Them & Us

Them and us fishes, image by Suzanne Beishon (Click to enlarge)

Bosses' pay boost

Chief executives of elite 'FTSE 100' corporations have watched their pay rise by a third between 2010 and 2015. Meanwhile, workers' real wages have fallen by a tenth since 2007 (see story below left).

The same bosses took home 140 times as much as the average employee's pay, according to the High Pay Centre.

The average pay for chief execs was Ł5.5 million. That's enough to pay for 239 nurses. Each.

How do you think the Socialist would like to see that money spent? On 100 fat cats, or 23,900 nurses?

Hint: nurses and teachers have rarely been known to crash the economy. And in February, a BBC Freedom of Information request found 23,443 unfilled nursing vacancies in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Taxes v benefits

Super-rich property holders could cheat the Treasury out of Ł18 billion this financial year. Meanwhile, up to Ł13 billion of benefits went unclaimed last year.

A new National Audit Office report on capital gains tax says that due to the "complexity of the rules and lack of reporting requirements, there is scope for wide-scale misuse to go undetected." Perhaps reversing the cuts to tax inspectors might help?

And the Department for Work and Pensions reports that many entitled to state support did not manage to claim it. It estimated only half those eligible for jobseeker's allowance actually got hold of it. Only six in ten received pension credit, and eight in ten housing benefit or IS/ESA disability benefits.

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Finance appeal

The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.

Inevitably, during the crisis we have not been able to sell the Socialist and raise funds in the ways we normally would.

We therefore urgently appeal to all our viewers to click here to donate to our Fighting Fund.