UK Newswire Archive
Finalists of Private Healthcare Award Ceremony raise glasses with Lords and MPs
28-05-2012 08:40
This list makes up the finalists involved in the Private Healthcare Award ceremony, HealthInvestor 2012, which has a MP or Lord next to the company they are involved in. This list, which highlights the self-interest may well not be complete and if you know of any companies that have MPS and Lords involved in them, please let me know by emailing me at
andrewfiskar@gmail.com Finalists of Private Healthcare Award Ceremony Raise Glasses with Lords and MPs
28-05-2012 08:37
An annual award ceremony, promoting the ‘excellence’ and ‘innovation’ of the independent healthcare sector is taking place in London, Thursday, the 31st of May. However, on close inspection, the finalists of this year’s event are notable for their connections to our so-called public servants, many of whom played some part in passing the Health and Social Care bill into an Act.Census Refuser challenges Census Act by way of Judicial Review
28-05-2012 04:18
A Birmingham Census refuser, Nigel Simons, has been granted a judicial review that will consider the legality of the Census Act. Simons is arguing that the Act, which makes it a criminal offence to fail to complete the Census, is incompatible with Human Rights legislation. If his challenge is successful, other ongoing prosecutions of census refusers are likely to collapse, previous convictions may be overturned and it may become impossible for the government to contract with arms companies (and other businesses to which people may have legitimate conscientious objection) to provide any public services.National march against vivisection in newcastle
27-05-2012 23:21
With one voice we told Newcastle university death labs Vivisection is a LIE so WHY HAVE THE ANIMALS GOT TO DIE
Nato air strike 'kills Afghan family'
27-05-2012 23:07
A Nato air strike has killed eight members of a family in the eastern Afghan province of Paktia, local officials say. A provincial spokesman said a couple and their six children died in an air strike on Saturday in the village of Suri Khail, Gurda Saria district. Nato says it is investigating the reports. Earlier, the alliance said four of its soldiers had died in separate bomb attacks in Afghanistan on Saturday. 'No Taliban link' ......uk uncut great british street party at clegg's
27-05-2012 18:55
yesterday's ukuncut street party outside nick clegg's house was part of a nationwide action with parties taking place in half a dozen cities around the uk. the london party was a change in tactic, targetting a politician rather than tax avoiders or workfare exploiters. proving the old adage that you can't please all the people all of the time, the action has been condemned by some as crossing a line by taking place at a private home, and as ineffectual by others complaining at the lack of civil disobedience and direct action. however, it's hard to criticise the secrecy and organisation that effectively outwitted the police and delivered hundreds of people to right outside a security-sensitive address.
click on image for larger version. 'some rights reserved' - free for credited non-commercial use, otherwise contact author for permission
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yesterday morning i joined one of four blocs (mine being the nhs bloc meeting opposite ucl hospital). there were a few dozen people there, watched by a inspector and several other uniformed police, backed up by a vanful of TSG across the road. mingling with the small crowd were a handful of "police liaison" officers in their "baby blue" tabards. these seemingly friendly and disarming coppers were to become a main feature of the day, working through the crowd and starting up apparently innocent conversations with any protestor willing to speak with them.
at around 11.30 we were instructed to follow the yellow ukuncut flags and yellow umbrellas, and take a northern line tube south from warren street station. at waterloo the shout went out to get off and wait on the overground concourse. there, some TSG joined the uniforms, and also two chaps introduced themselves as academics researching the role and effectiveness of the liaison officers. meanwhile the liaising carried on, and a familiar format to the conversations began to emerge.
the liaison officers would target individuals or small groups and begin with a little harmless small talk, perhaps about the weather, how hot they were in uniform, or what a nice day for a picnic etc. they'd sometimes explain that they were there to repair some of the mistrust that had built up between protestors and police and to build bridges through communication. perhaps doreen lawrence, janet alder, sean riggs' family, and alfie meadows all have their very own liaison officers assigned to them 24 hours a day?
after initial contact and some inane chit-chat, the real purpose of their role would be slipped through with a carefully placed passing question. examples might be "did you have a good journey here, will you have far to get home?", "have you been to many of these events before?", and so on. later in the day, once the target was revealed, a favourite inquiry was "did you know you were coming here?". as the afternoon progressed, they also engaged in political discourse, some claiming that if they weren't in uniform they'd probably be joining in, but slowly eliciting admissions from protestors as to what each thought was permissible in protest. i heard one activist openly telling these fluffy officers that he believed in property damage to make a point. no doubt that admission was put on file next to his image taken by the overt surveillance FIT team at the scene.
