Despite government decrees ordering social distancing measures and shutdowns, many businesses and companies are attempting to sidestep the rules, putting profits before people’s lives. Workers must organise against this recklessness.
In our latest episode of Marxist Voice, Adam Booth – editor of www.socialist.net – looks back at the last week’s chaotic events, and discusses the bold socialist steps that are needed to address the covid-19 pandemic.
The Chancellor’s recent pledge for the state to cover workers’ wages shows the desperate situation facing the ruling class. Instead, the labour movement leaders must demand nationalisation and democratic economic control.
The entertainment industry is amongst those that has been hit hard by the pandemic-induced paralysis of the economy. Uncertainty prevails for film and television workers, as the future of the sector hangs in the balance.
The prospects for the world economy are growing grimmer by the day. Governments are throwing everything they have at the situation. But they have run out of ammo fighting the last crisis. There is no way out under capitalism.
In this recent live-streamed talk, Fred Weston – editor of www.marxist.com – discusses the explosive developments surrounding the global coronavirus outbreak, which has wrought havoc on society.
After 2008, China prevented a global depression by taking on a massive amount of debt. However, this merely paved the way for a larger crisis. This time the economic crisis will be far deeper, as China can no longer play this role.
The coronavirus crisis has had immense impacts on the airline industry, which is now on its knees. Billionaires like Richard Branson are calling for government handouts to keep their companies afloat. We say: nationalise without compensation!
The UCU strikes have ended. Plans for continued industrial struggle have been cut across by the coronavirus crisis. The UCU must reach out to the rest of the labour movement to secure the safety of workers, with no loss of pay.
In response to the coronavirus pandemic, many governments are nationalising key industries and services. Boris Johnson, however, has relied solely on the market. Profit is standing in the way of an effective response to this crisis.
A decade of Tory cuts mean the NHS will be overwhelmed by the coronavirus epidemic. In Italy, doctors are being made to decide who lives and who dies. This will soon be the case in Britain as well. The poor face a lottery with their lives.
Faced with the prospect of overseeing a deadly disaster, the Prime Minister has changed track from his original laissez-faire covid-19 strategy. But Johnson’s government has no clue of where to go next. We are entering uncharted waters.