So there we have it, the big reveal, Any pretence of following 'one nation' Toryism, of 'fixing the burning injustices' in our society, or helping the 'just about managing' have been abandoned in a grim dash to cut taxes for the most well off in our society. It is a wide open field, but perhaps … Continue reading A budget by the rich, for the rich
Dear Richard I am writing to you to raise my concerns about the inaction of your government in relation to the looming energy price cap rise and in particular the impact on energy customers using prepayment meters. As I am sure you are aware, the latest forecast for the energy price cap rise coming into … Continue reading A letter to my MP on the looming energy bills catastrophe
A very bleak winter looms for many across the UK, as the Tories become ever more detached from the lives of ordinary people. A combination of inflation reaching levels not seen since 1990 and stagnant wage increases, particularly among public sector workers, means that many people are being thrust into a catastrophic cost of living … Continue reading The looming cost of living emergency
The fallout from the pandemic has been seen by many in the corporate world as an ideal opportunity to change the terms and conditions of their workforce. Once again we have a Conservative government that is asking ordinary working people to become poorer, while MPs line their pockets with second jobs and the salaries of … Continue reading Tories set sights on trade union reps
Five years on and still we are waiting for anyone to be held accountable. Why is it that the wheels of justice always turn so slowly, if at all, for the working class and marginalised communities? The Grenfell Inquiry has revealed how the pursuit of profit was prioritised over the safety of people, shamefully enabled … Continue reading Five years on from Grenfell
In light of the recent behaviour of Boris Johnson and this week's updating of the Ministerial Code, I have again written to our local MP, Richard Fuller about how these updates further reduce Boris Johnson's accountability and asking him to reconsider his current support for the Prime Minister. The letter is set out in full … Continue reading An open letter to Richard Fuller MP
I have written previously in 'Tories crack the Ministerial Code' about how the current government has significantly eroded the public's trust in politics. In light of the recent behaviour of Boris Johnson and this week's updating of the Ministerial Code, I have again written to my local MP, Richard Fuller about how these updates further … Continue reading An open letter to my Tory MP on changes to the Ministerial Code
The corrosive fallout from the EU referendum, the shock of the Covid-19 pandemic and the horror of the ongoing war in Ukraine have been deeply unsettling and have led many to adopt a somewhat fatalistic approach to the future. It seems that since the financial crash of 2008, UK politics has never reverted back to … Continue reading It’s time for Labour to be bold
The UK's political system has some obvious democratic failings, perhaps the most prominent being the 'first past the post' voting system, which has enabled our current Government to rule as an 'elective dictatorship' on a minority of votes cast. However, there is less obvious inequality of representation created by the lack of working-class voices in … Continue reading Why we need more working-class voices in Parliament
UK homes account for around 15% of our CO2 emissions. A combination of improved energy efficiency and on-site renewable energy would reduce this, as was set out in the zero carbon homes plan, abandoned in 2016. In 1998 a reduced 5% VAT rate was introduced for energy-saving materials such as solar panels, but this didn't … Continue reading The Treasury vs Net Zero Carbon
Julian Vaughan 