December saw a one-day mass strike and demonstrations in Ireland in support of seafarers’ wages. Irish workers produced the latest in a growing series of mass strikes across the world.
The promising new BBC series Life on Mars uses the device of a policeman transported 30 years back in time following a road accident to explore the ways in which society has changed since the early 1970s.
What a spectacle. At his first prime minister’s question time as leader of the opposition, David Cameron demanded that Tony Blair push forward with the implementation of the education white paper, despite a backbench revolt.
Martin Smith, the SWP national organiser, introduced the Saturday morning session on "Building the Party in an Age of Mass Movements".
In an hour-long session delegates debated and then voted on the composition of the party’s leading body, the central committee.
George Galloway has issued his own statement about appearing on Big Brother. In it he says he did it to raise money for a Palestinian charity, which he will, and to reach out to an audience turned off by conventional politics.
At the end of last year, Irish workers took to the streets in their thousands to defend the rights of workers who had been outsourced. Irish Ferries had, in the spirit of the proposed Bolkestein Directive, replaced 453 workers with low paid migrant workers.
The plight of migrant workers, who perform essential work in Britain, but who are treated like second class citizens, could get even worse if the Bolkestein Directive is introduced.
Chris Bambery, editor of Socialist Worker, opened a conference discussion on the struggle against neo-liberalism.
There were important debates at the conference.
John Rees introduced a discussion on Respect by putting it in the context of wider developments across Europe.
"This is my first SWP conference and it has been inspiring. It has been good to see the democracy of the party in action. It’s also nice to hear that students are going to be at the centre of the party’s work.
