Analysis

In 2020, McKenzie beat Holmes on nominations – but won less than a third of Holmes’s votes

Candidates plugged into a union machine can organise nominations – but this clearly doesn’t equate to rank and file support

Unison’s Paul Holmes

Unison’s last general secretary election, which took place last year, carries at least one important message for the equivalent contest now taking place in Unite – that if the ‘machine left’ gets between the grassroots and its preferred candidate, the results are likely to be disastrous.

Happily, today’s Unison national executive election results go some way toward improving the situation in that normally right-dominated union – but Unison’s race also carries another vital message.

In the Unison contest Christine McAnea, backed by Labour First and other right-wing groups, managed 212 nominations. Roger McKenzie, who was supported by much of the left establishment, scored 113 branches to the 102 supporting grassroots candidate Paul Holmes, with Hugo Pierre bringing up the rear on 31.

But when members voted, Holmes received 45,220 votes – more than three times the 14,450 who backed McKenzie.

Holmes, the grassroots left fighter, was the nearest equivalent in that contest to Howard Beckett in the Unite race – and ran a campaign generating far more enthusiasm and energy than any of his rivals. Had others got out of the way – as Skwawkbox and others warned they needed to – the usually right-run Unison would have been alongside Unite as a force for positive change in the Labour party as well as the workplace, giving the country a far healthier political landscape for the benefit of their members.

Today’s results in the Unison NEC elections show that the appetite for clear left leadership among union members is only growing, however much the machine and its ‘blue-tick’ supporters say to the contrary.

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60 comments

  1. Skawbox you are talking of a difference in number between Holmes and McKenzie of 11 branches. The fatal mistake you are making is not weighting the branches.
    Holmes gain the nominations of some of the bigger Unison branches. Hence, in weight Holmes probably got more than McKenzie.
    In Unite’s case Turner got almost 200 nominations more than Beckett and while Beckett seems to win smaller community branches; Turners and Graham get the big industrial branches. Once you consider the weight of the branches Turner is miles ahead.
    Beckett and Graham should do the decent thing and stand down to ensure that Coyne doesn’t stand a chance to win. I don’t doubt Sharon Graham will keep her job either in Unite or another Trade Union will hire her. The same with Steve Turner..
    However, should Coyne win Beckett would be out of the door never to be employed by other affiliated Trade Unions and with him the Unite Community branches will go to, since they are where the ones that support Beckett the most.

    1. Skwawkbox.org is EXACTLY correct. Nomination processes are subject to the dirtiest backroom stitch ups. FACT. A tiny portion of the group or organisation have the advantage of determining who gets nominated. The nominations do not reflect actual or potential support.

      Note well Jeremy did not get as many nominations as the Owen Smiths, Eagles etc who were all soundly rejected by the many by INCREASING margins. They had nothing to offer to the many then. They still don’t.

      Note the battle Bernie Sanders had to be nominated too. Then, before being put to the NATIONAL vote he stood down TWICE. I’m positive he could have defeated Trump. Even Trump thought so. But the early stages of ALL elections here, across the pond and elsewhere, are easily manipulated by the few at the expense of the views of the many.

      HOWARD BECKETT fight to the end🚩🚩🚩
      Those who clamour for a candidate to step aside to allow a deadweight, to tow the line of the Status Quo should be told – You Turner et al step aside. Howard Becket is THE only choice to help protect the “Left” from the Right Wing
      🌹🧲🌹🧲🌹🧲

      1. windchime –
        “Skwawkbox.org is EXACTLY correct. Nomination processes are subject to the dirtiest backroom stitch ups.”
        As confirmed by Howard Beckett
        https://twitter.com/i/status/1360594220399157248

        “Note well Jeremy did not get as many nominations as the Owen Smiths, Eagles etc”
        That probably had much more to do with Jeremy not actually needing any nominations than anything else. Being the incumbent Corbyn was included on the ballot paper as of right.

      2. SH it’s obvious you are fully aware that re Jeremy, i was referring to when Jeremy FIRST stood for leadership. I remember a nail biting time REPORTED on the MSM re if he would gain sufficient nominations. You obviously do too, yet even despite the facts you attempt to deceive readers of Skwawkbox.org

        You know that FULL well SH. SH it’s you SteveH, davidH et al through and through. Your regular attempts to twist words is proof once again that the “Left” should recognise u Right Wing lot as nonconvertible, non redeemable, committed to infinite deceit, breaking every rule to achieve your aims.

