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#34 Raising the workers' equity

Agenda: Sat 14 June

08:45 Registration / Tea and Coffee

09:45 Introduction to Compass & overview of Born Free & Equal

Neal Lawson, Chair, Compass

09:55 Morning Keynote Addresses
 
Rt Hon Harriet Harman MP, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party & Minister for Equality
Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, The Cabinet Office
Derek Simpson, General Secretary, Unite
Prof Ruth Lister CBE
Questions from the audience

11:00 Tea, Coffee & Exhibition

11:15 Seminars (Part 1):

1. Women not sex objects: reforming lapdance licensing (Fawcett Society): Dr Katherine Rake, Fawcett Society; Philip Kolvin, barrister, legal advisor to Fawcett Society and Chairman, Institute of Licensing; Angela McRobbie, Goldsmiths College

2. The rise of the BNP: is racial inequality and prejudice growing in Britain? (Searchlight): Nick Lowles, Editor, Searchlight; Yasim Qureshi, Labour PPC Bolton South West; Sam Tarry, Barking Labour Party

3. How can we achieve a good local school for every child and for every community? (NUT): Jon Trickett MP;  Professor Gus John, Melissa Benn; Christine Blower, Acting General Secretary, NUT

4. Can the NHS reduce inequalities in health? (SHA): Dr Tom Smith; Dr Alex Scott Samuel Director, Liverpool Public Health Observatory  

5. Public services: Delivering on equality and equal pay? (UNISON): Angela Eagle MP, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury; Katherine Rake, Director of the Fawcett Society; Liane Venner, Head of Membership Participation, UNISON

6. Child Poverty Challenge: Would running on equality cost Labour the election? (Fabian Society & End Child Poverty): Louise Bamfield, Senior Research Fellow, Fabian Society; John Harris, Author & Journalist; Sunder Katwala, General Secretary, Fabian Society (chair); Rt Hon James Purnell MP, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions; Rachel Reeves, Labour's Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Leeds West

7. Equality: How do we make the case to Middle Britain? (Progress): Bobby Duffy, Deputy Director, Ipsos MORI Social Research Institute; Lord Anthony Giddens; Seema Malhotra, Founder & Director of the Fabian Women's Network; Polly Toynbee, The Guardian (chair); David Aaronovitch, The Times; David Lammy MP

8. Housing (Crisis): Duncan Shrubsole, Crisis; Toby Lloyd

9. Higher Education - Fair Funding? Fair Access? (NUS): Bill Rammell MP, Higher Education Minister; Claire Callender, Professor of Higher Education, Birkbeck, University of London; Baroness Helena Kennedy QC; Wes Streeting, President, NUS; Aaron Porter, Vice President, NUS (chair)

10. Making Misery History? Working towards well-being for all (Campaign for Therapy): Paul Farmer, Chief Executive, Mind; Juliet Soskice, Camden Psychotherapy Unit; Derek Draper, Campaign for Therapy (chair) 

11. The Other Equality: Can we have fairness without empowerment? (Demos): Jon Cruddas MP; Paul Skidmore, Demos; Patrick Diamond, Director of Policy and Strategy, Commission for Equality and Human Rights; Baroness Helena Kennedy QC

12. Childs play? Equality and young people (Liberty): Alex Gask, Legal Officer, Liberty; Rob Williams, CEO, 11 Million; Lewis, 18 from Corby, a young person working with 11 Million; Terri Dowty, Director of Action on Rights for Children; Sabina Frediani, Campaigns Co-ordinator, Liberty (chair)

13. From Brussels to Westminster - where next for equal treatment for agency workers? (Unions Together): WE REGRET THIS SESSION HAS BEEN CANCELLED - PLEASE REFER TO UNIONS TOGETHER

14. From legal to genuine equality: Labour's next mission (LGBT Labour): Alon Or-Bach, Labour NPF; Angela Eagle MP; Angela Mason; Gavin Hayes, Compass; Simon Wright, LGBT Labour (chair) 

15. Democracy and Equality: the case for a Bill of Rights (Unlock Democracy): Prof. Francesca Klug, LSE; Michael Wills, Minister of State for Constitutional Renewal and Human Rights

16. The public sector, but not as you know it! Equality and the reform of public services (Red Pepper): Hilary Wainwright, Red Pepper; Zoe Gannon, Compass

12:30 Lunch & Exhibition

12:40 International Lunchtime Plenary Debate (organised by Compass Youth): 'Going global in the fight against inequality': Alejandro Olmos, PSOE-Izquierda Socialista (Spanish Socialist Party); Prof Richard Wilkinson, Univ. of Nottingham Medical School; Alevero Sanchez, Venezualan Embassy; Samuel Tarry, Chair, Compass Youth (chair)

