Tag: New Year message

Britain needs a pay rise

If I have one message for this government at the start of 2022, it is this: Britain needs a pay rise (writes TUC General Secretary FRANCES O’GRADY).

Families are bracing themselves for a cost of living storm in 2022. Bills are rising – fuel and energy bills fastest of all. Millions of working households have been hit by the cut to universal credit – and will be hit this year by the hike to national insurance.  

As the Omicron variant sweeps through the country, over-worked and under-paid staff in the NHS and public services are put under intolerable strain. Industries like travel, hospitality and entertainment hit by government guidance need help targeted at protecting pay packets, not just business profits. And with self-isolation rates sky-high, too many families will be forced to survive on measly sick pay of just £96 per week – or no sick pay at all.   

Our economy will only recover when working people can afford to spend in local shops and businesses. That’s the way to boost demand, grow the economy and protect jobs. 

This Conservative government has had eleven years to get wages rising. And they have failed, over and over again.  

We are still in the longest period of pay stagnation since the Napoleonic wars. Real wages for millions are less than they were before the bankers’ crisis in 2008.  

And, unless ministers act now, the future looks bleak. Real wages are set to barely move between now and 2026. They will go up by a miserable £760 in total – about £150 a year.  

So, in 2022, we need a long-term economic plan to get wages rising across the economy. If we could get real wage growth to mirror the average growth in the ten years before the global financial crash, real wages would grow by £500 per year – leaving workers £2500 per year better off by 2026.  

If this Conservative government had achieved that over the past lost decade, workers would be around £8,000 better off today in real terms. 

As always, the best way to get wages rising is to give workers the power to bargain for better pay from their employers.  

Ministers should get round the table with unions and employers to hammer out sector-wide fair pay agreements – and every employer should be bound by them.  

Take social care – where more than three in five are still paid less than £10 per hour. Let’s make every social care employer in the country sit down and negotiate fair wages with unions representing social care workers. And let’s make every employer in that sector pay the wage negotiated. That’s how we keep dedicated people working in social care – and reward them fairly.  

Fair pay agreements work all over the world. And they could work here too. They are a sensible, modern solution to the problems of staff shortages, low skills, and low pay. And they will stop a race to the bottom on pay and conditions.  

2022 is also the time for a new deal for working people. In 2022, let’s raise the minimum wage to at least £10 per hour immediately, ban the zero hours contracts that trap workers in poverty and insecurity, outlaw fire and rehire, and end outsourcing.  

Key workers, who went beyond the call of duty, are exhausted and demoralised. If ministers can fast-track lucrative Covid contracts to their mates, they can afford to give hardworking key workers the real pay rise they have earned. Or we’ll see yet more dangerous staffing gaps open up in our precious public services. 

The government can’t sit this wages crisis out. The pandemic showed us that our society keeps functioning because of the dedication of ordinary women and men, going to work day in day out.  

After decades of real wage cuts and falling living standards, no one can seriously say working people don’t deserve a pay rise.  

That’s my priority, and the priority of the whole union movement, in 2022. The prime minister should shape up and make it his priority too.  

I wish you, your family and workmates happiness, good health and security in 2022 and always.  

Prime Minister celebrates success of vaccine programme in New Year’s message

  • Prime Minister hails success of vaccine programme and heroic public response to booster campaign in New Year’s message
  • Comes as every eligible adult in England aged 18 and over has now had the chance to get a COVID-19 booster jab
  • Prime Minister reflects on global achievements of UK over the last year including fastest economic growth in the G7 and record investments in tech sector

The Prime Minister will deliver his New Year’s message today (Friday 31 December) where he will celebrate the achievements of the vaccination programme over the last year with over 7 in 10 eligible adults in England boosted so far – an increase of 8 million top up jabs (45%) since the target was brought forward on 12 December.

