Socialist Worker 2586 2018-01-09 15:44:21.0
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Theresa May’s chaotic reshuffle is yet another new low for the Tories
Greening (centre) with other zombie Tories (Pic: Dfid on Flickr) Theresa May’s reshuffle of cabinet ministers began as farce and moved on to disaster. What was supposed to display renewed confidence and poise delivered further damaging evidence of weakness and chaos. “Strong and stable” feels a very, very long way away. The odious Toby Young resigned from the Office for Students on Tuesday morning. Education secretary Justine Greening resigned on Monday after she was offered the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). No trade unionist, teacher or parent should miss the Tory minister who tried to slash £3 billion from schools’ funding. Her replacement, Damian Hinds, comes from entrenching poverty, worsening sanctions and squeezing claimants at the DWP. He reacted to concerns about the brutal Universal Credit regime by saying people should stop relying on benefits and get a job. Greening’s resignation is another humiliating blow to Theresa May, who had already lost three cabinet ministers in the space of three months last year. Greening is an ardent supporter of the European Union’s (EU) neoliberal single market and is likely be key part of any backbench Remain rebellion. The reshuffle has also entrenched the Brexit divisions inside the cabinet. May’s ally Philip Hammond is still chancellor, Boris Johnson is still foreign secretary and David Davis is still Brexit secretary. Capitulated Before the Greening walkout, the reshuffle was wholly underwhelming. Ministers refused to move, and May gave in. In 1962 Tory prime minister Harold Macmillan sacked seven cabinet members in what became known as the “night of the long knives”. May’s had been dubbed by journalists as the “night of the blunt knives” and the “night of the plastic forks”. At the beginning of the day Conservative Central HQ (CCHQ) tweeted a picture congratulating Chris Grayling on becoming party chairman. The tweet was quickly deleted—and Brandon Lewis was appointed chairman later on. Lewis is the man who in 2014 insisted that building developers should not be forced to fit sprinklers. Communities and Local Government Secretary Sajid Javid, whose ministry is already in charge of housing, will have it added to his job title. Similarly NHS-destroying health secretary Jeremy Hunt was widely tipped for promotion to deputy prime minister and business secretary. Incumbent But the incumbent at business Greg Clark remains—after reportedly refusing to be moved by May. Hunt will now be secretary of state for health and social care, an area that’s already managed by his department. A few more civil servants and cash may follow, but the changes are largely cosmetic. Farce aside, real divisions underlie May’s difficulties. The Tories are still reeling from their disastrous general election result—and are torn by the demands of big business and bigotry. Their friends in the City of London and big business want to remain in the European Union’s (EU) neoliberal single market because it protects their profits. They have the ear of chancellor Philip Hammond, who favours a “softer Brexit”. At the same time the Tories want to pull people’s anger in a racist direction by promising to dump EU free movement. They know that there is real anger within society at austerity and deep-rooted inequality. They have stepped back from getting rid of May because there is no obvious alternative, despite the election disaster. But, as the Tories run up against the reality of the EU’s bullyboy negotiating tactics, these divisions can only get worse. They are a zombie government—but they won’t all just fall over. It is no use just waiting for a Jeremy Corbyn-led Labour government, we have to force them out of office. That means building resistance to every one of their attacks on working class people and their attempts to divide us with racism. And the left has to put forward a socialist, anti-racist vision of Brexit to the Tories’ pro-business, anti-migrant one. A fightback can force the Tories to shuffle off.

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Trump book unleashes ‘fire and fury’ on the White House
author martin Wolff wants to bring Trump to book (Pic: Gage Skidmore) To say a new book about Donald Trump—The Fire and the Fury by Martin Wolff—has caused a stir would be an understatement. Wolff has said he wants to bring Trump down. Trump’s lawyers threatened to sue if the book was published. In response the publishers brought the release date forward. The book is based on some 200 interviews. At times exchanges and quotes seem almost unbelievable, but Wolff’s publishers were willing to go to the wall. Closed doors are opened and dirty laundry is dragged out through them. In the book’s introduction we’re sat at a dinner table alongside far right aide Steve Bannon, former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes and others. It is election night and Trump has won. The things they say in Trump's White House   Read More We get a glimpse of the arguments inside the ruling class. “Does he get it?” Ailes asks Bannon. “He gets it,” responded Bannon. Wolff interprets this exchange as about whether or not Trump understands his own political programme. Another interpretation is that Ailes is asking Bannon if Trump understands his role as manager of US capitalism. Peppered throughout the book are explosive quotes. “Day one we’re moving the US embassy to Jerusalem,” says Bannon. Internal warfare rages throughout the White House. People fight for their own agendas and try to convince Trump of them, but nothing stays in his mind. Chaos reigns. The coverage of the book’s release and the subsequent fallout in the mainstream media has focused largely on Trump’s mental health. That completely misses the point. The liberal “resistance” to Trump means calling him names and making fun of his supposed mental distress. The real solution is to organise against everything he represents in society—racism, sexism and every other attack on working class people. Wolff describes the responses to allegations of Russian president Vladimir Putin fixing the presidential election. The media “saw it as the Holy Grail and silver bullet of Trump destruction”, “And the Trump White House saw it, with quite some self-pity, as a desperate effort to concoct a scandal”. ‘You need to take it seriously, Donald’ Former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes (Pic: Ninian Reid/Flickr Creative Commons) We’re invited to see Trump as a man-child “polishing off a pint of Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream as he idly opined about a range of topics.”Donald Trump is painted as a bumbling buffoon. The subtle, and not so subtle, political games of Jared Kushner, Steve Bannon and others are torn apart in seconds by Trump. He sabotages a visit from the Mexican president with a tweet. Trump ignores the advice of venerable racist right wingers from Henry Kissinger to Ailes. “You’ve got to get right on Russia,” Ailes tells him. “You need to take this seriously, Donald.” “Jared has this,” replied Trump. “It’s all worked out.” His White House is a shambles. Trump gives Bannon and Kushner equivalent levels of power and access to him. It’s a recipe for chaos and pulls Trump from position to position depending on who spoke to him last. Family members and advisers Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump are portrayed as a power couple in the making. Ivanka is described as preparing a bid for president in 2020. Kushner’s links to powerful men such as Rupert Murdoch and Henry Kissinger are revealed. He calls his criminal father “daddy”. Chaos was strategy of far right Bannon Trump’s former key adviser Steve Bannon is savaged. It’s time to delete alt-right   Read More We’re given an insight into his role in drafting Trump’s first executive order (EO) to implement the first Muslim Ban. He entrusted its drafting to Stephen Miller, a former member of staff for Jeff Sessions who was “unable to construct sentences”. “Bannon, during the