Usdaw urges members to vote for Bridget Phillipson

Joanne Thomas – Usdaw general secretary says: “There are two great candidates in this race and Usdaw’s national executive council decided to nominate Bridget Phillipson for the role of deputy leader of the Labour Party. We are supporting Bridget because she has the experience, commitment and compassion to support low-paid working families and be a strong voice in Government for our members and all workers.

“Bridget grew up in poverty, went to university and now serves in the Cabinet, a truly remarkable story of social mobility, which lies at the core of Labour’s principles and beliefs. Bridget is a longtime friend of trade unionists and gave a strong commitment to deliver Labour’s historic Employment Rights Bill in full, because she fully understands the need to make work better paid and more secure to help tackle poverty. 

“Bridget’s record of delivery has been exceptional and we very much welcome her commitment to go further. Usdaw members have long struggled to secure hours of work that fit around childcare, so we welcome Bridget rolling out free breakfast clubs and new nurseries in primary schools, along with doubling free childcare to 30 hours a week.

“At Labour conference, Bridget set out her determination that child poverty will be lower at the end of this parliament than at the start, and to give every child the best start in life. Last week, she backed that up with an urgent call to lift the two-child benefit cap, a Tory policy that’s had a devastating impact on children and increased child poverty. Her principles represent the change that we voted for at the last election, so we are urging our members to vote for Bridget Phillipson.”