        The “Left” must accept that it is your Right Wing choice to be as you have chosen to be. It is NOT our job to catch “flies” and “convert them” by threats nor feeding more “honey”. Flies must be dumped with the other rubbish. In any case the obsession with MSM and Right Wing response is the curse of the “Left”. I heard it CONSTANTLY. “The media will go bonkers” etc etc. Unforgivably pathetic to stand for something yet dilute it or even dump it JUST to please those committed to evil aims.

        Hence the chronic timidity and unforced lavish appeasements. How more extravagant could the “Left” be as to recommend a repellant creature for a peerage. That inexcusable act tells us more than we need to know re why EVERYTHING was sacrificed to the disgusting “Broad Church”.
        ♦️👁‍🗨♦️👁‍🗨♦️👁‍🗨

      3. Well said Signpost. The members should be allowed to vote for a proper Left Wing Socialist. I’ve had enough of the Region, Branch stitch ups in either Unite or the Labour Party. Also no more of this Bullshit only one from the Left otherwise the Right will win.

      4. Thanks baz2001. Also re those clamouring for one candidate so early in the race, why don’t they tell Turner & Graham to stand aside❔
        Let Howard Beckett be the one candidate. He is the only candidate showing life and courage to speak up on key issues.

        ps NEVER trust anyone who says they don’t want to play politics IN POLITICS. It’s a deceitful SH type nonsense. Ditto those who say they are not factional. Logic, if they are not factional, they stand for nothing. They are blown by any wind of the one percent. It’s like saying you don’t want to take sides between a fox and your hens.

        🅰️🎯🅰️🎯🅰️🎯

  2. “He has NO previous background as any sort of union , or any other sort, of socialist militant in his entire background. Not even at university”

    From Beckett’s webpage: :
    Howard was born in Northern Ireland in 1969. He was brought up through the Troubles and this formed his politics.

    His father is from London and his mother from Waterford in the South of Ireland. Both of Howard’s parents were shop stewards. His mother, as a woman from the South of Ireland, worked as a District nurse in some of the areas of Northern Ireland most affected by sectarian violence. As with everyone growing up in Northern Ireland at this time sectarianism was a daily part of life and in many ways this formed Howard’s drive to fight for justice and a fairer society.

    Howard was fortunate enough to gain A levels and to be the first generation of his family to get to University where he studied law. Howard worked his way through University and subsequently through his professional exams. Shortly after qualifying, Howard decided to set up a partnership based in Wallasey offering advice to working class communities, opening surgeries in the Leasowe Estate and at The Casa in Liverpool (home of the sacked Liverpool dockers) and taking responsibility for providing pro bono welfare benefits advice to the community of Wallasey when the Welfare Benefits Centre was closed due to a lack of funding.

    Howard ran this practice for 14 years before becoming Unite Legal Director in 2011. He became an Assistant General Secretary (AGS) in 2015. Howard was the Regional Secretary for the West Midlands, working first hand with branches and members to ensure our union delivers. Howard has led for the union in major disputes, including Visteon, Blacklisting, Birmingham bins, British Airways, Ineos recognition, Stobarts Doncaster and many more. He currently leads for the union in our legal support for families of Grenfell and for the unions representations to the SpyCops inquiry. Howard is currently leading on the incredibly important campaigns to end Fire and Rehire. Howard is temporarily overseeing the finance department of the union after the sad passing of our Finance Director. Howard is the AGS for Politics and sits on the Labour Party NEC for Unite. Howard is also Assistant General Secretary for young members, for our Chemicals, Pharmaceutical and Textile Sector and for our Services Sector (including Hospitality). Howard is the union’s lead for Show Racism the Red Card and has been for more than 11 years.

    Howard is a socialist and a very vocal critic of the Labour Party moving to become a party of the establishment, more interested in internal battles than offering socialist opposition to the Government.

    1. Good post, lundiel! Thank you for that.

      It does no harm to get credentials out in the open, from the start.

      1. lundiel : 11/06/2021 at 5:41 pm

        Ah, Denis McShane. That’s all we need to know.

