Britain - Victory: sacked Amicus worker wins tribunal Sacked Amicus Press Officer and deposed former editor of the Amicus Unity Gazette, Des Heemskerk, has won his tribunal case for unfair dismissal from his job in the union.
Brown's budget – tax cuts for the rich The UK's Finance Minister (and hopeful for the Labour leadership after Blair) Gordon Brown presented his last budget yesterday. The announced income tax cuts in reality are being taken back by increased tax rates for some of the poorest households while the richest income earners would benefit the most.
The Portuguese working class is back on the scene Friday, March 2, witnessed a huge mobilisation of the Portuguese working class with 150,000 workers on the streets of Lisbon protesting against the “centre-left†Socialist government's economic policies. Not since the glorious days of the revolution of the 1970s have we seen such a mobilisation.
Greek government uses military-police methods against protesting youth Greek capitalism is beginning to give at the seams. The days of relative calm are over. Now there is little room for manoeuvre and the system has no choice but to go on the offensive against the workers and youth. This became evident last week when the police attacked a 30,000-strong student demonstration with a brutality not seen since the days of the hated military junta in the 1970s.
Ireland: After recent elections in the north The power-sharing executive involving Sinn Fein, the DUP and others, that should emerge from last week’s elections to Stormont, will be called on to apply the anti-working class policies dictated from London. Socialist Republicans now face the task of offering a class alternative.
Europe's Airbus workers fight job cuts! Airbus workers throughout Europe have reacted with anger to the announcement on 28 February of the axing of 10,000 jobs at its plants in Europe as part of its "Power 8" plan. Following the announcement, Airbus workers responded with walk-outs and stoppages in France and Germany.
The Copenhagen youth riots – the blind alley of capitalism exposed Copenhagen erupted over the weekend as a series of demonstrations against the tearing down of the Youth House turned violent. Similar to events in France in 2005, however, what the riots reflect is the accumulated anger of thousands of people, caused by a capitalist system completely incapable of providing a future for workers and youth.
Denmark: The youth house in Copenhagen – a struggle that cannot be separated from the class struggle In the morning hours of March 1, the police in Copenhagen finally raided the “Youth House”, a house that has been occupied for years by a movement of rebellious youth. Thousands of young people have come on to the streets to protest against this. It is necessary to understand what methods the movement must use in order to win.
Blair’s Final Days As Blair prepares to hand over leadership of the Labour Party to Brown, opinion polls reveal how low support for Labour has fallen. We face the real prospect of a return of the Tories at the next general election. Blairism has failed abysmally and it is time to change course and adopt genuine socialist policies.
Britain: The new law on “age discrimination” and what it means for workers Recently the British government introduced a law banning discrimination on the basis of age. On this basis some older workers will be able to stay at work beyond the statutory 65. How will this affect the lives of workers under capitalism?
Private equity – a new capitalist mutation Behind the term “private equity†hides good old “asset stripping†or “corporate raiders with junk bondsâ€. It is not about making profits from making things and selling them. It’s about making money from money, buying up companies, stripping them and putting them back on the market with a mountain of debt. Or to use a simpler term, it’s capitalism.
Sweden - the working class re-awakens The new Conservative government in Sweden immediately launched a programme of cuts and attacks on the working class upon coming to power. With a massive round of contract negotiations coming up this spring, however, the stage is being set for a major explosion of the class struggle.
Britain: Trident - Weapons of Mass Destruction The Blair government’s decision to press ahead with huge spending on updating Britain’s nuclear arsenal highlight the growing contradiction between the needs of ordinary working people and the people at the top. If ever these weapons were used it would be the end of civilisation as we know it. More reason therefore to struggle for genuine socialism.
Britain: Gordon's year All the figures on the British economy reveal the underlying sickness of the whole system. The indebtedness of the population has reached record levels. Now all the signs are there of a coming serious slowdown. This is what Gordon Brown will inherit as he prepares to become the next Labour Prime Minister.
Socialist Republicans cannot accept new police force in the North of Ireland The replacement of the old Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) with the PSNI has received the support of Sinn Fein leaders. This has opened up a heated debate among Republicans on whether this is acceptable or not. Here we provide three articles written by comrades of the Irish Republican Socialist Party, where they explain why Republican socialists cannot accept such a force.