transition, sent him to the Internet to learn about and to try to draft the EO,” writes Wolff. “Chaos was Steve’s strategy,” Wolff quotes Trump staffer Katie Walsh as saying.When asked why he implemented the ban when it would have the most impact Bannon replied, “So the snowflakes would show up at the airports and riot.” He is alleged to be preparing his own presidential bid. Families that stay together Melania Trump campaigns for Donald (Pic: The White House) Wolff portrays Trump’s family and team as a bunch of hangers-on who wanted to use Trump’s unsuccessful election as their own springboard to personal fame and fortune. Trump wanted to be the “world’s most famous man” and would use the election to do it. Because he had no intention of winning the election there was no need to clean up his act. “It certainly is an odd circumstance if you live your life without regard for being elected and then get elected,” an Obama administration lawyer told Wolff. “And it’s quite an opportunity for your enemies.” Among Trump’s advisers Bannon appears to be the only one who thought Trump could win. Trump had promised Melania Trump he would lose and she could go back to a life of idle luxury. Wolff describes her crying on election night—“and not tears of joy”. Join the women’s march Women’s march London group has called a rally in London for 21 January. It’s against discrimination, oppression, silence and abuse. The women’s march last year, which took place the day after Trump’s inauguration, drew tens of thousands onto the streets. It was part of a global day of protest against Trump. Go to Facebook event Time’s Up Rally for more details
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Protest to demand justice for Becky Romero
Becky Romero died because of mental health cuts The family and supporters of Becky Romero planned to protest in Bristol this Saturday. The protest was called by Nicky Romero, the mother of the 15 year old girl who died in July. A coroner ruled last December that a lack of NHS resources saw a “gross failure to provide basic medical attention” and “contributed to her death by neglect”. Underfunding of mental health services meant Becky was failed at every turn. She was forced to go to Bournemouth because Riverside—Bristol’s only adolescent mental health unit—had just nine beds. After being sent home, Becky and the family didn’t receive any real support. Despite a visit from a social worker and two introductory visits from outreach workers, the package left Becky vulnerable during the summer holidays. Justice for Becky Romero (Protest Against Bristol’s Mental Health Crisis) Saturday 13 January, 1pm, Bristol. See the Facebook page
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School cleaners in Hackney are 100 percent behind pay strikes
Unite union members plan to strike over pay More than 40 school cleaners in six schools in Hackney, east London, have voted to strike by 100 percent on a 60 percent turnout. The members of the Unite union are planning to walk out from Tuesday 30 January to Friday 2 February and again on Monday 5 February. They are employed by OCS Group, which, Unite says, is refusing to update its pay rates to reflect the new level of the London Living Wage (LLW). Bosses are also proposing to cut pay with new term time only contracts, and refusing to pay holiday pay in line with inflation. Unite regional officer Onay Kasab called it “outrageous salami-slicing by OCS of pay and employment conditions of an already low-paid group of workers. “Our members have voted overwhelmingly to stand up to OCS, which is a very poor example of the privatised contracting-out culture. “OCS continues to blatantly ignore the requirement of Hackney council that its contractors pay the LLW. “It has also refused to pay proper holiday pay, despite the recent holiday pay/overtime court ruling on this subject. “The bosses need to sit down and hold constructive talks with Unite to resolve this dispute. “Otherwise classroom rubbish will be uncollected and toilets uncleaned at the end of January with further action on the cards going into the spring.” Schools that will be affected by the strikes include Cardinal Pole School, Clapton Girls Academy, Urswick School, Haggerston School, Ickburgh School and Stoke Newington School. Teachers should support them.
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Coordinated strikes hit six train lines across England as workers fight attack on safety
Workers on the picket line at Waterloo (Pic: Guy Smallman) Workers on six train lines are continuing the fight for safe and accessible train travel. RMT members on Northern, Merseyrail, Greater Anglia, South Western Railways and Island Line walked out on Monday, with further strikes planned for Wednesday and Friday of this week. Southern workers also struck on Monday. It’s the latest action in the long-running dispute over the implementation of driver-only operation (DOO) trains, which company bosses are desperate to roll out across the networks. This week’s coordinated strikes are what’s needed to beat DOO. The strikes now hit companies covering large parts of England’s rail network. On the Northern line workers said the strike was absolutely solid, with 100 percent of RMT members out on strike at some stations. At the last strike in November only 15 out of 1,500 conductors at Northern went to work. Ned from Wigan explained that on Monday more people joined the picket line than ever before, and they persuaded some drivers not to cross their picket line. “We turned some Aslef drivers away from work. We’re encouraging them to tell their union to stop sitting on their hands. Some drivers went in, but you could tell it pricked their conscience.” And Ned said the dispute had had a transformative effect on his workplace. “We’ve recruited people to the union on the basis of this dispute. People often come from industries that are not as well unionised and when they fight back they understand how we’ve got these terms and conditions. “They begin to understand not just the benefits of a trade union, but the absolute necessity of it.” RMT union members picketing at Victoria (Pic: Guy Smallman) The question of drivers’ union Aslef is central to the dispute. Principle Aslef recently accepted a deal on Southern that accepted the principle of running trains without a second safety-trained member of staff on board all trains. RMT members at Southern have been fighting for over two years. RMT South East regional organiser Paul said they were waiting for “a reasonable discussion” with GTR bosses, who own Southern. Southern bosses have cynically used a European Union (EU) court ruling to get workers back on the trains. The ruling says workers should be paid holiday pay based on their total numbers of hours worked—this would include overtime. But bosses are withholding this extra pay that workers are entitled to—unless they promise not to join any more strikes. Paul said, “They are hoping to gradually erode the number of people on strike. This dispute is a matter of principle, not of financial gain.” South Western bosses claimed that 70 percent of its services were running. But strikers think that is a gross exaggeration and some say only about 40 percent of a normal service was leaving the station. Ricky is branch secretary of RMT Waterloo. “On our last strike we only had 17 out of 220 staff go in—so we’re solid,” he told Socialist Worker. “But we’re not doing this for ourselves, we’re doing it for the future.” On the day of the cabinet reshuffle strikers were keen to see the back of Tory transport secretary Chris Grayling, who has been instrumental in pushing through DOO. Ricky said, “Without a doubt the Tories are involved in keeping this dispute going—I’d put money on it.” RMT general secretary Mick Cash told Socialist Worker, “We’re calling for a summit with the Department for Transport and train companies. This dispute is having a big impact and we can win.” And strikers on the Waterloo picket line were clear that “unity” was needed. “If you stick together you can win,” said one picket. “To the company this dispute is about boosting profits but for us its safety.”
