Cameron pulls off ambush on Labour’s £50m union bonanza

DAVID Cameron aimed a dagger at Labour’s union paymasters last night as he stamped his authority on the f i rst Tory Queen’s Speech in almost 20 years.

In an ambush which enraged the Left, the Prime Minister unveiled new laws that could slash millions from the cash the unions hand to Labour.

Mr Cameron – set free from the constraints of coalition – also confirmed plans for a crackdown on strikes in essential services, which will make it harder for militant union chiefs to order walkouts in schools, hospitals and the rail network.

It came as the Prime Minister unveiled a ‘one nation’ Queen’s Speech that promised tax cuts for all, a clampdown on benefits and new measures to control immigration. He pledged to seize the ‘ golden opportunity’ presented by his election win this month to drive through reforms that will enhance the lives of ‘working people’.

Mr Cameron told MPs the package provided ‘ a clear vision of what our country can be – a country of security and opportunity for everyone at every stage of life’.

But Labour’s acting leader Harriet Harman said Mr Cameron’s rhetoric about supporting working people had been stolen from Labour – with some of it even featuring on the notorious ‘Edstone’ monolith setting out the party’s promises.

She added: ‘ We fear that the reality of this Queen’s Speech will be very different from the rhetoric. The Queen’s Speech talks of one nation, yet he sets the nations of the country against each other. The Queen’s Speech talks of working people, yet he threatens basic rights at work.’

Senior Tories believe their unexpected victory has given Mr Cameron a 12-month honeymoon in which he can push through a radical agenda while Labour is in disarray and his rebel MPs still feel bound by loyalty.

The Prime Minister wasted no time yesterday in taking the fight to Labour and their union paymasters.

A Trades Union Bill will introduce new minimum turnout thresholds on strike ballots. In future, unions will have to achieve at least a 50 per cent turnout in order for a ballot to be legal.

In key public services, such as health, education, the fire brigade and transport, any industrial action must also be backed by at least 40 per cent of those entitled to vote.

In a surprise move, the Bill also targets the unions’ political funds, which they use to fund Labour.

At present, union members automatically pay a ‘ political levy’ of a few pounds a year, unless they opt- out. Under the new law, union members will have to opt in to the extra payment – potentially slashing the number who sign up.

When a similar move was introduced in 1927, the number of levy payers collapsed from 3.5million to 2million. Any repeat would cripple the unions’ ability to bankroll Labour. Details from 26 unions in the 2012/13 year showed around 4.8million members contributed to a political fund, with fewer than 850,000 opting out.

During the last Parliament, the unions gave Labour more than £50million – almost half of the party’s total income of £110million.

Labour accused the Conservatives of trying to ‘rig the system for their own ends’, while nions reacted furiously, with one source saying: ‘This is vengeance. They want us put out of business.’

The Unite union, which is Labour’s biggest donor, said: ‘The Tories are taking Britain back to the 1920s with this shamelessly partisan attack on the funding of the opposition party.’

GMB boss Paul Kenny said: ‘This is just the same old Tories who are anti-trade union, anti-working people having a voice and anti-democratic. It’s one rule for the Tory slush fund, hedge funds and another for trade union members.’

‘A vision of what our country can be’ ‘They want to put us out of business’