'fitwatch' have already identified several of the liaison officers as past or current forward intelligence personnel, and yesterday there was constant liaising going on between both teams.
if the police were really interested in building bridges, facilitating protest, and reducing mistrust, the liaison officers would actually be independent, conflict-resolution-trained, and civilian. these officers are nothing more than the latest cynical intelligence-gathering operation (based on a german model of 'anti-conflict' officers, also thoroughly outed as intelligence agents). my advice would be - don't talk with them, ever. don't dance with them. don't accept their potato salad.
after a wait at waterloo, we received instruction to get on the hounslow train, and shortly after, what appeared to be hundreds more activists from the three other blocs, and accompanied by many more cops and liaisons, streamed onto the platform and joined the train.
at putney station, the shout went out for our bloc, and another, to get off the train. we left two blocs on the train, and set off down the upper richmond road with our police minders exchanging information on their radios still apparently unaware of the target. our guides asked us to up the pace and try to keep together as we turned into a side road and made our way through salubrious and quiet residential streets, finally breaking into something of a run, challenging the overdressed riot cops alongside. suddenly we were at our destination, a narrow street to our right where an advance guard of wheelchair-bound activists from DPAC were already in wait.
half a dozen riot cops ran ahead down the street in front of us, and although there weren't enough of them to resist a concerted break, it wasn't necessary, as we were right outside the imposing white building that is one of nick clegg's homes. picnic blankets went down, bunting went up, and what appeared to be a traditional british street party started up, the only incongruous image being the stream of TSG cops walking through to bolster their defences and stop the party from spreading.
there was a also a small cordon at the other end of the street, but the other blocs, arriving by a different route from barnes station, managed to break through that, and came down the street behind our police cordon, leaving the police somewhat kettled for a while before more TSG waded in and caused a bit of scuffling while both groups claimed their respective areas.
the party then continued all afternoon. the liaison officers danced a little, handed out potato salad, and asked their harmless little questions. the FIT teams lurked round the corner, recorded their intelligence notes on their microphones, and filmed the whole event. one photographer got taken aside and questioned why he was taking pictures of clegg's house. it was pointed out that a real terrorist would probably pick a quiet moment to take photos rather than one when the road was swarming with intelligence-gathering cops, unless i suppose it was some elaborate double-bluff. a number of photographers quickly organised a mass overt photo-taking of the house. he was allowed free. there was music, some speeches, some samba, loads of food and drink, some chalking, some throwing of wet and fluffy toys, lots of interviews, a smattering of mainstream media, and no arrests.
around 5, a consensus decision was made to all leave together at 6, and after clearing up any rubbish, taking down the bunting, and packing away the picnics, a few dozen remaining people set off together towards putney station. the lovely liaison officers forgot to offer an explanation for why a vanful of testosterone-fuelled TSG thugs suddenly joined the march, randomly pushing individuals towards the pavement instead of facilitating a short peaceful impromptu march back to the station.
as mentioned in my summary at the start of the article, there have been various voices carping at this action. some have complained that targetting a politician's private home is unfair, or that clegg's young children (if at home) might have been frightened. some responses to that criticism point out that the children of families turfed out of their homes by clegg's policies might be rather more frightened, and that anyway, we're not allowed to protest outside the building where clegg isn't even elected to co-lead. others have complained that ukuncut did not go far enough, that a street party isn't exactly a challenge to the neo-liberals. well, that may be true, but what is? do they think a few smashed windows or an occupation, or a street riot is any greater a challenge to the well-protected one percent? perhaps they'd advocate a bombing campaign or assassinations?
so for all the criticism, i think what was good about the ukuncut action was that once again, it brought together quite a wide constituency, it completely outsmarted the police, and it provided a template for organising mass action that others can learn from. it also got positive mainstream coverage that for the most part for once mentioned the issues. what's not to like?
remember, police liaison officers are not your friends!
Notts UnCut Street Party
27-05-2012 12:55
12.00 Noon Saturday 26 May 2012. Listergate, Nottingham
It was a very hot and sunny day. People gathered under the shade of the trees opposite Topshop in Listergate, Nottingham
Leaflets handed out, speeches were made, childrens faces got painted, ballons blown up, [but kept exploding]. Cakes and samosas got eaten. Party games were played including musical statues and pass the parcel. A policeman drove past, but didn't join in. Aside from the booked sound system, were were also entertained by a passing Mariachi Band ........ splendid. Security guards at stand-too in nearby shop doorways looked on and appeared concerned.Uncut Leaflet Words
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Let’s go on a journey back in time to the year 1948…
Britain was emerging from a World War and had a huge national debt. Much bigger than the one we face today. Did we see painful cut backs and austerity measures?
No, quite the opposite. We saw the birth of our National Health Service and the Welfare State. The UK was the first country to make health care, social care and financial security accessible to all.
1948 saw the launch of ground-breaking new laws designed to protect and care for everybody in our society, including universal unemployment benefits, universal child benefits, disability benefits, rights to housing and the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
1948 – a year when the Olympics were last in town and – at last – the people of Britain were looking forward to the future.
Britain back then really was ‘all in this together’. The future looked better than the past. So, we partied in the streets and dreamt of what we could achieve as people and as a country.
Fast forward to 2012 and things feel rather different. The government is not playing fair: its spending cuts are the deepest for decades and it's cheating ordinary people by forcing them to suffer for an economic crisis they didn’t cause.
