Britain: Extending or Exterminating Party Democracy? - Labour Party Conference special We are making available to our readers an appeal by the Labour Representation Committee on the issue of internal party democracy. On Sunday Labour Party conference kicks off. If Brown’s proposals are accepted it appears that from next year CLPs and affiliates will no longer have the right to take resolutions to Party conference.
Britain: The rocky road to ruin Over the past 15 years production has risen at about 3% a year in the OECD countries, while money supply, mortgage and company debt, personal borrowing and the massive so-called derivatives market based on this credit has increased at over 25% a year! Result? A huge bubble which is now bursting, starting with Northern Rock.
Metronet: A bad case of Begging bowl capitalism The collapse of Metronet , the consortium entrusted with upgrading the London tube, spells the collapse of the whole notion of 'Public Private Partnership', otherwise known as the Private Finance Initiative.
Tube strike, postal workers, prison officers and police – Gordon Brown’s autumn of discontent The tube workers' strike, the strike of prison officers in August, the call by rank and file police to be granted the right to strike, and other similar disputes mark an important change in Britain. The workers of this country have had enough and they are starting to fight back.
Where is Britain Going? A Marxist Analysis of Britain Today - Part 4 This is the final part of the British Perspectives document. The issues which it covers are the trade unions and the Labour party, and the Marxists' orientation towards the mass organisations. Also covered is the importance of the youth, emphasing the importance of theory and the training of Marxist cadres for the enormous events that impend in Britain and elsewhere.
Where is Britain Going? A Marxist Analysis of Britain Today - Part 3 In this section we deal with the question of the Blair government, the increasing abstentions of the working class, and the growing discontent affecting all sections. It also deals with the Conservative party, the natural party of the ruling class, which has shifted to the “centre” ground and won back a layer that voted Liberal Democrat.
Diana, the Monarchy and the Crisis in Britain Ten years ago in Britain, at the time of the sudden death of Diana, we witnessed an outburst of popular feeling without precedent in recent British history. It was an entirely new phenomenon, reflecting an entirely new situation in Britain. Here we republish Alan Woods’ article written in 1997 which looked at the serious crisis the monarchy and the British establishment were facing at the time.
In solidarity with the Peoples Youth Block On Thursday 18th July comrades of the British Socialist Appeal showed their solidarity with the Peoples Youth Block (BJP) by protesting outside the embassy of El Savador against the repressive measures employed by the government. A letter of protest was received, signed by leading trade unionists from the NUJ, PCS, CWU, ASLEF, UNISON and the TGWU.
Brown: Blair Mark Two Brown has replaced Blair as leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister, but has anything fundamental changed? Absolutely not! And yet behind this seemingly uneventful change lies the manoeuvre to stop John McDonnell to stand for the leadership. All the indications were that John would have made a good showing. Something is stirring in the British labour movement.
Britain: A Vicar to the World As the Middle East descends deeper into a vicious cycle of death and destruction, the Reverend Blair has stepped once again onto the world stage as international “envoy for the Middle Eastâ€. Blair has the strong backing of the US President George W. Bush. In other words, Blair will bend the knee as always to US imperialism and its interests.
Britain: The Act of Union 1707 This year marks the 300th anniversary of The Act of Union between Scotland and England. This was accompanied by the merger of the parliaments into one Westminster Parliament. In January 1707, the Scottish parliament voted 110-67 to ratify The Treaty of Union, which became law four months later.
Where is Britain Going? A Marxist Analysis of Britain Today - Part 2 While GDP in Britain is supposed to be the fifth largest in the world, the division of this wealth is extremely unequal. What growth has taken place has mainly been by increased exploitation of workers. The market principle of profit comes before education and health. Yet British capitalism's share of world exports has continually decreased.
Where is Britain Going? A Marxist Analysis of Britain Today - Part 1 This document constitutes an analysis of the deepening social, political and economic crisis of British capitalism. This perspective applies the method of Marxism to these developments, seeking to uncover the trends and processes within, and serves as a guide to action for all those workers and youth who want to struggle for a socialist transformation of society.
Marxism and the Falklands/Malvinas war As the media remind us of the war that took place 25 years ago, we remind our readers of our analysis of the question: The Falklands Crisis - A Socialist Answer by Ted Grant in 1982, The Falklands War - 20 years later by Phil Mitchinson in 2002, Reply to Luis Oviedo - Part Three - The Malvinas: Marxism and War and Reply to Luis Oviedo - Part Five - For a class policy by Alan Woods in 2004.
Taxing truth about Gordon Brown – Part One Written before Gordon Brown emerged as the sole candidate to replace Blair, this article shows where Brown really stands on key issues facing the workers of Britain. His latest budget actually shifted the burden of taxation in such a way that the poor actually pay more.
