RMT Report to November 2012 -FINAL
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RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP REPORT September to November 2012 RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP Convenor: John McDonnell MP CONTENTS Executive Summary 3 Legislation 5 Rail 9 London Underground 25 Maritime 28 Offshore 40 Buses 42 Trade Union Coordinating Group 44 Annex 1: Group agenda 49 Annex 2: Early Day Motions 50 Annex 4: List of Group Members 56 2 RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP Convenor: John McDonnell MP Executive Summary This report covers the period from 3rd September, when the House returned from Summer recess, through to 22nd November 2012. The House sat for eight weeks during this period which included the break for Party Conferences when the House rose on 18th September and returned for its Autumn session on 15th October. The House will rise for Christmas recess on 20th December and return on 7th January 2013. The Cabinet re-shuffle on 4th September saw Justine Greening replaced by Patrick McLoughlin as Transport Secretary. In addition to strategy and other meetings the Parliamentary Group met once formally over this five week period on 6th November and its next meeting is scheduled for 11th December. We are currently preparing the schedule of group meetings for 2013. The Government’s attack on worker’s rights has continued apace throughout this period with the Public Service Pensions (PSP) Bill, the Criminal Injuries Compensations Scheme 2012, the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill and the Growth and Infrastructure Bill all making their way through Parliament. The Parliamentary Group has engaged all parliamentary mechanisms available to oppose these measures and voice the unions concerns. An amendment to protect the pensions rights of ex-Jarvis workers has been tabled for the Report Stage of the PSP Bill on 4th December, although this may have difficulty being selected for debate as the Bill is about public service pensions. Chris Williamson secured an adjournment debate for the Group on Bombardier and Frank addressed the RMT rally to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Kings Cross Fire. The Group is also still pursuing the Maritime Round-Table Discussion with the Minister which has yet to be arranged. The Group has continued to facilitate a flow of information between the union and Parliament, providing information to the union from PQs and House of Commons Library research, debate transcripts and Ministerial Statements; and circulating RMT Briefings and Press Releases to MPs. Listed in the table below are the Early Day Motions (EDMs) tabled by the Group during the 2012-2013 Parliament which began on 9th May. During the period of this report we have added EDMs on ISS cleaners on London Underground and the 25th anniversary of the King's Cross Fire and staffing on London Underground. We will be gathering further support for these. Kelvin Hopkins is to table an EDM on the sale of Rail Freight facilities. All of these EDMs remain on the Parliamentary Order Paper and will be available for further signatures. EDM Title (2012-2013 Parliament) Tabling MP Signatures No. 59 London Taxis and the Olympic Route Network John McDonnell 18 61 15 Year Age Limit for London Taxis John McDonnell 16 3 RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP Convenor: John McDonnell MP 68 Ban on Pedicabs During the London Olympics John McDonnell 9 134 London Midland Ticket Offices Frank Dobson 19 137 Training for Seafarers Karl Turner 34 209 Falkland Islands Conflict and the Merchant Navy Mike Hancock 15 291 Churchill Cleaners Ian Mearns 19 386 Catering Facilities on Intercity West Coast Rail Gerald Kaufman 27 Service 419 Privatisation of Scottish Ferry Services Katy Clark 32 723 ISS Cleaners on London Underground Jeremy Corbyn 12 745 King's Cross Fire and Staffing on London Frank Dobson 15 Underground During the period of this report detailed briefing material and RMT Press Notices have been widely distributed throughout Parliament on issues including: · West Coast Main Line · King’s Cross Fire 25th Anniversary · Thameslink · Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme · Train driver may be the last to receive CICS award after suicide death trauma · Driver action prevents potential tube tragedy · Taxpayer bail-outs for UK rail franchises · Rail Fares · Crossrail · Tonnage Tax Group members have tabled Parliamentary Questions on a wide range of issues of concern to the union. Parliamentary Questions have been tabled by Katy Clark MP, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Ian Davidson MP, Kelvin Hopkins MP, John McDonnell MP, Ian Mearns MP, Karl Turner MP and Chris Williamson MP and are included in this report. Several more written Parliamentary Questions have been tabled and await response. Subjects covered by the Questions: · Rail: Franchises (incl. West Coast), Fares, Network Rail, Freight, Rail Delivery Group, Thameslink contract, · Maritime: Shipping, Ports, Safety, Privatisation of Marchwood, Tonnage Tax, Minimum Wage, Channel Islands Regs. · Offshore: industry safety · Buses. Ian Davidson MP addressed the RMT Political School via videolink on 23rd October and the Parliamentary Group hosted the regular Political School on 25th October in Westminster, which was addressed by John McDonnell and Chris Williamson. Further bookings have been made for March and October 2013. The Group have booked a Committee Room for a lobby of Parliament for London Underground cleaners on 11th December. The Parliamentary Group Convenor, John McDonnell MP, will present this report to the Council of Executives on 4th December. 