    2. So your daft non sequitur post merely confirm my statement that Howard Beckett has No personal background in militant , or even reformist, Left Wing politics, or trade union activity, before he was paid generously to do his new UNITE job after 2011, at all, not even at university, lundiel ! Merely being ‘brought up in the sectarian troubles’ of Northern Ireland, and building up his law firm with some pro bono work, demonstrates absolutely NOTHING, you silly , covid-denying , person. Your potted CV of Beckett merely reinforces my account, of a self-serving lifelong self-enriching ,multi millionaire property owning, landlord, lawyer, Beckett, attaching himself to a Left-led union, UNITE, and suddenly posturing ‘Left’, – to win over the very electorally important UNITE Left-voting members (in a union with a tiny turnout in elections this is a vital voting bloc).

      You are such a gullible fool, lundiel, that you are hardly worth correcting. You simply believe what you want to believe – even when the facts you quote show what you are claiming is rubbish. But then you are not alone with that amongst so many of Skwawkbox’s regular round-the-clock posters !

      1. Angry frothing gammon Wolfie the only authentic Socialist in the room strikes again. Repeating what he’s read on all the hit pieces directed at Beckett “even when the facts you quote show what you are claiming is rubbish.” Facts are facts Wolfie, I have made no claim I merely made his potted bio available for people to make their own minds up rather than accept the diatribe you snaffled from the MSM. A quick perusal of Google brings up hit piece after hit piece like this: https://www.thearticle.com/who-should-lead-unite-britains-main-working-class-union-not-howard-beckett
        You should be ashamed of yourself Wolfie.

      2. Wow! Things just got weird.

        Instead of name-calling, why don’t you ‘correct’, lundiel, where you think s/he needs correcting, and then give us your version.

        It seemed fairly straight-forward, to me. Brought up, during The Troubles, in N.I. by his father and mother, both shop stewards and active in their respective Trade Union.

        ‘A’ Levels. Law student. Professional exams. Moved to Wallasey… Well, you can recap on the rest yourself.

        What was it that irked you, so much?

      3. That is a stupid comment even by your lamentable standards jpenny.

    3. I actually had to make use of the welfare centre (pre-closure) in Wallasey a few years back, when the dwp stopped me dad’s attendance for no reason. (Apparently putting the same things on the form as you did the year before is no reason to continue the claim, according to the bright sparks of the dwp)

      After one of them mandatory reconsiderations, and thanks to the welfare centre’s intervention/assistance, not only did the dwp reinstate his AA claim, they put him on the higher rate!? (Yeah, I know!)

      What I didn’t know is that Howard was even based in Wallasey, nevermind offering pro-bono assistance when the centre was closed down.

      Star Turn, H !!

      1. Toffee – If you are unfortunately enough to be in a similar position in the future you may find these guides helpful. They give the exact criteria that DWP ‘decision makers’ use.
        https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/decision-makers-guide-staff-guide#documents
        It is always worth consulting these guides before returning DWP assessment or claim forms. It is surprising the difference that a minor change in the form of words used can make. Play them at their own game.

  3. I am pleased to see a resurgence of the left wing in unison a union that I have spent more time with in defence of the NHS and stood on the picket lines with .A revival in union power may not be good news for our PLP and the Labour leader but its inevitable that the working-class movement will rise agai

  4. But as a left wing working class democratic socialist I try to judge candidates by their ideas. First I heard Turner speak twice including at a hustings, he was very poor. My chat posts exposed his lack of critical thinking and when it came to the nomination, 81% of the diverse working class Unite attendees backed Howard. I actually regard Graham as Right Wing, thinking we must focus only on the workplace. But political policies affect all areas of life. A work colleague may be desperate for social housing, may have a friend with mental health issues, may be on UC, may have family on hospital waiting lists for operations, may have parents in care homes etc etc but with Graham is it once you clock off, you are on your own. But we believe in solidarity in a holistic way – no workplace is an island! And Howard’s ideas: build the strike fund to £50m, £350 a week to strikers – levels up the field a bit in capital v Labour in industrial struggles. More organisers to work with and support precarious workers – fights back against the Tory Neo-Liberal drive for cheap Labour. A Unite TV – counters Right Wing monopoly of the media. Only one candidate is a politicalh heavyweight and that’s Howard Beckett. As Howard said in a hustings, “Do you remember the dream we had with Jeremy Corbyn, I will keep it alive.” Solidarity!