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As McDonald’s bosses forced to grant some pay rises, workers vow to fight for more
McDonald's workers on strike last year with supporters (Pic: Guy Smallman) A section of McDonald’s workers have won their biggest pay rise in ten years. The firm reviews pay every January and the pay increases will come into effect on 22 January. McDonald’s worker Sam told Socialist Worker, “The pay rise comes months after our strike. That’s no coincidence.” Sam’s pay is set to rise by 40p an hour. “McDonald’s said in September that it was just 0.01 percent of workers striking,” said Sam. “Well, if 0.01 percent can win the biggest pay rise in a decade let’s see what more of us can do.” But behind the headline pay rise bosses are desperate to claw back whatever they can. The pay rise only applies to workers at stores directly owned by McDonald’s – around a fifth of the workforce. Some 85,000 people work in McDonald’s stores in Britain, but about 80 percent of stores are franchises. The firm says it can only make recommendations on pay to these stores, but many set pay at the minimum wage or at rates close to it. Maximum As well as new “minimum” rates of pay, McDonald’s lists “maximum” rates of up to £10 for crew members. Sam described how it is almost impossible for workers to get these higher rates of pay. “Every year you work at McDonald’s you get a pay review,” said Sam. “You have to be marked three or four on all the categories to get a pay rise. “McDonald’s have a quota in stores about how many threes or fours they can give out.” Despite bosses’ dirty tactics, workers rightly view the pay rise as a victory. The strike raised the profile of their Bfawu union. And the news of a pay rise could increase the number of people looking to get involved in the fight. Sam said, “For us this has been a morale boost. We’ve achieved something we were told we couldn’t. “If we unionise more workers and hit them with more strikes then it will be easier for us to win.” The fight to make McDonald’s and other poverty-wage firms pay better wages will be a long and bitter one. But pay rises are possible. “We’re getting people in position to do it again,” said Sam. “There will be another McStrike.” Sam’s name has been changed to protect their identity.
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Well-supported strike at The Cumberland School in Newham says no to academies
Pickets and supporters gathered at The Cumberland School in Newham on Tuesday (Pic: Guy Smallman) The first strike at The Cumberland School in Newham, east London, against academisation saw over 50 NEU education union members picketing on Tuesday. NEU rep Carolyn McGrath said, “The union group has gone from strength to strength. “It’s not only about the numbers—with now over 105 balloted—but in confidence that what we are doing is the right thing. “We are protecting not only staff pay and conditions but also defending the education of pupils. “Our strike is part of a growing number in Newham where the fight against academisation is making a significant impact. “We want other schools under threat to start resisting the plans to hand over local authority schools to unaccountable trustees who have other interests than the education of our children.” The picket was supported by the national union (NUT section of NEU). Executive member Dominic Byrne pointed out that Labour boroughs should not be going down this road. Teaching assistant (TA) Sandra said, “We need to stand together. Many of us joined the NEU so we could be one unit working together. “We hear TAs are being cut first. It’s so important teachers and TAs stuck together.” Parents from Cumberland and from a local feeder primary spoke passionately about keeping our schools within the local authority. A growing number of Newham schools are also set to take action, escalating to more than one day, and heading for a joint strike day, march and rally. Messages of support for the Newham strikers to assistant.secretary.nta@gmail.com
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Disgraceful Tory Homes agency board member Simon Dudley attacks homeless
Homelessness has risen by 134 percent since the Tories took office in 2010 (Pic: Garry Knight/Flickr) Windsor Tory councillor Simon Dudley wants to clear the town’s streets of homeless people before the royal wedding set to take place there in May. Shockingly, Dudley is a board member of the government’s Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). He was appointed by Tory local government secretary Sajid Javid in February 2017 for a three-year term. One of the HCA’s functions is the regulation of the social housing sector. Dudley sent a letter to the local police force whinging about “aggressive begging and intimidation” as well as “bags and detritus” on the streets. He urged the cops to round up rough sleepers He even went as far as to say some people begging had made a “commercial life choice praying [sic] on residents and tourists”. The comments are a disgusting attack on people hit by Tory attacks on housing. Rough sleeping has increased by 134 percent since the Tories took office in 2010 according to the Homeless Link charity. Dudley’s register of interests show he was wined and dined by the Berkley Group property firm, based in Surrey. The Tory has also worked as executive director of global capital markets for Arcapita Ltd and as managing director at Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. He is lead councillor for housing in Windsor. But questions have been raised about whether his appointment to the HCA’s board represents a conflict of interests.  Greenbelt A Freedom of Information request showed that 86 percent of land allocated for possible redevelopment in the borough fell in the greenbelt. Developers have pushed to use this land. A councillor who raised concerns was sacked in January from his position as chair of the council’s planning panel. And Dudley’s shocking outburst once again raises questions about the HCA. At the Mipim property speculators’ fair in London in 2016, Sir Edward Lister, chair of the HCA, said, “We’re interested in working with anybody who’s got money and we don’t really care where it comes from." Responding to a Channel 4 Dispatches investigation into the HCA last year the organisation said, “TheHCA takes a robust approach to managing conflicts of interest.” Lister consults for real estate giant CBRE. The Dispatches investigation also found that Anthony Preiskel was a HCA board member while simultaneously acting as head of the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO). KCTMO was responsible for management of all council housing in the borough. The HCA said it takes “any concerns raised about theHCAextremely seriously”. If that’s true Dudley should be shown the door immediately. For a board member of the “national housing delivery body” to make such remarks about rough sleepers is an outrage.
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Edgar Degas’s contradictions and shock value
Jockeys in the Rain (Edgar Degas, 1886) An exhibition of drawings by Edgar Degas (1834-1917) is an excellent introduction to the work of one of the most influential artists of the 19th century. It features a series of his drawings of the ballet, women bathing, horse racing and other themes. These fragile objects (often drawn on tracing paper) have the most brilliant combination of classical drawing and revolutionary use of colours and new techniques. His ballet dancers are caught in strenuous movement or exhaustion. Degas wanted to show them “cracking their joints”, the sweat and the pain. A group of women in a laundry are seen as doing hard physical work. Degas was born into a well-off family of bankers but trained as an artist from a young age. Leading He became a leading figure in the group known as the Impressionists (although Degas preferred to call himself a Realist or Independent). Degas was an antisemite, made misogynistic comments, and his depiction of women is contradictory. Some have criticised his drawing as intrusive or revelling in vulnerability. But it’s also true that the subjects are not served up in a way that suggests they should be gazed at. The exhibition includes Woman Looking Through Field Glasses, who looks directly at us in the most assertive way—an artistic shock for the time. Unlike so many, this exhibition is free. See it if you can. Degas from the Burrell at the National Gallery, London, until 7 May. Free. For more information go to bit.ly/2wEnWNO
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A newly published book by Clara Zetkin on fascism gives a stark warning for today
