Swheatie celebrates Tory 'job-creation'

Placards designed with thanks to a question posed by Suj of Brent Housing Action at last night's Brent Central hustings

'0 hrs' jobs boost is Con-Dem hot air!

'0 hrs' is pointless 'job creation'

'0 hours' is nil point 'job creation'

'0 hours' is waiting, not working

'0 hours' is waiting for Jobbo!

VOTERS OF ALL PERSUASIONS WANT THE ISSUE OF ECONOMIC INEQUALITY ADDRESSED

Guest blog by Rev'd Paul Nicolson of Taxpayers Against Poverty

LETTERS IN THE OBSERVER 26TH January 2014

How does any government start to put growing inequality into reverse? One answer is to reverse the decisions in the 1980s to deregulate lending, abolish rent controls and allow the free flow of cash in and out of the UK. The result is a chaotic housing market sucking billions of personal income away from the shops, building and maintaining infrastructure and from investment in companies that create jobs. International speculation in UK land and homes is forcing house prices and rents upwards. Meanwhile, landlords, who treated housing benefit like a cash cow for decades, continue to profit from a housing market in short supply while the poorest tenants are punished with three caps on the housing benefit.

High rents, now unpaid by housing benefit, are enforced against the tenants’ incomes, which were entirely available for food, utilities, transport and clothes up to April 2013; since then, council tax, plus court and bailiff costs has begun to wreak havoc in the tenants’ lives.

Reversing inequality requires statutory minimum incomes in work and unemployment, after rent and council tax have been paid, to be enough to ensure a healthy life, and to diminish the billions paid by taxpayers to the NHS to treat poverty-related physical and mental ill health, and to the schools to cope with poverty-related educational underachievement.

The Reverend Paul Nicolson

Taxpayers Against Poverty

​PS ​

A worrying graph from an LSE blog

​

about​

inequality in land ownership.

http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/archives/38973


Rev Paul Nicolson
Taxpayers Against Poverty

*Event:* *'Building our Green Economic Future' conference 

with London's Green MEP Jean Lambert, TUC General Secretary Frances O'Grady, EU Commissioner Laszlo Andor and Andrew Raingold of the Aldersgate Group

*When: Friday, November 29th, 10.30am – 4.45pm

*Where: TUC Congress Centre, London, WC1B 3LS*

*THE ROLE OF THE GREEN ECONOMY IN PROMOTING JOBS AND INDUSTRIAL REVIVAL IN THE UK: TRADE UNIONS AND LEADING INDUSTRY FIGURES JOIN GREEN MEP FOR CONFERENCE


LONDON'S Green MEP Jean Lambert is to host a public conference on the role
of the environmental sector in job creation and UK economic revival next
week.


The 'green' sector is already worth £25.4bn a year – and employs more than
163,000 people in London alone, according to a recent report from the
London Assembly. (1)


“*Ensuring the UK's speedy economic revival and responding to the climate
crisis present a double challenge – but the solutions are linked,”* said Ms
Lambert.


“*We need to create good, skilled, well-paid jobs – but a truly
sustainable economic recovery must tackle climate change.*


“*The answer must lie in investing in key industries and the new skills –
required to make the UK a world leader in the renewable energy and 'green'
construction industries.*


“*How this investment is funded – directly by Government or via a
so-called 'Green Investment Bank' - is a debate we need to have, but it's
clear that this Government is failing to promote the discussion – or,
sufficiently, green jobs and environmental industries.*


“*That's why I'm hosting a day conference with trade unions, European
policymakers and leading industry figures to discuss how we can work
together to meet the economic and environmental challenges we face here in
the UK and help deliver the EU commitment to a low-carbon future.”*


Other speakers at the event include TUC General Secretary *Frances O'Grady*,
EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion *Laszlo
Andor*and Executive Director of the Aldersgate Group *Andrew
Raingold*.


The event, which will take place at the TUC Congress Centre in London next
Friday, November 29, is free – but places are limited, so it's necessary to
register in advance at www.greeneconfuture.eventbrite.com


Ms Lambert, a member of the European Parliament's Employment and Social
Affairs Committee, added: *“We have the potential here in the UK to create
thousands of new jobs and lead the way in tackling the great environmental
crises the world faces in the 21st Century. I hope we can rise to the
challenge, and that this conference can play a role in that.”*



*ENDS*




*Notes to Editors*


*1. *ht
tp://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/London%20Low%20Carbon%20Market%20Snapshot%20-%202013%20Update_1.pdf<http://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/London%20Low%20Carbon%20Market%20Snapshot%20-%202013%20Update_1.pdf>
>
http://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/London%20Low%20Carbon%20Market%20Snapshot%20-%202013%20Update_1.pdf




*For details of the event, and to sign up, see:**
www.greeneconfuture.eventbrite.com
<http://www.greeneconfuture.eventbrite.com/>*


*Journalists and photographers are welcome at the discussion: please
contact Ben by email or on any number below to arrange.*


*Jean Lambert* is one of eight MEPs representing London and one of two UK
Green representatives in the European Parliament. *Jean was first elected
Green Party Member of the European Parliament for London in the 1999
European elections and was* re-elected in 2004 and 2009.