A red and white Unite
flag hung out of a window of the union office. More
banners and placards were held by the pickets, their bright
orange overalls clashing with yellow fluorescent vests as they gathered for their
rally.
“Ineos has hit out at our members, that’s the truth, but
we’ll sit down with them at
any time. We will also, continue safety work and fuel would
go to those who
need it in all life critical situations. We will win!”
Mark Lyon (Unite Convenor)

Yesterday we reported on the strike rally in London, where teachers went on strike against Gordon Brown’s pay freeze. It was the first time the teachers had gone on strike for a generation. They were
joined by members of the public sector union PCS and the lecturers union UCU. The following article contains reports on local action around the country.

Every time you think things cannot get any worse for Gordon
Brown, something else comes along. With Labour trailing badly in the polls and
facing what may be yet another round of bad election results come May, even
some normally ‘loyal’ Labour MPs have started to raise the question of getting
rid of Brown as leader. Labour MPs
are rebelling, not because they have suddenly discovered a long-lost socialist
conscience, but because they are staring at the strong possibility that Labour
will lose the next election and they will lose their seats.

Rain, drizzle, hail… nothing could dampen the enthusiasm of
the estimated ten thousand who marched through the centre of London in support
of the industrial action being taken by the teachers’ union the NUT today. This
is the first national strike by teachers for over a generation. They were
joined by members of the public sector union PCS and the lecturers union UCU
who are also taking  24 hour strike
action in what is intended as a unified show of force.

The following is an extract from the financial newsletter
The Daily Reckoning, 22 April. I would not normally cite a single source so extensively.
But it is important for socialists to be aware of the extent to which serious
bourgeois commentators are thinking the unthinkable about economic perspectives.
We are not alone comrades!

As the recession begins to bite deeper with every passing
day, millions of ordinary people face losing their homes, bankers’ profits are
taking a hit, tens of thousands are facing the dole queues, the world is on the
brink of economic recession, yet the super rich have never had it so good,
especially the hedge fund managers.

The news headlines in Scotland today were dominated by the
strike of 1,200 workers at the Grangemouth oil refinery in the west of
Scotland. This is one of only nine refineries in Britain. The plant
processes 210,000 barrels of oil a day. Announcement of the strike has
triggered panic buying of petrol. Management have to start closing the plant
down nearly a week before the walk-out is due.

Last weekend the Socialist Appeal held its national
conference, the proceedings of which revealed important steps forward in the
development of the tendency in both the youth field and the trade unions. The
mood was one of enthusiasm and determination to build even further on the past
year’s successes.