Clara Zetkin (left) and Rosa Luxemburg Across Europe fascist forces are trying to grow from the crisis in capitalism. It’s not the first time that socialists have had to grapple with what fascism is—and how to fight it. A book of revolutionary socialist Clara Zetkin’s writings on fascism from the 1920s, edited by John Riddell and Mike Taber, offers important insights for anti-fascists today. Following the First World War socialists were faced with a host of reactionary forces. The Russian Revolution of 1917 had inspired a revolutionary wave across Europe, but the old order wasn’t about to give up its wealth and power without a fight. In Russia the Whites, forces loyal to the old Tsarist dictatorship, waged a bloody civil war against the new workers’ government. In Germany the Frei Korps, right wing bands of former army officers, were used to put down the left and workers. Similarly in Hungary, Admiral Miklos Horthy’s troops drowned the Hungarian workers’ revolution in blood. In Italy the workers’ movement faced a deadly threat—Benito Mussolini’s Italian Fasci of Combat. Many on the left didn’t differentiate between fascism and other forms of reaction. Zetkin wrote that the “characteristic outlook of many reformist social democrats” is that “fascism is merely a form of bourgeois terror”. Fascism’s “character and effects were thought to be similar to those of the Horthy regime”, which murdered 5,000 and jailed 75,000 after the revolution. Zetkin argued that the fascists in Italy represented a unique threat compared to other right wing reactionary forces. “Even though the Horthy regime employs the same bloody, terrorist methods, the historical essence of the two is entirely different,” she wrote. For Zetkin, fascism emerged as a failure of socialist revolution to break through. Demoralisation The petty bourgeoisie—shop keepers, farmers, small time capitalists—fell in behind the rising workers’ movement. When revolution didn’t break through, many swung rightwards in demoralisation. They were squeezed by the social crisis and lacking both the wealth of the capitalists and the collective organisation of workers to defend themselves. Zetkin argued that capitalist crisis had brought about the “proletarianisation of very broad petty bourgeois and middle bourgeois masses”. “What weighs on them above all is the lack of security for their basic existence.” So unlike Horthy’s terror, which was carried out by a “small caste of feudal officers”, fascism had a mass social base. And in times of acute social crisis, such as 1930s Germany, the ruling class could look to fascism to crush the working class movement. For Zetkin this meant fighting in a united front of all workers, revolutionary and reformist. “Fascism does not ask if the worker in the factory has a soul painted in the white and gold colours of Bavaria; the black, red, and gold colours of the bourgeois republic; or the red banner with the hammer and sickle.” And, ultimately, the solution was uprooting the society that gave rise to fascism. Zetkin’s important insight was that fascism is a dynamic movement riven with contradictions. It was built on the petty bourgeoisie, but capitalists would support it in times of crisis to crush the workers’ movement. “There is a blatant contradiction between what fascism promised and what it delivered to the masses,” she wrote. And Zetkin understood that fascism had “different characterises in different countries”. Zetkin saw what made fascism unique, and how it could grow out of broader reactionary forces. We can learn from and develop those insights to combat the threat today. Fighting Fascism—How to Struggle and How to Win, edited by John Riddell, published by Haymarket £10.99. Available from Bookmarks the Socialist Bookshop
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LETTERS - Councils must be held to account over their child abuse failings
A street in Rotherham, where the council failed to prevent children from suffering abuse (Pic: Socialist Worker) A recent court ruling could mean that councils won’t have to grant compensation to victims of abuse that they failed to protect. I am a survivor of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham and I think this is a disgraceful decision by the judges. We have every right to take legal action against the council. We were beaten, kidnapped, trafficked, raped, failed, ignored, blamed and covered up—and we have the evidence to prove it. I’d like to ask the judges, if it was one of their children would they make the same decision? Councils are responsible for protecting children and vulnerable people. But the council failed us at every level and played a role in ruining our lives. They should be held to account and be charged criminally for what they did. It will help give us some closure so we can try to move forward. Being abused has ruined people’s education and work prospects. A small amount of money can help us with education, or even just a family holiday. Everything has been such a fight. The discrimination we get as victims is horrendous and has to stop. In Rotherham, we told them what was happening and we were ignored, blamed, called liars and slags. We were told we deserved it. Professionals even met abusers and helped them to avoid prosecution. They didn’t just ignore the abuse—they facilitated it. We need to speak up and come together. I’m in talks about a campaign on this. I’ll also speak to government departments this month to get the decision overturned. I won’t rest until it has been. This ruling will affect my case and thousands of others. But I have been fighting the council since 2012 and I will continue to do so. They’re trying everything in their power to make things difficult for us, but they need to realise we’re not going away. Sammy Woodhouse, Rotherham NHS crisis is no shock I’m not surprised at all to read the recent news coverage about the crisis in the NHS. I work in the health service and I’ve come to expect stories like this and the situations my team have to deal with. I’m a community psychiatric nurse and I work with older people, a lot of whom have dementia. A lot of problems our team deal with arise because there simply isn’t enough nurses or care homes. It’s getting worse, partly because the beds in the homes are going to the people with the least challenging care needs. We’re having people sit in hospitals for months on end. The homes get a choice of who they admit, and often they will pick those who have the least complex needs. You can see the effects of austeriy in the mental health sector. The more depressed people are the more our services are needed. A lot of nursing and care homes are private, there’s no social services homes available. The staff are pretty worn out—it’s getting to a point where they want to leave, staff positions aren’t getting replenished and nurses can’t afford to train. The NHS needs funding properly. People like Richard Branson need to be stopped from taking out contracts they think are lucrative. The health service needs to be renationalised and social care should be properly provided by councils. The private companies just want the least risk for the most profit. Mark Bem, Manchester They don't deserve a 7 percent pay rise My trade union of over 30 years is in a campaign to end the public pay pinch and rightly so. Since the financial crash of 2008 my fellow GMB union members have endured wage freezes in most sectors at some point and meagre pay increases. In November the regional secretaries awarded themselves a 7.2 percent (£5,000) pay increase on their salary—which already includes expenses! This smacks of hypocrisy of the highest order. GMB’s members struggle along largely as a result of the behaviour of the City high flyers who crashed the banks in 2008. But it is truly Orwellian to lecture the greedy bankers while trade union barons award themselves salaries our members could only dream of. GMB member, North East England Boycotts are a crucial tool The Guardian newspaper recently reported that that “Corbyn does not back Israel boycotts”. This will come as a huge disappointment to many of his supporters who backed him thinking he supported Palestinian rights. Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) was called for by Palestinian organisations and deeply worries the Israeli government. There is a vast difference between the people motivated by fair values who side with the Palestinians and the political elite who are pro-Israel, including our last four prime ministers. Corbyn has a chance to break this mould. It is the most effective solidarity action we can take. Time to back it, Jeremy. Frank Stone, Norfolk Tories can’t ‘lose’ history The ‘lost’ national archives (Socialist Worker 3 January) is typical Tory behaviour. They cover their tracks but history will always be there. Paddy Hanrahan, on Facebook Truth should be taught I was not surprised to read that Britain turned a blind eye to Italian fascist massacres in Ethiopia (Socialist Worker online). But the history of the British ruling class and their parliamentary servants is not taught in our schools enough. Nicki Mellor, on Facebook Labour no place for right I read with interest your expose on how Tory Universal Credit caused claimants misery at Christmas (Socialist Worker online). Tories austerity policies are detrimental to working people. I want Jeremy Corbyn to win. But Labour is full of Blairites and closet red Tories who once in power will call for another leadership challenge. Andres Viveros, on Facebook Pension not enough to live I have been a Labour supporter since before I was made redundant at Blidworth Colliery. My pensions are just £76 per week—but I cannot survive on that. Devid Highfield, Nottingham Councils must stop cutting I hate the Tories—the situation is criminal and I think this government should be brought to justice. My Labour council need to take a stand and stick two fingers up to the government and stop making cuts. Vulnerable people are dying because they’re cutting services back so much. More notice needs to be taken of the working class and disabled people. Melanie Powell, Walsall
