The ConservativeHome website is leading on an article ‘would Labour be better off without UNISON cash?’ Exploiting the media hysteria about the BA dispute and the mythical ownership of the Labour Party by Unite, the Tories are working up a local government equivalent – this time substitute UNISON for Unite and higher council tax bills for cancelled honeymoon flights.
ConservativeHome lazily reports that ‘figures from the Electoral Commission show that on December 14 last year Unison gave the Labour Party an early Christmas present of £368,045. There were a few other smaller donations on top - £6,000 for the London Region Labour Party, £3,000 for the Rugby Labour Party and so on.’
The writer goes on to erroneously claim that: ‘UNISON has 1.34 million with only 1.3% opting out of the political levy. However for reasons I don't quite follow they affiliate 883,562 members to the Labour Party.’
The contributor levels of the UNISON political fund sections were published by UNISON Active some time ago: ‘the membership split between the two funds is approximately 850,000 (GPF) and 450,000 (APF)’.
http://unisonactive.blogspot.com/2009/10/how-can-unisons-political-fund-be-more.html
Bad enough that the Tory voyeur is so wide of the mark in exaggerating the level of UNISON affiliation to the Labour Party. But worse is his ignorance of the democratic choice offered to UNISON members of making a voluntary monthly contribution to the Labour Party or alternatively to contribute to a General Political Fund section in support of non party political campaigning in support of union policies.
Perhaps this lack of insight is understandable given the absence of such choice (and opt outs) for company shareholders, including pension funds, in those businesses which provide millions of pounds to the Conservative Party?
