STEPHEN HESTER, CHIEF OF THE ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND (RBS), HAS BEEN AWARDED A BONUS WORTH £1 MILLION - AGREED BY THE GOVERNMENT.

THE TAXPAYER HAS ALREADY HAD TO BAIL RBS OUT TO THE TUNE OF BILLIONS OF POUNDS.

Since then,it has failed to meet small business lending targets set by the Government. Now we are expected to cough up £1 million to reward the chief executive for good work. The politician's have failed to stop RBS awarding this bonus to Stephen Hester. Today, lots of them are speaking out, asking him to refuse to accept the money. If we all add our names to a huge petition telling Stephen Hester to refuse his bonus, we can shame him into doing the right thing.

Click here to sign the petition: -

http://secure.38degrees.org.uk/RBS-chief-bonus

The gap between the have and have-nots in our society is getting bigger all the time. Many wealthy bankers, politician's and businessmen seem to live in a different world from the rest of us. In their world, it is the done thing to make as much money as possible  for yourself while watching others struggle to get by. Government Ministers have failed to stop this massive payout - so lets tell Stephen Hester that tens of thousands of us are disgusted at his bonus and demand that he does the right thing.

Today, politician's from all sides have spoken out against the £1 million bonus paid to the RBS chief. A foreign Office Minister, Jeremy Browne MP, said that Mr Hester earned more in three days than a soldier fighting in Afghanistan earns in a year. When half a million of us spoke out together this time last year, we stopped the sell-off of England's woodlands. People power worked! Now, together, we can demand that Stephen Hester does the right thing and refuses his million pound bonus. We will deliver all the signatures to him at the RBS offices.

He might decide that the money means more to him than his sense of what is right and wrong. Or he might bow to our pressure and refuse to accept the payout. One way or another, we can send this bank boss a clear message - tens of thousands of us believe that it is wrong for him to take this money.

Marie Campbell - 38 Degree's 

UNITE THE UNION, SUPPORTS THE STRIKE BY ITS MEMBERS IN CUMMINS, WHO ARE TAKING ACTION TO DEFEND THEIR FINAL SALARY PENSION SCHEME.

THE UNITE MEMBERS IN CUMMINS ARE TAKING ON THE COMPANY BY TAKING INDUSTRIAL ACTION IN DEFENCE OF THEIR CURRENT FINAL SALARY PENSION SCHEME.

As you know, 2500 workers in Unilever have been fighting back for their pensions since the company announced last year that they intended to close the final salary pension scheme, only three years after promising to keep it open for existing staff but closing it to new employees and increasing the contributions by 2%. Unite is the largest union in Unilever with around 1,800 members, and together with GMB and USDAW our members took part in the first ever national strike action the company has seen last December.

They are now in the second phase of strikes, with a ten day rolling strike campaign ongoing across all 12 UK sites having started on 18th January and ending on 28th January 2012. We have been overwhelmed by the support of the members and the public, but we need to increase that support. You can help by: - Getting your branch, workplace or chapel to send donations to the strike fund - cheques should be made payable to "Unite the Union - Unilever" and sent to Jenny Formby, Unite the Union, 128 Theobald's Road, Holborn, London WC1X 8TN.

Circulate the You Tube video to all your mailing lists and make sure that you click on the link - the number watching are increasing every hour and this is really helping to pile the pressure on to the management.

You can watch it at: - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33Theeovg1c&feature=share

Send a message to Paul Polman by clicking on the email link here: - http://www.unitetheunion.org/campaign/unilever - hands off our pensi.aspx

Tweet your support@unitetheunion

Unite members, branches and chapels have a proud history of supporting members in struggle and I hope you will do all  you can to support our members in Unilever.

A.J. Murphy and R. Maddison Unite National Officers

ITS TIME THAT WE MADE A GENUINE ATTEMPT TO STOP THE ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND FAT CATS HAVING BIG BONUS'S

The Royal Bank of Scotland's incompetent bosses are once again determined to pay themselves astronomical bonuses from our taxes. But we can stop these fat cats swallowing more cream.

Despite losing the bank £750 million in the last six months, RBS executive are spending a fortune lobbying the Government and now want to get another £500 million in bonuses. Its a scandal at a time when the cuts are biting all of us. But George Osborne heads up the body that will negotiate the deal. If we raise a massive public stink, the Chancellor could be shamed into rejecting RBS's outrageous claim.

