Check out the new site https://www.in-unison.org/ (which is run my members for members) for my post on member applying for winter fuel grants.
“One of the very best things about UNISON is the practical solidarity that members show…Read more…
From Munich to Geneva
This week I wasted two hours of my life on a terrible new film called “Munich: The Edge of War.” It is based on a best-selling novel by Robert Harris. Now the problem with Robert…Read more…
Speech at London Rally – Sheikh Jarrah Palestine January 22nd
Comrades and friends Tony Burke, Labour & Palestine and Unite I am here to express on behalf of Labour Palestine and Unite our solidarity with the Palestine and the people of Sheikh Jarrah. We…Read more…
How the Democrats are paving the way for Trump’s return
No one is working harder to get Donald Trump back into the White House than the leadership of the Democratic Party. Preventing Trump from winning the 2024 elections would seem to be a top priority…Read more…
The real “Money Heist”
The hit Netflix series La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) tells the story of two spectacular robberies. One involved the seizure and occupation of the Spanish Mint (where paper currency is printed). The…Read more…
Interview: TUC’s Frances O’Grady On Omicron, Furlough, Wages, Pay & Internationalism
This is a long read – but we are am sure that for many readers the issues under discussion are of sufficient interest to warrant the length. When I spoke this week to Frances O’Grady, the leader of…Read more…
Interview: TUC’s Frances O’Grady On Omicron, Furlough, Wages, Pay & Internationalism
This is a long read – but we are am sure that for many readers the issues under discussion are of sufficient interest to warrant the length. When I spoke this week to Frances O’Grady, the leader of…Read more…
VSC STATEMENT ON VENEZUELA’S 2021 ELECTIONS
The Venezuela Solidarity Campaign congratulates Venezuela on the successful completion of its regional and elections on November 21st. Venezuelans voted on Sunday to choose representatives for 3,082…Read more…
Sudan: Unions take the lead in the fight for democracy
Military coups are, sadly, a fairly regular occurrence in Africa. In the last couple of years, we’ve seen the military seizing or attempting to seize power in Mali, Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon and…Read more…
Teaching History: Defending the Indefensible
Last week, a youth worker in the UK named Hannah Wilkinson tweeted an image from a textbook used today in this country for A-Level history. Students were asked “To what extent do you believe the…Read more…
Moscow: The truth can’t be hidden forever
Last week, more than thirty masked young men broke into a public meeting at the human rights NGO “Memorial” in Moscow. They shouted “Scum!”, “Fascists!” “Get out of Russia!”, and “There’s no room for…Read more…
Italy: It’s time to complete the anti-fascist revolution
Of the three aggressor nations that made up the Axis during the Second World War, only one saw its population rise up and topple a dictatorship. While the populations of Germany and Japan remained…Read more…
Is Fairphone fair for workers?
If you own a smartphone, you’re almost certainly contributing to several big problems in the world. These include a negative environmental impact, the production of mountains of e-waste as perfectly…Read more…
Hong Kong: Silence is not an option
When the question of trade unions in China would come up, some of us were fond of saying that there is an independent, democratic trade union movement in the country. It is called the Hong…Read more…
Beyond refugees: What the Left needs to say and do about Afghanistan
Calls on Britain and other wealthy countries to take in Afghan refugees are absolutely correct. And those refugees should not be limited to people who worked alongside British soldiers and diplomats….Read more…
Socialists in the age of Scylla and Charybdis
You will no doubt be familiar with the expression ‘between a rock and a hard place’. That phrase, apparently, has its origins in labour history. According to one online source, ‘the phrase originated…Read more…
The BBC, Barry the Owl and the death of a union leader
Last Friday, the BBC News website ran a story with this headline: “A beloved owl who became a well-known resident in New York’s Central Park has died.” The story went on to say that “Barry…Read more…
From Vostok to laughing stock: Billionaires in space
On 12 April 1961, the first human blasted off into space. It was an amazing achievement and was a display not only of the remarkable technological prowess of those who designed and built the…Read more…
It’s time for Georgia to choose
Two weeks ago, far-right thugs attacked the LGBTI community’s ‘March for Dignity’ in Tblisi, Georgia. Dozens of people, mostly journalists, were badly beaten. It was a tragedy that could easily have…Read more…
Cuba: Time for real solidarity from the British left
If you’re a British trade unionist or a member of the Labour Party, where might you go to find news about Cuba? An obvious choice is the Morning Star, a newspaper largely funded by trade…Read more…