News digest 29 March 2011
BA is back in the headlines as crew vote
for strike action by a large majority for the fourth time, before
cuts are back on the agenda, with more job cuts at Northern Rock,
council cuts and potential changes as the elections near, a
‘shambles’ of a U-turn on the EMA by Gove, while Clarke has woken
up, fuel prices are cut for some while the division of Libya moves
closer…
Yes, for the fourth time - BA
crew have voted by 8-1 to back strike action for a fourth time in
the space of two years. The vote reflects the continued resilience
among crew who were being balloted on a range of anti-union
management measures including sanctions applied to some 6,700 crew
who took lawful strike action last year. Len McCluskey, Unite
general secretary, said: "This vote shows that cabin
crew remain determined to win justice. We urge BA's boardroom to
see this as a clear message that they must think again about how to
regain the trust and confidence of a significant part of their
cabin crew operation. We continue to be in discussions with the
company to find a solution to this long-running
dispute." (Mirror p19, Sun p7, Express p1, Mail p2, Times p8, Indie p14, Guardian p25, Telegraph p1, FT p4, Morning Star p1, Unite
release)
More Rock cuts – Another
round of jobs are cut at the state backed bank. David Fleming,
Unite national officer, said: “This appalling news of
680 job cuts is scandalous. Another round of brutal job cuts is
simply a step too far for this workforce.” Unite is
calling for the bank to remutualised rather than sold off back to
the private sector (Mirror
p48, Sun p39, Express p19, Mail p61, Times p37, Indie p31, Guardian p25, Telegraph b5, FT p17, Morning Star p4, Unite
release).
Cut complaints – And Lloyds
Banking Group has said that it has pledged to cut the number of
customer complaints by a fifth and is focusing ion retraining
40,000 staff and forcing senior management to spend a day each
month dealing with complaints (Express p48, Mail p58).
Cops cut - From banks to
bobbies and coalition cuts are seeing police officers being taken
off front line duties to cover for the cuts to backroom staff
according to the Mirror
(p23) and Guardian
(p1)…
Council cuts – A swathe of
councillors – Tory, Labour and Lib Dem - have condemned local
authorities for making disproportionate cuts to vital local
services in a letter to the Times (p12-13), the paper
features 50 services that will shut shortly as the new financial
year approaches. The FT (p1) also
highlights a conundrum for councils that want to sell properties as
a covenant on many gifted properties from the 1800s means they
revert back to the original owner if they are no longer used for
the community.
Council changes? –The
Sun (p2) also has the latest
opinion polls which has Labour on 39 per cent, the Tories on 34 per
cent and the Lib Dems down at 13 per cent. The paper says the Lib
Dems could lose power in half the councils it controls, with the
FT (p2) also saying its is Labour
that stands to benefit, possibly to the tune of gaining 1,000 more
councillors, hope they know what they’re letting themselves in
for…
EMA U-turn? – Not really,
education secretary accused of ‘shambles’ as he unveils new funds
to support young people, only problem is that the funds available
have been cut by 70 per cent to just £180 million, not to mention
the damage done by all the uncertainty (Mirror p16, Mail p17, Indie p18, Guardian p10, Telegraph p10, FT p4).
No mansion tax – And what a
surprise Cable’s so called mansion tax on expensive houses will be
blocked by the Tories say the Mail (p4) and Telegraph (p10)…
Corporation tax crackdown? –
Treasury select committee to look into tax avoidance (Guardian p25), but will they do
anything about it?
No win no fee crackdown –
Justice secretary Kenneth Clarke wakes from his slumber to tell the
Mail (p20) he plans to
crack down on ambulance chasers so they can no longer take success
fees, anyone remind me who cut support for legal aid?
Acting on bribery – And more
from Clarke who also says a new Bribery bill will be published in
June, although there are concerns that foreign firms will be
exempted (Indie p38,
FT p2).
UK firms
targeted – More mergers and acquisitions see UK firms as
easy targets (Express
p48).
Supply chain squeezed – But
UK’s Japanese car plants are now facing a squeeze on component
supplies as the crisis continues; workers are attempting to pump
out contaminated water to stop it spreading to seawater and soil
(Express p27, Times p28, Indie p23, Guardian p16, Telegraph p13, FT p22, Morning Star p6).
Renault’s woes – And the
FT (p22) also reports on the
spying allegations at the carmaker with French authorities having
placed a second person under formal investigation…
Fuel prices cut – The
Sun (p24) hails a reduction
in petrol prices, the only problem is that it is Europe which has
seen falls of up to 10 per cent, UK prices stay high…
Ark Royal
auction – Former navy flagship put up for sale on MoD
auction website (Mirror p18,
Express p2, Mail p25, Indie p19, FT p4, Morning Star p5)
Pilot problems – And in Libya
the war continues with pilot shortages on the allied side not
stopping the attacks. An opinion poll in the Indie (p6-9) says that 70 per
cent of the UK population think Britain should get out of Libya as
they fear another Iraq. And as the rebels advance there’s talk of
allowing Gadaffi to leave Libya, apparently Italian prime minister
Berlusconi might be organising his escape, frying pan and fire
springs to mind (Mirror p6,
Sun p12, Express p24, Mail p19, Times p1/4-5, Guardian p1/4-6, Telegraph p1/14-15, FT p1/6, Morning Star p7).
Edited by Mik
Sabiers
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