Unbelievable Old Tosh
A recent article in Private Eye keeps stirring the pot in the 'golden goodbye' scandal - involving the former general secretary of the Unite union - Derek Simpson. Here's what the Eye had to say:
"Rattled by the reaction of rank-and-file members to the disclosure that Derek Simpson, the retired joint-general secretary of the Unite union, pocketed a £361,347 'severance' payment (Eye 1295), the union has issued shop stewards with a crib sheet on how to answer awkward questions.
If asked who authorised the payment, shop stewards are advised to stick to the line that, despite what attendees of the meeting such as Alistair Fraser may recollect (see Letters), a meeting of the Amicus section of the General Purposes and Finance Committee (GPFC), held in March 2008, authorised the payment and the then Chair of the Amicus section, Steve Davidson, has signed an affidavit to that effect.
Disgruntled rank-and-file members not satisfied with this explanation who demand to see the minutes of the meeting are to be told, without explanation: 'The minute taker and all employees of the union were asked to leave the meeting before the relevant discussion took place.'
If all else fails the union advice is simply to tell troublesome members that it wouldn't have mattered if the meeting had been minuted.
Because after the March 2008 meeting the Amicus section of the GPFC ceased to exist, so it wouldn't have been possible to approve any minutes, had they existed ........which they don't. Er, right."
Now isn't that the most unbelievable load of old tosh you've ever heard in your life - Unite leaders must think their members heads 'button up the back'.
Because if the Amicus section ceased to exist after March 2008 - the unanswered questions are still the same - people who don't exist can't action and authorise things.
So who ultimately authorised the payment - and who wrote the cheque for all this members' money to be paid out - to one individual?
"Rattled by the reaction of rank-and-file members to the disclosure that Derek Simpson, the retired joint-general secretary of the Unite union, pocketed a £361,347 'severance' payment (Eye 1295), the union has issued shop stewards with a crib sheet on how to answer awkward questions.
If asked who authorised the payment, shop stewards are advised to stick to the line that, despite what attendees of the meeting such as Alistair Fraser may recollect (see Letters), a meeting of the Amicus section of the General Purposes and Finance Committee (GPFC), held in March 2008, authorised the payment and the then Chair of the Amicus section, Steve Davidson, has signed an affidavit to that effect.
Disgruntled rank-and-file members not satisfied with this explanation who demand to see the minutes of the meeting are to be told, without explanation: 'The minute taker and all employees of the union were asked to leave the meeting before the relevant discussion took place.'
If all else fails the union advice is simply to tell troublesome members that it wouldn't have mattered if the meeting had been minuted.
Because after the March 2008 meeting the Amicus section of the GPFC ceased to exist, so it wouldn't have been possible to approve any minutes, had they existed ........which they don't. Er, right."
Now isn't that the most unbelievable load of old tosh you've ever heard in your life - Unite leaders must think their members heads 'button up the back'.
Because if the Amicus section ceased to exist after March 2008 - the unanswered questions are still the same - people who don't exist can't action and authorise things.
So who ultimately authorised the payment - and who wrote the cheque for all this members' money to be paid out - to one individual?
