Jorge Martin talks on Lenin's The State and Revolution, which he completed just before the October revolution in order to arm the Bolsheviks ideologically for the tasks of state power. Lenin explains the historic necessity for the emergence of the state as a tool of class rule, and that the state grows as economic differentiation in society grows, requiring the supression of the oppressed majority by the priviledged minority. In dealing with anarchist and reformist conceptions of the state, Marxism explains that the working class cannot lay hands on the ready-made state machinery and that the worker's state is historically unique, being in the possession of the majority of society, the working class.

It has recently been agreed by the government after intensive lobbying by the entire trade union movement that agency workers should get the same rate of pay as directly employed workers after 12 weeks. Has it gone far enough?  I believe the legislation should apply from day one and should also include the same terms and conditions as directly employed full time workers.

At present gas prices are going up by 13.6% in Britain. They’re rising by just 2% in the Netherlands. Prices are 25% higher here than on the continent. By the end of the year household bills will be £1,323 a year. This is twice as high as when Labour was elected in 1997. Some estimate household bills could hit £1,500 next winter.