The government is also lying: it actively enables big business to dodge tax and slashes tax rates for the wealthy. Right now, for us, for ordinary people in this country, the future’s not what it used to be.
So now is the time to party like it was 1948. Street parties are going to be all the rage for the Queen’s Jubilee. But let’s make ours have a twist.
On Saturday 26th May join UK Uncut’s Great British Street Party to demand that we keep our public services, our rights and our welfare system and to celebrate a new future that isn’t dictated to us by a handful of millionaires but decided by us all – together.
Join us in Nottingham for our Great British Street Party. We will have music, face painting, food from Veggies, traditional street party games and much, much more. 1940's dress optional, all donations of party food to share are very welcome.
Contact email: nottsuncutaction@gmail.com
Notts-Uncut Part-of UK-Uncut
http://www.facebook.com/NottsUncut
Nottingham City Council Budget £20m Cuts Protest
http://nottingham.indymedia.org/articles/2455
____________________________________________
ALAN LODGE
Photographer - Media: One Eye on the Road. Nottingham. UK
Email: tash@indymedia.org
Web: http://digitaljournalist.eu
Member of the National Union of Journalists [NUJ]
____________________________________________
"It is not enough to curse the darkness.
It is also necessary to light a lamp!!"
___________________________________________
<ends>
OCCUPY IMPERIALISM: Crisis, Resistance, Solidarity- STOP Obama's Wars
26-05-2012 20:24
The OFFICIAL VIDEO TRAILER of the Occupy Imperialism Convention:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2HPQGqGVTc&feature=youtu.be
Street Party outside Nick Clegg's house in Putney
26-05-2012 14:55
Some of the groups that met this morning, the Welfarebloc and the NHSbloc, found themselves on a magical mystery tour on a train bound for Richmond. After alighting at Putney and wandering some back streets and snickets, they finally arrived at Nick Clegg's street SW London, bringing the mesage home and forcing the government to listen to the anti-austerity message. Around 500 people now arrived around 1pm, with the street being secured by disabled activists bolting their wheelchairs together, setting up a traditional party with a twist.
Musicians and protestors are having water fights and enjoying the sun while the mass of police look on. The police are saying Nick is not at home today, probably to stop them storming his home or asking for some ice.
Live film from the trip so far: Waterloo | Parkfields | 2 | 3 | Parliament Squ |
Occupy UK: Who Owns Britain? with Sunday Times Rich List journo Kevin Cahill
26-05-2012 12:52
At five: discussing the big stories in Bristol, Britain and around the world
After six: straight talking and investigative reports with Martin Summers
For all the shows back to Easter 2009 visit the Friday Drivetime archive page.
UK Uncut holds street party outside Nick Cleggs home.
26-05-2012 12:09
Press release: Nick Clegg's Putney home site of UK Uncut's anti-cuts street partyPosted on Sat 26th May 2012, 12:47pm
Press enquiries tel: 07415063231 Email:
ukuncut@gmail.com Twitter: @ukuncut Nick Clegg's Putney home site of UK Uncut's anti-cuts street party
Blockupy Frankfurt "Piano, piano .." or resistance against war democracy?
26-05-2012 10:49
Four days in the financial and political heart of Europe in Frankfurt, were undoubtedly a milestone in the relentless death march of democracy: ban on demonstrations, ban the right to meet in public, police revocation of the right to movement, an entire block in a state police, surrounded by 5000 police. 25,000 people protest and claim that there is another way...Tower Hamlets Electoral fraud - how EVENING STANDARD makes it worse
26-05-2012 10:38
Your [ London EVENING STANDARD, Friday 25 May 2012] latest promotional reference to Jim Fitzpatrick, “an MP”, is very shallow.You must show evidence to justify the suggestion that the aforementioned Jim Fitzpatrick, “an MP”, deserves the spot you have given him.
Street Party - the future’s not what it used to be
26-05-2012 08:55
Preparations are underway across the country for The Great British Street Party called for by UK Uncut "to demand that we keep our public services, our rights and our welfare system and to celebrate a new future that isn't dictated to us by a handful of millionaires but decided by us all - together." In London today there will be four meeting points at 11am this morning concentrating on different aspects of whats going wrong. You can meet outside 1 London Bridge to defend Women, on Waterloo Station Concourse to prevent cuts to The Welfare State, , on Parliament Square to fight for Real Democracy or opposite University College Hospital, Euston Road to defend the National Health Service. They advise it will be an active day out so bring food, bunting and a travel card. We'll follow events and report what we hear from you on the streets.
Bristol VegFest 26-27 May Ready to Kick Off!!!
25-05-2012 21:53
VON at Bristol VegFest 25-27 MayBarnados picketed in Oxford
25-05-2012 21:12
Exposure of US human rights abuses
25-05-2012 21:05
An indictment of the US for human rights abuses by the Korean Central New Agency