungry as a result. I know the difference lifting the cap would make.

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Other factors behind my resignation were Labour’s U-turn on its Ten Pledges, the subsequent announcement of its pitiful Five Missions, the party’s clear hardening towards all its previous social policies, and then, of course, the unforgivable racism within its ranks, so ably revealed in the Forde Report and simply ignored.

On the Monday before my resignation, the Labour Party suspended Diane Abbott over an ill-worded comment, for which she had immediately apologised.

The following day I was bombarded with community outrage over Starmer accepting a donation of football tickets worth £1,000 from Mulalley and Co Limited – a construction firm that had been ordered to pay out £10.8m after being found liable for defective cladding on four high-rise residential tower blocks in Portsmouth. The landmark court ruling came after the Grenfell Tower fire that killed 72 of my friends and neighbours.

As the council’s Labour group leader, I agreed on a press release and letter about the donation with the relevant councillors, sent the letter to the Labour Party and put the statement on X. Outrage soon exploded from another direction. Certain people within the party were furious that I’d criticised the Labour leader.

This made no sense – as a veteran campaigner, I have criticised numerous leaders of the Labour Party over the years. Why not now, on such an insensitive and egregious issue? A row ensued. I’d had enough. Within 24 hours, on 27 April 2023, I resigned from the Labour Group Leadership and the national party, continuing to serve Kensington and Chelsea as an independent councillor.

If I hadn’t resigned then, I would have resigned every single day since. I couldn’t stand by and ignore Labour’s position on Gaza; its endless U-turns on any kind of social policy; its anti-democratic ousting of decent parliamentary candidates by fair means or foul – while warmly welcoming Conservative MPs into the fold – and what I would call institutional racism within the party.

Labour has lost its moral compass. It has imploded into factional bullying, racism and, frankly, hatred. The utterly miserable televised leadership debates of this election campaign – most of which have been more like a round of the BBC show ‘Would you lie to me?’ – have shown precisely why people on the doorstep tell me they are fed up with politics and politicians. It feels corrupt. Lying and smearing are the norm. All hope has gone.

We cannot let hatred win. More than half our residents in the Kensington and Bayswater constituency (54% and rising) are non-white non-British born – so our minorities are, in fact, a majority. I’ve lived here most of my life and I love that. I’ve also seen in my lifetime the attitudes to LGBTIQ+ people ebb and flow – softening in recent years, only to see some sectors of society vilifying anyone not hetero-normative; so depressing. Meanwhile, people with disabilities, WASPI women, and anyone needing regular long-term medical attention are treated like pariahs by the government.

I will always stand against hatred in any manifestation. When times are tough, we need love, kindness and truth – they are free and cumulative. So when hundreds of people – by email, WhatsApp, X and on the street – asked me to give them someone to vote for, I agreed.

I was lucky enough in my years as a local councillor to meet and work with the veteran socialist Labour MP and tireless campaigner Tony Benn. While he is no longer with us in person, he was a huge influence on me. No one gets everything right, but he was very right with this comment in 1982:

“If the Labour Party could be bullied or persuaded to denounce its Marxists, the media – having tasted blood – would demand next that it expelled all its Socialists and reunited the remaining Labour Party with the SDP to form a harmless alternative to the Conservatives, which could then be allowed to take office now and then when the Conservatives fell out of favour with the public.

“Thus British Capitalism, it is argued, will be made safe forever, and socialism would be squeezed of the National agenda. But if such a strategy were to succeed… it would in fact profoundly endanger British society. For it would open up the danger of a swing to the far right, as we have seen in Europe over the last 50 years.”

I sincerely believe we are at a very dangerous moment in history. We need strong community advocates and campaigners who will not be absorbed into the political blob, but who will stand up fearlessly for those they are elected to serve, and to speak out against the current terrifying march to the right.

This is why I am standing as an independent candidate for Kensington and Bayswater, taking my lead, not from the self-interest of political parties, but from the needs and aspirations of the people.

AER LINGUS IRELAND
Labour Court to intervene in pilots' pay dispute
10 hours ago
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PA Media
The pilots' union started an indefinite work-to-rule at midnight on 26 June

The Republic of Ireland’s Labour Court is to formally intervene in the ongoing pay dispute between Aer Lingus and the Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (Ialpa).

It follows eight-hours of fresh talks between the two sides on Monday.

The Labour Court has now informed both parties a formal hearing is to take place on Wednesday.

Pilots began an indefinite work-to-rule on 26 June in protest at the company's handling of their claim for a 24% pay increase.

About 400 flights have been cancelled up until 7 July as a result of the indefinite work-to-rule and strike action by pilots.

On Saturday, hundreds of pilots went on an eight-hour strike which resulted in the cancellation of 120 additional flights, affecting 17,000 passengers on the day.

The talks on Monday were focused on re-starting pay talks in the ongoing dispute.

PA Media
About 400 flights have been cancelled up to 7 July

Ialpa President Capt Mark Tighe said the association had moved on its initial pay claim of 24% but claimed the company had not compromised “at all”.

“The company, not only have they indicated that they were not moving off their statements of 12.25%, anything more being financed, they also brought to the Labour Court new demands which the Labour Court have not seen before,” he said following Monday’s talks.