  5. The “grassroots” designation is the bit I relate to most and value in both Holmes and Beckett.

    And – entirely due to the atrocious behaviour and anti-democratic management of Sir Keir Rodney Starmer, Evans, Hodge, Mandelson etc. – this penchant of mine has wider appeal than I ever thought possible. For The Many, not the Few and the current administration’s rejection of it, makes any democratic socialist who recognises socialism – and the good it can deliver – as a Bottom-Up dynamic, a person I want to lead and influence the Labour Movement.

  6. If voting followed the same pattern ss the nominations have, then Turner should have bugger all to worry about.

    And those saying Beckett should stand down to prevent a coyne victory need to explain why, if they believe the least popular candidate by nomination (coyne) is supposedly the greater threat to Turner, or a leftist victory (I’m to be convinced by both Turner or Graham’s credentials although I confess I don’t know – simply because they haven’t made themselves heard, much unlike Beckett) )

    Anyone know how the voting went for the nominations in the branches? Was coyne a close second in a lot of them? Or were they more reflective of the overall current standings?

    I ask that because with the lackadaisical turnout for McCluskey’s victory last time out (The one that wee stevie complains about incessantly) it leads me to believe that members who DO bother to vote will usually vote the way their conveners/stewards may ‘suggest’ rather than actually do their own homework about the candidates.

    Was certainly the way I seen it for the regionals when in the CWU many years ago. I doubt things have changed that much.

    In order to prove unite is a socialist trade union, coyne has to be fooked off altogether by the rank & flue. If he DOES manage to slither in under the door then it will prove unite is NOT socialist.

    1. Yup, but in 2017 Len McCluskey won with 57,067 votes, but Coyne got 53,544. I wouldn’t right him off and with three sond candidates on the left and our votes going to all of them, a sleekit like Coyne could actually win.

      Starmer and the pro-light-regulation capitalist right are bankng on it.

      1. And STILL some advise us to “catch flies with honey”. And McCluskey and John McDonnell say “calm down”… “unify with” people so dismissive of us, that they don’t even hide their atrocities. Yet STILL people say no choice… prattle on with preposterous suggestions that Jeremy could not have won without Turner. Absolute tosh! If what we need is another McCluskey then it is not that people ask the wrong questions. They ask no questions at all. The continued outrages by Mandelson directed Starmer & Evans was PREDICTABLE and PREDICTED right here on Skwawkbox.org. Those who refuse to learn have NO useful contribution to make to the “Left”. They are obstacles to change. They are our biggest problem.

        🟪🔁🟪🔁🟪🔁

      2. Ordinarily I’d ask if youbere joking, but we know the enemy of stammer’s enemy is his friend.

        That they used that as an excuse is beyond taking the piss.

        Still, patel has already proved her worth to Israel, eh?

    1. Oh dear,
      I mentioned a few weeks ago that the deadline for his inevitable replacement by Unite was fast approaching

      1. George – “Coincidence?”
        Not really, I pointed out at the time that the deadline for unions to nominate their representatives on the NEC is June 11th and that It is expected that Beckett will therefore be replaced by Unite with another representative.

      2. SteveH : 11/06/2021 at 10:15 pm

        I was brought up with The Goon Show, The Navy Lark, the original Just a Minute, the original I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue(Willie Rushton et al.) etc, etc.

        If you don’t have a sense of the ridiculous, there’s no point in answering any of my posts.

        All you’re doing is confirming yourself as a pedantic tw*t, with little – to no – sense of humour.

      3. George – Thank you for the insight, I’ll try and remember to compensate for this in future.

  7. Heres what you do
    You get up at 5 o’clock to go to the banging heads together meeting for 7pm, there are 4 people at the meeting, 3 candidates and Len
    You will stay in that meeting until clear Red Water has been agreed for whoever goes forward, these are the lines you dont cross, this is whats expected of you, Len will record it in blood
    You then draw straws and the 2 unsuccessful candidates agree to campaign night and day for the winner
    I have no idea what kind of golden step down could be given to those who draw the short straws

    1. Doug – I don’t think that your plan would work.
      From the point of view of the candidates what would they gain from the discussions and and agreeing to red lines if they are going to be selected by chance.

      We’ve already seen which candidate (and which policies) came out of the nominations process with a very substantial lead.

      1. Beckett, Graham & Turner need to meet & hammer out a programme on which ONE of them can stand. This seems Turner, who has by far more nominations , 500+ compared to @400 for each of Beckett, Graham, to go forward to DEFEAT COYNE so we can maintain in Unite the spectacular advance in Unison.