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The Cotton Famine
Image of the Cotton Famine from the London Illustrated News This new pamphlet tells the story of how textile workers in Lancashire came to support the abolition of slavery in the US. It dispels the myth that textile workers refused to handle cotton. The Civil War in the US between 1861 and 1865 had brought the British textile industry to its knees. But, rather than side with the slave-owning southern states, workers packed out meetings to support the fight against slavery. There are complex questions about the fight to end slavery which are alluded to. For instance, Abraham Lincoln’s hypocrisy in saying he supported abolition to one group and then the opposite to another. The meat of the pamphlet is excellent at showing how the British working class was on the right side of history, and dragged the vacillating ruling class behind them. The Cotton Famine by Mark Krantz Published by Red Roof, £4. Go to redroofpublishingcompany.blogspot.co.uk/
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Councillor changes view on the hated Haringey Development Vehicle
Protesters are resisting social cleansing in Haringey (Pic: Guy Smallman) The campaign against the social-cleansing Haringey Development Vehicle (HDV) has claimed its latest scalp. Peray Ahmet stood down as a member of the north London council’s cabinet on Tuesday of last week. In a letter to council leader Clare Kober, Ahmet said, “There is certainly no mandate to continue with the divisive and rightly criticised [HDV].” She said that Kober’s “top-down style of leadership and failure to collaborate has led to poor decision making on a range of issues.” Ahmet urged Kopber not to take any major decisions before the local elections in May, as only four of Haringey’s ten cabinet members were restanding. In response Kober pointed out that Ahmet had supported the HDV until it became apparent the campaign against it was growing in strength. “More recently your public comments on the matter could be seen to imply your opposition has been both longstanding and principled,” Kober said. That campaign, driven forward by protests and estate meetings, has resulted in pro-HDV councillors being removed as candidates for the May elections. Ahmet was one of the only councillors who had supported the HDV to be selected. Now she is casting off the dead weight of Kober and the rest of her old pals to try and ensure her political survival. The campaign must continue to organise independently of the events within the Labour Party.
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Lecturers have days left to vote on pension strikes
UCU members striking over pay and inequality in Leeds in 2016 (Pic: Neil Terry) UCU union members are engaged in a crucial ballot for strikes over pensions. Bosses want to turn their defined benefit USS pension scheme into a defined contribution one. This would slash its value by half or more. The attack has led to deep anger among workers. Union members backed strikes by nearly 87 percent in a consultation last year on a turnout of over 55 percent. The strike ballot, which involves workers in older universities, ends on Friday of next week. Carlo Morelli is a lecturer at Dundee university and is a member of the UCU’s national executive committee. He told Socialist Worker that the ballot is pulling new people into activity. “Some branches have created a whole series of new reps in different departments,” he explained. “It’s looking good. I think we’ll end up with a dispute. The employers are taking a hard line on the pension scheme and there’s no indication they are shifting. “It is imperative that activists mobilise the vote to ensure members return their ballot papers before the deadline of 19 January.” UCU general secretary Sally Hunt previously told members that the attack on pensions was the worst in 20 years. “There is no point pretending that anything other than sustained strike action will make the employers listen,” she added. The Tories’ anti-union laws mean that workers need to achieve a 50 percent turnout in order to take legal strikes. Carlo said there’s a good chance that many branches will achieve that. But he added, “The argument has to be—sod the law we’re taking action. There could be branches that get a 48 percent or 49 percent turnout. Are we really saying they can’t strike? “The Scottish government has said they will not enforce the Tories’ anti-union laws. So in Scotland we should certainly argue that we don’t need to abide by the laws.” Talks to resolve the dispute were extended until 23 January. But if workers vote for strikes, the union should name dates to pile the pressure onto bosses. “If the action goes ahead, we’re talking about three days of strikes every week throughout February and possibly more,” said Carlo. “Employers could lock people out in response, creating an all-out strike across older universities. “This could lead to a really significant dispute in higher education. The stakes are high.” Shadow chancellor John McDonnell will speak at a UCU London region rally on Wednesday 17 January, 7pm, Cruciform Building (LT1), UCL, Gower St, WC1E 6BT. Read the new USS pamphlet at uculeft.org/2018/01/pamphlet-defending-uss-pensions UCU left to fight elections Socialists and campaigners in the UCU Left are preparing to stand for a number of positions in UCU union elections. They include Nita Sanghera from Bournville College, who is standing for vice president. Nita said electing her will lead to the UCU’s first black president. “We need powerful local and national political campaigning and industrial action to win on pensions and pay, to defend jobs, conditions and education,” she said. Other UCU Left candidates for positions include Ioanna Ioannou, Rachel Cohen, Sean Wallis, Julie Hearn, Jo McNeill and Mark Abel. Voting begins on 1 February and lasts for a month
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Home care workers saving service from destruction
Care workers in Glasgow striking against cuts in 2014 (Pic: Socialist Worker) Around 350 home care workers in Birmingham plan to strike later this month. They voted by 99 percent for strikes over redundancies and a new rota system. The turnout was 54 percent. Labour-led Birmingham City Council plans to make 40 percent of home care enablement staff redundant. Managers also plan to introduce punishing split shifts—7-10am, 12-2pm and then 4-10pm. The reality is many workers won’t be able to get home between shifts or, if they can, won’t be there for long before having to be at their next call so they won’t get a break at all. Care worker Lisa said that due to the public sector pay cap and the loss of weekend overtime she has had to take a second job just to pay the mortgage. “These changes mean I will have to give up one of the jobs and could lose my home. “We haven’t had a proper pay rise since 2010. I can’t afford to strike, but I can’t afford not to. “It’s not just about me, but the service we provide is being destroyed.” Home carers earn between £15,823 and £18.560 a year. Messages of support to info@birminghamunison.co.uk Donations to Unison Birmingham branch, The McLaren Building, 46 The Priory, Queensway, Birmingham, B4 7LR Payable to Birmingham Unison and make it clear that it’s for the Hardship Fund
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The Independent Office for Police Conduct - new name, same pigsty
Cops in action - but are they ever held to account? (Pic: Guy Smallman) The cops’ pet watchdog, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), has been replaced by the Independent Office for Police Conduct. The IPCC’s flaw was simple. It was not independent of the police. That flaw remains. Its job was to protect the cops, not to bring justice. That hasn’t changed either.The IPCC was formed after the Macpherson inquiry into the failed police investigation into the murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence in 1993. The IPCC was a suitably New Labour body with a commission of people and warm rhetoric. It failed to uncover the truth or bring justice in thousands of cases. And it kept files from the national police computer of family members of people who died in custody. In the case of Mark Duggan it was the IPCC that was responsible for putting out the falsehood that Mark had shot at police first. It repeatedly let cops draft statements collectively. It often let former cops investigate their previous forces. The new body will continue this sterling work. What’s new is that it can initiate the cover ups on its own behalf. It is not in the state’s interest for the police to be punished.That is why cops don’t go to jail for the people they kill, regardless of what the watchdog is called. It doesn’t need a new name. It needs putting down for good.