Donal Moriarty, Aer Lingus' chief corporate affairs officer, said the company was committed to resolving the dispute.

“Aer Lingus was open to reaching a solution using all avenues available to it for that solution,” he said.

“We outlined those details to the court and the court has determined that a formal hearing is the best next step to take.”

The Labour Court will make a formal recommendation following Wednesday’s hearing.

PA Media
On Saturday, hundreds of pilots went on an eight-hour strike


The Aer Lingus website has a list of flights disrupted by the strike.

It states that if your flight is affected, you will be contacted by them directly by email or SMS message.

Or, if you booked through a travel agent, they will contact you to advise you of your options.


How did we get here?


This has been a long-running dispute over pay, and there have been a lot of announcements.

But here are some of the key things that have happened so far:25 June 2024 - Separate meetings between Ireland's Labour Court and Aer Lingus and the Ialpa
26 June 2024 - Pilots' indefinite work-to-rule begins. (The work-to-rule means not working overtime or carrying out any other out-of-hours duties)
26 June 2024 - The airline issues an invitation for talks to Ialpa on Wednesday after pilots began their work-to-rule
27 June 2024 - Talks between Ialpa and Aer Lingus to resolve the ongoing pay dispute break down without a resolution
28 June 2024 - Aer Lingus confirms it is cancelling a further 122 flights, saying that due to the “indefinite nature” of Ialpa pilots’ industrial action it “must cancel” additional flights up to 7 July
29 June 2024 - Pilots take part in eight hours of strike action

HUNDREDS of security staff at two of Scotland’s busiest airports have overwhelmingly backed a strike as a pay dispute deepens.


MATT KERR

MORNINGSTAF

TUESDAY, JULY 2, 2024

ICTS central search workers at Glasgow and Aberdeen airports have been in dispute with the company for several months.

Their union Unite, whose ongoing Runway to Success campaign seeks to improve job security and terms and conditions in a sector where outsourcing is endemic, called the ballot when members rejected a 4 per cent pay offer backdated to January and a £500 one-off payment.

A staggering 98.5 per cent of the 200 workers at Glasgow airport and 89.7 per cent of their comrades in Aberdeen backed a walkout, which could come at the height of the summer getaway period.

Calling on ICTS, whose profits grew by almost a third over the last year to £3.2 million, to up its offer, Unite’s lead industrial officer for aviation in Scotland Pat McIlvogue said: “ICTS has chosen to take this dispute to the point of strike action rather than act in a responsible way by negotiating a fair pay offer with Unite.

“Strike action is now inevitable because 300 ICTS workers at Aberdeen and Glasgow airports have been left with no choice but to fight for what they deserve.

“We are calling on AGS, the owner of the airports, to intervene in a final attempt to get ICTS to step back from the brink of a major dispute which will cause widespread disruption.

“Without these workers the airports simply can’t operate.”

An ICTS spokesperson said “constructive pay talks” were ongoing, adding: “We would like to reassure the travelling public that their security is our priority and there will be no disruptions.”

 

Tata UK steelworks strike suspended: union

By

 AFP

A proposed strike next week at Tata Steel UK’s sprawling Port Talbot steelworks in south Wales has been called off, unions said Monday, citing a resumption of talks with management. 

The Indian-owned giant plans to start shutting the first furnace at the UK’s biggest steelworks soon and the second by the end of 2024 under the overhaul, as it transitions to greener production. 

The Unite trade union had announced in response that Tata staff would begin an indefinite strike from July 8 in protest over the job-slashing plans — but this has now been suspended. 

Britain’s main opposition Labour party, widely expected to beat the governing Conservatives in a general election on July 4, had urged Tata to avert the strike. 

“Unite… has today confirmed that its current industrial action at Tata in South Wales has been paused,” the union said in a statement on Monday. 

“The decision follows confirmation from Tata, arising from high-level talks throughout the weekend, that it was now prepared to enter into negotiations about future investment for its operations and not just redundancies, in South Wales, including at Port Talbot.” 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham hailed a “breakthrough” over the matter. 

“This is a significant development in the battle to protect jobs and the long-term future of steel making in South Wales. Investment from Labour secured by Unite will be key to the future of the site.

“This breakthrough would not have come about without the courage of our members at Port Talbot who were prepared to stand up and fight for their jobs. 

“Workers were simply not prepared to stand idly by while steel making ended and their communities were laid to waste.”

The ovens, which had initially been planned to shutter from July, are used to turn coal into coke, a key raw material used in the steel-making process.

Tata had revealed in January that it was planning to shut the coke ovens and two high-emission blast furnaces in Port Talbot, leading to the loss of up to 2,800 jobs.

The overhaul comes with the European steel industry facing upheaval as it tries to finance less carbon-intensive production.

Tata is seeking to invest £1.25 billion ($1.58 billion), including £500 million in UK government cash, into electric arc furnace technology to try to cut long-term carbon emissions.

The company said it would not now bring forward plans to shut one of furnaces early because of the walk-out threat, and would revert to its initial plan for discussions with unions on “future investments and aspirations for the business”.

