Health Minister Sets No Limit to NHS Privatisation

In the midst of the dispute over the privatisation of NHS Logistics Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health, has angered NHS workers by refusing to set any limit to the Government's privatisation of the NHS.

This intervention will mobilise NHS workers in support of the Logistics dispute and public service workers across the public sector.

It is an astounding refusal to listen to the voices not just of NHS workers but also the general public who overwhelmimgly reject the privatisation of our health service.

Politically Secretary of State Hewitt's stance is almost suicidal and unless challenged will result in the loss of marginal after marginal seat across the country. All of this is driven by the Chancellor's obsession with the market and privatisation.

My fear is that as a result of the Brown/Hewitt policy many hardworking Labour MPs in key marginals could be facing independent candidates waging local NHS campaigns and lose their seats.

Government Takes Prison Officers Association to Court for Contempt

I have just been notified that the Government is taking the Prison Officers Association to the High Court today for contempt of court because the Home Secretary is claiming the union is taking industrial action. The Tories took away the right of prison officers to take industrial action. This abuse of the civil liberties of prison officers was condemned by Labour in opposition and New Labour oppposition spokespeople promised that this anti trade union legislation would be removed from the statute book.

9 years on and New Labour in government has not only failed to live up to its promises in opposition but is now using the Tories' legislation against the POA.

Many in the POA rightfully feel a sense of betrayal. They are deservedly angry.

What is even more inexplicable is that the POA members were not threatening strike action or anything that in normal parlance would be considered industrial action. They simply did not wish to continue undertaking additional work on a voluntary basis.

The heavy hand of the Government is destroying industrial relations in the justice sector both in prisons and the probation service.

The Trade Union Freedom Bill, which I have assisted in drafting and co-ordinating in Parliament, aims to restore basic trade union rights to the POA.

It's time now to moblise in support of the POA and the enactment of the Trade Union Freedom Bill.

Call to Halt the Privatisation of NHS Logistics

There can be fewer better examples of the ludicrous nature of the ideological commitment of New Labour to privatisation than the Government's plans to privatise NHS Logistics. Here we have a division of the NHS efficiently supplying on a not for profit basis more than 500,000 products to hospitals, GPs surgeries and patients at over 10,000 destinations. An organisation which has been awarded and praised for its effectiveness and yet the Government, obsessed with giving the market free rein over our public services, is selling the service off to DHL and transferring contracts worth over £22 billion and 1,650 staff.

This is the ultimate madness of Gordon Brown's compulsive neurosis with regard to privatisation. Whatever happened to New Labour's commitment to "What works matters" and to evidence based policy making?

If DHL is allowed to take over I fear for the service and I fear for the jobs, wages and conditions of work of the staff being forced to transfer.

If ever there was a case for all public service workers to stand together against privatisation and in support of the NHS Logistics workers it is ths one.

I wholeheartedly, 100% back the trade union members who are taking industrial action at NHS Logistics in defence of their service and their jobs against this malign privatisation.

I send a message of solidarity to the workers as they come out on strike this week.

I simply ask the question where are all those Cabinet ministers who are seeking our support as trade unionists for their candidacy for leader or deputy leader of the Labour Party. This dispute is an objective lesson for all trade unions opposed to privatisation. If these Cabinet ministers can't support us when they are seeking our votes, what hope is there of gaining their support after the votes have been cast.

The strategy of some trade union leaders of seeking to negotiate support for policy change is being blown out of the water by example after example of intransigence by Gordon Brown and all the other New Labour heirs apparent.

As a speaker said at the TUC last week, we need to learn the lesson and learn it now before it is too late.