Twenty years ago this month, the heroic twelve-month long struggle of
the British miners to defend their jobs and their communities came to
an end. The BBC drama Faith
broadcast on February 28 on these events was like a breath of fresh
air, an antidote to that earlier filth masquerading as ‘impartial
documentaries’. For the first time in the national media the role of
the state – its specially created national police force, its media, its
secret services, and all the weapons employed by the ruling class to
fight the miners – was vividly exposed.

Jamie Oliver’s television programme has highlighted the scandal of junk
food school meals being served up to British children by private firms.
In some cases a pathetic 37p is being spent per child. This is the
inevitable consequence of allowing profit hungry privateers anywhere
near our children’s health and education.

Way back in 1959, the then Tory prime minister, Harold Macmillan, went
into an election with the slogan that Britain has “never had it so
good.” Now, according to Gordon Brown, the UK has enjoyed, under his
stewardship, the longest period of sustained economic growth since
1701! However, it does not say much for capitalism and the British
variety of it that the longest period of economic growth in its history
is just seven years.

Tony Blair has called the general election for May 5. He did this as
opinion polls show a sharp fall in Labour support, down to 37% of the
electorate, with the Tories close behind at 34% and the Liberal
Democrats at 21%. This would indicate another Blair victory but with a
much reduced majority and with significant layers of the working class
voting for nobody. There will be no street parties this time.

In Southern Ireland the
economic miracle is well and truly over. As we have predicted and explained for
some time now, the Celtic Tiger phenomenon did not mean that capitalism had
solved any of its contradictions. Now in the context of a declining world market
the only road open to the bosses to protect their profits will be an assault on
workers living standards.

The cornerstone of a freedom established almost 800 years ago is now
under threat from a Labour government. The latest reactionary piece of
legislation hands power to the Home Secretary of the day to hold those
he claims to be suspected terrorists under house arrest indefinitely.

Thousands of workers gathered in Coventry (UK) at the end of November
to protest against the closure of the Jaguar plant in Brown’s Lane with
a projected loss of 1150 jobs. From the December issue of Socialist
Appeal.

The ongoing conflict between the management of An Post (the Irish state
run postal services) and the Communication Worker’s Union (CWU) may end
up with 1,450 workers losing their jobs, the reduction of workers’
incomes, and the subcontracting of deliveries of mail in rural areas,
if the CWU doesn’t stand up against these attacks.