The Real Unite

You couldn’t make it up. The so-called “United Left” faction is the gang that has run cover for Len McCluskey and Howard Beckett, both facing allegations involving corruption. Now they are attacking the General Secretary, over the union’s accounts.

Because tens of millions disappeared in the Birmingham Hotel fiasco, Unite’s accounts have to be investigated in detail and re-audited.

But here’s what we do know, fresh from those that actually attended last weeks EC. In a nutshell: even despite the hotel disaster, the union’s underlying finances are in an excellent position.

• We have £167 million in cash and “liquid assets”. That’s higher than in any year under Len McCluskey. It’s a years’ worth of expenditure.
• We are debt free.
• And this despite investing record amounts in strike pay to support members in dispute.
  • We invested £52.6 million in dispute benefit in 2022-4, compared to just £6.4 million in the three years before.
• So the financial position is very healthy indeed.
  • According to the EC report by the chartered accountant preparing the accounts, it is “a highly enviable position, and the best ratio I have seen in any of the not-for-profits I have been a finance director of.”

From what we hear, the impact of the Birmingham Hotel still isn’t fully known, with the accounts still being re-audited.

But what the financial experts can now say is this. Because of the losses from Birmingham they will now have to “write down” or adjust the reported figures in the old accounts from 2021 and before. The total “write down” is apparently over £56 million.

So to put it another way.

• Strike pay to support workers fighting for jobs, pay and conditions since 2021: £52.6 million
• Money being “written down” because of losses on the Birmingham Hotel before 2021: Over £56 million.

I think we all know where our members would prefer our money to be spent.