The Real Unite

With the Unite “alleged corruption” report about to hit the streets, the Len and Howard gang (also known as “UL” supporters group) have powered into PANIC mode, tossing around legal letters like confetti.

What are they so scared will be in the report?

As more drips out into the press, the picture is getting clearer. News reports say the Union’s independent report into the Birmingham Hotel by King’s Counsel barrister Martin Bowdery has found “evidence of suspected overcharging” by the Flanagan Brothers’ building company. The nightclub-owning Flanagans, of course, are old mates of Len McCluskey.

Here’s just one example of the “alleged overcharging” that’s now been reported. The original estimate for drilling “holes in blockwork walls” was £91,000. How much did the Flanagans charge Unite? £1.3 million.

Now we all know building costs have gone up in the last few years. But that’s a pretty hefty 1400% inflation rate.

A few bills like that, and a hotel worth £29 million can end up costing £112 million.

To be fair to Len, he’s telling the press he never asked his mates to do the job. It’s all down to former finance director Ed Sabisky. And Ed Sabisky died in 2020, so he won’t be telling any tales.

But the Union says it has the evidence which tells another story …

£1.3 million for holes in walls. £112 million altogether. A £56 million write down in Unite’s accounts.

Lots of figures being juggled about. But what’s really at stake here?

All that money came from Unite members. Cleaners and bus drivers, engineers and call centre workers, workers who pay in a chunk of our wages every month to our Union. That money is there to fight for our members, not for our mates.