For a 100% publicly owned post service

The government’s plans to hand crucial chunks of Royal Mail to a private company such as TNT are a fundamental assault on a key public service. If implemented, they will inevitably lead to a far worse postal system, mass job losses, dozens of mail centre closures, continual demands for undermining of workers’ conditions and pensions, and pressure towards full privatisation.

Everyone should join the campaign to defeat these plans and to defend a 100 percent publicly owned Royal Mail. There are already signs of the potential for revolt among sections of Labour MPs. But, with the Tories enthusiastically supporting the scheme, this is unlikely to be enough. We hope all supporters of the Charter will support the CWU union and other groups in their campaign to halt this privatisation.

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An alternative to the Washington economic summit

On 15 November the leaders of 20 nations will gather in Washington, United States, for a summit to set out a “global economic agenda”.

London trade unionists will head up a protest in the capital on the eve of the summit.

Angry that the Bush-Brown bail out of the banks is allowing the recession to continue to rip through the lives of the poorest while protecting the richest, the protest is called by the London region of the University College Union and the People Before Profit Charter and is supported by Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), Fire Brigade Union (FBU), and National Union of Teachers (NUT) members.

The protest will be outside the Treasury, Whitehall, between 4.30pm and 6pm, Friday 14th November.

The protest is designed to send a message to the summit from working people in Britain demanding that they not be asked to shoulder the cost of an economic crisis that they did not create.

The protest will be followed ten days later by a People’s Alternative Economic Summit on Monday 24th November in University of London Union, Malet Street, Bloomsbury. The meeting will begin at 7pm and speakers include Tony Benn, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Sasha Callaghan of the UCU and Tony Kearns, deputy general secretary of the CWU.

Leaflets for both are available heretreasurydemo3peoples-summit-leaf2

Successful meeting on responding to the economic crisis

Over 300 people came to the meeting on The Economic Crisis at Conway Hall in London, hosted by supporters of the People Before Profit Charter. You can view the speeches at http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=3AE42D9C2FB7B4BC After the meeting, the audience broke into groups to discuss further campaigning activity, and this has already led to a very successful organising meeting in Hackney, bring together a broad range of groups.

A letter from Green MEP Caroline Lucas

Caroline Lucas, the Green MEP for the south east of England, has sent a letter strongly supporting the Charter and suggesting some amendments. The letter is attached.carolinelucas1

Protest in Bristol, 10 October

“We won’t bail out the bankers”
Friday 10 October, 4pm – 6pm
Outsite Bradford and Bingley, Bristol city centre

Bring whistles, drums, and instuments.

• No job cuts
• No home repossessions
• End student poverty

The economic crisis: public meeting, 16 October, London

THE ECONOMIC CRISIS—How bad will it get? What can we do about it?

Thursday 16 October, 7pm, Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, London WC1 (Holborn tube)

SPEAKERS:

• JEREMY CORBYN MP
• LARRY ELLIOTT Economics editor, the Guardian
• MICHELLE STANISTREET Deputy general secretary NUJ
• CHARLIE KIMBER People Before Profit Charter
• PAUL BRANDON Unite union 1/232 Holloway bus garage

CHAIR: Kevin Courtney NUT NEC

All speakers in personal capacity 

Hosted by supporters of the People Before Profit Charter

Successful protest in Cardiff

Protesting for a windfall tax

Around 30 supporters of the People Before Profit Charter held a lively picket outside British Gas’s Cardiff headquarters on Saturday 27 September demanding a windfall tax on energy company super profits.The protest was supported by a wide range of individuals and organisations. Plaid Cymru members of the Welsh Assembly Leanne Wood and Nerys Evans attended, as did veteran left-wing Labour councillor Ray Davies. Several members of Cardiff Trades Council attended, as did representatives from Cardiff Young Greens, the SWP, the Socialist Party and Cymdeithas Yr Iaith Gymraeg (the Welsh Language Society).Leanne Wood described how some estimates suggest up to 25,000 people could die from cold this winter as pensioners and poorer people switch off their heating to save money.”As long as these companies are looking to make profits, people are going to die. The only way to prevent that is to take these companies back into public ownership. If it was good enough for the banks, it’s good enough for British Gas too!” During her speech to the crowd, Leanne Wood told how she had been sent a letter by British Gas urging her not to attend the protest, as had the representative from the Welsh Language Society. Adam Johannes was one of the organisers of the protest. He said that the Charter was having an impact. “We’ve received coverage for this protest in the local newspapers and regional television news. The protest was the top news story on Cardiff’s Red Dragon Radio all day and was only beaten on Real Radio by the US presidential debate!” Charter supporters agreed to move forward by setting up a public launch rally for the Charter in Cardiff. – Jonny Jones, Cardiff.

Tesco announces record profits

Despite the economic crisis, Tesco today announced profits of 1.45 billion pounds for six months, a rise of 10 percent. People Before Profit Charter supporters are holding protests in a number of cities. A leaflet is attached.a5tesco-profits

Join the campaign for a windfall tax

Supporters of the People Before Profit Charter in Cardiff have been busy organising a protest outside British Gas headquarters to highlight the broadly-supported demand for a windfall tax on the obscene profits of the energy giants. The protest has already been backed by some local councillors from Labour and Plaid Cymru, as well as many local activists and trade unionists. Speakers for the protest, who will be announced shortly, will be introduced by Marianne Owens, Vice Chair of the PCS Union in Wales.

Cardiff supporters of the charter have set up a facebook group which already has almost fifty members, and they and are hoping to use the protest as a launch-pad for a public meeting to bring together these people and others to discuss the best way of fighting to achieve the goals it sets out.

Local activist Adam Johannes, said that “British Gas hiked prices to increase profits by 500% last year, now they and the other gas companies have increased bills again. We see no reason why a quarter of the population should be plunged into fuel poverty so that Jake Ulrich, boss of Centrica can “earn” a million pounds a year.

“The government pledged billions to back up Nothern Rock and then nationalise it to bail out some bankers. How about renationalising the gas companies to bail out ordinary people at the mercies of these cowboys? Enough is enough.”

The demonstration will be held at 2pm on Saturday September 27th, outside British Gas headquarters on Churchill Way in Cardiff City Centre.

Several groups of Charter supporters are organising lobbies of MPs to demand a windfall tax. Others are holding events at Tesco after it declares its profits on 30 September.

The Recession – What does it mean for us?

With bosses telling ordinary people to tighten their belts, and disposable income falling by 15% the recession is beginning to hit working people hard. The question of how we respond is becoming more pressing. In light of this People Before Profit are holding a discussion with Paul Mason and Graham Turner on The Recession – What does it mean for us?

Paul Mason  economics editor of Newsnight

Graham Turner of GFC Economics and author of The Credit Crunch

Tuesday 2nd September, 6.30pm, Friends Meeting House, Euston Rd, opp Euston station