Armed Forces visits to schools in Wales update

The Welsh Government has agreed in principle to more research into armed forces visits to schools in Wales, and accepts that a balanced image of the military must be ensured, as should the expansion of the range of employers going into schools. See ForcesWatch press release HERE

The debate will be on Wednesday September  30th

 The written response by the Welsh Government to the Report of the Petitions Committee entitled Stop the Army Recruiting in Schools – Report on the Consideration of a Petition (23 September 2015) can be FOUND HERE

 
Additional note from ForcesWatch: "The language the Welsh Government use in their statement is pretty conservative, and they don't emphasise the concerns as much as we at ForcesWatch would have liked, but them recognising that at least some of the main concerns around armed forces visits to schools in Wales are significant enough to warrant some action is in itself big progress. Hopefully the debate on the issue in the Welsh Assembly next Wednesday will be rigorous"

Quaker Peace & Social Witness inbetween mailing information

QCEA-QPSW conference: Castle or community? Quakers' role in building the new Europe | 4-6 December 2015

An opportunity to explore our vision for Europe, and connect with and build community with Friends from across Europe. Held at Chant d'oiseau conference centre, Brussels.
More details

Statement on the European refugee crisis

Meeting for Sufferings on 5 September agreed a statement which was sent out to local and area meeting clerks and to the media, and put on our website. You may well have seen it already, but we wanted to ensure that all QPSW Correspondents received it. The press release containing the statement is available online. [or see our post HERE] Please note that as QPSW does not have staff working on this subject, the best place to go for advice and support is the website of the listed informal group Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network (QARN) at www.qarn.org.uk  If there is anyone in your meeting who is doing professional or voluntary work with or for refugees, they might well find QARN a helpful network to be part of.

New briefing on armed forces visits to schools in Wales

From Forces Watch:

There is new ForcesWatch briefing on armed forces visits to schools in Wales, which we've produced to try and inform Welsh Assembly Members of the key evidence of why they should accept the three recommendations in the Petitions Committee's report following their investigation on the issue, and highlighting a few other important points. We will also use the new briefing to inform the general public about the issue. The briefing includes some evidence that the Petitions Committee did not see, because it has come to light since its final meeting, which took place in 2013.

See a brief outline and link to download the pdf full briefing: HERE

or a link to just the PDF 273 kb HERE

ACTION: We're encouraging people to write concise emails/letters to their Welsh Assembly Members

contact details can be found at THIS LINK remember you have local and regional Assembly members

include the LINK to ForcesWatch's briefing, urging them to call on the Welsh Government to accept the Petition Committe's three recommendations (which, being very reasonable and well-evidenced, we hope the government have accepted, in their response to the report, which was to be sent to the Petitions Committee in July, but which won't be made public until a week before the plenary debate).  

The Welsh Assembly debate on the issue is likely to take place on 23 September.

Also please can you encourage all your contacts in Wales to do the same, and spread the word generally

The KEY POINTS:

This briefing supports the Petition Committee’s recommendations to the Welsh Government by presenting the key evidence that armed forces visits to secondary schools in Wales:

• are disproportionately high to schools in more disadvantaged areas;

• do not present a balanced view of the armed forces;

• and, are more numerous and more career-focused than visits by most other employers

(particularly the emergency services).

This briefing also presents evidence that:

• armed forces visits to schools are motivated by an agenda of engaging students in a long-term

recruitment process;

• quality and transparency of armed forces record-keeping makes a full study of the extent of visits

to schools problematic.

NOTE from blog poster: I did try to make the PDF into a Word document but the formatting would have taken ages ro sort out...  

Addition:
if you live in mid and west Wales [link to all mid & west Wales] your regional AMs are:

Rebecca.Evans@assembly.wales

Simon.Thomas@assembly.wales

Joyce.Watson@assembly.wales

William.Powell@assembly.wales

 
thn there will be a constituency member
Preseli Pembrokeshire: Paul.Davies@assembly.wales
Ceredigion: Elin.Jones@assembly.wales

News Release

05 September 2015

Quakers urgently call for safe paths for refugees

The unfolding crisis of refugees fleeing across Europe, has prompted Quakers in Britain to urge the UK Government and other European Governments to create secure paths to safety.

Quakers’ representative body meeting in London on Saturday (05 September) made this statement:

“That which is morally wrong cannot be politically right” (A Quaker statement in 1822).

“Quakers in Britain urge the UK Government to welcome those desperately seeking a place of safety, in Europe, from the dangers in their own countries. In this urgent situation it cannot be right to harden hearts against people who are struggling and dying on European soil and in the seas around us.

“In Britain we have a tradition of sheltering those in danger, as we did with the Kindertransport, rescuing thousands of children from Nazi-occupied Europe so many years ago, and more recently, when we welcomed refugees from countries including Afghanistan, Yugoslavia, Iraq, Bosnia and Kosova. It is time to open our hearts and communities again.

“This exceptional time of need calls for a proportionate response from all the governments of Europe working together. We call for mechanisms to be created that will enable people to travel safely and to secure legal protection – including in Britain.

“Refugees are fleeing from fear. Further violent interventions in countries such as Syria will not provide a solution. Difficult but compassionate decisions need to be made to secure peace for people in these regions.