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Iran in revolt - Iranian socialists on what sparked the protests and why they matter
Protesters in Iran last month (Pic: PA) Protests exploded onto the streets of Iran at the end of December. Thousands of people from the poorest sections of society have protested against poverty, unemployment and corruption. Nick Clark spoke to two Iranian socialists, Nima Soltanzadeh and Massoud (not his real name) about what lies behind the protests - and what they mean for the struggle in Iran How did the protests start and what is fuelling them? Nima: The initial protest started in Mashhad. It’s the second biggest city in Iran, also a religious city. That was initiated by conservative hardliners who wanted to undermine president Hassan Rouhani’s government. They said the government’s economic policies have not benefited the poor, using the kind of populist rhetoric we’ve always had in the Islamic Republic. But that small protest was taken over immediately by people looking for an opening to voice their own frustrations. So the demonstration grew larger and the slogans targeted the supreme leader Ali Khamenei and Rouhani. From there the protests spread to nearly 70 cities, mainly in provincial areas. Massoud: At the basis of the protests is very broad dissatisfaction with the economic situation—rising prices, and the bankruptcy of some financial institutions. There is a broad sense of disillusionment and pessimism among the young generation about their future. Students at Tehran university chanted, “Bread, labour and freedom”. The young generation feels insecure. Even high school students look at their fathers and older brothers who don’t have jobs. Before these big protests we had demos almost every week by people who had lost money in bankrupt financial institutions, or who have housing problems. We had strikes. The movement is an expression of this dissatisfaction. It is not completely new, but it is a new phase with new slogans. Who is protesting? Nima: The backbone of the Green Movement protests of 2009 was largely middle class, although others did participate. Now we have the lower classes on the streets—and a particular marginalised group among them. These are really the protests of the forgotten. Mainly the unemployed, which is why the protests are mostly in small cities—the protests in Tehran have been quite small. The backbone of the protests are young men in their twenties, because youth unemployment is around 30 percent officially. In some of these small cities it goes above 50 percent. Also in these small cities they don’t have the same opportunities to find a job in the informal sector as they do in Tehran. So they don’t have much to fall back on. And there is the problem of climate change—agriculture has suffered drought. All that comes together and gets immediately politicised so the government and supreme leader become targeted. In the budget two weeks ago lots of money went to institutions aligned to the conservatives and the clerics. Now people are raising the slogan, “Why are they getting money without paying taxes?” People are also asking why is money going to Syria and war? This is actually not a bad slogan. It’s a kind of anti-war, internationalist slogan. But there is a more negative side that is anti-Arab and nationalist. That’s reflected in slogans such as, “Not Gaza, not Lebanon—we give our lives for Iran.” But others raise the slogan, “Both Gaza and Iran—death to oppressors everywhere.” Massoud: It is completely different to the Green Movement. This movement is a break with the regime and its factions. Up until now the protests were conducted by a faction of the regime, so-called reformers. They didn’t allow it to become radicalised. Now slogans have gone to the extreme—“Down with the Islamic republic. Death to Khamenei. Death to Rouhani.” It is not surprising that the reformists have come out against this movement. Some very brazenly asked for its suppression. US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu have backed the protests for their own ends. What should the left’s attitude be? Massoud: The regime is trying to attribute this movement to the US, Mossad, Saudi Arabia and monarchists. Of course US imperialism, Saudi Arabia and Iran’s rivals are trying to take advantage of the situation. But it’s nonsense to say they control it. This is completely spontaneous. It’s true that the Iranian regime has opposed US imperialism, Israel and Saudi Arabia. But this cannot prevent our working class from fighting for its own demands. It’s unprincipled for the left not to support the protests. This just leaves it to the right to influence such a movement. These are real working class people fighting. When you are silent or say you are suspicious, they put their hopes in the bourgeois opposition and imperialists. When people see no left movement or left party in the world supporting them, they will depend on the right. This has happened in the Middle East frequently and it has been fatal to these movements. Nima: The left has to take a side with those who are on the street, but definitely warn against the role of imperialism. People are right to be disgusted by Trump’s offer of support for the protests. Trump has not been a friend of Iranians. Netanyahu and the autocrats in Saudi Arabia don’t have moral authority to side with people who want democracy, women’s rights etc. The US has put people from Iran on its no-travel list. This puts restrictions on people from Iran who want to travel to study or get medical treatment. Inside Iran the price of medicine has gone up because of economic sanctions enforced by the US. Sanctions have really hurt the Iranian economy and the majority of people. Prices go up, unemployment goes up. Lots of industries have gone bankrupt. But the US could hurt the protests by giving the conservatives in Iran the pretext that they are being driven by foreign powers. The majority of Iranians are very much attached to their national independence. The Iranian Revolution was about gaining Iranian independence. They have gained independence, now they want to add social justice and democracy to it. People were quite angry in Iran about Trump’s travel ban. The same is true for Saudi Arabia or the role of Israel. These will definitely try to manipulate the protests. But it doesn’t give them any control over what is happening on the ground. What future do you see for the movement? Nima: The crucial question is whether larger segments of the working class will join. In the last six months we’ve had protests by bus drivers, by teachers. By retirees who didn’t get their money and people who lost money because the banks went bankrupt. These protests built on that anger. The problem is the majority of Iranians are not joining the protests yet. So we have to see what happens next. Massoud: The protests have caused a serious problem for the regime. But we know this was completely spontaneous and without organisation. The regime has mobilised a big machine of repression. The current wave of protests might not last a long time. The regime may temporarily suppress the movement. The energy may be depleted for a short time. But the economic crisis still exists. Even when this movement stops, there are still campaigns of the unemployed and against the bankrupt financial institutions. This movement gave new courage to people that they can stand against this regime. A popular revolution in 1979 and ongoing splits in Iran’s ruling class have opened up the space for protest The crisis in Iran is deeply rooted. Its origins stretch back to the outcome of the Iranian Revolution in 1979. The revolution saw masses of ordinary people overthrow the Shah of Iran—a dictator and key ally of the US. Iranian society under the Shah was vastly unequal. Abject poverty existed alongside fabulous wealth. But a slump in 1977 led to protests of thousands of slum dwellers against the Shah. Over time these protests spread and became a mass revolt involving strikes, workers’ councils and insurrection. Yet there was a battle for leadership of the revolution. The cleric Ayatollah Khomeini, representing a section of the Iranian middle class, installed himself as head of state. He opposed the workers’ councils and called for “national unity” across classes against the US. The Iranian left broadly went along with this—others were murdered. The overthrow of the Shah was a blow to imperialism, but now Iran was isolated. Iran’s new ruling class needed greater control of the economy to prevent economic collapse. It also needed to fund a war against Iraq which under Saddam Hussein—armed and funded by the US—invaded Iran in 1980. Vast sections of the country’s industry were nationalised and run as capitalist enterprises on behalf of the state. The economy became dominated by state-owned monopolies. There was a new welfare system that benefited millions of people, as well as spending on healthcare and education, price controls and subsidies for essential goods. But there was also the rise of a new, rich ruling class linked to the state-owned industries. The war against Iran was drawn out, destructive and bloody. Hundreds of thousands of people on both sides were killed. The Iranian government survived but after the war ended in 1988 it looked towards the free market to “open up” Iran’s economy. Privatisation This involved privatisation, cuts to subsidies and opening up the economy to foreign investment. Iran’s ruling class split broadly into two factions—“reformists” who promoted the economic changes and improved relations with the West, and conservative “hardliners” linked to the old economy. Yet much of the privatised industries were bought up by people or institutions linked to the state including the military Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps. Privatisation gathered pace under “hardliner” president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Iran’s reformists gathered support by promising that their reforms would lead to economic growth, higher wages and more jobs. Yet while Iran’s ruling class grew richer, ordinary Iranians lost out. Workers faced cuts to subsidies and benefits while relaxed labour laws worsened their rights and conditions. Meanwhile plans to “normalise” relations with the West failed. After Trump’s election the US abandoned a closer relationship with Iran in favour of more sanctions and confrontation. And Iran’s interests in the Middle East, which include expansion into Iraq and Syria, bring it into conflict with the West. Today the Iranian government’s promises to ordinary people look increasingly empty. As Nima told Socialist Worker, “In the last few years we’ve had small protests such as sit-ins in front of parliament. We’ve also had repression. “Part of the anger has come out of the high expectations for change when Rouhani was elected in 2013. His election opened up the space for protests and people stepped in to make use of that.”
