WMWI Walton Manor WI

Public Affairs and Campaigns update   April/ May 2010

Jane Finnerty OFWI Campaigns Adviser Tel 01865 553304

Email jane@svarfair.co.uk     

Dear Campaigning members

Please do call if you need any further information or want to get involved

Food labelling – resolution for debate at 2010 AGM

 ‘This meeting urges HM Government to introduce clear and mandatory country of origin labelling on all meat, poultry and fish products sold in this country.’

The resolution, will go forward to the AGM in Cardiff. The resolution drew twice as many votes as the one in second place, and was therefore selected as the only resolution to be put forward for the vote at the AGM this June. Briefing notes have been sent to all WIs in the April mailing and can also be found on the campaigns pages of the NFWI website www.thewi.org.uk/resolutionsandmandates.

Fast Fashion campaign launches

The NFWI public affairs department is launching a new campaign to draw attention to the environmental and social impact of the rising trend for ‘fast fashion’. An awareness raising pack is available to  WIs outlining the negative impact of treating clothes as disposable items and suggesting simple changes everyone can make such as swapping unwanted clothes with friends and family.

NFWI is calling on as many WIs as possible to hold such ‘swishing’ events in July to swap clothes, bags and other accessories.

Women Reaching Women (WRW)

NFWI Chair Ruth Bond and project manager Emily Boost travelled to Malawi with Oxfam in January as part of an initiative to shed light on the state of maternal healthcare in developing countries and to highlight the UN Millennium Development Goal No 5, which aims to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015.

To find out more, please see Ruth’s blog, www.theWIChair.blogspot.com, and the April edition of WI Life.

New SOS for Honeybees action pack available!

Now that spring is with us, why not get hold of copy of our new SOS for Honeybees action pack and give your garden or window box a bee-friendly makeover? The new pack has lots of ideas about what to plant for honeybees, what foods honeybees have pollinated and when these foods are available in season to eat, and how to work with local beekeepers Call or email Emily Cleevely if you would like a copy of the pack: 0207 371 9300 (ext. 213) or e.cleevely@nfwi.org.uk.

‘What About Women?’

In the run up to the general election the Fawcett Society has brought together more than 40 organisations and thousands of individual voters to ask all the political parties What About Women?

Women’s votes will decide who forms the next government. All the parties know this and have been courting the ‘women’s vote’ but what would their policies mean for women’s everyday lives and women’s equality?

The Fawcett Society is asking all the main parties to answer some key questions about women and their policies. If you would like to know more about this initiative, please see http://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/index.asp?PageID=1032

No More Violence against Women – ‘Million Women Rise’ Walk

WI members will be joining a walk to raise awareness and call for much more support for victims. It will also be a chance to see the Map of Gaps quilt, which will be on display in Trafalgar Square.

Meet: 12noon Saturday 6 March 2010 at Park Lane opposite Hyde Park Speaker’s Corner (perfect for the Oxford Tube or Express Coach stop!)

Walk: Oxford Street, Regents Street, Piccadilly (approx. two miles)

Finish: Approx. 4pm with a rally and celebration in Trafalgar Square (nearest Tubes: Charing Cross, Piccadilly Circus) Please contact Jane Finnerty on 01865 553304 for further information or to register an interest.

Make It Fair

The NFWI has teamed up with Traidcraft to call on the five largest tea companies in the UK to make the switch to Fairtrade. Postcards are available from NFWI to lobby the tea companies: Tetley, Typhoo, Twinings, Yorkshire Tea and PG Tips. You do not have to write to all the tea companies, but if you enjoy a daily cuppa, why not ask them to make it a Fairtrade cuppa?

Please contact Kate Webb in the public affairs department on 020 7371 3000 ext 238 if you would like postcards.

The Big Care Debate

All the political parties are pledging they will sort out the ongoing unfairness in the care system raedy for the next election.  If you are interested in finding out the facts in plain language NS&I have published a helpful short guide.

If you would like a copy of this they are in WHSmiths or Jane Finnerty can send you a copy if you contact her on 01865 553304