      2. Brian – Your ‘estimates’ could give a false impression, here are the official nomination returns

        The numbers of valid nominations received by each candidate are as follows:
        Howard Beckett 328
        Gerard Coyne 196
        Sharon Graham 349
        Steve Turner 525
        The final total may vary slightly from these figures as outstanding issues regarding the validity of some nominations are resolved.
        https://www.unitetheunion.org/news-events/news/2021/june/unite-confirms-nominations-for-general-secretary-election/

      3. SteveH
        Methinks Unison fight back proves you wrong
        Would be good to learn how the lads and lasses there, all with smiling faces
        Turned it around
        Skwawky?

      4. Doug – Really, what have I said above that has been proved wrong?

      5. SteveH
        The left have turned a corner, the Unite left candidates will do what they have to do

      6. Doug – They have only 3 weeks to get their act together. How long will Beckett drag this out before he stands down.

  8. Beckett receives all the hate because the establishment is scared of him. He intends to expand Unite into the gig economy, somewhere other union’s would rather not go. There are almost 5 million people working in the gig economy, they represent one third of the world’s total workforce and the establishment would rather they didn’t become politicised.

  9. The virulent hatred that the Establishment shows True, Bottom-Up Democratic Socialists is, indeed, caused by their fear and as dialectic thinkers we have to recognise that the fear is not one thing, but numerous and that those many fears each intensify the others and engineer Establishment Hysteria.

    Their Hysterical Fear imbues their very thinking. For Marx, the relations borne of capitalism and it systemic contradictions)is the cause of them. Yes, very reasonable but resolute Democratic Socialism of people like Jeremy Corbyn, Paul Homes and Howard Beckett scares them intensely simply by challenging the oligarchy, economic inequality and geopolitical corruption of their late-capitalist neoliberal hegemony.

  10. A fine, sensible, article, by a Tribune writer, in today’s Guardian – on the looming tragedy of the split Left vote for UNITE GS. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jun/12/unite-general-secretary-unions-labour-left Refreshing after the months long sectarian, fact-mangling bullshit from Skwawkbox, and its daft below the line constant sectarian posters

    Too many of the usual , reality-denying, sectarian suspects posting on here 24/7 are so obsessed with petty point-scoring for their particular chosen Left candidate – they can no longer grasp that under FPTP the guaranteed consequence of a three-way Left candidate vote split is that utterly Right wing ideologue, Coyne succeeds as UNITE GS ! Pitiful Monty Python ‘Life of Brian’ stuff from the shambolic UNITE , and wider, Left !

    Skwawkbox and the SPEW (Militants) support Beckett, but, the SWP/Socialist Worker support Graham , but the Morning Star/CPB support Turner ! But the Le candidates are ALL just golden-pensioned, high salary, insider senior union bureaucrats folks – NONE are likely to be really radical when facing the bosses offensive – that is a rarity amongst union bureaucrats everywhere. Union bureaucrats are by nature and job , appeasers and negotiators , NOT radical smashers of the capitalist system. Their jobs depend on capitalism CONTINUING – so they can bargain (as ‘labour lieutenants of capital’ ) within it , on those huge salaries. Arthur Scargill and a few other real union leader militants, are as rare as hens teeth. So ANY of the three candidates is preferable to Coyne. But rather than standing down, each ‘Left’ careerist will press on – and the Left will lose control of one of the largest unions in the UK ! Tragic folly ! But come the result , as usual, as with the majority Left support for the disastrous Labour 2019 Remain/2nd Ref strategy – the Left will as usual blame someone else , not their own sectarian stupidity !

  11. A reminder that, in 2015, Jeremy Corbyn, just, scraped onto the Leadership Ballot Paper, with the lowest number of nominations in the field.

    Then look what happened.

    Beckett causes a stir wherever he appears. People sit up and pay attention, to what he’s saying. Not dissimilar to JC, as he travelled around the country. Both energise people.

    Personally, I don’t want an old style Union Negotiator, nor someone who channels their ‘inner Thatcher’.

    In the present circumstances, I want a snapping, snarling Socialist, who will show deference to no one.

    That man is Howard Beckett.

    1. And as the rain ☔ comes down on the G7parasites lets hope that they choke on the banquet weve bought and paid for.No matter how hard it rains on them its but a shower compared to the pissing over us the working-class people.Whilst Biden points the finger at China and macron points the finger at Britain,be reassured that they can only stuff so much and dri so much before drowning in their own Vomit.Look carefully at their piggy jowels and realise that they are all facing oblivion in a world of their making.

