The Labour Government recognised the link between the two-decade long stagnation in workers’ standard of living and the dramatic decline in trade union membership resulting from the Thatcher Government’s anti-union laws.

Labour’s Employment Rights Act 2025 gives trade unions greater ability to organise employees and to achieve union recognition from their employers.

With union recognition comes their right to negotiate better wages on behalf of those they represent.

Statistics show that employees in organisations that recognise unions have better wages, terms and conditions than those who do not.

It is therefore great to hear that already UK trade union membership is now the highest since 1995. Workers must continue to receive the message that trade union membership is their means of easing the cost of living crisis.

Companies are legally obliged to put the interests of their shareholders first – increasing share value is their primary duty. They have no comparable obligation to their employees.

Only strength in numbers provided by unions can counter the resulting pressure to maximise profits through depressing wages.

The rich and powerful have benefited greatly from Tory anti-union laws. In the 1970s, the average CEO in a large firm earned 20 to 30 times more than the median wage of an employee. It is now 130 times greater!

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.

Growth in union membership can start to eliminate such unfairness.

Unions are democratic institutions whose members vote for their leaders and decide on policies. Members can choose not to contribute to their union’s political fund and any affiliation to a political party is voted upon. Union leaders are vastly more accountable than the powerful corporate elites who oppose them.

It is laughable that Nigel Farage can compare the shadowy £72million crypto billionaires want to give Reform UK to the union donations to Labour.

Unions openly lobby for policies to help struggling workers, what the crypto kings want from Farage is a mystery. Perhaps his policies of deregulating crypto money to make them even richer and repealing the Employment Rights Act are just coincidences.

Residents in the Blyth and Ashington constituency can contact my office by calling 01670 852494 or emailing [email protected] and there are also plenty of updates that are posted on my Facebook page (Ian Lavery MP).