Calling off steel strike will speed up 

Tata jobs carnage

The Unite union has called off the strike, bending to intimidation from Tata Steel bosses

Port Talbot is one of the largest steelworks in Britain (Picture: Phil Beard)

Monday 01 July 2024

SOCIALIST WORKER 

The Unite union crumbled in the face of bosses’ threats on Monday and called off a strike by 1,500 steel workers in south Wales. The union claimed that Tata Steel company bosses had offered new talks.

But the key issue was that the firm had threatened to start shutting down two blast furnaces immediately at the Port Talbot site unless Unite called off an indefinite strike set to begin at the Port Talbot and Llanwern sites next Monday. Unconvinced by what a new Labour government would do, and unwilling to escalate action, Unite suspended both the strike call and an overtime ban that began in the middle of June.

Disgracefully , the Community union that had not called strikes—despite its members voting for them— revelled in Unite’s backing off. Alun Davies, Community national officer, said, “There are no fresh talks.”

He said the bosses’ letter “simply reaffirms the position agreed by Community, GMB, Unite and the company, at our last meeting of 22 May. “It’s welcome if Unite is re-establishing its commitment to the position it previously agreed.

“This position is that all unions will seek to conclude the negotiations on a MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) and then put this to their members to decide whether it’s good enough.” Tata has for now achieved its objective of seeking to humiliate and crush resistance to its plans to destroy 2,800 jobs in south Wales.

Jason, an electrical engineer at the Port Talbot hot mill, had earlier told Socialist Worker that Tata’s closure threats were “industrial vandalism”.

“But it’s not really unexpected. “It’s what Tata has been trying to do all along, trying to frighten people,” he said. The BBC reported, “Officials from other unions say that Unite has achieved ‘nothing but chaos and have cost their members money’.”

This is a “reference to an earlier overtime ban that Unite called without the agreement of the other unions,” wrote the BBC.

Unite was absolutely right to schedule the strike. Instead of cancelling it, Unite should have called out steel workers at Port Talbot and Llanwern and made an appeal to the whole working class movement to revolt against intimidation.

It should also have demanded that one of the first actions of a Labour government would be to nationalise steel and guarantee all the jobs. Nationalised Tory prime minister Edward Heath nationalised aircraft engine maker Rolls-Royce in a few days in 1971.

Labour has previously urged Tata to reconsider a compromise plan backed by the Community and GMB unions. The plan would retain one of the blast furnaces until the proposed electric arc furnace that is replacing the blast furnaces is operational in 2027.

But that plan won’t save all the jobs at the plant and those at Tata’s contractors. The BBC says, “Union officials acknowledge that there is no guarantee that Tata will agree to extending the life of one furnace beyond its scheduled shutdown in September.”

That is an argument for surrender. The unions must fight for every job.

1990 Kuwait Crisis: Why Is The UK Government & British Airways Being Sued? | Explained

The people, who were allegedly passengers of BA flight 149 were taken as hostage by Iraqi troops hours after Saddam Hussein launched his invasion.

Outlook Web Desk
Updated on: 1 July 2024 

1990 Kuwait Crisis: Why Are The UK Government & British Airways Are Being Sued? | Explained Photo: AP/Wikimedia Commons

Over 30 years later, the UK government and British Airways are being sued by nearly 100 people who claim to have been taken hostage during Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The people, who were allegedly passengers of BA flight 149 were taken as hostage by Iraqi troops hours after Saddam Hussein launched his invasion.

A case has been filed against the airline and the government in a High Court in London.

A lawsuit has been filed against the Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Defence and British Airways. The lawsuit alleges that on August 2, 1990, all parties listed were aware of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait before the plane landed and hence, deliberately endangered the lives of the passengers.

What Happened On August 2, 1990?

On August 2, 1990, British Airways Flight 149 bound for Kuala Lumpur landed at Kuwait International Airport for a planned stop and did not take off again.

Iraqi troops had already entered Kuwait and had started working on the border. Despite this development and all other airlines ordered to fly over Kuwait, the BA flight was not diverted.

By the time the plane landed, rocket fire had already begun. The plane was evacuated but was unable to take off, as a result all those on board were taken hostage.

All 367 passengers and crew on the flight were taken hostage by Iraqi troops hours after Saddam Hussein announced his invasion of the gulf country.

The passengers then went on to be used as human shields against Western attacks on Iraqi troops during the first Gulf War. The passengers, who have now sued the government and the airline, have stated that they were also subject to torture, mock executions, rape and sexual assault and kept in near-starvation conditions.

The hostages were released after five months but the physical and psychiatric harm of the war haunts them till date.

Did The UK Government Know About Saddam Hussein's Invasion?

Yes.

The United Kingdom government, led by then PM Margaret Thatcher, was aware of Hussein's invasion in Kuwait. This revelation was made in 2021 by former PM Liz Truss.

After the release of documents to the National Archives, it was noted that the British Ambassador to Kuwait inform the UK Foreign Office of the invasion, well before BA149 landed.

However, the warning was not passed on to British Airways. Liz Truss admitted that the government has spent years trying to cover up this warning. However, she added that the government at the time “did not seek to exploit the flight in any way by any means whatsoever”.

Around 94 people have sued the government and the airline who claimed that both parties knew what was happening in Kuwait before it landed.

The passengers have claimed that the airline was aware of the invasion and had a covert special ops team on board the flight.