4 RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP Convenor: John McDonnell MP Legislation · Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 On 12th November the draft scheme, which was laid before the House on 2nd July, was finally approved in a division by 275 to 231. On that day the RMT staged a demonstration outside Parliament about this, which was addressed by Bob Crow. Typical RMT cases affecting rail workers include disabling mental illnesses suffered through witnessing suicides and fatalities on the railway and the resulting psychological damage as a result of assaults on railway workers. The changes will restrict compensation to those who suffer only the most severe injuries. Despite earlier Ministerial assurances that these plans would be reconsidered, after protests by MPs, unions and victim support groups, they were presented unchanged and forced through the Delegated Legislation Committee. Group member Katy Clark was among those who vociferously opposed this measure and delayed its progress at Committee. The Opposition ensured a debate on 7th November, calling for the scheme to be reconsidered so that the blameless victims of violent crime were not also victims of these new restrictions scheme but this was defeated by 289 to 209: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm121107/debtext/121107- 0003.htm#12110766003247 John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington) (Lab): I want to speak on one narrow point of the proposal with regard to railways. I represent a railway estate in my constituency that traditionally housed railway workers and their families, and I chair the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers parliamentary group. I have dealt with constituents who in their working lives have tried to intervene to protect passengers and in so doing have become victims of assaults, and who have been witnesses to the tragic suicides at my local station and across the country. In the past five months, my local station has seen four suicides in which an individual has stepped in front of a fast train. That has an immense traumatic impact on not just the family of the victim, but on the driver and other staff who were witnesses, and on those who deal with the aftermath of the incident. I was, therefore, extremely concerned that the proposal, which has been considered by two delegated legislation Committees, is described by the impact assessment as “Clarifying eligibility for the scheme and changing the scope of the scheme to no longer make payments for mental injury to those who…are employed on the railways and witness (or are involved in the aftermath) of an injury resulting directly from an offence of trespass on the railways”. That goes back to the 1980s when we campaigned and won a recognition that there should be some form of compensation for those workers who were traumatised by the experience of suicide, largely as a result of their train hitting the victim, or seeing it from the platform. Initially, the House of Lords did not accept that suicide was within the remit of the compensation scheme, but in 1990 a Conservative Government did accept that, and so compensated those who were victims of such trauma. The proposal is, therefore, a significant step backwards, which will impact on a large number of people who suffer in such a way. 5 RMT PARLIAMENTARY GROUP Convenor: John McDonnell MP My right hon. Friend the Member for Oxford East (Mr Smith) quoted one example of what had happened to a shop worker, so may I quote an example provided by the RMT of what happened to Karen Jordan, from Barnet, who has been driving trains for 10 years and has twice had her train impact with a suicide victim? The last occasion, the RMT says, “was a routine journey but as the train rounded a bend she spotted what she thought was a tarpaulin on the track. When her train hit the object she saw a pair of shoes, socks and lower legs. Even if she had been able to apply the emergency brakes she would have been powerless to stop it hitting the man.” The driver saw that person cut in two. She was traumatised, and experienced flashbacks and nightmares. She was eventually allowed to retire on medical grounds, but during the period concerned she was off sick. Yes, she received sickness benefits, but under the new compensation scheme arrangements she would not have satisfied the criteria for eligibility for the emergency fund for that very reason. Had the incident occurred today, she would have received no compensation whatsoever.