Andy Burnham's conference speech was a curious affair. He reiterated his view that the country took a wrong turn in the 1980s, when Margaret Thatcher set out to dismantle the post-WWII political settlement. "In 1945, we had the vision to win the peace. We had the bravery to make change. We built good homes, secure … Continue reading Can People Live on Hope Alone? Editorial
Canvassing for George in Kentish Town.
Today 24th September I spent two hours canvassing for George Galloway who is contesting the bye election on the 8th of October in Holborn and St Pancras constituencyIt was in a very pleasant wide road near Kentish Town West, with well kept small terraced houses obviously owner-occupied. The people I spoke to were young and … Continue reading Canvassing for George in Kentish Town.
Sports and Politics: Ireland v Israel
Michael Murray The furore over Republic of Ireland playing Israel in the UEFA Nations’ League raises the question of what happened in the days of the boycotts of rugby games with apartheid South Africa. The record shows a huge contrast between the Fianna Fáil government stance on the issue of sports and politics - then compared to … Continue reading Sports and Politics: Ireland v Israel
Democracy et cetera
LETTER TO THE EDITOR Dear Editor, The article on “Democracy, et cetera” in the September 'Labour Affairs' helps to put Fascism in its historical context. In political discourse today it is treated as a transcendental source of evil that can be related to any situation irrespective of time and place and therefore becomes a meaningless … Continue reading Democracy et cetera
How Europe is descending into war
Eamon Dyas Small states of the European Union are in a peculiar postion. The large more powerful states relate to the world differently and their interests manifest different priorities. That was not a problem for the EU when the more powerful states were tied to Russia through their manufacturing activities’ reliance on cheap energy. However, that … Continue reading How Europe is descending into war
Was The Soviet Union “A Failed World State”
(A Reply To Remarks In Labour Affairs, September '26) The Russian Revolution was envisaged in the first instance by its creator as a preliminary to an international Socialist Revolution against Capitalism. Socialist Revolution was seen by Lenin as having been made possible, even inevitable, in the immediate future, by developments within German capitalism during the War. These developments … Continue reading Was The Soviet Union “A Failed World State”
UK Sanctions on West Bank Settlements
Eamon Dyas Yesterday 9 september 2026 the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Edward Miliband, announced that the Labour government was going to impose sanctions that “will target illegal settlements and settlement expansion” in the west Bank which he described as “ethnic cleansing” and which the Israeli government had done little to prevent. He said … Continue reading UK Sanctions on West Bank Settlements
NAZA: Exposing Israel’s killing machine in Gaza
NAZA is an 80-minute documentary film which examines the systems behind Israel’s mass killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Its title is derived from Nezek Agavi, the Hebrew military acronym for collateral damage. It was directed by Israeli film-makers Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor and co-produced by the Guardian newspaper. It premiered in the main competition at the … Continue reading NAZA: Exposing Israel’s killing machine in Gaza
Presidential pardons
On 19 September 2026, the President of Israel, former Labour politician Isaac Hertzog, pardoned Elor Azaria, an Israeli soldier who executed a Palestinian at an army checkpoint in Hebron in March 2016. The existence of video of the incident shot by a volunteer from the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem made it impossible for the Israeli … Continue reading Presidential pardons
PALESTINE LINKS
Labour minister: British Muslims haven't always been heard but Burnham will change that (Imran Mulla, Middle East Eye, 30 September 2026) Miliband speaks of a Middle East policy shift - so it's time to pick a side (Tom Blackburn, Middle East Eye, 29 September 2026) The ‘gray arm’ of Israeli annexation: a settler-led wing of … Continue reading PALESTINE LINKS
The Coming of Censorship in Britain. Liberal democracy in action.
Dave Gardner It is often proclaimed with pride by politicians and their media in the UK that we are privileged to live in a ‘Liberal democracy’ unlike the unfortunates in countries such as the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China who languish under ‘authoritarian regimes’. We enjoy a variety of competing political parties, … Continue reading The Coming of Censorship in Britain. Liberal democracy in action.
Tony Greenstein: The most important half-hour of my life
Aug 21, 2026 Below is the text of the closing speech Tony Greenstein prepared for the end of his trial at Kingston Crown Court. After a four-day trial ending on Friday, August 21 2026, Tony was acquitted of one count of inviting support for a proscribed terrorist organisation [Hamas] under Section 12(1) of the Terrorism Act … Continue reading Tony Greenstein: The most important half-hour of my life
Notes on the News
By Gwydion M. Williams Hard Right Peacemongers in Germany Appalling Danger of Donbass Majority Rule? 6% of Russians Can’t Be Wrong? Artificial Cleverness and Job Destruction SpaceX Starship Still Unready China Still Rising Hard Right Peacemongers in Germany From 2022 and the sabotage of a moderate peace that Zelensky almost accepted, the classic West German … Continue reading Notes on the News
Guilt for 20th Century Mass Deaths
Lenin as Peacemaker Marxist Guilt? The Black Book as Unreliable Source Junk Politics About China The Meaning of Responsibility - A Wider Project? Was World War Two Unavoidable? Wider Reading Lenin as Peacemaker World War One was the biggest mass killing in Europe since the Thirty Years War. Much bigger than the combined Revolutionary and Napoleonic … Continue reading Guilt for 20th Century Mass Deaths
Burnham’s Administration is on the road to failure—Editorial
Burnham is leading an administration that seems to have learned nothing from the administrations that governed the UK since the global financial crisis (GFC) in 2008. All these administrations failed. Keir Starmer failed, Rishi Sunak failed, Liz Truss failed, Boris Johnson failed, Theresa May failed, David Cameron failed, Gordon Brown failed. By failed we mean the Prime Minister … Continue reading Burnham’s Administration is on the road to failure—Editorial
“Architect or Bee?”
Michael Murray “A bee puts to shame many an architect in the construction of its cells. But what distinguishes the worst of architects from the best of bees is namely this: the architect will construct in his imagination that which he will ultimately erect in reality. At the end of every labour process we get … Continue reading “Architect or Bee?”
Building and Apprenticeships—Views from the front line
Eamon Dyas I came upon this as a post from someone called Robert Stewart on Facebook. His profile says that he "is a property entrepreneur, former RAF fighter pilot and housing commentator specialising in unlocking housing supply through commercial conversion, brownfield development and planning reform". Apparently he also ran a scaffolding company. Although he’s not … Continue reading Building and Apprenticeships—Views from the front line
Nonsense about government bonds
Martin Seale The mainstream media is full of stories about bonds. The fear being spread is that the Labour government will be unable to sell UK government bonds to a private sector that is apparently worried about whether the UK government might go bust. The UK mainstream media is unimpressive at the best of times. But … Continue reading Nonsense about government bonds