Nicola Dowling, 56, a member of cabin crew on flight BA149 has stated that Margaret Thatcher and British Airways are as complicit as Saddam Hussein.

"Not being believed and denied justice all these years has been hideous. It was all very well for [Margaret] Thatcher to say Saddam Hussein is hiding behind women and children. She bloody well sent us in there, presented us to him on a plate for him to use. She was as complicit in this as he was, as was BA," stated Dowling.

Rubbish will pile up without improved pay offer, union warns

Nick Forbes, PA Scotland
Tue, 2 July 2024 


Edinburgh faces a repeat of the 2022 bin strike unless workers receive an improved pay offer, a union has warned.

The capital is one of 13 councils in Scotland where waste and recycling workers affiliated with the GMB union have voted in favour of industrial action.

GMB Scotland said no meaningful talks with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla) had taken place since May, when the latest pay offer was rejected.

It said Cosla was “counting down the clock” on pay talks, and accused it of “blocking” Scottish Government intervention in the dispute.

It called on the body to return to the table with an improved offer, warning that a failure to do so could result in bins overflowing in Edinburgh at a time when tourists are flocking to the city for the annual Festival Fringe.

Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser for public services, said: “Year after year, these talks have been needlessly drawn out. That leaves our members – typically the lowest paid working on the frontline of our services – without the pay rise they need. Inflation may be stabilising, but can anyone say they feel the difference?

“Council leaders refuse to have meaningful talks – all while blocking the Scottish Government’s intervention to deliver a pay offer that matches our members’ value. They are counting down the clock while our members go without.

“We hear time and time again that Scotland does public services better, but that’s not the case when the Conservatives down south have already beaten Cosla’s offer. If Cosla can’t do better, it’s time for them to bring the Scottish Government to the table to fund an improved offer.

“If not, then it’s likely that the same disruption during 2022’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival will happen again this year. Hundreds of millions are poured into the city during the Fringe, but political leaders claim they can’t find enough money to value frontline service workers.

“Council leaders have wasted months and they’ve wasted opportunities. Our members have no time for waste which is why rubbish will pile up in councils across Scotland if a suitable offer isn’t received. We have no interest in political games when so many are struggling.”

GMB Scotland said it had also received mandates for strike action from waste services workers in Aberdeen, Fife, North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, Aberdeenshire, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, and Stirling.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Local government pay negotiations are a matter for local authorities as employers and unions – the Scottish Government has no formal role.

“The Scottish Government urges all parties involved to work together constructively and reach an agreement which is fair for the workforce and affordable for employers.”

Cosla has been contacted for comment.

Union warns of Fringe festival rubbish pile up repeat with summer strikes

The union claims a repeat of strike action during the Fringe is 'likely again' this year.

GMBScotland said its members in waste services in 13 councils have achieved a mandate for strike action.

Matthew Fulton

A union has warned of a repeat of bins overflowing with rubbish at the Edinburgh Fringe festival this year after refuse workers secured a mandate for summer strike action.

GMB Scotland said its members in waste services in 13 councils have achieved a mandate for strike action in their dispute over pay with COSLA (Convention of Scottish Local Authorities).

Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Fife, North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, Aberdeenshire, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, and Stirling are all affected.

The union claims a repeat of strike action during the Fringe is “likely again” this year.

The last bin strike in 2022 saw rubbish pile high in the streets of towns and cities across the country following a dispute with refuse workers belonging to the Unison, Unite and GMB trade unions.

GMB said COSLA’s two part offer that would see workers receive a 2.2% increase for the first six months and an extra 2% for the next 12 months “falls short”.

Unison, Scotland’s largest local government union, also confirmed that thousands of waste and recycling workers will consider action in their dispute over pay.

Earlier this year, 91% of workers consulted voted to reject the offer.

Cleansing workers will stage a mass walkout in August if the action goes ahead.

Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser for public services, said: “Year after year, these talks have been needlessly drawn out.

“That leaves our members – typically the lowest paid working on the frontline of our services – without the pay rise they need.

“Inflation may be stabilising, but can anyone say they feel the difference?

“Council Leaders refuse to have meaningful talks – all while blocking the Scottish Government’s intervention to deliver a pay offer that matches our members’ value.

“They are counting down the clock while our members go without.

“We hear time and time again that Scotland does public services better, but that’s not the case when the Conservatives down south have already beaten COSLA’s offer.

“If COSLA can’t do better, it’s time for them to bring the Scottish Government to the table to fund an improved offer.

“If not, then it’s likely that the same disruption during 2022’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival will happen again this year.

“Hundreds of millions are poured into the city during the Fringe, but political leaders claim they can’t find enough money to value frontline service workers.

“Council Leaders have wasted months and they’ve wasted opportunities.

“Our members have no time for waste which is why rubbish will pile up in councils across Scotland if a suitable offer isn’t received.

“We have no interest in political games when so many are struggling.”

COSLA and the Scottish Government have been contacted for comment.

Spirit Aero to be broken up as Boeing agrees $4.7 billion stock deal

By Tim Hepher, Shivani Tanna and Mike Stone

July 1, 2024

Summary

Companies

Airbus to take on some Spirit operations related to its planes

Spirit made 737 MAX door plug involved in mid-air blowout

Boeing had spun off the fuselage supplier in 2005

July 1 (Reuters) - Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab agreed to buy back Spirit AeroSystems (SPR.N), opens new tab for $4.7 billion in stock and Airbus moved to take on the supplier's loss-making Europe-focused activities, sending shares in all three companies higher in a rare transatlantic break-up.

