One Boy, Two Bills and a Fry Up

In this Extraordinary General Episode, "The Committee" suffers it's first resignation, the panel becomes an orifice of government, we organise the cabinet in to height order and present a special report from Union-Con.

Further Reading:

• One Boy, Two Bills and a Fry Up: A Memoir of Growing Up and Getting On
  Popbitch Newsletter
• Play Guess The Party
• Futurism: Meta Secretly Building a Photorealistic AI Clone of Mark Zuckerberg so No Employee Can Ever Escape His Watchful Eye
• Reuters: Meta employees launch protest against mouse-tracking tech at US offices
• CWU Conference 9-hour stream, day 1, day 2.
  
  

The Motion:

No motion this week :(

Join our union UTAW.tech. Buy our merch UTAW.shop.

Transcript

RIP Wes

SPEAKER_02 0:00

But breaking news.

SPEAKER_05 0:05

No.

SPEAKER_02 0:06

I already You knew that already.

SPEAKER_05 0:08

I got notifications on my phone. I I typed in to always tell me West Street and comes up.

SPEAKER_03 0:14

Have you got Google it?

SPEAKER_02 0:16

I do. I was expecting more performative excitement, to be honest.

SPEAKER_03 0:20

Whoa! Well, I as you know, um, I've already sent you the PopBitch stuff. Well, there's like basically the whole email is just doesn't always name Wes, but it clearly the whole most of the email is about Wes.

SPEAKER_02 0:35

What's what's Pop Bitch said about Wes?

SPEAKER_03 0:38

Um, well, they've they mentioned that he f he filmed a video for his leadership challenge last week.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 0:43

Um and then so and then when his team were like, what the fuck? He was like, no, no, no, everyone's doing it. Um they they do you know they do that bit where it's like who is it? And it you know, could be anyone really, um, with some antics, which may or may not be Wes.

SPEAKER_09 1:07

Um yeah.

SPEAKER_08 1:09

What are the antics?

SPEAKER_09 1:10

Can't remember.

SPEAKER_02 1:11

Oh okay. No, so not broadcast appropriate.

SPEAKER_03 1:15

Yes. Activities in the Parliament Library. We had to apologize to speaker sexual activities, uh sending nudes. Wes. Well, we don't know. Allegedly. We don't know. Allegedly, maybe, could be. Um coming on to other MPs at the Parliamentarian of the Year award. So an MP, these are these are stories that have been sent into Puckbitch that are obviously not verified in any way as well. Yeah. Um came up coming on allegations that they came on to another MP at Parliamentarian of the year. Sleeping with more than one person at the Labour Party conference last year. Um, and that their line is like either people at Westminster really want to drop him in it, or he's been a very busy boy. Or very busy MP, whoever it is.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

Or they're talking about someone entirely different.

SPEAKER_03 2:00

Yeah. It just says which now very prominent MP has been lighting up our story for He's on the Ascendancy.

SPEAKER_08 2:09

Yeah. Yeah, it's Wes.

SPEAKER_09 2:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 2:12

I just found the whole like the whole his whole announcement thing to be very funny because I think like two days ago they were like, Oh, tomorrow Wes is gonna resign and then he's gonna launch his leadership bid. And then he didn't do it. And then they were like, oh no, definitely tomorrow he's gonna resign and then do his leadership bid. And I love how all his team were like on the first, like three days ago, they were all like, no, he's definitely not gonna do that. He he's so loyal to care, blah blah blah. And then the next day they were all like, Yeah, man, he's he's about to drop. We're all dropping, that's why we're all quitting now. It was kind of like the most like absurd political theatre I've ever seen. Like, we all know what it is, Wes. You've been saying it's been months now. That's all the news is talking about. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 3:04

And he's he he he's resigned like right now, so I guess it's we don't really know yet. But he's there's he's not like outright said I'm I'm challenging you to a jewel, right? I mean No, he hasn't, he hasn't.

SPEAKER_03 3:18

He he may well do it in the next like half an hour though. So at the moment at the moment they're saying it's um until so Andy Burnham needs to find like a route to becoming an MP. So an MP needs to basically hand over their seat to him.

SPEAKER_02 3:33

Yeah. But that would like they'd have to have a by-election, right? Like there's no way there's no way that's happening within the timescale.

SPEAKER_03 3:40

Yeah, but but if it like if an MP stood down today, yeah, we would know. But what Wes is trying to do basically a coup so that the NEC turn around the election so quickly that Andy Burnham cannot stand.

SPEAKER_08 3:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 3:55

Okay, well that that's not taken into account for Angela, who's been cleared of her ta her tax scandal. Yeah, yeah. Um I think the timing of her clearing is very suspicious.

SPEAKER_02 4:06

Yeah, very convenient. Yeah. Very convenient.

SPEAKER_03 4:10

I don't think she was defending, you know, there's been those like allegations. Well, I think he's admitted it's true, and I don't know anything about it, but Zach Balanski's like count cancel tax on a boat. She she today was in she was today interviewed saying, Oh, it's totally fine what he's done. So she's also she's got a bit of solidarity with like lots of people who forget to pay tax, apparently.

SPEAKER_02 4:33

Oh yeah. Fine. And then the other one we'll have a coalition of the council tax avoiders then.

SPEAKER_03 4:42

The other one is um um Ed Miliband Rising from the Dead. Oh yeah, Millie.

SPEAKER_08 4:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 4:48

Yeah. And West Streeting is the lowest in the polls, and trade unions hate him because he's of the NHS. Like I was talking to my mum who was speaking to someone at Unison because she has she she's in Unison, and they were just like Unison's like way too strong to let to let that ever happen with West Streeting.

unknown 5:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_09 5:09

Streeling. Street. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 5:13

Yeah, I mean that that's that's the thing that I was gonna say as well. Like, Wes is extremely unpopular with Labour membership, general membership, they do not like him. And the world the world does not really like I do know one person who really likes him. Um who is it women for Wes? Because that person wasn't real, she mean no, it's my father-in-law. He actually thinks that yeah, he thinks that Wes seems like a very sensible guy.

SPEAKER_03 5:39

And I'm just like, oh I met a taxi driver coming, I was because we were in Bournemouth right for the conference. I I was in a taxi and the taxi driver was like, Wes Streeton's alright, isn't he? I was like, I don't think he is, no.

SPEAKER_02 5:53

That sounds like the taxi driver I had once that said uh women were the root cause of all the world's problems. Um and he said he said if you think about it, Hitler had a mum.

SPEAKER_03 6:01

So true, but it's chicken and egg though.

SPEAKER_02 6:03

It's chicken and egg. Was it Hitler or Hitler's mum? Which came first? Yeah, Hitler's mum, I guess.

SPEAKER_05 6:09

Um with Burnham, do you think this is the thing? I don't think he can actually come and make a challenge because I feel like even if someone resigns for him, yeah, I'm not sure with 100% certainty that Labour would be able to win the seat at a by-election.

SPEAKER_02 6:29

Well, right, if he stands like somewhere in Manchester, then it's risk. That's that's risky. Um, it would have to be somewhere incredibly safe.

SPEAKER_03 6:36

But he is very po he is very popular in Manchester.

SPEAKER_02 6:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 6:40

I know he is. I'm not I'm not doubting his popularity. I'm sorry, everyone, just for our listeners out there, Eleanor is in love with Andy Burnham.

SPEAKER_03 6:48

No, I'm not He is the most attractive of the potential leadership candidates, though, if that's what we're if that's what we're ranking them on, which we are. Which I am.

SPEAKER_02 6:58

Um and it's a valid reason. Um yeah, no, I mean I think like Andy's definitely got like uh name recognition. I just think like Wes wouldn't have s stood aside now not knowing that he at least felt like he had the votes.

SPEAKER_09 7:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:14

Um because what he needs, what is it like you need is it 20% of the PLP you need to support you to um to challenge? Which is like 40 MPs, isn't it, right? So he he he must feel like he has the support of forty to do it now and presumably you know is basing this whole thing on the fact that you know he he knows Andy's gonna be more popular than him. Um so like he yeah, he he he the whole thing would be planned around him um I'm mumbling um getting it all out of the way immediately basically before Andy has a chance. So that uh yeah, I I I think I feel like Andy's ruled out essentially um I can't remember where I heard it yesterday, but um someone was talking about like what what about the idea of like someone else standing on a platform of like like a limited term leadership? Like if if someone like Ed Miliband stood um uh on on the basis that he he would like then then step aside uh for Andy after a short amount of time. Because I Ed Ed doesn't seem to particularly want to I mean he's he's been there done that, right? Um So what if he stood on the platform which was like um I'm I'm standing uh to to run run for a short amount of time um until a point that um there can be a by-election and then would support uh uh support another election. I don't know, isn't it that's probably too complicated. Isn't it?