We do not have long to stop this offensive corporate greed. Let's flood the Chancellor's inbox with 100,000 messages from across the country to force a drastic cap on RBS bonuses and ban the use of our money to lobby Government. Click here to stop the great fat-cat rip-off, and then share this with everyone.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop rbs bonuses/?vl

RBS's crash in 2008 shook the global economy, and the British taxpayer had to step in with £45 billion to buy most of the bank. Since then the RBS's management have sold off the best bits of the bank, sacked around 20,000 people, and refused to boost lending to embattled businesses. The share price has plummeted, and British tax payers are currently £23 billion out of pocket.

Shockingly RBS's arrogant executives still want to award themselves "performance" bonuses. It's incredible, but the chief executive wants a repeat of the £6.8 Million that he took in 2011, and the head of the investment banking division wants to cash in share options for over £5 million.

Luis Morago - Avaaz. org

HAS THE LABOUR PARTY LEADER EDWARD MILLIBAND LOST HIS POLITICAL WAY OR IS HE SIMPLY OUT OF HIS DEPTH?

Why does our leadership when attacking the Coalition Government in parliament not concentrate on the obvious strong points. My reading of the situation is as follows: -

• Tax havens have declared war on honest, law-abiding peoples around the world.
• Wealthy Individuals hold over ten trillion dollars offshore.
• Tax havens are the most important single reason why poor people and poor countries stay poor.
• Britain and the Unites States are the world's two most important tax havens.
• Six of the world's top ten tax havens are registered with the City of London.

Could we not bring the attention of the electorate to the following and propose to correct this situation by repealing the 1690 Act.

The City has carved out for itself privilege after privilege, in order to ensure that the rules governing the rest of Britain stop at the City borders. The Statute of William and Mary from 1690, for example, "confirming the Privileges of the Corporation" states: -

All the charters, grants, letters patents, and commissions touching or concerning any of their liberties or franchises, immunities, lands, tenements and hereditaments, rights, titles, or estates of the mayor and commonalty and citizens of the City of London, made or granted to any person or persons whatsoever be and are hereby declared and adjudged null and void to all intents.

Some laws made in Westminister does apply to the Corporation, but many acts of Parliament specifically exempt it, either fully or in part. Hence the City is connected to the British nation state but remains a constitutional elsewhere.

My contention is that if tax was paid by the 73 billionaires registered with the City and if the millionaires, of which there are 45,000 of which only 6,000 pay tax, and 98 of the FTSE 100 are registered "offshore". If these individuals paid tax we would collect at least another £40 billion per year and company taxation would give us even more. This would go a considerable way towards funding our present deficit. No tax increases, no job cuts. What is the problem? Blair, Cameron, and Osborne have their funds "Offshore" that is the problem.

Keith C 

IS IT NOT TIME FOR OUR UK POLITICANS TO APPLY SOME CONSISTANT LOGIC TO THE ISSUE OF SCOTTISH INDEPENDANCE

NOW I AM GOING TO RUN THIS ONE PAST YOU ALL TO SEE IF IN YOUR VIEW IT HAS ANY LOGIC. 

The political unification of Scotland and England was sealed in 1707 with the creation of one parliament for both Countries, based at Westminster.

Union would only happen if a treaty could be agreed by both the English and Scottish Governments.

Now if the Tories argue that Scotland cannot decide to hold a referendum on Scottish terms. Does it not follow that Britain cannot pull out of of the EU on just British terms. The right wing  seem to have got themselves into a bind. Sarkozy and Merkel will not have missed this logic.

Keith C.

THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE RESPONSE TO THE REQUEST FROM 38 DEGREES FOR PEOPLE TO WRITE TO HMRC AND COMPLAIN ABOUT THEIR ROLE IN ENABLING LARGE COMPANIES TO GET AWAY WITH TAX DODGING.

INCREDIBLE BUT TRUE, OVER 25,000 PEOPLE HAVE SO FAR FORWARDED THEIR WRITTEN COMPLAINTS TO THE GOVERNMENT'S TAX COLLECTORS, OVER THE WAY IN WHICH THEY HAVE ALLOWED BIG BUSINESSES TO AVOID PAYING BILLIONS OF POUNDS IN TAX. 

We have found out that the government's tax collectors - HMRC - do not appear to be doing their job properly. Instead of making sure that everyone is paying their fair share of tax, they have agreed to "sweetheart deals," letting big companies off paying billions of pounds in tax. The Government will have been hoping that we have all been to busy doing our Christmas shopping and working out how to we are going to pay heating bills to care about what their tax officers have been up to. But they're wrong.