The near-two-decade independence of the world's largest standalone aerostructures company ended in a carve-up between its largest customers after the latest Boeing 737 MAX crisis, sparked by a mid-air door plug blowout in January, brought to a head doubts over the resilience of fuselage manufacturing.

Boeing, which spun off Spirit's core Wichita and Oklahaoma plants in 2005, said it would repurchase its former subsidiary for about $37.25 per share, as reported by Reuters on Sunday, giving it an enterprise value of $8.3 billion including debt.

"Bringing Spirit and Boeing together will enable greater integration of both companies' manufacturing and engineering capabilities, including safety and quality systems," Spirit CEO Pat Shanahan said in a statement.

Spirit shares rose 3.6% in early U.S. trading, while Boeing gained 2%
The Wichita, Kansas-based company said the deal offered a 30% premium versus the day before Boeing and Spirit announced talks to bring the struggling supplier back in house on March 1.

Boeing has long pondered buying back its former subsidiary, which analysts say has struggled to thrive independently despite diversifying into work for Europe's Airbus (AIR.PA), opens new tab and others.

The decision to go ahead comes as Boeing tries to resolve a sprawling corporate and industrial crisis that has engulfed one of the industry's key suppliers.

Boeing is trying to move past months of difficulties sparked by the Jan. 5 blowout of a door plug on a virtually new Alaska Airlines (ALK.N), opens new tab 737 MAX 9 jet that exposed quality problems.

Those issues have led to a substantial slowdown in output at Boeing, rippling across the global commercial aviation industry.

Rating agency Fitch said the deal should be "operationally beneficial" to Boeing, allowing it to better plan and control future 737 MAX production.

The U.S. planemaker has announced the planned departure of CEO Dave Calhoun in the wake of the crisis, with industry executives and analysts pointing to Spirit's Shanahan, a former senior Boeing executive, as one of the possible replacements.

It was not immediately clear how long he might be tied to Spirit, with the Boeing deal not due to close until mid-2025.

A Boeing 737 MAX-10 lands over the Spirit AeroSystems logo during a flying display at the 54th International Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport near Paris, France, June 22, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/ File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

In a note to investors, Bernstein analyst Douglas Harned said the deal "should add clarity ... potentially for the Boeing board’s attention to move to the decision on the next CEO".

AIRBUS DEAL

Spirit had been spun off from Boeing in one of a series of moves that critics say were emblematic of a focus on cost-cutting over quality.

Boeing made the decision to buy it back in the aftermath of the door plug blowout, in what it described as an effort to address its safety problems and shore up its production line.

That raised questions over the future of work that Spirit carries out for Boeing's arch-rival Airbus, prompting the CEO of the European giant to warn in April that it stood ready if necessary to veto changes in control of Airbus-related plants.

On Monday, Airbus said it would take over core activities at four of the supplier's plants in the United States, Northern Ireland, France and Morocco as reported by Reuters last week.

It will also take over minor work currently carried out in Wichita. The separate Airbus deal was triggered by talks between Boeing and Spirit and was loosely coordinated between the three companies, sources said. It is subject to due diligence.

Airbus shares rose about 3.3% on Monday.

Since Spirit's Airbus-related operations are in the red, industry sources had said the planemaker was pressing for up to $1 billion in compensation in return for taking over the plants, which make strategic parts for its A350 and A220 airliners.

Airbus said it would receive $559 million in compensation from Spirit, depending on the final outlines of the deal, while it would pay the supplier a symbolic $1 for the assets.

That echoes its decision to buy the Canadian-designed CSeries small jetliner program for just $1 from Bombardier (BBDb.TO), opens new tab in 2018. It later renamed the jet the A220.

Until the latest shake-up, Airbus had not envisaged taking control of the loss-making A220 wings manufacturing carried out in Belfast, which Spirit bought from Bombardier in 2019.

Monday's deal lifts doubts over the future of part of Northern Ireland's top industrial employer, though sources have said Airbus may need to invest significant sums to increase output and make the wings more affordable to produce.

Spirit said it planned to sell operations in Prestwick, Scotland and in Subang, Malaysia that support Airbus programs and those in Belfast that do not support Airbus programs.


Reporting by Mike Stone and David Shepardson in Washington, Allison Lampert in Montreal, Tim Hepher in Paris and Shivansh Tiwary, Abhijith Ganapavaram and Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; editing by David Gaffen, Shubham Kalia, Jamie Freed and Jason Neely

Future of UK factory in doubt after Boeing deal puts 2,400 jobs at risk

Story by Christopher Jasper • 19h • 

Spirit AeroSystems - Handout© Provided by The Telegraph

The future of a major British aerospace plant is in doubt with up to 2,400 jobs at risk following a carve-up of owner Spirit AeroSystems between Boeing and Airbus.

A chunk of Spirit’s operations at the facility in Belfast have been left without an owner, putting the long-term future of the entire factory in danger.