SPEAKER_03 8:52

Yeah, I wonder what the I actually am I don't I like not I don't know about Ed Miliban's faction, but um I'm gonna Google it later. Because we we um yeah, like I was listening to the person who wrote The Fraud, who's Paul Holden, he's like an investigative journalist who is like basically been talking about the corruption of the Labour Party, and he did a really, really good overview of just like the the power and like mach machinations. Obviously that we saw it with Jeremy Corbyn, right? Um, but it it they've really clamped down on that power, which is the only reason that Keir Starmer is like still in power, is still leader of the Labour Party. So it's like whether there there is any whether their strength is just too big to let anyone but West Street in become the new leader.

SPEAKER_02 9:43

Yeah, I mean I've always just thought like what w West Street and surely like West Street and Keir Starmer's like supporters and acolytes have a like a strong crossover and uh like a Yeah, me too. Any any competition between the two of them would either be kind of pointless or split the vote. Um I mean this is assuming that Starmer doesn't like resign as well, which is also a possibility. Um which would also trigger a a leadership contest without necessarily like one candidate needing to pull ahead. But I mean he would I I guess he would only do that you know under the under a strict agreement with with with the assumption that he would then fall in line behind um. Yeah, it'd be like Putin where we there can be another leader, but it's still just Keir Starmer's still just Keir Starmer for for for like honorary president.

SPEAKER_09 10:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 10:36

Um what about Ange then?

SPEAKER_05 10:40

The thing with Ange, yeah, right, I don't think that she would be able to win at an election.

SPEAKER_09 10:48

No.

SPEAKER_05 10:49

I like I think a lot of people dislike her for many different reasons. Yeah, um, I know the trade union movement still really likes her. Obviously, we invited her to our conference.

SPEAKER_03 11:00

We we didn't, but uh we union did.

SPEAKER_05 11:02

She was invited.

SPEAKER_03 11:03

She was invited by someone, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:05

Very, very glowingly about she did she get in through a plus one.

SPEAKER_03 11:10

John but to me, John McDonnell was there too, actually. It was like a bit of a throwback.

SPEAKER_02 11:14

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:14

Throwback conference.

SPEAKER_02 11:15

I'm always really surprised that he's still an MP and is still in the Labour Party as well.

SPEAKER_03 11:20

I walked past him, um the Together Alliance Together Hope Against Hate, whatever it was.

SPEAKER_02 11:25

It wasn't Hope Against Hate, but the Together Alliance change change UK the independent group.

SPEAKER_03 11:30

Yeah, the march against the far right. He was like just watching people walk past, very cute looking.

SPEAKER_09 11:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 11:39

Do you think that maybe um I think that Angela Rayner will be a very good contest because I think that that the Labour membership would support her, even if the wider electorate doesn't.

SPEAKER_09 11:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 11:52

Um, but do you think that West Streling actually has the support that he thinks that he has?

SPEAKER_02 11:59

I d I just don't believe that he has any support. I mean I'm sure he does, but I just don't know who they are. Like who who supports West Street? Like, does Yvette Cooper? Is Yvette Cooper running? Yvette Cooper's probably Yvette Cooper's always running.

SPEAKER_09 12:12

So Yeah, I think she always runs for like it's not your time, girl.

SPEAKER_05 12:18

It's not your own.

SPEAKER_03 12:24

And yeah, she's you win all the fights you don't do. No, no, you lose all the fights you don't do, and she just takes that to part so much that she will just enter every fight.

SPEAKER_02 12:33

No, we need a classic laborship contest. We need um Yvette Cooper to stand, we need Emily Thornbury to stand, uh, we need Ed Miliband to stand, we need Wes Streeling to stand, and then like I want to say whoever the shit is spare person left over at the end will stand. Dave.

SPEAKER_03 12:49

Dave Miliband's not an MP anymore, by the way.

SPEAKER_02 12:52

Oh, Dave Miliband, right, no. No, he went to work for um uh uh uh what's it International Rescue Committee. Thunderbirds.

SPEAKER_03 12:59

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_08 13:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 13:02

It's it's Einstein's Einstein's company.

SPEAKER_09 13:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 13:06

Einstein's organization.

SPEAKER_05 13:08

No, but I was just thinking, like that, you know that you're saying that Wes has obviously resigned now, and obviously he took a long time to fucking resign and launch his leadership thing, like so many days.

SPEAKER_03 13:19

Probably what Edwin's talking about getting the 20, the 40 MPs.

SPEAKER_05 13:23

Yeah, but I'm I'm saying that if I were those MPs, I would tell him whatever I want whatever I wanted in order for him to resign. And then I wouldn't vote for him because I don't I don't think the MPs even really like him that he seems like someone who no one really likes that much.

SPEAKER_03 13:44

He polls like really badly, and that is that is such a good point, right? You can say what you want now to and he can say, Oh, you'll get you'll become tr treasurer or whatever. Chancellor, I'm treasurer. Um yeah, and then like you don't actually have to do it, and he also doesn't have to give you whatever he's promised.

SPEAKER_05 14:05

Yeah, that's the thing. I I I could if he actually genuinely has these 40 MP or 20 MP votes, I would be I would be you would be tickling me pink. I would be very surprised. Um and lastly, I mean, obviously we've we've got a few points to cover on this podcast, and I'm happy to continue who want this as the most fun section. But what does it mean for us as a podcast if our fourth host, Wes Streeling, does become the prime minister?

SPEAKER_03 14:39

Um well I mentioned this earlier. We we have been trying to get like in touch with him, but it's just gone straight to voicemail, which is why you can I guess I think it's quite busy today, you couldn't be here. Um but I can we'll just see what it got how it goes.

SPEAKER_02 14:58

Do you want to play my favourite um game that I've just made up? Um, which is um so when you have like a leadership uh contest, it's the you quite often the first time you see a lot of these people standing next to each other. Um and you find out for the first time um how tall they are. Yes. And I I'm always quite excited to um uh you know um objectify these people. So I've I've always assumed that Keir Starmer's about six foot six. Um really? Yeah, I don't I've always he's just he's sort of proportionally large. I I could be completely wrong.

SPEAKER_03 15:32

A towering man.

SPEAKER_02 15:35

Yeah. So um do you want to play higher or lower?

SPEAKER_03 15:38

Yes. Have you got the heights like up?

SPEAKER_02 15:43

Oh no, I should probably look this up somehow.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

Should I wait, I'll Wikipedia has them, right?

SPEAKER_02 15:48

You're good at you're good at Googling.

SPEAKER_03 15:49

Uh yeah, I'll I'll get the height.

SPEAKER_02 15:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:52

And then you two play higher or lower.

SPEAKER_02 15:55

Okay. Who do you who do you want us to do first?

SPEAKER_09 15:58

Keystarmer.

SPEAKER_08 15:59

Okay, Keir Starmer to the to the nearest inch.

SPEAKER_03 16:04

Wait, oh no, do do do we not like would it not be like Keir Starmer is the starting point, and then I say West Streeling and then you say higher or lower?

SPEAKER_02 16:14

Oh yeah, okay, yeah. So start with Keir Starmer, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 16:17

Uh Keir Starmer. West Streeling Lower. So I am an issue where I've managed to find Keir Starmer's height, but I can't find West Streeling's height. Okay. I think West Streeling is higher.

SPEAKER_02 16:30

Can we find a picture of them st stood next to each other? I've got one from the front page of the BBC right now, but I don't know if it's a real picture. Because they look exactly the same height.

SPEAKER_03 16:38

I've found one.

unknown 16:39

Right.

SPEAKER_02 16:40

Right?

SPEAKER_03 16:40

Keir Starmer higher or lower. Uh where's Streling higher or lower than Keir Starmer?

SPEAKER_08 16:44

Lower.

SPEAKER_03 16:44

Higher. Shireen's correct. So does anyone want to guess like how tall you so you've got six foot six?

SPEAKER_02 16:53

I said six foot six, yeah. I think I'm clearly mistaken.

SPEAKER_03 16:56

What are you, Shereen?

SPEAKER_09 16:58

But Keir Starmer, I think he's probably about four seven. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 17:08

That's how I see him in my mind.

SPEAKER_03 17:10

You're not that far off. He's five foot eight.

SPEAKER_06 17:14

No.

SPEAKER_03 17:15

So if I'm wearing my Dot Martins, Keir Starmer's like the same height.

SPEAKER_09 17:19

Crazy.

SPEAKER_03 17:20

Um if I've got my big shoes on. Right. Whereas Streling can't I like I said I can't find his height, which is shocking that no one's no one's written about that. But he looks from this picture that I found in them walking next to each other. He looks about 5'10.