A huge public outcry and a flood of complaints to HMRC will send a powerful message: we will not stand for the Government giving big business the green light to dodge paying billions of pound in tax. It only takes two minutes to send a complaint letter to HMRC -  We will collect all the letters together and deliver them early in the new year: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/complain-to-HMRC

The media is currently full of the shocking news of these deals. The Daily Mail warns "While families, shopkeepers, and small businesses are forced to pay their bills in full, whilst big businesses  are striking favourable deals and have a "far to cosy" relationship with HM Revenue and Customs." As many of us prepare for winter on a tight budget, its not hard to imagine that those billions of Pounds could have been spent on something better than stuffing the wallets of the most powerful companies in the country. We could have spent it on schools, on hospitals, or making sure that everyone could have have had a safe, warm home at Christmas.

We know that tax dodging is a big issue. That is why last month we decided that it should be something that we would make an urgent priority. This is our opportunity to make sure that we get a fairer system, A people powered flood of complaints now will surprise HMRC and force them to think again. There is still time to write your complaint - but hurry - as they will all be handed in next week.

Maire Campbell - 38 Degrees.

THE GREEK GOVERNMENT HAS ILLUSTRATED VERY CLEARLY THAT IT INTENDS TO PLACE THE BURDEN FOR THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS ON TO THOSE WHO DID NOT CREATE IT.

MORE THAN A DOZEN GREEK TRADE UNIONISTS WILL FACE BEING SENT

TO PRISON ON TUESDAY NEXT

 FOR UP TO FIVE YEARS.

If you are a trade unionist fighting to ensure that workers do not pay the price for the global financial crisis that they did not create, 2012 looks like it will be a very challenging and eventful year.

On Thursday November 24th 2011, the Greek police arrested Nikos Photopoulos, President of the power workers union GENOP/DEI, along with more than a dozen of his fellow trade unionists. They will appear in court on Tuesday January 10th 2012 to face charges that could see them jailed for up to five years,

They were protesting against part of the Greek austerity measures - the cutting off of power to people unable to pay a new property tax, levied regardless of income or wealth and added to all electricity bills. The new tax is just the most recent "austerity" action by the Greek Government. The abolition of the national minimum wage and the lowering of employer-paid taxes are next.

Please take a moment to send a message to the Greek Prime Minister in support of the campaign organised by the Greek trade union federation GSEE, which is calling for the charges to be dropped. Send your message of support to "LabourStart" 4 Alexandra Park Road, London, England, N10 2AA.

And please do not forget to pass this message along to your contacts, and to use your Twitter, Google + and Facebook accounts to help us to get the word out - Thanks

CHESTERFIELD AND DISTRICT TRADE UNION COUNCIL PRESS RELEASE

ON FRIDAY JANUARY 6TH A BANNER WILL BE UNFURLED TO COMMEMORATE THE "REAL IRON LADIES"

At 12.30 pm on Friday January 6th a banner will be unfurled outside the Cineworld Cinema in Chesterfield. The banner reads "The Real Iron Ladies Women's Action Group Miners Strike 1984/85. Friday lunchtime marks the first showing in Chesterfield of the film about Margaret Thatcher "The Iron Lady" starring Meryl Streep which premiered in London this week. A group of veterans of the Women's Action Groups and their supporters will make their protest against the Hollywood rewriting of history.

"The film suggests that Thatcher stood up bravely against a male establishment and was a women's champion" said Toni Bennett who was an organiser with the Bolsover Women's Action Group during the strike. "Nothing could be further from the truth. Thatcher mobilised every arm of the state against the striking miners and coalfield women who were defending their jobs, their children's futures and their communities". The women and their supporters contend that the real "Iron Ladies" are the women of the coalfields who defied Thatcher's Government for a whole year during the 84/85 strike.

Toni Bennett went to state, "If you look around you today with high fuel prices, the banking crisis and mass unemployment people need to remember that it was the Government serving under Prime Minister Thatcher who sold off our gas and electricity industries, deregulated the banks and destroyed our manufacturing base." "Anyone watching this film needs to be able to distinguish the facts from the fiction. If your children cannot find work today, and there are over a million of them out there without training or employment, then remember what Margaret Thatcher did to smash our industries during the 1980's."

The real "Iron Ladies" will be organising a meeting in Chesterfield later this month to bring together those who were involved in the strike and the battles of the 80's with a view to sharing their experiences with those who are now working to defend their rights today.

Contact email: colin.hampton@duwc.org.uk