“Quakers assert that all human life is precious – each person is a child of God and the loss of one diminishes us all. In this severe crisis, we hear the Spirit calling us to throw ourselves into the fray with all the love and courage we can muster.”

Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network (QARN) and Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) have previously called for safe paths to legal protection and protested against the cessation of funding for the Search and Rescue Operation in the Mediterranean.

Quaker Peace and Social Witness July

Urgent action: Write to your MP about Susiya demolitions

Many Friends will have been following the plight of the village of Susiya in the southern West Bank. At the beginning of May, the Israeli High Court ruled that officials could carry out demolition orders on the entire village, forcibly – and illegally – transferring over 250 people from the place in which they have lived since before the Israeli occupation began in 1967.

A team of Ecumenical Accompaniers has been living in the village ahead of the demolition providing protective presence and monitoring the situation. On July 12, Israeli officials confirmed to the residents that the demolition would take place before August 3, the date the Israeli High Court was due to hear a petition from the villagers.

The situation is now urgent. EAPPI UK & Ireland has drafted a letter/email for Friends and supporters to write to their MP to ask them to act urgently to prevent the demolition.

If you would like to take action, you can find the letter along with background information by visiting the EAPPI UK & Ireland website LINK HERE. 

 Link to BBC news report 25th July

 Take action to defend our social security system

The Welfare Reform and Work Bill, which was published late last week, proposes a further £12 billion of cuts to our social security system and would have a particular effect on children, large families and people who are unable to work because of sickness or disability.
 

Why take action?

Coming on top of the £21 billion of cuts legislated for under the last Parliament the proposals will increase already unacceptably high levels of poverty and inequality in Britain. The government has presented the proposed cuts as an exercise in affordability and is also claiming that many of the measures will somehow serve to increase social mobility and tackle the root causes of poverty framing the debate in narrow financial considerations.  Quakers in Britain disagrees with both of these suggestions!

Tuesday’s debate was the first opportunity for MPs to debate the Bill as a whole and that session is likely to set the tone for the rest of the Bill’s passage through Parliament.  It’s important that the debate focusses on why we need an effective social security system and emphasises the human and social costs of the proposed cuts and other changes.

Some MPs are suggesting that they are considering supporting further welfare cuts because this is what the public wants.  It’s therefore vital that as many MPs as possible hear that this is not the case and are encouraged to speak out against those elements of the Bill which would further weaken our social safety net.
 
What can I do?

Send an email to your MP, highlighting some of our concerns about the Bill and drawing their attention to the Quakers in Britain briefing on the Welfare Reform and Work Bill.
You could use the briefing to help frame your arguments.  If you have personal experience which is relevant to the proposals being discussed do consider sharing it as this will strengthen your message.

MPs are much more likely to listen to personally written letters than standard templates. Here are some suggestions about what you could include in your email.  If you already know what your MP thinks about further social security cuts here are suggestions about how you could adapt your message accordingly
 
General points:

• The last round of social security cuts has already had a disastrous impact on individuals and families across Britain.  Now is not the time to be making further cuts.
• The welfare section of the Bill will further increase already unacceptable levels of poverty, economic and social inequality.
• The government is presenting further welfare cuts as an inevitable consequence of the deficit.   In fact, there is nothing inevitable about further weakening our social security system.  It is a political choice.

 If your MP is opposed to the proposed cuts or you don’t know their opinion you could:

• Ask them to oppose any further cuts which will further weaken our social safety net.
• Ask them to take part in the Second Reading debate on 20th July and to ensure there is a full debate about the human and social costs of the proposed changes.  The debate should not purely be framed by narrow financial considerations.
• Ask them to let you know their opinion of the welfare measures contained within the Bill.

If you know your MP is in favour of further social security cuts you could:

• Emphasise the fact that depending on benefits is not a lifestyle choice but the inescapable reality for millions of adults and children.
• Highlight that many children are living in families which receive benefits, and that this Bill would effectively punish them for simply being born.
• Emphasise how an effective social safety net, based on the principle of need, is a vital foundation of a just and compassionate society. Proposals to dismantle this further raises uncomfortable questions about our values as a society.
• Suggest that the government’s arguments that withdrawing benefits will tackle the root causes of poverty and create work incentives are flawed. The proposals in this Bill are not practical.
• Ask them to reconsider their support for the specific proposals highlighted in our briefing.

If you don’t know your MP’s email address you can find it on the Write To Them website

Don’t forget! Please let Maya Williams know when you have emailed your MP and to send us a copy of any reply you receive.  Contact mayaw@quaker.org.uk

This will help us to understand how MPs are responding to our concerns and help us plan further action around this Bill.

You can also find all this information online at www.quaker.org.uk/action-welfare-reform-work-bill 

Quaker Activist Gathering Friends House
21 November 2015
10:00-16:30


For a second year, Quaker Peace & Social Witness (QPSW) is organising an activist gathering at Friends House.
An action-focused day for Friends who identify as activists, framed in worship. An opportunity to meet with others, connect, learn, plan and be energised and inspired. Book now, and tell us what you would like from the day - we'll use your feedback to help inform how we shape the agenda.

"A chance to feel connected to others who shared my values and concerns."

The event is no cost to attend. Lunch will be 'bring and share'.
Please register online by 15 October.

"Very heartwarming and helped to contact those well-springs which can sometimes seem low."

 LINK TO THE POSTER