SPEAKER_02 17:35

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 17:35

Oh well, they're both mini men.

SPEAKER_02 17:38

It's an honest height.

SPEAKER_03 17:41

Okay. Um Angela Rayner, higher or lower than West Streeling. Oh, she's always wearing heels though. She's always wearing heels.

SPEAKER_02 17:51

I think we'll we'll have to go on just pictures of them stood next to each other, in which case we won't be able to tell if she's in heels or not. So um I'm gonna I'm just gonna like factor in the heels um and say uh uh higher.

SPEAKER_03 18:04

I won't think of the same. No, but like the 5'10. Do you think Anna Rain is taller than five foot ten? She's like six foot.

SPEAKER_02 18:12

No, I don't think I don't actually think she is. I was just uh I was just making it interesting.

SPEAKER_03 18:18

Oh yeah, you that's good point. She's the same height as as Keir Starman. She's five eight.

SPEAKER_09 18:24

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 18:24

She's widely uh Google says she's widely recognized as five's eight on height charts.

unknown 18:29

Widely recognized as five eight.

SPEAKER_02 18:34

Um okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 18:37

Oh, are we gonna keep going?

SPEAKER_02 18:38

Yeah, no, I want to do Andy Burnham and then we've done right.

SPEAKER_03 18:41

Andy Burnham higher or lower than Angela Rayner, who's 5'8.

SPEAKER_02 18:44

I think Andy Burnham's a little a little man.

SPEAKER_03 18:47

Oh, what? Really? I do as well, you know, but I've just found out his actual height.

SPEAKER_02 18:51

Oh, okay, so I'm I'm clearly wrong. Okay, I was just gonna say lower.

SPEAKER_03 18:57

He's not over 6'3. We would definitely know if Andy Burnham was over 6'3.

SPEAKER_06 19:01

No, I'm saying he is 6'3.

SPEAKER_02 19:04

I just feel like he's always photographed from above.

SPEAKER_03 19:06

He's 5'10.

SPEAKER_02 19:07

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 19:08

So he is so far the tallest leadership actually, because we we weren't sure where we were about Wes. He could be either the tallest, he could be the same height as Wes.

SPEAKER_08 19:18

Uh-huh. Great, that was good.

SPEAKER_09 19:20

What about um Milibay? He's he's that's a tall man.

SPEAKER_08 19:24

I'm saying hi.

SPEAKER_02 19:26

I've met Ed Miliban. I've met Ed Miliban, but I was okay. Yeah. I was gonna say I was um I was fifteen at the time, so why did you meet him? Uh uh Ed and David Miliban went to my school.

SPEAKER_03 19:42

Really?

SPEAKER_02 19:42

Yeah, because I went to uh Labour's Eaton. Um cover stock business and enterprise college, farm. Um yeah, so um uh also uh there was some more Labour people as well. Uh Una King went to my school. Um Phil Mitchell for Me Standers went to my school. Nice. Uh Endubs went to my school, Dapi and Tulisa. Um all of them and the other one. I can't remember the third end dub.

SPEAKER_05 20:07

Um but was it phase or something?

SPEAKER_02 20:11

Something like that.

SPEAKER_08 20:12

FaZe, yeah.

SPEAKER_09 20:13

Um Was this a private school?

SPEAKER_08 20:16

No.

SPEAKER_05 20:18

I'm sorry, I can't imagine Tulisa and Ed Miliband being at the same school.

SPEAKER_02 20:26

I mean, not at the same time. I don't think.

SPEAKER_03 20:32

Do you know something that I've just realized? If you're a member of the CWU or any other affiliated political uh affiliated union to to Labour, we can talk about this a bit more in a minute when we talk about conference, and you're opted into the political fund, you will get a vote in the Labour leadership election.

SPEAKER_02 20:52

Interesting. So I think I was uh an affiliate for a while. Um actually, yeah, I know I was a Labour affiliate for like way longer than um I intended to be, um, just because of it being an affiliate thing. Um and then uh I think I got sent my um Union Jack um Labour membership card at some point, and that freaked me out. So yeah. Because I've I handed my notice in.

SPEAKER_09 21:18

There you go. Good, good, good for you.

SPEAKER_08 21:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 21:21

Um I know that we have many topics to get onto, but before we move on to anything else that's extremely important, including the amazing CW conference that we went to where we were sat on. Um I wanted to check. Have you played this game?

SPEAKER_03 21:37

I have, I know what you're gonna say. I have.

SPEAKER_05 21:40

Have you?

SPEAKER_03 21:41

Yep. How far did you get? Have you Edwin, have you played this game? Do you know what she's talking about?

SPEAKER_02 21:46

Are you talking about the link that you just put in the um in the Super Secret Text channel?

SPEAKER_03 21:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:52

Wonderful. Okay, so I'm seeing a man and it's asking me which party the man is. I think that's the game.

SPEAKER_03 21:56

Yeah, you just have to guess the party and it shows you like their counsel, it's counsel. This right, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:01

Okay, this is gonna be a really like difficult visual medium for this. So um, I don't know. Okay, do I describe them? Do I just vote?

SPEAKER_05 22:09

Yeah, describe describe okay. So everyone, just so you're aware, there is a game that's called Guess the Party, and the aim of the game is for you to look at pictures of different counselors and guess which party they're representing based on their face alone. Right. Um it's very fun, it's very hard.

SPEAKER_03 22:30

Um Edwin, let's say it makes you feel racist as well. Yeah. All the like fluffy haired old white men, I say are green, and they're often yeah, like you know, if they look a bit like Dumbledorey, I'm like green.

SPEAKER_05 22:47

I I think I've underestimated the number of like Asian reform counselors.

SPEAKER_03 22:54

That's another way that I feel racist. Like I don't will not I would I will not choose reform generally for like people who aren't white, and they are so often. Like I just had one whose surname was saying reform.

SPEAKER_02 23:06

Huh. Okay, uh I'm going. Uh are these all in the same order? Do you know who I'm looking at?

SPEAKER_09 23:11

No, they're random orders.

SPEAKER_02 23:13

Okay, so this is gonna be described them for us. Okay. Uh it is a uh man, he's got blue eyes, he's wearing a five is jacket in in a blue colour. Reform. Which does lead you to believe reform. Now, I don't think he's like he's he's casual, so I d I think that rules out Labour and Conservatives. I don't think they would be pictured not um in a suit. Yeah. Um but uh I'm going with them.

SPEAKER_09 23:38

Oh, how high Richard How high Vez can a blue How tall is he?

SPEAKER_02 23:47

Okay, uh the next guy uh is um he uh what we s what how are we describing this man? He's he's he's he's got a sort of friendly uh smiling look. Um Lib Dem. Yeah, I want to say I I might be going Lib Dem for a lot of these. So I think Yeah, no, I think this is gonna be one of those like sneaky reform people. Um I think he's just not got his rosette on. Going reform. Uh conservative close. Edward Butler. Um Alright, next guy. He's got a pin on his jacket, which leads me to believe trade unionist. Um so uh what does the pin say? I cut it's it's out of focus. Um it could it could be some it could be related to his uh alumnus, al alumni, alum, alum?

SPEAKER_09 24:31

He's the alum.

SPEAKER_02 24:32

He is the alum. So um, but I'm I'm I'm guessing trade unionist, I'm going Labour. No, green.

SPEAKER_03 24:39

Could could still could still be trade union.

SPEAKER_02 24:41

Yeah, okay. The next guy, um I want to say Monster Raving Looney Party, but it's not one of the options. He looks like he might have been like um, you know, like the third guitarist in um you know, he might have been in like Led Zeppelin for a couple of weeks, um or something like that. Porkwind. Porkwind by example Porkwind. So um I'm going uh so because of that I want to say green, um which means I'm going as I would say reform. Yeah, I'm going reform. I was right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 25:13

Yeah. Like that there is a heavy metal contingent in reforms.

SPEAKER_02 25:18

Yeah. Um the next person's one of those people who's like the next person's like one of those like young people who's got grey hair. Uh green. No, Labour. 100% of these wrong so far.

SPEAKER_03 25:29

To me too. I'm really bad at it.

SPEAKER_02 25:31

So now the next m the next one's got like um uh he's got a metal beard. Uh so um I'm going green. Yeah, right? Yeah. Okay, uh, so the the next is uh so it's uh woman who's got baubles on for earrings, so I'm going Labour because they're red. Green. No, Labour. Sorry, that's right.

SPEAKER_03 25:53

Uh you can sometimes just look at the colour of stuff behind them, like they kind of repeat a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 25:58

Yeah, no, the next guy's he's got a tweed suit on and he's got a blue tie on, so he's either reform or conservative. I'm going conservative. Conservative. Oh no, Labour.

