George Osborne was yesterday forced to retreat on plans to cut tax credits, due to overwhelming opposition. This backtrack by the Tory Chancellor exposes the weakness of the government, and is a foretaste of the turbulent period ahead in Britain as the Tories attempt to push through their programme of austerity.
It is with heavy hearts that we have heard of the death of comrade Callum Stanland at the tragically young age of 23, who passed away earlier this week. Our thoughts are with his many friends and comrades, and above all with his family. Owen Walsh and Ben Curry of the Leeds Marxists pay tribute to an exceptional young class fighter.
It is now over seven years since the beginning of the crisis, and there is still no end in sight. Talk of recovery is a sick joke at best, and deluded at worst. The reality is that a new – deeper – phase in the world crisis of capitalism is opening up.
This morning, the Turkish military shot down a Russian military aircraft on the border with Syria. What is quite clear is that this was a blatant provocation by the Turkish ruling clique. Alan Woods explores the ever increasing geo-political contradictions that are coming to the fore in the Middle East and Syria.
In one week’s time, world leaders will meet in Paris for the COP21 United Nations climate change conference. But as bourgeois politicians impotently discuss and negotiate, the atmosphere continues to heat up as capitalism kills the planet. As Adam Booth outlines, the future facing humanity is clear: socialism or barbarism.
At the recent Red October 2015 event, Alan Woods – editor of In Defence of Marxism – gave a talk on Marxism and Art. We publish here some thoughts on the topic by Kit MacDougall of the Glasgow Marxists, based on the discussion at Red October.
David Cameron is once again banging the war drum for intervention in Syria, cynically using the horrific attacks in Paris to attempt to whip up support for military action. Corbyn has correctly opposed military intervention, but Blairite MPs are gearing up to rebel on the issue. We say: no to imperialist intervention – Labour must oppose war and fight for socialism!
In these video and audio recordings, Alan Woods and Daniel Morley discuss the origins and factors behind the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism, and the role of imperialism in creating this barbarity. How should workers and youth respond in the face of terrorism?
Junior doctors have voted overwhelming in support of strike action, with 98% voting Yes to a full walk out. All of this on a 76% turnout – a vote for action that would smash even the Tories’ new anti-union laws. The scene is now set for a showdown between doctors and the government.
Only months into the new government, and the Tories are already facing an almightly backlash over their attempts to introduce further cuts and austerity measures. An explosive situation is developing in Britain – a vertible Winter of Discontent.
The election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour Party shocked the establishment, and galvanised socialists, not least in radicalised Scotland. But can Corbyn win back workers and youth – who have abandoned Labour for the SNP – in Scotland?
Josh Booth, the newly elected Cheshire Young Labour rep, reports on the recent North West Young Labour (NWYL) conference – one of the first tests of the popularity of Corbyn’s ideas within the formal structures of the Labour Party since his election. The victory of the left in the NWYL elections is an indication of things to come.