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
Economic Policy
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
Human Connections
Eamon Dyas Musk predicts that within 5 years, apps, email, etc. will all be gone, replaced by AI Everything will be generated by AI on your device (formerly known as a "phone"), delivering everything it thinks and decides you want or need to your screen - Elon Musk 1.5-min clip from a Joe Rogan interview … Continue reading Human Connections
Gabriel Zucman We need to tax the billionaires 2025
Translated into English 2026 A summary Catherine Dunlop At 65 pages, this international bestseller is a long article or short manifesto. The general idea is that taxing billionaires is no more revolutionary than establishing income tax; income tax is accepted now as a matter of course, even if at the time it was created (end … Continue reading Gabriel Zucman We need to tax the billionaires 2025
Gary Stevenson—Tax the super-rich
Catherine Dunlop Gabriel Zucman is not as urgent, in his little book ‘We need to tax the Billionaires’ at least, as Gary Stevenson on his Channel ‘Gary’s Economics’. They agree on their one main point, and Stevenson has done an interview with Zucman recently on his channel. Gary Stevenson makes one point only on his channel, which … Continue reading Gary Stevenson—Tax the super-rich
Whether Burnham wins or loses, the future of the Labour Party is not guaranteed—Editorial
The Makerfield by-election is the most important by-election in recent years. It is almost a pre-run of the 2029 general election which may well determine whether the Labour Party survives. Makerfield has been represented by Labour MPs since its creation in 1983. Labour would typically get between 50% and 60% percent of the vote. It was a ‘Leave’ voting … Continue reading Whether Burnham wins or loses, the future of the Labour Party is not guaranteed—Editorial
How could the labour movement control inflation without increasing unemployment?
Dave Gardner This article takes, as a starting point, the article by Martin Seale on how the Bank of England (BoE) manages inflation through manipulating interest rates with the byproduct being unemployment. Currently, the BoE manages inflation through the setting of an interest rate that keeps the inflation rate stable. The mechanism used is the … Continue reading How could the labour movement control inflation without increasing unemployment?
The Central Bank of Japan
Michal Lerner In the March issue of Labour Affairs I described the operation of the UK and US central banks. In this article I will look at the central bank of Japan. But first a word on terminology. There will be many references to ‘reserves’ and ‘reserve accounts’ in the article. Reserves is just another name for money. Reserve … Continue reading The Central Bank of Japan
Central Banks and Government Spending – A Tale of Two States
Michal Lerner In this article I compare the role of the central banks in government spending in two large capitalist states, the UK, the US. I have chosen these two states because they are both states which are the monopoly issuers of their own currency. In a later article I will look at the role of the … Continue reading Central Banks and Government Spending – A Tale of Two States
Venezuelan oil, Sanctions and Petrodollars
Michal Lerner The name Petrodollar is used to designate dollars that are used to buy oil. So if country X buys 1 million barrels of oil at $70 dollars per barrel from an oil exporter and pays for that oil in dollars, then an account at some US bank will be marked up by £70 … Continue reading Venezuelan oil, Sanctions and Petrodollars
Money, Money, Money . . .
Magnus Langton On Sunday August 15th, 1971, United States of America President, Richard Nixon addressed the nation and announced, “I have directed Secretary Connally to suspend, temporarily, the convertibility of the dollar into gold . . .”. With that, the Bretton Woods Agreement of 1944 came to an end. This settlement had defined the post World … Continue reading Money, Money, Money . . .
Can Reeves’ Budget Save Labour?—Editorial
The problem that Reeves had to deal with in her November 2025 budget was how to reverse the increasing likelihood of Reform becoming the largest party in the 2029 general election. On this measure the budget will most likely be a failure. While we can all feel a sense of relief that she has, under … Continue reading Can Reeves’ Budget Save Labour?—Editorial
Digital I.D. it’s all a matter of trust . . .
Magnus Langton For some time the British government have been talking about the Brit Card, a physical form of personal digital identification for the British people. In September 2025 Sir Keir Starmer announced plans to launch a universal digital identification scheme in the UK. The Gov.uk website tells us the digital ID will hold: Your … Continue reading Digital I.D. it’s all a matter of trust . . .
Rachel Reeves’ Budget Dilemma – Households and Governments—Editorial
Rachel Reeves will deliver her second budget on 26th November, facing a serious dilemma of her own making. By adopting two strict fiscal rules that limit government spending without tax rises, and simultaneously pledging not to increase taxes on working people during this parliament, Reeves has boxed herself into a narrow and politically dangerous corner.When … Continue reading Rachel Reeves’ Budget Dilemma – Households and Governments—Editorial
The failure of British industry – a personal experience
By Eamon Dyas While the United States was the world’s largest producers of automobiles in 1950 the majority of its production was for its home domestic market and not for export. At the same time the UK exported 75% of its vehicle production leaving it as the world’s largest exporter of automobiles in 1950 meaning … Continue reading The failure of British industry – a personal experience
The Case of the German Left
Some 150,000 people attended the Unite the Kingdom march in London on 13th September 2025. The typical response of many on the left is to see the march as indicative of the rise of fascism and racism. Racists may indeed have participated in that march, but we believe the majority of participants were people who feel they have … Continue reading The Case of the German Left
Starmer Shuffles—Editorial
As we go to press it appears that Starmer has made his first move against his chancellor Rachel Reeves. Starmer has no understanding of economics but he does grasp that the huge drop in Labour’s position in the polls can mostly be explained by the economic policies that Reeves is following. Darren Jones, who had … Continue reading Starmer Shuffles—Editorial
LABOUR AFFAIRS SEPTEMBER 2025
Labour Affairs will appear a few days late this September. As you wait for the full issue, here is an article by Eamon Dyas that tackles the crucial issue of today: how can a society atomised by the domination of the economy by finance function at all? Industrial capitalism created a class of people who produced things … Continue reading LABOUR AFFAIRS SEPTEMBER 2025
Labour Affairs 