SPEAKER_03 26:07

Can I I've just got I've just seen um something about Wes Streling and then we'll we should move on. So apparently his allies say that he has the numbers, but he's decided not to trigger a leadership contest because it would it would there need to be a significant number of ministers and aides who are on the payroll, which means a a wave of resignations, it would have like just it says disemboweled, but like you know, it would have just like got rid of the government basically and it would have been too chaotic.

SPEAKER_08 26:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 26:40

And he concluded that a contest would be deemed illegitimate if Andy Burnham was not able to take part. So he's basically saying if Andy Burnham can't stand, basically people it will just cause such a like hoo-ha that he did decided not to do that, and then he realized he had to put up or shut up. Um he told Starmer he hadn't he he'd lost cop they he'd lost the confidence and he could not continue, um, and like nothing is resolved. Basically, so there is there actually isn't like it doesn't seem like he will mount a leadership contest today.

SPEAKER_02 27:16

So this whole fucking numbers.

SPEAKER_03 27:18

He doesn't have the numbers.

SPEAKER_02 27:20

So this whole EGM we called was pointless then.

4dub.wav

SPEAKER_00 27:23

Yeah, the problems of sound are examined in order that audio equipment should function satisfactorily, and that the noises made by electrical appliances should not be too disturbing. It spends the globe like a superhighway. It is called intranet.

SPEAKER_01 28:23

Because if you want the Marxist, then you're into revolutionary and into bringing down capitalism. So I'm here.

SPEAKER_05 28:34

This is an extra special, extraordinary general meeting that we're calling. Um,

Local Glory

SPEAKER_05 28:40

with us today, you have me, Shereen, your chair. We have our brilliant uh patriot, um Edwin, who uh we do need to get a new role for. Um say hi, Edwin.

SPEAKER_02 28:53

Hi, thank you for the introduction.

SPEAKER_05 28:55

And we have our branch treasurer with us, Eleanor.

SPEAKER_02 29:00

But but but breaking news. Uh Shereen, you just won a uh an election.

SPEAKER_09 29:04

Oh my god. What do you like?

SPEAKER_02 29:08

So you did. Um, couple of questions. Um do you get any uh letters after your name?

SPEAKER_04 29:14

Is there anything you would like us to refer to you as from now on, apart from um yeah, you could call me councillor, you could call me HRH. Um what does he what does that stand for? What is HRH?

SPEAKER_05 29:30

I I I feel like if you don't know, then maybe maybe you're not supposed to know, babe. Okay, um no HRH is her Royal Highness, and I think that sounds like suitable for an an elected officer.

SPEAKER_02 29:49

Perfect. Um and as as you've now gained um uh diplomatic immunity, I guess. Um what what you can be using your new powers for?

SPEAKER_04 30:03

Yeah, so obviously the diplomatic immunity is great.

SPEAKER_03 30:06

Um I do you really get that as a councillor?

SPEAKER_02 30:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 30:09

Do you get like a can you go in the do you get on a different different line in the airport?

SPEAKER_05 30:15

Yeah, yeah. I go in the special line in the airport. I have like unlimited access to the country's funds.

SPEAKER_02 30:22

Yeah, Nando's black card.

SPEAKER_03 30:24

Nando's black card? I bet they do that. I bet they do like Morley's Black Card in Lewishuving.

SPEAKER_05 30:31

I would actually love that. I'd get so fat. But no, um no, definitely all of that good stuff and um expenses. I get to expense um all alcohol and like Nando's your second home.

SPEAKER_03 30:49

You can now can you now expense that nice?

SPEAKER_05 30:51

Yeah, yeah. I can get a second house.

SPEAKER_03 30:53

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 30:55

Um I can get a second family if I want. So yeah, it's it's it's all been very uh very exciting for me, and I'm looking forward to abusing my power immediately. So brilliant.

SPEAKER_02 31:10

I mean I uh I I was I was glued to the results for um for I mean three days, a little dragged on a little bit, I'll be honest.

SPEAKER_03 31:18

Yeah, your result was like second last in the whole country. It was like pretty for someone who's like so impatient, a bit rude.

SPEAKER_05 31:29

Please don't upset the officers. Um they worked really hard in their defense. We did know for a very long time that the results for the councillors would be out on the 9th.

SPEAKER_03 31:41

No, I uh no, because it's because it's a big like m I live in a borough that was that was the literal last one because it's like a big one and it's always the last one, basically. So I know it was no one's fault.

SPEAKER_02 31:54

Yeah. My my um council was the only I think the only one to be gained by the Tories. Uh Upsect, don't look at that. Oh, congratulations. Um I assume my campaigning for the uh Workers' Party of Great Britain was uh um one of the driving factors of the vote being split where I am, unfortunately.

SPEAKER_09 32:14

Do you think any workers' party workers party council?

SPEAKER_02 32:18

No, no workers' party councillors. No, uh my my my award remained Labour, but uh but I just live in Westminster, so it's been historically Tory apart from the last election, and now it's back to Tory again. Sorry about that.

SPEAKER_03 32:37

I'm still Aspire.

SPEAKER_02 32:39

You are Aspire, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 32:40

Yeah, and every time I say that people are like, what's that? Because it sounds a bit Tory, but it's not it's actually like left wing.

SPEAKER_02 32:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 32:48

And I will say no more.

SPEAKER_02 32:50

You have nothing more to say about it.

SPEAKER_05 32:53

I like Aspire in theory, but are aren't Aspire the ones who who also had that counselor who like who was like running for election in in another country.

SPEAKER_03 33:03

There was so right. That there's people that I respect who I really like who like are like left-wing commentators who will say no, they did not have a counselor. It that is a lie, that is a lie, because um I was just quoting something off The Apprentice that I've been like stimming in my head for like three three weeks. So if anyone watches The Apprentice, you'll get that. Um basically they technically weren't because they stood down, like they were forced out before they became counselors, so they're like, oh, they do they no, they didn't have three, they did. They had three aspire prospective counselors who were simultaneously running for the Bengali version of an MP in Bangladesh. Wait, three of them, yeah. There was three of them, and and so yeah, and like it it meant that the like aspire slate, if that's what you call it, went from having two women out of like 40 men to having no women. So it was like in many ways, like quite an annoying incident. And they also um they did an Angela Rayner and broke strike uh bin strike last year. Or maybe maybe it was the year before, actually, it might have been a couple of years ago. Yeah, so I I voted for a spy last time, but I didn't vote this for a spy this time.

SPEAKER_06 34:22

Oh I'm sorry, honey. Yeah, okay, you're fine.

SPEAKER_03 34:27

Maybe probably not though.

SPEAKER_05 34:31

Um but all jokes aside, what happened in in Lewisham was actually crazy historic. Like it wasn't absurd. Yeah, we were not expecting to get 40 seats, yeah, either. Yeah, and the man yeah, we've got like crazy amounts of power, and this this listeners is why I was talking about all the corruption I'm gonna do. Because right now we we have like unfettered power, yeah, um low traffic neighborhoods everywhere. The first order of business stop that road from being a road.

SPEAKER_03 35:13

I would fully support that. Just pedestrian, I would I would actually like the only thing that would ever make me consider moving to South London if there was less cars.

SPEAKER_02 35:22

Yes, in my neighborhood, those uh wooden uh like plant pots that get in the way of the road.

SPEAKER_03 35:27

Can can I say something about Aspire? This is so boring, but we had some really, really nice wooden plant pots on my road that that did that. And Aspire's whole thing is like get rid of the LTNs, or just by it's less than 20% of people in Tower Hamlets that can drive FYI. Um so they're currently like going through the courts spending like thousands and thousands of pounds to like challenge residents challenging them to remove the LTNs, which is like the opposite of most of the country. They took the lovely plant parts away because they were expecting to be able to just put the HTN in the high traffic road or whatever.

SPEAKER_02 36:03

High traffic now.

SPEAKER_03 36:04

Yeah, but but because they were challenged, they've just had to have like these really ugly, you know, just like the general when they're doing building work, they've got like the kind of like big plastic temporary fences, and they've been there for like three years now. It's actually madness. Like they got voted in. The first thing they did was like, oh man, you know, there's like really beautiful flower beds, should we get rid of them? Because they've had such a big challenge, they've like, it's just been on the road like that for ages. It's it's like the most like middle class annoying thing to be annoyed about, but I walk past it every day and I'm like fuming.

SPEAKER_02 36:36

It's like the London equivalent of people who like live next to the sea and really hate having like wind farms off their shore because they get they have to look at them on the horizon and then they make up stuff about like birds being killed. I think it's like the same thing.

