PCS news digest 18 May

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22 May 2012

This weekly news digest is a summary of news, campaign articles, media releases and reports from the past week

18 May

Child support charges could increase poverty, warn MPs

Plans to charge single parents for access to the replacement for the Child Support Agency could worsen child poverty, MPs have warned, reported the Guardian.

Private university regulation ‘a mess’ – Independent

A scheme to fund more student places at private universities is under fire after the Universities minister, David Willetts, admitted that no checks are made on whether undergraduates complete their course, reported the Independent.

17 May

Unions mark International Day Against Homophobia - TUC

The TUC urged people to use the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia to remember lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people who have been attacked or killed around the world.

Government failing to tackle Britain’s housing crisis – Shelter

Housing charity Shelter warned that the government is failing to tackle the country’s growing housing crisis.

PM apes Thatcher as cuts panic rises – Morning Star

Prime Minister David Cameron did a crazed Margaret Thatcher impersonation, threatening the British people with years of pain and punishment.

16 May

Equality and Human Rights Commission has workforce halved – Guardian

The Guardian reported that The Equality and Human Rights Commission has been stripped of its duty to promote a society with equal opportunity for all and had its budget and workforce halved, the government has announced.

May declares war on equality laws – Morning Star

Tory Home Secretary Theresa May launched an all-out assault on equality protections just hours after the coalition was implicated in lawbreaking over the impact on women, disabled and ethnic minorities of its cuts, reported the Morning Star.

Work programme failing to tackle long-term unemployment – PCS

The government's privatised back to work schemes are failing to tackle long-term unemployment as figures show those out of work for more than a year is at its highest since the Tories were last in office, reported the PCS website.

Police heckle Theresa May’s reforms speech – ITV News

The Home Secretary was heckled as she told rank-and-file officers that changes to their pay and conditions were reforms which hard-working police officers should welcome, reported ITV News.

15 May

Ministers end A4e contract for welfare-to-work scheme – BBC

The BBC reported that the government has ended a contract with welfare-to-work company A4e after deciding that continuing would be "too great a risk", it has said.

Unison calls on Clegg to show bottle on regional pay – Union-News

Unison has called on Nick Clegg to do the right thing and convince George Osborne to ditch the divisive plans to introduce regional pay in the public sector, reported the Union-News website.

Nurses heckle health secretary over NHS frontline cuts – Daily Mirror

Blundering Tories proved yet again they have no idea how to run the NHS with a shambolic attempt to reveal how many nurses they have sacked since the election, reported the Daily Mirror.

Male under-employment has doubled over the last four years – TUC

The number of men doing part-time jobs because they can't find full-time work has more than doubled over the last four years, according to a new TUC analysis of official figures.

Ministers told Work Programme scheme must ensure people are in work – Guardian

Ministers must demonstrate they have properly accounted for risks in their Work Programme after getting the scheme off the ground in just a year, a group of MPs has said, reported the Guardian.

14 May

The truth about tax – BBC Panorama

Panorama investigated how some of the UK's most famous companies avoid millions in tax.

Doctors vote on industrial action over pensions – Financial Times

More than 100,000 National Health Service doctors began voting on Monday on taking industrial action for the first time since 1975, over changes to pensions, reported the Financial Times.

Amputees could lose disability benefits – Independent

The Independent reported that amputees, including wounded soldiers, could be among half a million people to lose their disability benefits under government reforms, the work and pensions secretary has warned.

13 May

Work harder, William Hague tells Britons – Sunday Telegraph

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph foreign secretary William Hague told the government’s business critics to stop “complaining” and to “get on with the task of delivering more of those jobs”.

Trade in sensitive personal data uncovered by secret investigation – Observer

The Observer reported that the C4's Dispatches records private investigator selling bank details and criminal and medical records to reporters.

12 May

Co-operatise the state? – Red Pepper

Red Pepper magazine founding editor Hilary Wainwright asks can the co-op movement be one source of alternatives to marketisation?

GMB celebrated International Nurses’ Day in the midst of “torrid” time for the NHS – GMB

GMB warned that an 11% fall in district nurses since 2010 is adding to the pressure on cash-strapped hospitals.

Public and Commercial Services Union