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Israeli blacklist bans BDS activists from entering the country
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign in Britain was on the list (Pic: Guy Smallman) Israel has published a list of 20 organisations—including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in Britain—whose activists and senior officials are banned from entering the country. The travel ban is an open attack on supporters of Palestinians and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Other British organisations on the list include Friends of Al-Aqsa and War on Want. Israeli strategic affairs minister Gilad Erdan all but admitted the list is an attempt to silence and intimidate critics of Israel. Israel considers BDS, which campaigns against companies complicit in the occupation of Palestine, a “national security” threat. Offence “We have shifted from defence to offence,” said Erdan. “The boycott organisations need to know that the State of Israel will act against them. “No country would have allowed critics, who are coming to harm the country, to enter it.” Meanwhile US president Donald Trump threatened to cut support to a Palestinian refugee agency following his speech declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel. Trump has said he could withhold payments to the UN Relief and Works Agency after the Palestinian Authority (PA) rejected Trump’s announcement. The agency supports refugees living in camps that have existed since 1948 when the creation of Israel forced tens of thousands of Palestinians to flee. Notably Trump did not threaten to cut funding to the PA, which spends vast amounts of money on its security forces that cooperate with Israel’s. At least eight more refugees killed due to EU border controls Up to 25 refugees may have died after a rubber dinghy ran into trouble off the coast of Libya last week. At least eight refugees are confirmed to be dead, but rescue agencies said many more were missing. Refugees escaping war, poverty and violence are forced to make dangerous sea crossings to reach Europe from Libya by vicious European Union border controls. The International Organisation for Migration says 3,116 refugees died crossing the Mediterranean last year. The deaths last week are believed to be the first of 2018—and they will likely be followed by thousands more.
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US housing predators ready for Britain
Stephen Schwarzman sat on Trump's Business Advisory Panel (Pic: World Economic Forum/Flickr) US housing investment firm Blackstone is set to enter the social housing sector in Britain. The company is the largest residential landlord in the US through its subsidiary Invitation Homes. It is a predatory investment group worth almost £300 billion. It sucked up huge amounts of property across the US and Europe in the fallout from the economic crisis which began in 2007. Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman is a friend of right wingers Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, daughter of Donald Trump. Resigned Schwarzman sat on Trump’s Business Advisory Panel before its members resigned over Trump’s statement following the fascist killing at Charlottesville last year. The firm’s deal in Britain is a stark warning about the direction the social housing sector is moving in. That is, away from the needs of ordinary people and towards the needs of the market. Blackstone has announced it will fund the Sage for-profit housing association. It will target its investment on buying the “social housing” quota on private developments off developers. In London, mayor Sadiq Khan has promised that any development will have to include 35 percent “affordable” homes, which includes starter homes and rents at 80 percent of market rate. Yet the percentage of “affordable” housing on developments is often far lower than the 35 percent thanks to “viability assessments”. These mean that if the developer can show it will not make enough profit—typically 20 percent—on a development they can apply to have the affordable percentage lowered. The move from Blackstone comes months after elements of the 2016 Housing and Planning Act introduced the deregulation of housing associations. That’s no coincidence. Although much of the Act was fought to a standstill, the part relating to housing associations came into effect in April 2017. It means that the organisations can sell off housing stock with no scrutiny, previously carried out by the Homes and Communities Agency. Speculators This makes it far easier for housing associations to act as property speculators and developers. Blackstone’s partner company Sage owns no affordable housing. There are benefits to simply buying and selling properties rather than acting as a landlord. For instance, not having to deal with the “problem” of social housing tenants who don’t have money to pay extra in rent for security guards and concierges. Blackstone’s move is a dangerous example of how international capital is fighting its way into social housing. We need to fight for a new generation of council housing. Part of that fight is against the creeping privatisation of housing associations.