SPEAKER_03 36:49

It is the same thing. What other amazing show of democracy happened this week, Shereen?

SPEAKER_05 36:56

Um, I'm I'm not really sure about democracy. I was just gonna ask. Sorry, one second. I know there's been brilliant shows of democracy this week. I'm I'm not gonna take away from democracy, it's my one true love. So um I just wanted to check. Did anyone see if your party did okay? Did they get any can't counsellors? I haven't actually checked.

SPEAKER_02 37:19

I I I followed their Instagram and they they they was they did post lots of like uh we won't people winning. We claim that one. So I wasn't really sure because it was like, yeah, Aspire one. Yeah, yeah, they're us. But I have no idea if they I mean they said they got like uh 83 councillors, I think.

SPEAKER_03 37:36

Um they got eighty three councillors. No, no, but not but not standing under your so like Aspire were no one stood under your party.

SPEAKER_02 37:43

It was all like Aspire were backed by your party, so they're claiming that it was like uh Bradford's um independent party for change UK, and they they were like, Yeah, that's us.

SPEAKER_03 37:52

Yeah. Newham independence, also where there's like two landlords standing for councillors that that comically Jeremy Corbyn um backed. Yeah. They won, so they're they're claiming I don't think I'm not sure if they got any actually people standing as your party.

SPEAKER_02 38:08

Um I don't I don't think the party formed I think there wasn't enough time to stand councillors.

SPEAKER_03 38:15

They did stand councillors. They did directly counsellors in Luition.

SPEAKER_02 38:21

I have no idea if any of them actually won that.

SPEAKER_05 38:24

Not in Luition.

SPEAKER_03 38:28

Yeah. So the other amazing

Our Biennial Conference

SPEAKER_03 38:30

show of democracy this week was our CWU um general, well, general and industrial conferences, which just wrapped up today. Me and Shireen were there. I was there for I was there until last night, or like not last night, but yesterday. Um so I managed to see the telecoms, telecoms and financial services industrial conference. And Shireen, you were there for the general conference as well.

SPEAKER_05 38:53

I was there. Um, how was um the DNNFS um?

SPEAKER_02 38:59

Do we need to explain these things to the audience? Because I figure like uh a lot of this stuff is very internal and industrial. So hi, this is uh uh uh Edwin speaking here. Um this we are a podcast that is uh associated with United Second Allied Workers. Um the UK's biggest and best trade union for tech workers. Um United Second Allied Workers is a branch of the Communication Workers Union, uh which is the UK's uh premier trade union for postal, telecoms, financial services, and tech. Uh and what was the other thing you said, TFNS? That's like the telecoms bit of the union. So it was the conference it was the conference for the CWU, which is our parent union of the union that we're part of that this podcast is associated with.

SPEAKER_03 39:46

Um that's interesting because one of the motions that passed, it didn't even go to it wasn't even moved because it was just accepted by um like the the executive council was a motion that if a an initialism or an acronym was used, it must be would um spelt out in full at the beginning, which is also one of our standing orders. So one of our podcasts.

SPEAKER_02 40:09

I'm glad that they listened to listen to standing orders. Yeah. We got something through.

SPEAKER_03 40:14

So the telecoms and financial services conference, I can do very quick overview because obviously it's an industrial conference. So what that means is it's specifically like based on the telecoms industry and the financial industry, and like for the CWU, that's um BT and Santander, Santander. Once my friend's mum called it Santander, and I I I actually said it like three times at conference backs at Santander, but Santander, the bank. Um a lot of the motions and like decisions and democracy was like really um company focused. So for us as like tech workers and our union, like it wasn't super relevant, but it was still really interesting. It was also interesting because they invite um they actually invite their employer to the conference. So there was like people from employee relations in the room, which there were some bits where they had to all leave um so that like motions could be heard um in private. But I thought that was really interesting because what it meant, like there was at one point when they left, um there was kind of like encouragement to make sure that you were if you're angry, that you were really like telling directly to you know BT or whatever is and like HR essentially like tell them that you're angry, which was really good to see. It like shows the benefits of being a recognized union, which we're like we're really working towards.

SPEAKER_02 41:33

That'll be us one day when we invite like Sundar Pachai to the Utah conference.

SPEAKER_03 41:37

Zuckerberg sitting in the back and we're like so yeah, it was really interesting, and there was there was actually some motions that will will affect uh or like can be really, really beneficial to us, um, even though we're not in those recognized workplaces. Um, like one on providing sanitary bins in all workplaces, uh in all toilets, um not just kind of women's toilets, um, which was a really, really good one. And lots of people spoke really, really powerfully on that as well. And then general conference, that's where decisions are made um on policy for the whole union. Um, both of these conferences only happen every two years, so like pretty jam-packed um of like lots of different things. Um some relatively controversial things, mostly from our branch. Um, and then also lots of yeah, less controversial things, like we voted to further like cement our support for for Palestine and like workers in Palestine.

SPEAKER_08 42:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 42:33

We voted um for to campaign for proportional representation, which is also a branch policy of of Utah. Um my mum like texts me as soon as that motion passed. So I think that one was that was one that was like kind of really pushed in the press as well. Um and then we had three motions.

SPEAKER_02 42:54

So ours were a bit more like controversial for the rest of the union, I guess. We were we're we're a bit more radical, I guess.

SPEAKER_03 43:01

Yeah, I think so it's quite interesting, and like um, I'll talk to it because I was I was there for some days that Shereen wasn't wasn't there before. So we we managed to get three motions um on the pad, as you call it. So that's like the basic the motions that are voted on. Two of them we felt were very going into the conference, we felt were like very not controversial. So those two were um that the the union like our union commits to campaigning to repeal some like really repressive um anti-trade union laws about solidarity and secondary strike action. So that's like when you know, say the RMT are on strike because of whatever they're on strike, that that we could go on strike with them or we vote. Like so basically it's things that would make the general strike legal again.

unknown 43:52

Right.

SPEAKER_03 43:52

Or make it easier to happen. Um and then we so we thought that's pretty un and like uncontroversial because there was that to write laws.

SPEAKER_02 44:00

Why why is that difficult?

SPEAKER_03 44:03

So this was like quite a disheartening argument against Shereen, were you there for this one? I can't I couldn't I don't know if I was there for that one. I think you would know if you were because it was I would have been livid. Yeah, it was quite disheartening. Actually, the arguments against. So there was some arguments against were based on the wording of the motion, which is like those are fair, fair arguments against. Like there was um a bit in the motion which said like that we should test the boundaries of current strike clause, which could put the union at risk of um like legal action, which isn't like isn't always like the best long-term thing to do. But the vast majority of it is literally just a campaign to repeal anti-trade union laws, like Thatcher right laws, which that's not controversial. Some of the arguments against um were very uncomradely and um and unjustly unfriendly. So, like one person, um, there was you know arguments to the lines of like we we're struggling to eat, why should we, you know, strike or take action for other people, which is the are you not in a trade union? Yeah, yeah. It's the complete opposite of like what a trade union is.

SPEAKER_02 45:18

Kind of the point, isn't it?

SPEAKER_03 45:19

Yeah, and I think that was extra disappointing for me because there were a lot of speech a lot of other parts of the conference where they they brought up like the very famous and like well-known line of like an injury to one is an injury to all. Um so that was disappointing, but that was essentially the argument. Like, why should we do this when we've got our own problems? Um, and then so that that did that fell. And then we had another motion, which was to set up an opt-in strike fund.

SPEAKER_05 45:50

I was there for that one.

SPEAKER_03 45:51

Yeah. So you would all we also we we were like racking our brains beforehand, like what will the arguments against be? Because we we found out you find out before the conference if the National Executive Committee will um support or oppose or ask you to withdraw. So all of ours they asked to with to withdraw withdraw, basically. Um because this the the concept of the strike fund is that it would be an optional levy of like two pounds a week for members that want to do it, but also if you wanted to, like if you're very high paid, as some of our members like in the tech sector actually are, um, you could give in like a lot more, like you could just donate like 200 quid if you feel like a little bit flush one month. Um and then that would be used to support workers when they're uh taking industrial action. And that was um voted down on the like unbelievable and offensive argument that to go on strike that that it's uh it's like wrong and like ideologically and morally wrong to need financial support to go on strike. You know, like like oh this is now uncomradedly of me, but like basically they were saying, like, you know, you you middle class intellectuals that will only strike if if you're paid for it.

SPEAKER_08 47:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 47:04

Which is which is like shocking and disgusting when we have members that already can't afford like basic living, yeah. And the cost of going on strike would stop them from going on strike and would stop them from being able to like exercise their right to have better terms and conditions.