In his New Year’s message, he will announce we’ve met the target to offer the chance to get a COVID-19 booster to every eligible adult and urge those who haven’t yet been jabbed to take up the offer of a booster, or their first or second dose.

The Prime Minister will also reflect on the achievements of the UK throughout the past year. The UK has had the fastest economic growth in the G7, record employment levels and massive global investments in the British tech sector this year.

The Prime Minister will also urge people who are celebrating to exercise caution by taking a test, practicing good hygiene, and letting fresh air in, and to follow the COVID-19 guidance if they’re living in Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland.

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, will say: “Happy New Year. 2022 is almost upon us. And whatever the challenges that fate continues to throw in our way and whatever the anxieties we may have about the weeks and months ahead, particularly about omicron and the growing numbers in hospitals…we can say one thing with certainty – our position this December the 31st is incomparably better than last year.

“This country has the fastest economic growth in the G7. We have more people in work now than there were before the pandemic began. And if you want a sign of future growth – look at the massive global investment in British high tech. Almost £30 billion into the UK tech sector this year – twice as much tech investment as Germany, three times as much as France.

“And there is one reason – one overriding reason – why the UK has been able to maintain the most open economy and society of any major European economy. And that is because the British people have responded heroically, voluntarily, and in almost incredible numbers to the call to get vaccinated.

“And as I speak tonight on New Year’s Eve, we’ve met our target, we’ve doubled the speed of the booster roll out. And it’s precisely because of that huge national effort that we can celebrate tonight at all. Though I must of course urge everyone to be cautious and to take a test if you are going out and to remember the importance of ventilation. Follow the rules if you are in Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland.

“And I want to speak directly to all those who have yet to get fully vaccinated. The people who think the disease can’t hurt them – look at the people going into hospital now, that could be you. Look at the intensive care units and the miserable, needless suffering of those who did not get their booster, that could be you.

“So, make it your New Year’s resolution – far easier than losing weight or keeping a diary – find a walk-in centre or make an online appointment. Get that jab and do something that will make 2022 a happy New Year for us all.”

On 30 November, the government set out its ambition to offer all eligible adults the chance to get their booster by the end of January. This target was brought forward by the Prime Minister earlier this month in response to the emerging threat of the Omicron variant in order to protect the public as quickly as possible.

Some eligible people may not yet have been able to receive their booster yet due to catching COVID-19. The vaccination programme requires the majority of people infected with COVID-19 to wait 28 days following infection before receiving a vaccine.

After the 28 days have passed, people are encouraged to book their booster as soon as they can. Those eligible for a booster vaccine who have delayed making an appointment because of other acute illnesses are also encouraged to book as soon as they are fully recovered.

It is vital to get a first and second jab, in order to be eligible for a booster to get the vital protection against Omicron. Recent UKHSA data shows people who are unvaccinated are up to eight times more likely to be hospitalised than those who are fully vaccinated.

SUCCESS? UK daily Covid cases reached another record high of 189,846 on Friday with 203 deaths reported within 28 days of a positive test …

Recover and Reset: TUC General Secretary’s New Year message

In her New Year message, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady thanks key workers for keeping the country running through the pandemic. And she calls on the government to invest in levelling up all parts of the UK and achieving full employment: 

Amid the grief and hardship of the pandemic, 2020 will be remembered for everyone together out on the doorstep to celebrate our key workers. 

We all knew who kept this country running through the pandemic. Not hedge fund chiefs, corporate outsourcing giants or government ministers. 

But supermarket staff, delivery drivers, telecoms workers, bus drivers, social care workers, health professionals and all our key workers. 

Ordinary working people stepping up to do their jobs in extraordinary times. 

And yet, even as we applauded them, this government let them down. 

Leaving them to struggle in services threadbare after ten years of austerity cuts, too often short staffed and with inadequate PPE. And then, adding insult to injury, freezing their pay.  

So our wish for 2021 can be expressed in two short words: recover and reset.  

