Birmingham and Coventry National Union of Journalists

Early Day Motion 977: Vic Turner [One of the Pentonville 5]
That this House wishes to commemorate the passing of former London dock leader, Vic Turner, who was imprisoned at Pentonville, along with four fellow workers at the order of Edward Heath's National Industrial Relations Court in 1972,who became known as the Pentonville Five; notes that Vic Turner and his fellow imprisoned shop stewards were released after one of the largest mass demonstrations ever seen in London and following the threat of a general strike; further notes that Vic Turner was a much-loved family man, who subsequently became both a Labour councillor in the London Borough of Newham and a mayor of the same borough; pays credit to a trades unionist, who in the words of fellow docker and now General Secretary of the Unite Trade Union, Len McCluskey, never lost sight of working class interests and was never swayed from supporting that cause; and recognises that at a time when trades unionists are once again under attack from a Tory-led Government and when many are still being blacklisted by employers for being members of a trades union, the inspirational qualities of working class leaders such as Vic Turner andhis colleagues in the Royal Docks Shop Stewards Committee are needed more than ever.

Sponsors: Morris, Grahame M / Campbell, Ronnie / Cryer, John / Lavery, Ian / Mearns, Ian / Skinner, Dennis                        House of Commons: 28/01/2013


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Early Day Motion 978: Inez Mccormack  [Veteran Trade Unionist]
That this House mourns the loss of Inez McCormack, an internationally-renowned human rights activist from Northern Ireland; praises her work in promoting employment equality in Northern Ireland as the Regional Secretary of UNISON and in working with others to ensure that the trades union movement was widely recognised as a non-partisan agent for change in the Northern Ireland peace process; notes that she was the first female President of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and that Newsweek last year placed her in its 150 Women Who Shake the World for her work in enabling women to improve the quality of their lives; further notes that she was the founder of the respected Participation and the Practice of Rights organisation, which provides support to disadvantaged communities and groups in using a rights-based approach to change social and economic inequalities and deprivation; and joins her many admirers, including President Michael D Higgins, Hillary Clinton, Meryl Streep and President Mary Robinson in remembering an extraordinary and inspiring woman who dedicated her life to championing women's rights and combating gender-based violence in Northern Ireland and in countries of conflict.

Sponsors: Anderson, David/ Connarty, Michael / Durkan, Mark / Glass, Pat / Ritchie, Margaret / Ruane, Chris                     House of Commons: 28/01/2013


Trade unionist Inez McCormack dies
Ms McCormack began her trade union career in the late 1960s before rising to become president of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. She was born in Belfast in 1943 into a working class family and spent most of her adult life fighting for the rights of those around her.
Read more: BBC News N. Ireland, 22/01/13