SPEAKER_05 47:20

Yeah, and who was making these arguments?

SPEAKER_03 47:25

Various different people from across across different branches. And I'd like I don't know, Shereen, if you got like this feeling. So we got the feeling of like I got the feeling that we were like the Lady Die faction. So there was like mass support, but because of how branch mandates work, people still had to vote against some of our motions. Like people were coming up to us in the corridors and in pubs and restaurants or whatever and being like, we're really glad that you raised that because we need to have these discussions, not just that motion, but the other two as well. Um, but they couldn't vote for vote for it.

SPEAKER_07 47:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 47:58

Um, so it wasn't like, oh my gosh, we're the only branch that I that kind of wants to think about these progressive things. It was, you know, just takes it takes a bit longer, I think, than we thought that we would.

SPEAKER_02 48:10

I mean, I guess like this is not me playing Devil's Avocado, but um playing Comrade Lee Corsette. Um that like yes, obviously a lot of those um a lot of those motions are very frustrating for us to say the least. But also does show us in general that like while we talk to other branches, we need we need better relations with other branches.

SPEAKER_03 48:38

Yeah, exactly. Like exactly.

SPEAKER_02 48:40

Yeah, because we we you know we should we shouldn't be going to these conferences and um you know putting up these things where it feels controversial because we're we're all in the same union. We're all should be fighting for the same things, but one union Yeah, but we don't have enough uh yeah, we're we're we're we're in disparate fields or you know, we're within I mean we're in it we're in a union that has uh what like 150,000 plus members or something like that. And um we actually, you know, w with members who are in um telecoms royal mail, whatever. Um we don't have a huge amount of internal crossover with members. We do we you know we might do with um you know higher ups in the union, but not necessarily with rank and file members.

SPEAKER_03 49:28

Rank and file, exactly. So like there was a few noticeable things, and that one just noticed by our delegation, but we're also told to us, we were like visibly much younger than most of the people. And that's not you know, like that isn't obviously not surprising. Yeah, like in many ways, that's not surprising, but that was kind of one thing. Um, and we also like clearly something that although like some parts of it I I was like genuinely like upset and like I wanted to go home at some point. I was like really, really upset. Um I when I when my brain like cleared a bit, I realized like actually it showed us like how lucky we are in our branch that we can have like really we can have disagreements even, we can have like progressive conversations and we can think about things properly, intelligently, and calmly.

SPEAKER_09 50:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 50:15

That I think a lot of people across the trade union movement aren't able to do. Um you know, that isn't that isn't like a slight on the CWU at all. It's the state of like trade unionism in politics.

SPEAKER_02 50:29

Um and one of uh like uh I mean Abby spoke about in a in a in a in a in a quite amazing and impassioned speech that was she was amazing. She was amazing, but about something else, but um like one of the things she specifically said was like that the you know the the the face of the working class is different to what you think it is. Yeah, yeah. And I think that's something that was really important we got across because yeah, we we are as a trade union something quite different from what is expected is trade unions in the UK have a I guess uh a history or maybe a preconception of being sort of um like white male working class institutions. And to some extent they are, like, you know, the the makeup of our union and particularly the you know national executive of our union. I I mean looking at the conference delegation, like it did look like a a a a room full of um uh pink basketballs on seats, like it was and that's not that isn't to be disrespectful because like there are some of the biggest comrades in that room, but but but it is it is it that is the truth.

SPEAKER_03 51:41

We had conversations about this, like there was you were like one of four black people, not to call you out as being black, but do you know what I mean? No, I am black people.

SPEAKER_02 51:51

You are so an audio-only medium, I had no idea.

SPEAKER_03 51:55

Yeah, like Shereen, I saw people were like there was like but the black delegates that were like coming to speak to you, and I thought, yeah, like yeah, yeah, and it's it's a shame, but like, and I there is this kind of like um there is like this, it's not a stereotype, a myth, or whatever that like all black people know each other and blah blah blah.

SPEAKER_05 52:20

But actually, of the delegates there, I didn't know pretty much all of the black people there, and that that is like upset. And there were points throughout the conference that I did feel very upset and very like uncomfortable in the space and unsupported. Um, obviously, we're gonna get on to the disaffiliation motion, which I think we we haven't really had a chance to discuss yet. But there were points during that where I felt like inside that room, outside of the delegation we had, which wasn't a very sizable delegation, by the way.

SPEAKER_03 52:56

Nine delegates.

SPEAKER_05 52:57

We had nine, which was it was the biggest. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 53:01

Yeah, so we stopped. It it it wasn't it isn't proportionate to to our to our size because they kind of were like, if that you just have too many delegates. So we so we got nine because we broke the system a bit, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 53:14

And I really felt like at points, like it was us versus them. Um and also that like before we get on to like the big one, which is disaffiliation, we we there were like other motions that were quite like uncomradely and did seem like they were specifically trying to target us. Um, in particular, there was a motion about um members being allocated to the wrong branches. So if you don't know, um basically when you apply to become a member of CW, they sort you out into what area of the union they think that you should be. And some of the other branches do believe that United Tech and Allied Workers are getting uh um members that they shouldn't, and and that those members should be in their branch. And uh to me that's really upsetting, especially like as an organizer, and obviously the two the patriarch and our treasurer here are also both organizers, and we work extremely hard to get members.

SPEAKER_02 54:19

A big part of that like problem there is that there's you know, we we're representing tech workers, but what does tech worker mean? It means so many different things, and there's uh obviously a preconception that tech workers are you know programmers who sit in front of a computer all day and um I don't know um are in an office with um an air hockey table and uh being like that. Um and but that's that's you know that's not that's not what tech workers are. Tech workers cover a huge amount of fields, tech workers aren't all at the you know, top end of the wage scale. Um there's a huge amount of people who work for tech companies that I mean obviously we represent lots of people um in like customer support and retail and um you know content moderation, like lots and lots of people who are like um yeah, I mean you know, paid like luck if they get paid the living wage. Um so yeah, tech tech worker means a huge number of things, and yeah, I mean I think something we need to do as a union is um I think I think most of us can like describe tech workers as being people who work you know, people who work for tech companies, but also like even that means a lot of different things, doesn't it? Like what company isn't a tech company these days? Like at one point in time tech company would would have just meant like company that has a website, like you know, was Amazon.com a tech company or like did it sell was it a company that sold books?

SPEAKER_03 55:49

Yeah, would they be in the booksellers union?

SPEAKER_02 55:52

Right, exactly. So um like we we need to do better at defining that and being able to describe it, but also being able to explain um yeah what what what tech means and what that industry is for sure.

SPEAKER_05 56:07

Yeah, I just think it's a shame that anyone in our union would think so like badly of us, especially as we are like we're notably younger than them, and and it would be nice, like lots of people at Comports were extremely nice, and it would have been nice in the motions if it felt more comrades, if it didn't feel like it's us versus you.

SPEAKER_03 56:33

Yeah, I have two things to say. So one in like about this specific motion, we it was kind of like unanimously seen as kind of of a as not a a nice motion, and like we were really um you know, we had a lot of support on that. And the argument was oh no, we it it did name Utah, but it wasn't actually about Utah, and you can decide what you think about that, right? But that was clear, like we had a lot of support um with on that one. I think people saw saw it for what it was, and like the NEC basically just stood up and was like, listen, if if there are individual cases, it's really, really easy to fix it. Like we found people, I found people that are clearly tech workers in other branches, and it's really, really easy to get it moved over, and like it would be the same vice versa. And like we do actually sometimes we we have significant membership in some workplaces, and we decide or like we you know we work out, actually, they'd be much better placed in you know grip the London branch or or whatever else. And then the second thing about um the age of of people of maybe like Utah versus the rest of the union, I don't think so. If you looked at the delegates in that room, yes, but I think that like visibly, right? If you just took it on these like maybe slightly older white men, they don't actually necessarily represent have a true representation in that way, like demographic-wise, of their memberships.

SPEAKER_07 57:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 57:56

So that that was that's the other thing. Like, yeah, we we we are like we're a young branch in that was six years old, and we do have a higher proportion of young members because tech is like famously, it's like not that friendly to older workers, um, and just the nature of it being a newer industry, a slightly newer industry. But our union is young across branches, and like we need to remember that we need to work with them, like Edwin said. And I and and I hope we do, I got loads of business cards at conference, so I like I hope we can really like work with lots of other branches and like share things because we can learn from them too, I think.