Lunchtime Debate (organised by CND): 'Can social movements help make a more equal society?': Julie Bindel, The Guardian; Milena Buyum, Vice-Chair, National Assembly Against Racism; Kate Hudson, Chair, CND; Neal Lawson, Chair, Compass

13:30 Seminars (Part 2):

1. Rich man, poor man - taxman or thief? child poverty and the low tax elite (CPAG): Dr Paul Doran, CPAG; John Harris, The Guardian; Neal Lawson, Compass (chair)

2. Violence against Women - the greatest barrier to gender equality (Amnesty): Ben Davies, New Statesman (chair); Liz McKean, Amnesty International UK; Pragna Patel, Southall Black Sisters; Baroness Helena Kennedy QC

3. Fair pay and the ‘working poor' - a new frontier for fairness? (IPPR and Fair Pay Network): Jon Cruddas MP; Deborah Littman, Unison; Graeme Cooke, IPPR Research Fellow; Matthew Pennycook, FPN

4. Growth Isn't Working - why we need a new global economic system (nef): Stephen Spratt, nef; Sam Thompson, nef

5. Second Class citizens: Are Progressives Failing Migrants? (MRN/BCT): Jack Dromey, Unite; Zrinka Bralo, Migrant and Refugee Community Forum; Sukhvinder Stubbs, Barrow Cadbury Trust; Don Flynn, Migrants' Rights Network

6.  Workplace democracy: a route to equality? (Unions 21): Kamaljeet Jandu, GMB; Clare Moody, Unite; Sue Ferns, Prospect (chair)

7. Fair dues: Progressive taxation and the new inequality (RENEWAL): Richard Exell, TUC; Howard Reed, ippr 'Red and Green taxes' project; Polly Toynbee, The Guardian; Maria Neophytou, RENEWAL (chair)

8. Welfare not workfare: winning the fight against inequality (Tribune): Jon Trickett MP; Diana Holland, Assistant General Secretary, Unite; Ken Livingstone; Yvette Cooper MP (tbc); Chris McLaughlin, Editor, Tribune (chair)

9. Environmental Rights (Friends of the Earth): Naomi Luhde-Thompson, Friends of the Earth; Phil Michaels, Friends of the Earth

10. Can there be equality without class equality? (Labour Briefing & LRC): Tony Benn; John McDonnell MP; Mick Shaw, President, FBU; Suresh Grover; Christine Shawcroft, Labour Party NEC

11. Financing inequality: the credit crunch, the city, and the problem of capitalism (Soundings): Aditya Chakrabortty; Richard Murphy; Doreen Massey; Ann Pettifor; Jonathan Rutherford, Soundings (chair)

12. Equality in the second half of life - from life chances to life course (ACE): Andrew Harrop, Head of Policy, Age Concern England; Patrick Diamond, Director of Policy and Strategy, Commission for Equality and Human Rights; Peter Wilby, New Statesman (chair); Mike O'Brien MP

13. The Millennium Development Goals: can a global partnership for development ever deliver equality for the world's poor? (WoW): Rt Hon Douglas Alexander MP; John Hilary, Executive Director, War on Want; Hugh Lanning, Deputy General Secretary, PCS; Tom Jones, Head of Policy, Thompsons Solicitors (chair)

14. Whose Vote Counts? Democracy and Inequalities in the 21st Century (ERS/MVC/LCER): Chuka Umunna, Compass; Yasmin Qureshi; Professor Robin Blackburn, University of Essex; Emily Georghiou, Equality and Human Rights Commission; Jennette Arnold AM, GLA (chair)

15. An England for All: Can a progressive patriotism ever be inclusive? (L&W): Mark Perryman; Anthony Barnett, founder of Charter 88, currently editor-in-chief of www.opendemocracy.net; Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru Welsh Assembly Member; Richard Weight, author Patriots: National Identity in Britain 1940-2000; Rupa Huq, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Kingston University

14:45 Equality Question Time

Rt Hon Douglas Alexander MP, Secretary of State, DFID
Beatrix Campbell, writer and broadcaster
Prof Danny Dorling, University of Sheffield
John Harris, The Guardian
Baroness Helena Kennedy QC
Ken Livingstone

Chaired by: Gavin Hayes, General Secretary, Compass

15:45 Afternoon Keynote Address

Polly Toynbee, The Guardian
Jon Cruddas MP

Chaired by: Chuka Umunna, Compass

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