{"id":8743,"date":"2016-05-18T11:55:39","date_gmt":"2016-05-18T10:55:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=8743"},"modified":"2016-05-19T11:24:05","modified_gmt":"2016-05-19T10:24:05","slug":"the-case-for-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=8743","title":{"rendered":"The case for hope"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell yesterday (May 17) addressed young people at the TUC<\/a>, as he outlined Labour\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s case to back Remain in next month\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s momentous EU referendum.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a case predicated on hope, McDonnell explained, and one that stands in stark contrast to the Tories\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 arguments for Brexit which are dominated by fear.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe should lift our sights,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThere is a need for us to offer a vision of a Europe of co-operation and solidarity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe know that there are pressing issues facing us that can only be tackled effectively and justly through international co-operation,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 McDonnell noted.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bCreating a prosperous economy where the prosperity is shared fairly by all. Ensuring basic rights at work, wherever one chooses to work. Tackling climate change. Dealing with international humanitarian crises, especially where refugees are created.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe EU, with all its imperfections, provides us with that forum not just for securing that international co-operation but also translating it into effective action,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The shadow chancellor said that a vote to remain was a vote for a forward-looking vision under a\u00c2\u00a0 future Labour government.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bTory Brexit opens the door to the prospects of more austerity and more uncertainty,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt is a future that is more complex and unpredictable than the new voting system of the Eurovision song contest.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhereas there are plenty more things you can be certain to look forward to under remaining in the EU under a Labour government,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bLabour under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn has a different vision for Europe.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bOne where we protect and advance worker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s rights, take on the tax avoiders, get to grips with climate change, and protect our industries like steel and reform the institutions of the EU from a position of strength as a Labour Party in the EU.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Poll results <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

McDonnell\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s speech comes as a new YouGov polling shows that young people are broadly supportive of remaining in the EU.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In this latest poll of nearly 1,500 young people aged 18 to 30, 55 per cent of young people felt being in the EU gave them greater rights and protection at work and more than twice as many people believed being in the EU made it easier to improve our environment.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Young trade union members were especially inclined to vote to remain \u00e2\u20ac\u201c they wanted to remain in the EU by 57 per cent to 23 per cent, while 77 per cent felt being in the EU gave them greater rights and protection at work.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A full 70 per cent of young trade unionists saw being in the EU as an opportunity, compared to only 15 per cent who saw it as a threat.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite health and safety rep Kurtis Brierley, 22, who works at the energy company E.On, is one such young person who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s enthusiastically voting to remain.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bToo many people are seeing the referendum purely in terms of money,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll say a certain amount of money goes into the EU and only X amount of money comes back to us, so it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not worth it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bBut as a health and safety rep, I see remaining in the EU as more than just about money,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve adopted many health and safety laws from the EU that we didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have before and countless lives have been saved because of these laws \u00e2\u20ac\u201c you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t put a price on that.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI firmly believe that uniting together amplifies our collective voice \u00e2\u20ac\u201c one hundred voices are better than one,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Brierley added.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He noted it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s especially important for young people to vote in the referendum.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhatever we decide in June, the consequences won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t just be felt over the next few years, they will be felt for generations \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and so the outcome of the vote will affect young people the most. We have the most to gain and the most to lose.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Heather McCarnun, equalities officer for her local Unite Community branch in Swindon, is only 17 and isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t eligible to vote in the EU referendum, but she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s actively involved in the Remain campaign.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Life-changing<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

She agrees with Brierley that especially for young people, the decision will be a life-changing one.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bOur future is what is being decided on June 23,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bAnd it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not just about us, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about the future of our families, too. We have to decide what kind of world we want to live in not just for now but for generations to come \u00e2\u20ac\u201c for our children and their children\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s children.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m telling all friends and family that this will be an incredibly close referendum and every single vote is going to count,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 McCarnun said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThere\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a very real and very high chance that our human rights will be destroyed if we leave the EU. Leaving the EU means leaving the Tory government to their own devices \u00e2\u20ac\u201c any restraint they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve showed on worker protections so far is because they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re being held back by EU law.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe whole purpose of the EU is supporting each other and raising standards for all of us,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she added. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be part of this project and vision for solidarity by being our own little island; we have to be in it together.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite youth coordinator Anthony Curley explained why so many young British people are getting behind the Remain banner.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bYoung people have suffered most under this and the previous government\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s austerity policies,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he argued.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bFrom hikes in tuition fees to rising youth unemployment; from denying the new National Living Wage to under -25s to denying housing benefit to under-21s, this government and its predecessor have presided over a generation of young people who find themselves utterly lost, without the economic security their parents and grandparents had.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bYoung people understand more acutely than anyone what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s at stake in this referendum,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bA Tory government unshackled by the worker and consumer protections the EU affords will mean the unleashing of an extreme austerity agenda that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nothing compared to what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve already suffered.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bYoung people in the UK see themselves as both British and European \u00e2\u20ac\u201c they have a distinctly international vision of solidarity and, having been born as globalisation first began its acceleration, they understand intuitively that our increasingly interconnected world demands interconnected solutions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe cannot fight the worst excesses of globalisation, nor can we reap its benefits, without working together with other countries \u00e2\u20ac\u201c remaining in the EU gives us the best opportunity to do just that.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Whichever way you decide to vote on June 23, you cannot have your say in the EU referendum unless you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re registered to vote by June 7. Register in a few minutes here.<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Be aware that many people have fallen off the electoral register since the government introduced new registration rules at the end of last year. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take a chance and assume that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re registered \u00e2\u20ac\u201c you can check if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on the electoral roll by contacting your local electoral registration office here.<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell yesterday (May 17) addressed young people at the TUC, as he outlined Labour\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s case to back Remain in next month\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s momentous EU referendum.   It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a case predicated on hope, McDonnell explained, and one that stands in stark contrast to the Tories\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 arguments for Brexit which are dominated by fear.   […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8122,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[465,497,71],"wps_subtitle":"McDonnell: EU best hope for young","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8743"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8743"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8743\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8758,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8743\/revisions\/8758"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}