SPEAKER_05 58:28

Yeah, after conference, we I was getting the train back to London with Deji and um one of our other delegates, and um we were on the we were just on the train discussing what happened, and some of the other people who were on the same train as us from CW came over, and we had like such a sick chat about like trade unionism, what was going on in the world, and yeah, they gave up their cards, they were like, what you did was amazing, um, we need like new blood, and and they were like, it is a bit sad that some people do seem like resistant to change, but clearly you're on the right track, so like don't give up. And we really hope that no one made you feel like uncomfortable at conference. Like, that was one of their biggest concerns was that we would come back again and we'd be happy to come back again. And we were all just like, yeah, of course, we'll come back again.

SPEAKER_03 59:21

This is what I mean. Like, people were it it isn't just that we were like, Oh, we didn't like it, that our motions got voted down. What there was uncomraily behavior, um, but also people were like really, I think they recognized that we just took it in good faith. Like we, we, yeah, we were adults, hopefully, about it. Um, so I really enjoyed it. And I think the other delegates enjoyed it too. I hope.

SPEAKER_05 59:43

I think that, yeah, we're about to move on because we have a lot to talk about, especially like disaffiliation. Just a quick thing. I actually, as a deleg as a member of our delegation, I did say that we should support the review moving forwards. And I understand that the NEC and everyone had already kind of decided that they weren't going to support the membership review going forwards. But I don't know, like I I genuinely don't think it's the best like political decision.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:10

Because you're talking about the motion uh uh that mentioned us, yeah. Because we we spoke for and we voted for that motion.

SPEAKER_05 1:00:19

Yeah, we just asked everyone else in the whole room. We we forgot to mention this. Yeah, like we are very we were like, yeah, please just just give them their fucking review so we can like have this conversation down.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:32

Because we like, yeah, because it it it's always like generally more data is always better, isn't it? Like we were more strongly for that motion.

SPEAKER_05 1:00:41

Yeah, but that that that's it for the for that topic.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:45

Now let's do this for Fili Manilli and then uh and then call it quits and not go for two hours today.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:53

You want to go for two hours? Well, I really like sitting here getting increasingly hot when I can't open the window.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:01

I've I've almost run out of candidates on the quiz. Oh no, wait, I haven't, there's thousands.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:05

And my tangos ran out as well.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:08

Go on, last last last.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:14

Shireen, you talk about the disfiliation motion because you didn't get to speak on it at conference because uh you can explain why, but I would really I'm interested to oh man, where to even fucking start with this one?

SPEAKER_05 1:01:27

This one was literally a nightmare for me. Um so obviously the first person who spoke for us was um Deji, who kind of just like, yeah, Deji did a brilliant job, as did all of our speakers on this motion. Um Deji was just kind of explaining that um because basically our branch secretary had our general secretary, sorry, not branch secretary, our general secretary had made some comments that made it seem like uh the Socialist Party was was trying to do some kind of uh political coup inside in favor of the socialist party. So um Deji immediately went up and set the record straight. You know, our branch does not have like a specific affiliation. We're actually representing members who are from a variety of different political parties. I think he said five political parties. And um yeah, yeah, and yeah, definitely, yeah. I our um yeah, our general secretary Dave did accuse us of being um SWP or SP.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:38

Um it was it was it was they said we were the SWP and then Deji was specifically called out as as an accused of being like an actor from the S the from the Socialist Party. So there was actually two separate instances of that.

SPEAKER_05 1:02:56

Which was extremely harsh. Um, I don't know if you know this, listeners, but as a branch, Dave Ward is actually usually extremely supportive of us because we are a young, growing, uh very influential branch. We are clearly having an impact. We're great recruiters. Um we're obviously the new face of the trade union movement. Um, so to me, it was shocking that that the general secretary did choose to go on the attack like this. It was clear that he was obviously concerned about the movement we've made. And um yeah, before all of this, I know I'm doing this in a weird order, but there was like a disaffiliation fringe group, and the meeting the room was packed out, you know.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:44

Um somebody said it was the best fringe meeting they'd been to in 20 years of going to conference, which is really like quite I've never been to conference, so I don't know what fringe meetings are normally like, but yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:03:54

And if you are not aware of what's been going on, because obviously sometimes people are not on Discord or they're not keeping up with the conversation because a lot has happened. Uh, essentially before all of this, we did have a disaffiliation working group, and we still do, and that working group is now like United Tech and Allied workers, but also like members from like at least 13 different branches across the union. So the disaffiliation movement is actually picking up steam to an extent that I think it was concerning to Dave Ward CBE, who is obviously like keen to be in some way involved with the Labour Party. Um, the next speech that we had was from our brilliant political officer, Abby. Um, yeah, she spoke about trans rights. Yeah, basically what what the Labour Party had done for trans people and how she would never be able to forgive them. And um, I'm I'm obviously giving you a rundown here, but it is on YouTube and it was live streamed. So we will jot the link down um when we're releasing this episode, and you should watch it.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:06

All 18 hours on you can sit down for a full work day of nine to nine to half five of full motions. There's an hour break for lunch, but apart from that, it's motion, motion, motion, motion.

SPEAKER_05 1:05:17

Yeah, you can experience the uh hell that we went through sitting down for so long.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:24

I actually lost my voice. I don't know if anyone can tell. Like, I I woke up one morning and like went down to breakfast and I couldn't speak. Like that's how tickling from like screaming like that. Yeah. But I you actually I think we we'll try we we're definitely gonna work on like an overview on my share in with the other delegates, and maybe we can like clip up some speeches where people are happy as well. So you don't you don't have to watch all 18 hours.

SPEAKER_05 1:05:50

Yeah, no, but you you could if you wanted to. It's it's there. But no, we will try and make that like very accessible for you. And then obviously, like against. us on every single motion there were like a million different crying sausage types no I'm joking these are comrades but they were crying like labor counselors and uh a lot of them were labor counselors that was the yeah it was basically us versus the labor counselors and they were basically we were told I was gonna say encouraged but actually conference was told to out your political affiliation before you started speaking on labor disaffiliation and we noted that that was done by everyone but the Labour but but people in Labour which is an interesting way to like to do it like is it like as if labor is the the standard which I mean I hope it is for an affiliated union but I thought I thought was that was quite bad form. And I think we should put a formal complaint in a lot of the issues that people raised were the fact that we're going through some industrial actions right now or we're in the process of negotiating on specific things and it would be unfair for us to leave it would be screwing over the specific workplaces if we did leave at this point. Some of the I I I have to say a lot of the arguments that I heard I I have a bias obviously I'm in favor of disaffiliation but I'm not that much in bias but I was surprised by a lot of the the pushback because it felt overly emotional to me. It didn't not all of it seemed very um not all of it seemed very rational like some people were just like just because of you the party has gone wrong doesn't mean you give up on them and there was a lot of football an analogies I I would say 80% of the speeches were if you don't like your football team you change the manager.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:54

Yeah you don't suddenly go from like Newcastle to Sunderland. Yeah and I said that if we'd had another speech that one of us should have said you could change the manager of Newcastle but you're still owned by Saudi Arabia.

SPEAKER_05 1:08:06

Like it isn't a good analogy it's very weak but that was for some reason like people were very obsessed with that being the analogy which is like mental because it's this is like politics in people's lives so and um yeah at there was a point where someone screamed out I think at this point where they were like let's get on with with the vote and basically when someone does call a vote we do have to go to a vote. Desire called for a point of order um the point of order was refused on technicality um we did end up going for a vote on that and then the bit where I was going to speak which was motion 47 and at this point in the conference I was extremely pissed off so what I had written was quite savage and in hindsight I'm kind of glad I didn't get to speak because it would have been it would have been very rude. But um yeah they skipped over motion 47 for reasons unknown.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:01

It didn't fall that that's like key to say so sometimes if there's not enough time they can just skip through but it I I think there was enough time. I because we finished early.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:11

Yeah there was enough time for them to read 47 but they didn't I don't know if that was like a compromise with us because 47 was about like encouraging labor membership amongst the trade union membership and I think like that is something that we wouldn't be able to do here in United Tech and Allied workers and I'm sure that across the union they wouldn't be able to do that either. Like people would be like why are you telling me to vote Labour? No one likes Labour is clear from the local elections. Yeah so that happened it it did feel like yeah yeah yeah it did feel like it was very much like coordinated against us. They knew that we had been working on this for a long time it seemed very like well planned out a series of attacks um and obviously the room was stacked out against us um so it was never really gonna go that far and yeah it did seem like the Stan Nolders committee and obviously Dave Ward had kind of decided to try and uh as I call it little brother us as in kind of put us in our place about all of our motions.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:23

Yeah um we were never gonna win the disaffiliate we were always gonna get like really really strong like this was one where I thought we were it was actually the most if we could put uncomrade lee this was fine the arguments against us were fine in this one like very expected it was actually the other ones where I was like that wasn't that was just unfair and like cruel. Yeah but it was yeah I think that I think yeah but it's an it is if you can find just the disaffiliation motion ones and you you have like an hour or something it is interesting to watch them on YouTube.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:55

Yeah and I was livid I actually got into an argument with a member of our NEC outside um because I went for a a smoke break because I was so infuriated and the thing and this has come up on the podcast before the thing that bothers me so much about like everything that comes up is always when they fucking say like we should be able to have a sensible conversation about immigration that bit really pissed me off and it kind of it's it's always like what do you mean what does a sensible conversation about immigration look like to you because what I'm seeing is like people of colour being targeted for going to work and I I'm sitting in a room full of mostly white men who are older than me who are all agreeing that yeah like immigration we should really be talking about it and I I genuinely don't think so. And it's also not the TUC's like expectation of unions and what we've ruled as like a TUC anti-racism strategy it's very clearly to insist that people fucking move and people have always moved people it's what we do. Yeah and it's completely unacceptable for you to to caution off a a segment of of our country and just say well we should be able to talk about whether you have the right to be here or not.