    2. George – “Then look what happened.”
      We lost 60 seats, the Tories went from having no overall majority to having an 80 seat majority in the House of Commons and for the first time ever the Tories could lay claim to be the party of the working class.
      ….and the upside was?

      1. Where’s The Forde Inquiry Report?

        What is Keir Starmer’s political philosophy?

        …and, apologies for subjecting anyone to this rank amateurish production, by the Cambridge Union, but it gives Corby another chance to air his views, on his time as Leader of The Labour Party :

  12. The upside was, we got to, clearly, see who the treacherous Labour MP’s were, in the PLP.

    Where is The Forde Inquiry Report?

    What is Keir Starmer’s political philosophy?

    1. George – Wow! Is that really the only achievement you could find to credit him with after nearly 5 years in office.

      1. George Peel, your excellent words MUST be repeated.
        Thanks 🌟🌟🌟

        “in 2015, Jeremy Corbyn, just, scraped onto the Leadership Ballot Paper, with the lowest number of nominations in the field.
        Then look what happened.
        Beckett causes a stir wherever he appears. People sit up and pay attention, to what he’s saying. Not dissimilar to JC, as he travelled around the country. Both energise people.
        Personally, I don’t want an old style Union Negotiator, nor someone who channels their ‘inner Thatcher’.
        In the present circumstances, I want a snapping, snarling Socialist, who will show deference to no one.
        That man is Howard Beckett.”

        🌹🌟🌹🌟🌹🌟

      2. I’ll have to assume – which I loathe doing – that you have no idea what Starmer’s political philosophy is, and have as much idea, as the rest of us, what’s happened to The Forde Inquiry Report.

        Jeremy Corbyn energised The Labour Party, in England and Wales. Scotland was, already, a lost cause.

        Labour may have lost GE19, but the plus was Welsh Labour’s performance, in the Welsh Assembly Elections, last month. Using JC’s Manifestos, their results were stellar.

        He increased the Membership from, barely, 100,000 to a whopping – close to – 600,000. That made it the largest party in Europe.

        He paid off The Party’s debts, leaving it with a healthy surplus.

        He inspired people to get involved in politics – me included – for the first time in their lives.

        I find no such inspiration in Keir Starmer. Having a political philosophy may be a start, but I’m no longer holding my breath, on that.

      3. George Peel, excellent again.
        WARNING – No one knows Sir Rodney Starmer’s “political philosophy”.

        Not even he knows, for he has none.

        Sir Rodney Starmer is nothing but an amoebic opportunist. The ideal tool of the DEEP international Establishment. That’s why they selected Rodney to be their tool.
        ✂️🔱🔵✂️🔱🔵✂️🔱🔵

      4. windchimes – It was the Labour party’s membership that selected Keir to lead the party.

      5. SH it’s as u know despite your pretence, SIR Rodney Keith Starmer deceived his way to the position. Sir Rodney is propelled by the determination of Right Wing forces to destroy the Labour party once and for all.
        Deceit add destruction of all that’s good = SIR Rodney Keith Starmer
        🆘🕹🆘🕹🆘🕹

      6. SteveH : 12/06/2021 at 7:02 pm

        Not forgetting – he lied through his teeth, to get there.

  13. As a working class left wing democratic socialist who left Labour 10 seconds after political moron Starmer got elected I perhaps am in a minority who has actually has read Marx (but not as a bible). And fortunately I was enriched by Paul Frolich’s Rosa Luxembourg’s biography where Rosa warned against bourgeois socialism (Stalinism) and said the best thing we can all bring to the table is our independent critical thinking. I also believe that those of us who have made the effort must communicate with the masses in straightforward language. Thus from this perspective when Howard wants a strike fund of £50m & £350 a week for strikers it levels up the playing field in the battle between Labour and capital. More organisers to work with and support precarious workers fights back against the Tory Neo-Liberal drive for cheap Labour. And a Unite TV challenges the Right Wing monopoly of the media. And thus I would argue these ideas expose Turner & Graham on their ideas as political lightweights. Or – Howard’s a bloody star, Turner fails to meet the bar, Graham’s stuck in a workplace jar, and Coyne should be avoided by bloody far! Solidarity!

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