The Government Is Scrapping The Annual Thirty Thousand Pound Grant To The Harlow Centre For Unemployed

1987 , Harlow (Essex)

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Interviews about concern That The Centre Is Organising Political Activities.

Scenes of posters and leaflets displayed at the Unemployed Centre in Harlow, Essex. These include posters for a march and rally in support of GCHQ trades unionists and a demonstration and march marking the anniversary of the Wapping dispute. Anglia TV reporter Surrey Beddows says that it is posters like these which have infuriated the government. Conservative local MP Jerry Hayes complained that funds were being used to send people to join the picket lines at the Wapping print union dispute against News International, owned by Rupert Murdoch. The reporter Surrey Beddows says that claim has not been substantiated, although displaying political posters is in breach of the Manpower Services Commission rules. Further views of the noticeboard show the minutes of a meeting of Harlow Unemployed Workers and Claimants Organisation and a NALGO poster “Stop The Cuts”, the Centre’s exchange and mart and Centre Users’ AGM notice. Other posters and leaflets advertise advice services, benefits for pregnant women and single parents and meetings and courses at the Centre including meditation, the Prayer and Bible Group, a course by the Pre-School Playgroups Association and a “Looking After Yourself” course by the Health Education Council. Surrey Beddows says the centre has been receiving £30,00 government funding via the Manpower Services Commission, and that sum is matched by Labour-controlled Harlow Council. From next month the government grant will be withdrawn on the grounds that the Centre has repeatedly refused to desist from overtly political activity. People using the Centre are sitting at tables and there is a view of staff working in the kitchen across the counter where drinks and biscuits are available. A young man wears a check jacket with fleecy collar and cuffs in a style popular at the time. John Lee, Employment Minister, says the decision to withdraw the grant was taken at the recommendation of the MSC due to the unsatisfactory nature of activities at the Centre, particularly the political leaflets and political involvement. A male reporter asks him how much hard evidence they had that government money was being used in these activities. He replies that there were repeated visits, warnings and correspondence but the Centre failed to “put its house in order”. In their defence, Martin Coleman of Harlow Council says that the Unemployed Centre, like other workers’ organisations, receives grants, donations and support from parts of the trade union movement. That funding is kept in a separate account for campaigning against unemployment. This has nothing to do with the community programme or government and ratepayers’ money. Mr Coleman says the Council has always supported the unemployed to campaign against unemployment because it is a political issue. The Centre is entitled to display posters. There is a brief gap in the interview audio before he concludes that four and a half thousand unemployed people who could access this Centre would have nowhere to go.

Keywords

Unemployment; Unemployed people; Unemployed support; Trade unions; Trade union disputes; Political campaigning; Grants

Additional Description

There is another version of this video without commentary and interviews, but with longer scenes of the Employment Centre users on ENG 645. It was supplied by Anglia to Thames Television, perhaps for the London area regional news. As a Conservative MP, John Lee (later Baron Lee of Trafford) served as Junior Minister for Defence Procurement from 1983 to 1986, and then for Employment from 1986 to 1989, being Minister for Tourism, from 1987 to 1989.

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The Government Is Scrapping The Annual Thirty Thousand Pound Grant To The Harlow Centre For Unemployed

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