SPEAKER_03 1:12:17

Yeah and and you just reminded me because one of the um there was actually an unfair argument against us where where one of the speakers said I can't believe that members at the United worker he he named the number of members we had which is by quite out of date now because it was like 5,600 because when the pad was written a few quite a few months ago now we're obviously over 6,000.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:41

He said I can't believe your 5,800 whatever members um that they care about this more than their terms and conditions and I thought it was it's really frustrating that we didn't get to speak on that because this is terms and conditions for a lot of our members like we are we have members on visas and we have members like with with like family and friends on visas so and we we have you know trans members who like are being told they can't go to work because of like bathroom bands and stuff like I thought that that was that we're a political union like that that's that's how unions are yeah it's true and I and I think that's a massive issue within the trade union movement especially in CWU is the fact that they genuinely think that they can separate workplace issues from from these societal issues as a whole and I think we all know that from everything from climate change to to racism to anti-trans discrimination or LGBTQI rights they're all interlinked. You can't separate one from the other and if you try to you won't actually see a solution to your problem because what you're arguing to me as a black woman and again listeners I am black um what you're arguing to me is that actually the only thing that

Going Through the Motions

SPEAKER_05 1:14:01

you care about is white people having good rights because and it's straight white men having specifically good rights because the things that you're arguing for and that you want will not benefit me as a black woman in any way shape or form and won't what they won't impact um Abby as they won't impact Abby they won't impact any of our other members you know um and being that we are younger I think it's very important to state that like we've not had that experience a positive experience of the Labour Party exactly in our lifetime. We've had Tony Blair who fucking did Iraq and and paved the way for a lot of this privatization that we're seeing right now as well as Margaret Thatcher you know that's we probably all went to PIF schools right we probably all went to schools that were like suffering through the privatization of like the education sector and that and that's because of them we got the increase of tuition fees so we're all facing like the people who manage to go to university are all facing hundreds of thousands of pounds of debt with a generation that's unlike our parents are not going to be able to afford houses are not going to be able to like move forwards and the one moment of hope that we had in Jeremy Corbyn this labor party administration that you're currently backing removed him. So like there's nothing good for us.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:30

Oh you've muted yourself amazing love that I had this thought when I was walking home so like a lot of of people our age came like were not I don't want to say radicalized but like were activated as like people because of Jeremy Corbyn. Because of Jeremy Corbyn. So like Utah maybe exists because of people I mean it does it exists in the way it does with like strong strength strong and because of Jeremy Corbyn. So we we we have like this really not that we all like love Jeremy Corbyn now and we're all like you know diehard Jeremy Corbyn people but like it was that was what happened.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:02

Anyway we haven't heard from daddy in a while I I didn't I wasn't there I didn't have anything to recollect about it. What is your general take of what we said on on on CL conference I stopped listening about 10 minutes ago because I can't I can't concentrate. And he he he has and also and also there was there was no there was there were just no no men speaking so I didn't know who to pay attention to he has to listen to this over and over when he's editing anyway so what's the point listening now? I'm gonna have I'm gonna have some really good things to say about it in about four hours time once I've finished editing this. I'm just gonna edit myself in with witty quips. Are you going to keep this into um I've run out of things to uh say should we um meh meh meh meh meh I didn't have a gavel so I just did that noise.

SPEAKER_03 1:16:58

We made an amazing impact a conference boom next year it will be even better. I well not next year it's we're not allowed to have annual democracy as well two years.

SPEAKER_05 1:17:12

I know that's not the only reason but no no and that is the only reason annual democracy would be stressful and hard so it's every two years and I I genuinely believe that in two years time the disaffiliation movement will be a lot stronger to be honest.

SPEAKER_03 1:17:28

Somebody said that to me actually that disaffiliation comes up like for ages they come it comes up at every conference but this year it it's it's had the most the most movement and like I obviously there's lots of different reasons for that but it's not like this is not like the end of the disaffiliation campaign. And also the other thing the disaffiliation campaign like isn't actually just about disaffiliating it's about like really being like what the hell to Labour yeah so the next two years are gonna be we're gonna make the next two years very very very hard for Labour to keep doing what they're doing I think.

SPEAKER_02 1:18:05

Yeah there's unless of course the leadership election happens this week and um I don't know uh John McDonald uh uh runs and then we all suddenly rejoin the Labour Party to vote in the I don't know well I'm actually standing as a as a green councillor so I'm not allowed to rejoin Labour but I would send John McDonald my solidarity um I do think that like yeah I do think that the Labour Party system in general is kind of fucked yeah it's it's that's the problem it's not that people is so like messed up the actual party apparatus so I don't believe that we'll see any significant changes through a leadership change. Um but we did raise that point as well at conference but it was falling on deaf labour ears so you know constituents of uh Lady Well um I'm looking forward to all of their uh emails um into the podcast will be holding uh monthly surgery episodes um and we've got loads of stuff that we uh haven't got around to yet but we need to do a Google episode and a meta episode because we've been doing lots of fun organizing excitement in those particular places we might have a recognized we might have recognized Apple next week right find out how all of the all of the um wait what are they called now not Fang Fang with too many letters now.

SPEAKER_05 1:19:42

Yeah um cool um see you Zuckerberg because we're also organizing Meta oh my gosh no I know that we're end of the podcast but did you see that crazy article in futurism about meta and Mark Zuckerberg creating like an AI of himself to like virtually control his his employees.

SPEAKER_02 1:20:05

Right so yeah he's creating um an AI version of himself to run the company and then they're also like what installing like keyloggers on all the companies like computers to train the AI they're trying to basically turn the entire they're trying to go like full full maximum AI no more human intervention in the company.

SPEAKER_03 1:20:23

That's why they're organizing I had a very interesting email from a journalist who I believe is being paid by Meta to get information about their organizing here. And I'm as we're speaking I'm like should I call them up and just give them like loads of misinformation might do it. They're in California so we'll have to like change the time but yeah it it's like the most suspicious journalist outreach that I think we've ever had it was like like asking yeah very suspicious questions about like organizers and stuff. So I'm trying to work out what's like the funniest thing I can tell them to like get some like random to get like Zuckerberg or I mean it probably won't go at Zuckerberg but you know what I mean to like you should tell them Zuckerberg is in the union Zuckerberg is one of the lead organizers. It's actually Cheryl Sandberg she doesn't work for Meta anymore but she is actually organizing um the Meta workers at the moment meta workers yeah oh yeah Meta mates they're called MetaMates.

SPEAKER_05 1:21:26

Are they that all of these tech companies the what they call their employees are always like something really psychotic.

SPEAKER_03 1:21:34

I'm like forming a baby Instagram post in my head but I I don't want to like piss people off that's why I haven't done it. But of like all the names like I'll do a Valentine's Day post and it'll be like Valentine's cards and it'll be like to my meta mate of all the like stupid names that people that the companies have for their employees.

SPEAKER_05 1:21:51

If we need to bleep out the name of the organizer at Meta You mean the 1000 organizers that I'm about to call up this journalist and tell them that they need to protect Zuckerberg with all of our thingies. Next week we're doing our council AGM so I'll find out what role I get and maybe we can talk about how the council works.

SPEAKER_02 1:22:18

Oh you don't have a role oh I didn't I didn't know how yeah of course I I didn't know how I just didn't even think you would be getting a role I don't know what that is the turnaround is insane for drain pipes meh minister for um uh can you get the light bulbs and the um street lights changed back to um good colour because warm uh to warm where you're asking for a lot here warm yeah that feels like a moving to Lady Well and bringing it up as like a casework thing at every surgery you hold okay fine um I'll let war the lights all right bye honeys bye bye bye bye bye nice to see you