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Thursday, 30 June 2005 |
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House price increases are slowing down in Britain. In June in London
prices actually fell. This is the beginning of the end of the house
price bubble and it will be very painful for many families who have
borrowed on the basis of the increased equity in their property. It
will have a knock-on effect on the whole economy as spending is already
slowing. |
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Thursday, 30 June 2005 |
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This article was written before today's terrorist attacks on Central
London. However, today's events will undoubtedly be used to strengthen
Blair's attempt to introduce ID cards in Britain, with the excuse that
they will help "fight terrorism". They exist in the rest of Europe, so
“what’s the big deal?” many may think. The point is they will not be
mere ID cards. The legislation that is being prepared will allow the
government to have detailed files on the activities of every person
living in this country. |
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Thursday, 30 June 2005 |
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“Attending this conference and its fringe meetings has indicated a
change in mood. Derek Simpson has said that he wants to return Amicus
to where it belongs that is in the hands of the membership, not as an
extended hand of the multinationals. Activists in the union have to
make sure that this is carried out in practice.” |
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Friday, 03 June 2005 |
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Over the weekend of May 28th to 30th the National Association of
teachers in Further and Higher Education (NATFHE) held its annual
conference in Eastbourne, Britain. |
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Friday, 03 June 2005 |
 The
establishment of the Premier League in Britain, a renaming of the old
First Division, in the early 1990s opened up a period of naked
commercial exploitation of football. The new league exists to maximise
the profits and commercial potential of the richest clubs at the
expense of the rest. Central to this are clubs like Manchester United,
the world’s richest club which has now been virtually bought up by US
tycoon Malcolm Glazier, who has grabbed control of over 75% of the
club’s shares. |
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Wednesday, 01 June 2005 |
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Over the past weekend the Annual National Conference of the 67,000
strong college and university lecturers union, NATFHE, which took place
in Eastbourne, Britain, unanimously agreed to support the Bolivarian
revolution and the measures that it has taken to help the workers and
poor in Venezuela. |
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Tuesday, 31 May 2005 |
Speaking at a meeting in solidarity with Venezuela in London, Frances
O'Grady, Deputy General Secretary of the British Trade Union Congress,
made clear the opposition of the TUC on US interference in Venezuela. See the article on the Hands off Venezuela website.
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Wednesday, 18 May 2005 |
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Ezker Marxista and El Militante
organised a speaking tour last week throughout the Basque Country, with
Gerry Rudy and Danny of the IRSP (Irish Republican Socialist Party)
speaking in many Basque working class neighbourhoods, drawing the
lessons of the experiences in Ireland and linking these to the struggle
for national liberation of the Basque Country. The common thread was
the need for the organised working class to take a lead in the struggle
and link it to a socialist perspective. |
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By Phil Mitchinson
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Wednesday, 18 May 2005 |
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As a postscript to British Perspectives 2005 (What is happening in Britain)
Phil Mitchinson analyses the results of the recent general election in
the context of mounting insecurity in the British economy, politics and
society as a whole. Labour won the election with the smallest share of
the vote of any victorious party in history. With the government's
majority severely reduced how much longer can Blair last? 'New' Labour
has set off on a collision course with its own backbenches and with the
trade unions and the working class.
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Wednesday, 18 May 2005 |
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This resolution was unanimously passed by the Central London Branch of
the National Union of Journalists in a meeting held on May 12. |
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Friday, 13 May 2005 |
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Last week’s FBU conference revealed a militant fighting mood, with Matt
Wrack, the new General Secretary, expressing an equally fighting spirit. |
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By Phil Mitchinson
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Friday, 06 May 2005 |
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 Labour
has won an historic third term victory in the 2005 General Election,
yet there will be no dancing in the streets, no street parties, in fact
little enthusiasm at all. The combination of widespread opposition to
the war in Iraq, distrust of Blair, and disillusionment with the
failures of the last two terms of Labour government means that Labour
won the election with the lowest share of the vote, just 36 percent, of
any victorious party in history.
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By Phil Mitchinson
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Monday, 02 May 2005 |
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We recently published a review of a film shown on the BBC entitled
Faith which wove together the lives of its fictional characters with
the real events of the 1984-85 Miners’ Strike. The result was a moving
drama and an unusually honest account of this great struggle,
sympathetic to the miners and their communities. The film’s director,
David Thacker spoke to us about the making of the film and his own
political views.
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Monday, 25 April 2005 |
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Mick Brooks looks at the historical background to the British car
industry and in particular that of Rover. It is a history of decline,
of underinvestment, and finally of collapse. Now all the attempts to
save Rover by looking for private buyers have failed. It is a
reflection of the decline of the British capitalist class as a whole. |
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