Britain Follow

OVER 700 workers from Birmingham City Council's housing department met on Tuesday of last week to discuss what to do about the imminent giveaway of council homes. Birmingham City Council is the biggest municipal landlord in Britain. The proposed transfer of all its 93,000 homes will "change the face of social housing in this country", according to Housing Today magazine.

SOME 500 British Airways computer workers were shell shocked last week when management announced that their section is to be sold off to another firm. A mass meeting on Wednesday of this week was to discuss how to fight back.

"IT'S LIKE working in a slave galley." That was how one striker in Lancaster summed up the feelings of the 4,000 workers on strike at 37 BT call centres around Britain on Monday.

NEARLY 2,000 bus workers across west London struck for the day over pay on Monday this week. The action hit services in Greenford, Acton, Uxbridge, Orpington, Alperton and Westbourne Park. It was the workers' second official one day strike. Members of the TGWU also struck for the day on Wednesday of last week. The drivers and conductors work for a company called Centre West which is owned by First Group, Britain's largest bus operator.

TWO LEADING banks announced last week that they were sacking hundreds of workers. Shares in both Barclays and Northern Rock shot up on news of the job cuts. Some 250 Northern Rock workers and 500 Barclays workers face the misery and fear of unemployment in the run up to Xmas. Shareholders will get an Xmas bonus. In the same week Britain's fifth biggest supermarket, Somerfield, said it will sell 100 to 140 of its larger shops. It has already hived off 350 Kwik Save stores.

PROTESTS ARE to take place across Britain on Tuesday 30 November as part of a show of worldwide opposition to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The WTO is made up of trade ministers from 134 countries who are due to meet in Seattle in the US.

"WE HAD no other option but to strike. We just couldn't go on being ground into the dirt." That was how Essex bus driver Roger Martin explained why workers at Eastern National went on strike over pay. The company is owned by FirstGroup, Britain's biggest bus operator.

CHRIS BAMBERY talked about how a series of political issues have exploded over the past few months in Britain. This has exposed the bitterness against New Labour amongst two groups of people. "The first group would describe themselves as 'Old Labour' or centre left, but are now hostile to Tony Blair," he said. "The second group see themselves as anti-capitalist."

"THE CORPORATE giants are tuning into Britain's thriving dance market." That is what the Sunday Business newspaper declared last month. This will come as no surprise to hundreds of thousands of young people. I once queued for hours in the rain at a Tribal Gathering rave in 1996. When I got to the entrance I handed over my £25 ticket. All my food and water was taken off me to ensure I entered the rave arena ready to spend money.

BOB CROW narrowly won re-election as RMT assistant general secretary last week. The RMT is Britain's biggest rail union. Crow polled 7,137 votes, against 6,795 for Watford based signal technician Mick Cash. Cash is a Labour councillor and was backed by the right wing in the union.

BOSSES AT Ford motors have been forced to improve their pay and conditions offer to 28,000 workers across Britain. Union leaders hailed the agreement as "inflation busting" and are reccommending that workers accept the package. But Ford workers should reject the new offer.

THE TROUBLES at British Airways have drawn attention away from the problems faced by BAA - the airport operator. A profits fall has led to cost cutting. The company says it may be looking for compulsory redundancies. There is no need for this immensely profitable company to make people redundant. BAA is still looking at projected profits of £306 million. The unions need to be challenging the company.