A Tale of Two Leaders

The two joint General Secretaries of amicus are showing remarkably different attitudes to New Labour.

Derek Simpson urged union members "to go into branches, to step up their work within Labour and take this party back to what it used to be. We want to be engaging more, not less. If we are there in much greater numbers we can take back Labour” Derek’s call for a revolution within Labour is being echoed by other union leaders as opposition to new Labour develops. Mick Rix, the general secretary of Aslef, and Bob Crow, the general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, have also joined the campaign to reclaim the party." Times article

Meanwhile, under the leadership of amicus's spare General Secretary Roger Lyons, a different and less laudable approach is underway. Far from trying to reclaim New labour, amicus MSF section are secretly financing it. A leaked letter to rogerlyons.com reveals that the MSF section of amicus, long renowned for corrupt practice (including the personal theft of £10,000 a year from members by its Head of Finance) has been secretly providing 'donations' to the labour party. The leaked letter is a reply from assistant General Secretary Paul Talbot to an active amicus-MSF branch keen to get at the truth about amicus-MSF's relationship with New Labour. It includes revelations that New Labour got:

* Three weeks free use of MSF's Moreland Street central London Head Office
* Free use of the London Bermondsey Street office
* Free postage in the above offices
* Free use of telephones for a canvassing campaign
* Free use of the Caerphilly Office

MSF estimated these costs at a remarkably low £875 (try getting office space alone for that cost in London) and THEN decided to 'donate' this amount to New Labour. Net cost to New Labour: Nil. In a final bit of skilled accountancy the £875 was not taken from the political fund on the grounds that it was not 'actual cash'! This is illegal:

1) If the gifts during an election campaign are not properly priced, electoral law is broken.
2) If the gifts come from general funds, section 72 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act on political funds is broken
3) Rule 59 of the Union is broken if payments to further the political objects of the Union are not taken from the Political Fund.

The final sentence of the leaked letter reveals that, under questioning by an alert branch, they now recognise that this practice was illegal. They have rather belatedly transferred the amount from the political to the general fund. It has taken six months for amicus MSF section to answer the financial questions raised by the branch, such delay is typical of the inefficiency at the top of the MSF section. Lastly they have failed to provide records of the number of calls made or letters sent.

Amicus MSF members are increasingly questioning the need for Roger Lyons to stay on until 2007 as a 'spare' general Secretary to Derek Simpson, on full salary. Hounslow and Feltham branch have submitted the following motion to the 2003 annual conference:

"Conference believes it is against the interests of amicus to have two General Secretaries until 2007, it is an embarrassment to the union and it involves significant and unnecessary extra costs. Therefore conference asks that either there should be an amicus-wide election for General Secretary within 12 months, or the General Secretary closest to retirement should retire within 12 months, or that the General Secretary who has gone the longest without election should relinquish the title of General Secretary and instead adopt the title of 'Deputy General Secretary' for all official statements.""

Posted by www.rogerlyons.com on 11th December 2002