Boeing is to buy Kansas-based Spirit for $4.7bn (£3.7bn) in order to gain control of a key supplier to its troubled 737 Max jet, while offloading operations that provide components for Airbus to its European rival.

This means Airbus will be taking control of a part of the Belfast factory that oversees wing and fuselage production for the Airbus A220 regional jet.

Boeing said an alternative buyer is being sought for the other parts of Spirit’s Belfast business that neither manufacturer is prepared to take on.

But if this deal falls through, it is feared the entire facility – the biggest manufacturer in Northern Ireland – will no longer be commercially viable.



Spirit is the biggest manufacturer in Northern Ireland - Spirit AeroSystems

© Provided by The Telegraph

George Brash, regional officer for the trade union Unite, said: “This deal provides no clarity whatsoever about the future of the majority of employees at Spirit Belfast.

“Our fear is that there will be a dismantling of the site and that jobs will be put at risk. We’re talking about a huge number of jobs in the context of Northern Ireland.”

Related video: Boeing Buys Back 737 Max Supplier Spirit Aerosystems (Cheddar News)
Duration 1:18   View on Watch

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The unwanted operations, which produce fuselage and tail sections for Bombardier business jets and housings for Rolls-Royce engines, account for 40pc of Spirit’s business but a majority of its 3,600-strong Belfast workforce, according to Unite.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson hit out at the plan as representing only a “partial solution”.

He said: “My preference would be to see a single buyer for the entire site. That is the best way to secure all jobs and make the site sustainable.”

The threat to the Belfast plant, once the headquarters of Short Brothers, the world’s first manufacturer of commercial aircraft, was followed by news that another Northern Irish business, Titanic shipbuilder Harland & Wolff, had halted trading in its shares.

The company, which has 500 staff in Belfast, was forced into the action after auditors declined to sign off on its accounts, six weeks after the Treasury threatened to withdraw vital funding.



Northern Irish shipbuilder Harland & Wolff halted trading after auditors declined to sign off on its accounts - Liam McBurney/PA Wire© Provided by The Telegraph

Boeing said that under the terms of its takeover of Spirit, the supplier is proposing to sell non-Airbus activities in Belfast to a third party. Sources said that represents a declaration of intent and that there’s no prospect of a quick sale.

Airbus confirmed that it will take on operations including wing production in Belfast and other A220-related work in the US and Morocco, as well as manufacturing of fuselage sections for the A350 wide-body plane in the US and France.

Airbus will pay Spirit a nominal $1 while receiving $559m in compensation for assuming responsibility for the unprofitable activities.

Should a buyer not be found for a subsidiary business in Prestwick, Scotland, which makes wing slats for the A320 jet, Airbus said it would also be prepared to take that on as it works through a record order backlog for the popular single-aisle plane.

However, there is no such safety net in place for remaining operations in Northern Ireland.

Sir Michael Ryan, chairman of Spirit UK, warned in April that a break-up of the Belfast business would be “extremely detrimental” to its future and to the province’s wider standing in the aerospace industry.

In a letter, he said that maintaining the site as a single entity was the best option, and that vital economies of scale and technological synergies could otherwise be lost.

Spirit’s Belfast footprint spans six sites, including some located in the Catholic west of the city regarded as integral to the Northern Ireland peace process.

The main factory, sandwiched between Belfast City Airport and the docks, was built by Short Brothers in 1936 and produced Second World War aircraft including the Stirling bomber and Sunderland flying boat.

Shorts began trading in 1897, making hot-air balloons before switching to aircraft after the Wright Brothers’ first flight.

The company built six planes on the Isle of Sheppey in 1909, making it the first in the world to undertake volume aircraft production.

It was sold to Canada’s Bombardier in 1989 and to Spirit in 2020.

 

We condemn the failed military coup against the Bolivian people -International statement

1st July 2024Bolivia, International, Latin America, Luis Arce, SolidarityLeave a Commenton We condemn the failed military coup against the Bolivian people -International statement

“We call for the international solidarity of our sisters and brothers around the world with the Bolivian people.”

By Wiphalas Across The World

Wiphalas Por El Mundo/Wiphalas Across The World condemns the failed military coup against the Bolivian People on Wednesday June 26, 2024.

We call for the international solidarity of our sisters and brothers around the world with the Bolivian people, calling to defend:

• Democracy, the Constitutional Order and Self determination of Bolivia.

• Respect for the Popular Vote that elected as President Luis Arce Catacora with more than 55% of the votes.

• The defence of Social Organizations, the Movement towards Socialisma Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the People MAS IPSP and its leader Evo Morales Ayma.

• The complete rejection of coup attempts by the military and any attempt at military insurrection, orchestrated by imperialism.

We want to alert the peoples of the world of the clear intentions of imperialism to reactivate a new Condor Plan in our Abya Yala (Latin America).

Jallalla the Plurinational State of Bolivia! The people united will never be defeated!

---

• This statement was published by Wiphalas Across The World on 28th June 2024 – you can follow them on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram.
• You can also follow Friends of Bolivia on Twitter/X and Facebook and the Labour Friends of Progressive Latin America on Facebook and Twitter/X.

