London Citizens

Last night I was lucky enough to be invited to attend the Parliamentary Launch of the London Citizens London Living Wage Campaign. The campaign is VERY worthwhile, and some of the stories of the poorly paid cleaners are really moving. Any help that can be given to this campaign is to be welcomed.
John Cruddas was there as the sponsor and was excellent.
HOWEVER,
I got a bit turned off as it went on as I felt everyone was preaching to the converted. The campaign involves London Citizens and UNITE, but almost all of the attendees were from Unite and London Citizens. I understand that the British Hospitality Association were invited but declined, unsurprisingly. However, with the frequent mention of cleaners I would have thought that someone like the CSSA would be a good body to have on side. Afterall, WE support the living wage, and as a business group can do more than appeal to hearts and minds. In my experience, many businesses are willing to support a living wage IF there is a business case made, but there was no mention of this, only how hard living on the minimum wage is. I agree with the campaign absolutely, but I feel this may have been a missed opportunity to reach beyond the usual suspects