Word: labour
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...West has solved some of the problems but outsourced others. We could happily forget about this as long as it was happening to weak, marginalized countries, but now China plays an active part in the world economy. We can't command China to give us cheap raw materials, cheap labour, and hope for the best. We will have to globalize solutions. Florian Bous, URDORF, SWITZERLAND...
...global recession has a "patient zero", a single person who set off the series of events which may lead the economy into its greatest downturn since The Great Depression and, by some estimates, push 50 million people around the world out of jobs this year, according to The International Labour Organisation. (See pictures of the global financial crisis...
...current furor recalls earlier parliamentary scandals. In 1994 the Conservative party was rocked by another Sunday Times exclusive, alleging that two parliamentarians had accepted bribes in exchange for asking parliamentary questions. In 2006, the Labour party was embroiled in an investigation into accusations of peerages being dangled in front of wealthy donors to secure loans. No charges were ever brought but the episode adds to sensitivities about the House of Lords. In 1997, Labour came to power promising to abolish hereditary peers. In 1999, it expelled most of the hereditary peers, but attempts to complete the reforms by replacing...
...Lords-for-hire allegations came after journalists, posing as lobbyists representing a fictional Asian firm that was setting up a chain of shops in the U.K., approached 10 Lords for help amending business-rates legislation. Three Conservative peers, a Liberal Democrat, an Ulster Unionist and a Labour peer ignored the request or refused to help. But The Sunday Times says four Labour Lords - Lewis Moonie, Peter Snape, Thomas Taylor and Peter Truscott - agreed to help amend the bill in exchange for retainers. Following those allegations, London's Independent newspaper reported that peers are currently being paid to advise more than...
...influence." But peers are unelected, don't receive a salary, and are free to pursue outside income; around 140 have "outside consultancies." There are few sanctions against peers who transgress the rules: they cannot be removed from the house, but merely "named and shamed." That, says Baroness Royall, the Labour leader of the Lords, is "bananas." It's hard to disagree. MPs convicted of criminal offenses or found to commit acts deemed improper can be expelled from the Commons. Jailbird peers, such as novelist and one-time deputy chairman of the Tory party Jeffrey Archer, who served a prison term...