New Year hope comes in the form of a vaccine, created by brilliant scientists and delivered by our precious NHS. 

And this is the time to genuinely level up across the UK 

But to do that, government must come up with a realistic plan. 

The chaos has to stop. 

This festive season, across much of the country, pubs and restaurants are silent, high streets deserted, theatres closed and whole sectors in limbo. We face another national lockdown. 

With the new strain of the virus spreading so fast, the roll-out of the vaccine must be more comprehensive and faster too – before a real recovery is possible. 

And all at a time when trade with our nearest neighbours in the EU is set to become more expensive and more bureaucratic. 

Working people, and the businesses that employ them, urgently need transparency and security. 

We need to know that government will do what it takes to support working families – protect the NHS, save jobs and get the economy back on its feet. 

Throughout 2020’s national crisis, the UK’s trade union movement worked hard to protect livelihoods, and to support public health. We can be proud of the jobs we saved and the workplaces we made safe. 

Now we must make Britain’s economic goal for 2021 full and decent employment. We cannot afford the cost of mass unemployment. It is never a price worth paying. 

The chancellor must guarantee full furlough until we are through the crisis. 

He must invest in good new jobs – in the green tech we need to tackle climate change and in the public services we all rely on. 

And to smooth the disruption of the government’s third-rate Brexit deal, he needs to boost UK manufacturing with a £10bn recovery fund to create good new jobs. 

Real recovery must mean higher living standards for working families – not just those the top. So we need to reset our country too. 

Reset our labour market – banning the zero hours contracts that keep workers poor and powerless. Delivering the enhanced rights at work that ministers have long promised. 

Reset raging inequality so that those with most pay their fair share, everyone earns enough to live on, no child need go hungry and public services are properly funded. 

Reset regional divides – levelling up our country and bringing good jobs and investment to the parts of the country that need them most.  

And government must act to end the systemic racism that harms Black and ethnic minority workers and families.  Whatever our race, religion or background, all working people deserve dignity and fairness at work. 

Recover and reset. That’s how we build a society that works for everyone. 

In 2021, trade unions will be out there fighting for that vision, for our members, and for all working people. 

I wish you, your family and workmates happiness, good health and security in 2021 and always. 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s New Year message

Well folks we are coming to the end of 2020.

The year in which the Government was forced to tell people how to live their lives, how long to wash their hands, how many households could meet together.

And a year in which we lost too many loved ones before their time.

So I can imagine that there will be plenty of people who will be only too happy to say goodbye to the grimness of 2020.

But just before we do, I want to remind you that this was also the year when we rediscovered a spirit of togetherness, of community.

It was a year in which we banged saucepans to celebrate the courage and self-sacrifice of our NHS staff and care home workers

A year in which working people pulled the stops out to keep the country moving in the biggest crisis we have faced for generations – shopworkers, transport staff, pharmacists, emergency services, everyone, you name it.

We saw a renewed spirit of volunteering, as people delivered food to the elderly and vulnerable.

And time after time as it became necessary to fight new waves of the virus, we saw people unite in their determination, our determination, to protect the NHS and to save lives.

Putting their lives, your lives, on hold. Buying precious time for medicine to provide the answers, and it has.

In 2020 we have seen British scientists not only produce the world’s first effective treatment of the disease, but just in the last few days a beacon of hope has been lit in the laboratories of Oxford.

A new room temperature vaccine that can be produced cheaply and at scale, and that offers literally a new lease of life to people in this country and around the world.

And with every jab that goes into the arm of every elderly or vulnerable person, we are changing the odds, in favour of humanity and against Covid.

And we know that we have a hard struggle still ahead of us for weeks and months, because we face a new variant of the disease that requires a new vigilance.

But as the sun rises on 2021 we have the certainty of those vaccines.

Pioneered in a UK that is also free to do things differently, and if necessary better, than our friends in the EU.

Free to do trade deals around the world.

And free to turbocharge our ambition to be a science superpower.

