Women's Views on News |
- Launch of Public Service Users Bill
- Women into engineering should go
- Mediation for family disputes falls 45 per cent
| Launch of Public Service Users Bill Posted: 29 Jan 2014 07:29 AM PST
Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, has launched a new bill as part of a campaign to give people more control over public services. Her Private Member's Bill is based on work by We Own It, a group campaigning to shift the debate on public ownership and show that public services are better in public hands. The Bill, presented in Parliament last week, would make public ownership the default option before privatisation takes place, and ensure that private companies running services are more accountable and transparent. It would cover a range of services, including the NHS, public transport, and local services such as schools and libraries. It would: Make public ownership the default option before any services, national or local, are contracted out to the private sector; Require there to be a realistic and thorough in-house bid whenever a service is put out to tender; Ensure there is full consideration of public opinion before any service is privatised or outsourced; Give the public a right to recall private companies running public services poorly; Require private companies running public services to be transparent about their performance and financial data (as in the public sector); Make private companies running public services subject to Freedom of Information requests (as in the public sector); Give social enterprises and mutuals, as well as public sector organisations, priority in tendering processes. Lucas said: "Whether it's the NHS, railways or schools, people deserve reliable, cost-effective, and accountable public services. "Since the 1980s we've seen more and more areas of public life put up for sale, with money diverted from services to shareholders. "In Brighton and across the country, people are increasingly questioning the tired 'Private is Best' myth. "There are positive," she continued, "pragmatic alternatives. "When services are owned by the people who rely on them, there is more accountability, more democracy, and the knowledge that profits aren't ending up in the pockets of big business. "Increasingly we're seeing different ways public ownership can deliver high-quality, cost-efficient services "The publicly owned East Coast line, for example, delivered over £200 million back to the taxpayer last year. "Councils are starting to bring services back in house – not because of dogma, but because it's more cost-efficient. "This Bill is about improving the quality and accountability of the services we all rely on. It's supported by public opinion and I hope other MPs can get behind it." The We Own It campaign was set up last year to highlight the benefits of public ownership. Last year it carried out polling which showed that: 60 per cent of the public support public ownership being a default option before services are contracted out; 79 per cent believe the public should be consulted before any service is privatised or outsourced; 88 per cent believe there should be a right to recall private companies doing a bad job; 88 per cent believe private companies running public services should be transparent about their performance and financial data; 48 per cent mistakenly believe that private companies running public services are already subject to Freedom of Information Legislation. Cat Hobbs, founder of We Own It, said: "It’s brilliant that Caroline Lucas is taking a stand for the people who use public services. "Public ownership is popular, and people are sick of the endless stream of sell-offs and outsourcing deals. "This Bill would give all of us a real say over what happens to our public services. Privatisation has failed and now we need openness, transparency and accountability. "All parties need to get behind the Public Service Users Bill and stand up for the rights of ordinary people, not dodgy outsourcing giants.” The Bill is already supported by Labour MPs Katy Clark, Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and Grahame Morris, Liberal Democrat John Leech, and Elfyn Llwyd of Plaid Cymru.  |
| Women into engineering should go Posted: 29 Jan 2014 04:16 AM PST
The trade association for the UK's glass industry is behind a new initiative to encourage the next generation of women to consider careers in engineering and manufacturing. The Sheffield-based British Glass Manufacturers' Confederation launched its Women in Manufacturing (WiM) initiative at the House of Commons recently. Set up as a sub-project of British Glass's training and skills development arm, The Glass Academy, and with the support of The Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London, WiM is a not-for-profit initiative aiming to bring about a shift in the thinking of industry's senior people. The scheme seeks to attract women to engineering and manufacturing, and make sure they are supported and retained in the industry. 'Ambassadors', in the form of experienced industry professionals will volunteer their time to share their experiences with students in schools and in the workplace from primary level through to higher education. That in turn will inspire students by providing role models and opening their eyes to industry opportunities, and improve gender diversity within organisations, increase the available talent pool and help to combat the UK’s growing skills shortage. Dave Dalton, CEO at British Glass and The Glass Academy, said: "Modern manufacturing and engineering is a technologically advanced and innovative sector in which to work. "However, young girls and women are not inspired to take up STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) related studying or careers. "Initiatives like this are crucial in helping to dispel preconceived ideas about what jobs in engineering and manufacturing are in reality and to encourage the next generation of women to consider these sectors as career paths." In the UK, fewer than one in ten STEM managers are female and only 8.7 per cent of professional engineers are women. The UK has the lowest proportion of female engineering professionals across the European Union states; the figures for Sweden and Bulgaria, for example, are 26 per cent and 29 per cent respectively. The WiM launch event was attended by around 130 high-profile representatives from industry and government, along with educators and STEM organisations. This included BT, Siemens, Atkins, TATA Steel, Thales, WISE, The Engineering Society, UCL and the University of Sheffield, as well as students from Notre Dame High School and All Saints High School in Sheffield. Dalton told Packaging News: "Our industry is dominated by packaging firms, we have about 65 member companies. They have embraced this cultural change. "We are trying to get the message across that engineering for women is a fantastic career opportunity, and that the engineering environment is clean, its safe, and its progressive." Nadja Swarovski, patron of women in manufacturing and member of Swarovski’s executive board, said: "Being a fifth generation member of a glass manufacturing family, I am passionate about engineering and technology, crafting and manufacturing and we need to empower, celebrate and entice more women into this sector." If you are interested in getting involved, click here.  |
| Mediation for family disputes falls 45 per cent Posted: 29 Jan 2014 01:09 AM PST
Many of the government's cuts to benefits only came into full effect in April 2013, so the full consequences are yet to be understood. What can be seen, however, are the results of initial changes in access to and the availability of services, mostly to the detriment of women and children, something the charity sector has been warning about for several years. Recent research by legal aid lawyers has found a dramatic decrease in the numbers of people accessing mediation as a solution to family disputes, something that many say is attributable to cuts to legal aid. Prior to April 2013, legal aid lawyers were required to refer clients to a mediator before being able to access further public funds, and mediation is shown to be extraordinarily effective, with more than two-thirds of those using it reaching agreement. The government says that it is extremely supportive of mediation as a solution to family disputes, which is why the new Children and Families Bill currently before Parliament includes the requirement that anyone who wants to apply for a court order relating to children or finances must first attend a mediation information and assessment meeting. Exemptions in the case of suspected domestic violence will be allowed. Critics of the legislation say that a single assessment meeting is unlikely to generate any meaningful increase in the numbers of people reaching successfully-mediated solutions. Additionally, those in favour of legal aid point to the high numbers of referrals needed to generate substantial numbers of fully completed mediation processes, as well as the potential for future problems if mediation participants are forced to make decisions without formal legal advice. Figures received by lawyersupportedmediation.com through Freedom of Information requests to the Ministry of Justice show that in October 2013, there were 707 mediation starts as compared to 1281 in October 2012. It appears that as the amount of available support decreases, more and more couples may be trying to solve their disagreements without any professional help, and that includes representing themselves in court. With mediators demanding stronger measures to compel more people to use mediation, and family lawyers advocating some type of return to legal aid, it is clear that none of the parties in the sector are happy, least of all the families attempting to come to some sort of workable, affordable solution.  |
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