UK

Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner says she will ‘fight every day’ to give carers real living wage



Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner used to be a care worker

 (Andy Buchanan/PA)

By Rhiannon James, 

PA Political Staff

Today 

Labour’s Angela Rayner has said she will “fight every single day” for carers in England to receive the real living wage as she recalled her own experience as a care worker.

The party’s deputy leader said she remembered the feeling of people looking down on her during her time working in social care, which she described as a “special job”.

During the Citizens UK’s General Election assembly, Ms Rayner also revealed that she had found parts of the General Election campaign “nasty”.

There were some people who didn’t always respect us for what we didAngela Rayner

Speaking at the event held in Westminster on Monday, Ms Rayner said: “I was a home help, I know how special that job is.”

She added that it is “unacceptable” that carers are not paid a fair wage for the job they do.

Ms Rayner said she would “fight every single day” to bring carers real living wage pay “as quickly as possible”.

She added: “You save so much money by having a skilled care workforce.”

Recalling her time as a care worker for Stockport Council, Ms Rayner said: “I worked day and night on the frontline of our public services.

“It was tough work, but I loved the people I worked with and the people I cared for. It’s a special job.

“But I noticed something too, something I’ve gotten used to throughout my life, there were some people who didn’t always respect us for what we did.

“Looked down on us for living in a council house or being a single parent. And the wages and the conditions were not what they ought to be.”




Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer

 (Stefan Rousseau/PA

Elsewhere in her speech, Ms Rayner pointed to politics being a difficult industry. She said: “I know that politics isn’t always the most enjoyable business. Bits of this election campaign have been nasty.

“And if we win this Thursday, being in government won’t always be easy either.”

She added that Labour is “under no illusion” of the “mountain” the party has to climb if elected later this week.

She told the assembly: “For too long, the people running our country have not just had the wrong ideas but the wrong priorities too.

“They’ve lost sight of what’s important. The basic things in life that we all need.”


Ms Rayner added: “Standing in front of you today I am under no illusion about the mountain we have to climb.

“But I take comfort in knowing I am one voice in a movement. A movement which is greater than any politician’s promise.

“We seek power so we can hand it back to you – the people.”

Ms Rayner also said she is “determined” to give 16 and 17-year-olds the right to vote, if elected.

UK’s Labour, Tories should face consequences for stance on Gaza, Arab voters say

July 1, 2024 

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – : Protesters take part in a rally in Whitehall in solidarity with the Palestinian people and to demand an immediate ceasefire to end the war on Gaza on the 76th anniversary of Nakba in London, United Kingdom on May 18, 2024. Nakba, also known as Palestinian Catastrophe, refers to the mass displacement and dispossession of over 700,000 Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. ( Wiktor Szymanowicz – Anadolu Agency )

Almost all Arab voters believe the Conservatives and Labour should face consequences for their stance on the war on Gaza, a survey from the Arab Voice Campaign has found.

Asked if they “believe that the Conservatives and Labour should face consequences for their stance on the war on Gaza”, 92 per cent of respondents said yes.

Of the 539 people surveyed, the majority said they follow their representative’s position on key issues, with 75 per cent knowing how their member of parliament voted on the Gaza ceasefire in November 2023.

Almost 67 per cent said they believe the Arab and Muslim vote was important and influential, just under 23 per cent said it had limited influence and almost four per cent said it is not important or influential at all.

Asked who they plan to vote for, almost 20 per cent said they were undecided on 24 June, when the survey was carried out. Only one per cent said they’d vote for the Conservative and Reform, while 12 per cent said Labour would get their vote.

The party that received the largest backing from respondents was George Galloway’s Workers Party, with 38 per cent of those contacted by the Arab Voice Campaign saying they planned to back them in the 4 July ballot.

The general election was called by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on 22 May and it is widely expected that his Conservative Party will suffer a resounding defeat in favour of the Labour Party. However many younger voters have called for electoral reforms as the UK’s first past the post voting system means smaller parties are unlikely to get significant seats in parliament even if they receive a large percentage of votes.

In UK, Muslims threaten electoral damage on Labour Party over support for Israel

A number of parliamentary seats, once considered safe bets for the Labour Party, could be lost as Muslims organize around Gaza.

People walk on Westminster Bridge in London, Monday, July 1, 2024. The United Kingdom will hold its first national election in almost five years on Thursday, July 4, with opinion polls suggesting that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party will be punished for failing to deliver on promises made during 14 years in power. 

(AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

July 1, 2024
By Catherine Pepinster

RELIGION NEWS SERVICE


LONDON (RNS) — A few days before the British go to the polls on Thursday (July 4) to elect their national government, political pundits and polling companies are predicting a landslide for the Labour Party, ousting the Conservative government after 14 years in power.

But there are a number of parliamentary seats, once considered safe bets for the Labour Party, that are under threat as thousands of Muslim voters organize to unify their votes around support for Palestinians and a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.

The Labour Party under its current leader, Sir Keir Starmer, once under fire for its inability to tackle antisemitism, is embroiled in a fresh row over its attitude toward Israel and the war in Gaza, following the attacks by Hamas on kibbutzim last October. Debate over whether Labour has been supportive enough toward Palestinians has cast its shadow over many inner city seats that Labour might otherwise have confidently expected to win, with campaigners urging Muslim voters to reject Labour and opt for other, often independent, candidates.