From biosciences to artificial intelligence,

and with our world-leading battery and wind technology we will work with partners around the world,

not just to tackle climate change but to create the millions of high skilled jobs this country will need not just this year – 2021 – as we bounce back from Covid, but in the years to come.

This is an amazing moment for this country.

We have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it.

And I think it will be the overwhelming instinct of the people of this country to come together as one United Kingdom – England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland working together to express our values around the world.

Leading both the G7 and the COP 26 climate change summit in Glasgow – and an open, generous, outward looking, internationalist and free trading global Britain that campaigns for 12 years of quality education for every girl in the world.

2021 is the year we can do it, and I believe 2021 is above all, the year when we will eventually do those everyday things that now seem lost in the past.

Bathed in a rosy glow of nostalgia, going to the pub, concerts, theatres, restaurants, or simply holding hands with our loved ones in the normal way.

We are still a way off from that, there are tough weeks and months ahead.

But we can see that illuminated sign that marks the end of the journey, and even more important, we can see with growing clarity how we are going to get there.

And that is what gives me such confidence about 2021. Happy New Year!

New Year message from Scottish Secretary Alister Jack

I think we can all agree we will be glad to see the back of 2020 (writes Scottish Secretary ALISTER JACK).

We have spent months living through a global pandemic and our lives are almost unrecognisable from a year ago. For many, the tin lid on 2020 was the last minute – but sadly essential – restrictions on Christmas and immediately after.

These restrictions, and the personal sacrifices so many people have made throughout the pandemic, are not easy, but they are vital if we want to continue to protect our NHS and save lives.

I want to send my deepest condolences to all those who have lost loved ones to this cruel virus. We must not lose sight of the individual lives behind the statistics and we must keep working together to ensure that we defeat this virus for good.

But as we say farewell to 2020, we should also take a moment to consider just how much we have all achieved in this most difficult of years.

Over the past few months, we have risen to the challenge of this new virus. Confronting it with collective resilience, compassion, and generosity.

I would like to thank everyone who has done so much this year.

Our frontline workers – from health care staff to supermarket workers, teachers and everyone in between – have been nothing short of heroic. Looking after the ill, supporting the vulnerable, and keeping the country going. They have been an inspiration to us all. And our armed forces have been magnificent, helping all parts of the country throughout the pandemic.

So many others have done their bit too. From picking up shopping and prescriptions for those who needed it, to organising spirit-lifting video chats and amazing charity fundraisers – individuals up and down the country have gone out of their way to look after friends, relatives, and neighbours, as well as strangers in need.

With vaccines now rolling out across the UK, we are starting to see light at the end of the covid tunnel. We can now look to 2021 with optimism and confidence, and make it a year of successful recovery and regeneration.

We have put in place the foundations to build back better from covid. From the New Year, with a great deal now in place with the EU, our coastal communities will flourish, and we will open up new global opportunities for Scottish businesses.

The UK Government will continue to drive forward its ambitious programme of economic growth, through city deals, our Union connectivity review, and new freeports across the UK. We will continue to lead the world on climate change and will bring the world to Glasgow for COP26 in November.

With the UK pulling together, 2021 will put us firmly on the road to recovery.

The last thing we need in a year of opportunity is for Scotland to be mired in calls for another unwanted, divisive independence referendum. Now is not the time. Scottish people want instead to see the UK Government and the devolved administrations working together, in everyone’s best interest. We urge the Scottish Government to work with us to focus on supporting jobs and driving Scotland’s economic recovery.

As we begin this new chapter, my firm hope is that, UK-wide, we embrace the many opportunities ahead of us. I believe that our future is bright.

I wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year, and a better 2021.

TUC head calls on labour movement to pull together and avoid “self-pity and recriminations”

Working families won’t be sorry to see the back of the 2010s. It’s been a decade of austerity and pay stagnation – putting real pressure on family finances, the NHS and the public services we all rely on, writes TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady … Continue reading TUC head calls on labour movement to pull together and avoid “self-pity and recriminations”

Let’s Get To Work: Prime Minister’s New Year message

That distinctive sound you may have heard at midnight as the bongs of Big Ben faded away was not the popping of champagne corks or the crackle of fireworks from your neighbour’s garden.

Rather it was the starting gun being fired on what promises to be a fantastic year and a remarkable decade for our United Kingdom. Continue reading Let’s Get To Work: Prime Minister’s New Year message

“Optimism and Hope”: Prime Minister’s New Year Message

In a video message to the country on New Year’s Day, Prime Minister Theresa May said: “New Year is a time to look ahead and in 2019 the UK will start a new chapter. The Brexit deal I have negotiated delivers on the vote of the British people and in the next few weeks MPs will have an important decision to make. If Parliament backs a deal, Britain can turn a corner. Continue reading “Optimism and Hope”: Prime Minister’s New Year Message

Prime Minister Theresa May’s New Year message

2017 has been a year of progress for the United Kingdom.

In January, I set out our objectives for the Brexit negotiations, and in the months since we have pursued them with steady purpose.

In March we triggered Article 50, putting the decision of the British people into action.

In December we reached agreement on the first phase of negotiations with our EU partners.

Next year we will move on to the vital issues of trade and security, and I am determined that we will keep up our progress in 2018.

Because whichever way you voted in the referendum, most people just want the government to get on and deliver a good Brexit, and that’s exactly what we are doing.

Making a success of Brexit is crucial, but it will not be the limit of our ambitions.

We also have to carry on making a difference here and now on the issues that matter to people’s daily lives.

That means building an economy fit for the future and taking a balanced approach to government spending, so we get our debt falling but can also invest in the things that matter – our schools, our police and our precious NHS.

Our goal is simple: more good jobs in every part of the country, and more opportunities for young people to get on in life.

The first step to a better future is getting a place at a good school.

It’s what every parent expects, and it’s what every child deserves.

So we will build more good schools, keep a tight focus on standards and discipline, and give more help and support to our fantastic teachers.

We will build more homes, so housing becomes more affordable and more families can get on – and climb up – the housing ladder.

And we will protect and enhance our natural environment for the next generation.

2018 is a special year in the life of one of our most cherished institutions, as we will celebrate the 70th birthday of our National Health Service.

It is a year to rededicate ourselves to its founding ideal: that good healthcare should be available to everyone, regardless of income.

And it’s a chance to celebrate the care and compassion of our wonderful NHS staff.

We will continue to invest in our NHS and ensure it can deliver a world-class service now and for generations to come.

As we mark the centenary of the end of the First World War, and remember the tremendous sacrifices of that conflict, the UK will remain a champion of peace and order around the world.

Together with our allies, we will continue the fight against all forms of extremism, and support our security services as they work every day to keep us safe.

When we host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in April we’ll work with our partners to tackle global problems like climate change and plastic waste in our oceans.

And as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first votes for women, let’s vow to eliminate all prejudice and discrimination from our society.

Because in the United Kingdom in 2018, everyone deserves the chance to succeed and everyone has a right to be treated with respect.

That means safe workplaces, free from harassment.

And it also means a public sphere where debate is constructive and courteous, and where we treat each other with decency.

Of course any year brings its challenges – that is true for each of us personally, as much as for our country and the world.

But the real test is not whether challenges come; it’s how you face them.

Whether you allow a task to overcome you, or tackle it head on with purpose and resolve.

I believe 2018 can be a year of renewed confidence and pride in our country.

A year in which we continue to make good progress towards a successful Brexit deal, an economy that’s fit for the future, and a stronger and fairer society for everyone.

And whatever challenges we may face, I know we will overcome them by standing united as one proud union of nations and people.

I hope that 2018 is a great year for you and your family – and I wish everyone a very happy new year.