Around 6.5 million Muslims live in the UK, according to 2021 census data, and most tend to be clustered in specific neighborhoods in London, Birmingham and several northern cities. In the past six weeks since Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the election, Muslim organizations have been rallying followers of Islam to vote. The Henry Jackson Society, a think tank, claims there are 17 constituencies where the Muslim electorate is substantial enough to affect the outcome of the ballot.

According to Zara Mohammed, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, speaking at a Religion Media Center briefing on May 15, there has been “voter apathy and a disconnect between voters and politicians,” in recent years.

But now this is changing, she said, thanks to voter registration drives of organizations like hers and “a lot of charged emotion” — much of it concerning Palestine and the situation in Gaza. With half of Muslims being under 24, the registration drive will see additional younger voters casting their ballots — and they are among the most distressed over Gaza.


Britain’s Labour Party leader, Keir Starmer, speaks on stage at the launch of The Labour party’s 2024 general election manifesto in Manchester, England, Thursday, June 13, 2024. The election will take place on July 4. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

“Big political parties have quite strained relationships with Muslims,” she said. “There is a real feeling of disenfranchisement right now. People are saying that their votes are taken for granted. A lot of trust needs to be repaired.”

Mohammed said conversations with Muslim voters indicate they are considering switching away from voting for Labour, which would mark a distinct change in Muslim voting patterns.

Paul Bickley, head of political engagement of Theos, a British religion think tank that researches religious voting patterns, confirms that “Muslims voted substantially for Labour in the past.” Research into voting preferences conducted a year ago showed Muslim support for Labour was at 58% (compared to 35% among the general population).

But these figures were compiled before the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023 and the ensuing Israeli advance on Gaza, which has left 35,000 people dead, according to U.N. figures, of which just over half are women and children.

According to Bickley, Theos does believe support for Labour will shift now within Muslim communities — a belief shared by the team at The Muslim Vote, an umbrella organization set up by several Muslim bodies to help unify Muslims as a voting bloc, specifically around “peace in Palestine. Equality in the UK,” according to its website.

Abubakr Nanabawa, the organization’s spokesman, says these are the primary priorities of British Muslims right now.

“Gaza is among the top four issues for Muslims,” he said, with the others being the cost of living, the state of public services, and the future of the National Health Service. “A lot of Muslims not only use the NHS, they work in it,” he said.

According to Nanabawa, The Muslim Vote is not a partisan political organization.

“We say to people you are casting votes not just for a party, but for an individual,” he said.

The Muslim Vote argues that with the vast majority of Muslims in Britain living in 80 constituencies — almost all of them in London, the east and west Midlands, Greater Manchester and Lancashire, and west Yorkshire — they can have a clear impact.

“We will no longer tolerate being taken for granted. We are a powerful, united force of 4 million acting in unison,” reads the organization’s website.

Just how much of an impact Muslims can have — particularly when they are angered by an issue like Gaza — was highlighted by the Rochdale parliamentary by-election in March, when George Galloway, standing for the Workers Party, had a landslide victory after making his campaign about Gaza.

A similar trend was notable in the May local elections. According to Professor Will Jennings of Southampton University, there was an 18% drop in the Labour vote in areas where more than a fifth of people identified as Muslim, which led to the party losing control of Oldham Council in Greater Manchester and losing ground in Blackburn in Lancashire. The BBC said that — compared to 2021— Labour support among Muslims was down by 21% in 58 local council wards.

“We know that we’ve got a great deal of work to do to rebuild trust with Muslim communities,” said Ellie Reeves, a Labour MP and the party’s deputy national campaign coordinator.

At the time, Ali Milani, the national chair of the Labour Muslim Network, told The Guardian that “Muslims don’t think that the Labour Party broadly values Palestinian and Muslim lives as equal to others,” a view shaped by Labour’s record on a cease-fire in the Palestinian conflict.

In November, 56 Labour MPs defied their own party’s orders and voted for a Scottish National Party’s motion for a cease-fire. Then, in February, MPs approved a Labour motion calling for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” — but influential voices in the Muslim community remain unconvinced of Starmer’s commitment to a cease-fire.

The Muslim Vote website includes information for voters about constituency candidates and with some, recommendations for whom to vote for or against. No Conservative candidate has been recommended, says Nanabawa, “because they have destroyed infrastructure, the NHS, and young people cannot afford housing.”

Some Labour MPs are not recommended according to their track record on Gaza and on local issues, he said. In other seats, The Muslim Vote remains neutral.

Among the seats where the Muslim electorate is substantial are Ilford North, where Wes Streeting, Labour’s shadow secretary for health and social care, is defending his seat. Muslims make up 43.6% of the vote, according to the Henry Jackson Society. The Muslim Vote organization is urging people to vote instead for an independent candidate.

In Leicester South, Labour’s shadow work and pensions secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, faces a similar battle, where Muslims make up 37% of the vote and The Muslim Vote recommends another independent.

Meanwhile, polling of Christian voters suggests churchgoers in England and Wales are more likely to vote for centrist or left-wing parties. A Bible Society panel, consulted in the first weeks of June, showed 70% of those questioned said they would not vote for right-wing parties. Of them, 40% said they would vote Labour, while 23% of them said Liberal Democrat and 7% Green.