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Force out the Tories after their reshuffle kerfuffle
  May presides over a sinking ship. But, as bad as things get, the Tories will recover without struggle (Pic: Annika Haas) Theresa May suffered blow after blow to her authority this week. Her reshuffle of cabinet members was pitched as a “relaunch” after a bruising 2017 when she lost three cabinet ministers in the space of three months. Monday ended with a fourth cabinet minister resigning. May offered education secretary Justine Greening a move to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Greening resigned instead. Some ministers who May tried to move simply refused to go—such as health secretary Jeremy Hunt. May had backed Toby Young’s appointment to the Office for Students in the face of a wave of criticism, including from right wingers. But the odious bigot and free school fanatic jumped ship on Tuesday. May did not have the power to get rid of her main rivals within the cabinet. Foreign secretary Boris Johnson is using Brexit to undermine May, but she couldn’t attempt to sack him. In 1962 Tory prime minister Harold Macmillan sacked seven cabinet members in what became known as the “night of the long knives”. Journalists dubbed May’s reshuffle as the “night of the blunt knives” and the “night of the plastic forks”. Disastrous Farce aside, May isn’t simply plagued by incompetence. Real divisions underlie her difficulties. The Tories are still reeling from their disastrous general election result—and are torn by the demands of big business and bigotry. Their friends in the City of London and big business want to remain in the European Union’s (EU) single market because it protects their profits. They have the ear of chancellor Philip Hammond, who favours a “softer Brexit”. At the same time the Tories want to pull people’s anger in a racist direction by promising to dump free movement for European migrants. They know that there is real anger within society at austerity and deep-rooted inequality. They have stepped back from getting rid of May because there is no obvious alternative, despite the election disaster. Bullyboy But, as the Tories run up against the reality of the EU’s bullyboy negotiating tactics, these divisions can only get worse. The reshuffle entrenched the Brexit divisions between Hammond and Johnson. And Greening, who is an ardent supporter of the single market, is likely be a key part of any backbench Remain rebellion. The Tories are a zombie government, but they won’t all just keel over. It is no good for the union leaders to wait for a Jeremy Corbyn-led Labour government—we have to force them out of office. That means building resistance to every Tory attack on working class people—and their attempts to divide us with racism. And the left has to put forward a socialist, anti-racist alternative vision of Brexit. A fightback can force the Tories to shuffle off. Bring on the clowns—who’s up now? David Lidington (Pic: Chris McAndrew) David Lidington, cabinet office minister Approved pepper spraying of prisoners David Lidington will have all the work of the prime minister’s former deputy Damian Green—apart from the title First Secretary of State. Having tried his hand at brutalising prisoners, May hopes he can keep the Tory benches in check. As justice secretary, Lidington began a trial of pepper spray Pava at four prisons last October. It was linked to 26 deaths in custody in the US. He is replaced by David Gauke, former work and pensions secretary responsible for pushing through Universal Credit. Brandon Lewis (Pic: Chris McAndrew) Brandon Lewis, Tory party chair Thinks high rise buildings don’t need sprinklers Brandon Lewis replaces Sir Patrick McLoughlin as Tory party chair. Perhaps he wasn’t first choice. Conservative Central HQ (CCHQ) tweeted a picture congratulating Chris Grayling on becoming party chairman. The tweet was quickly deleted. Lewis is the man who in 2014 insisted that building developers should not have to fit sprinklers in high rise buildings. This climate of deregulation caused the tragedy at Grenfell Tower. Damian Hinds (Pic: Chris McAndrew) Damian Hinds, education secretary Told Universal Credit claimants to “get a job” Justine Greening’s replacement claims that he’s passionate about improving social mobility for working class children. But as a junior work and pensions minister, Hinds’ job was to push through the brutal regime that entrenches inequality and poverty. He reacted to concerns about Universal Credit by saying people should stop relying on benefits and get a job. “In the run-up to Christmas, when many temporary work opportunities are available, Universal Credit works much better for people, because they are able to access those opportunities,” he said.
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Protest in Doncaster on 27 January to defend campaigner Louise Harrison
Campaigner Louise Harrison Supporters of Louise Harrison have called a protest in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, on Saturday 27 January. Louise is a domestic violence worker and campaigner in the town. She has fought to defend South Yorkshire Women’s Aid (SYWA), which faces closure after the council refused to continue to fund it. However, Louise has been contacted by the trustees who run the service to inform her that her contract may not be renewed. The trustees are Labour Party members and the council is Labour-run. Louise told Socialist Worker, “Austerity has caused domestic violence workers to lose their jobs, and many are paid part time for full time hours. “Shockingly we start 2018 with this murdering Tory government pulling guaranteed housing benefit for refuges. “Women trying to flee domestic abuse are hampered by cuts to legal aid, benefits, wages, housing and mental health services. “As part of the women's lives matter group I have campaigned tirelessly for over five years in Doncaster about domestic violence against women. “I and others have fought to save women's aid twice in two years. I am threatened with the prospect of losing my contract at SWYA, even though I have built the organisation from the ground and raised thousands of pounds. “With my trade union and trade unionists from across Britain, we are asking the trustees of SYWA to guarantee my employment and to support women’s aid. Grassroots solidarity is the only way women will have their voices heard.” Profile The attack on Louise has sparked widespread anger and high profile figures are backing the campaign to defend her. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell had previously spoken out in support of the struggle to defend SYWA, calling the campaign an “inspiration”. He said of the campaign to defend Louise, “I send my support and solidarity to this campaign and petition initiative in support of Louise.” Simon Murch is a national executive committee member of the NUT section of the NEU in South Yorkshire. He told Socialist Worker, “Sheffield National Education Union, and the NEU across South Yorkshire, have been staunch supporters of South Yorkshire Women’s Aid and its campaigns to secure funding over the last two years. “We recognise this service, the only one of its kind left in South Yorkshire, would not exist without Louise Harrison. Her commitment and tenacity in fighting austerity is without equal and women of South Yorkshire deserve, and need, such a champion. Spiteful “Because of her public campaign to get Doncaster Council to agree funding for the service to continue the trustees of SYWA have decided to attack Louise. This foolhardy and spiteful action will have the opposite of its desired effect as her support goes from strength to strength. As trade unionists we stand shoulder to shoulder with Louise Harrison and the campaign and the very people who depend on this service. Solidarity.” President of the Bfawu union, Ian Hodson, is one of many who will speak at the protest on 27 January. In a statement he said, “The campaign Louise has run in relation to SYWA has been incredible. Where many women's centres have closed down, Louise has brought the valuable work that these centres do to a wider population. “Society needs campaigners like Louise and I believe Louise deserves credit for the work she has done and that we need to ensure that the campaign succeeds.” The TUC’s women’s campaigner of the year, Jean Rogers, is also speaking along with Roger Hutt from Care UK and children’s author and national library campaigner Alan Gibbons. Alan told Socialist Worker, "Lou Harrison's contract must be renewed. She has made a huge contribution in South Yorkshire, helping the victims of domestic violence. As a rank and file Labour Party member I agree with John McDonnell that Lou should remain in post." Maxine Bowler from Sheffield TUC will also speak along with other trade union representatives and women who have used the SYWA service. Other speakers include representatives of Disabled People Against Cuts, Women’s Lives Matter, hospital campaigners and a Durham teaching assistant. Laura Miles from the UCU national executive committee will also speak. “It’s important for local trade union organisations to show active support and solidarity. It’s also a national issue. What happens here has implications for women’s services up and down the country.” The attack on Louise is a disgrace. She has previously led a successful campaign to save Women’s Aid in South Yorkshire, and has recently helped to raise thousands of pounds from trade union groups to keep the service going. The campaign has drawn up a letter for trade union branches appealing for support. It encourages supporters to contact the trustees for SYWA asking them to “immediately reconsider their action against Louise Harrison” and to share a statement in support of Louise. Every activist should get behind the campaign to defend Louise - an attack on her is an attack on us all. What you can do Join the protest in solidarity with Louise - Saturday 27 January, 12 noon, Mansion House, Doncaster Download a solidarity statement to pass in your union group or campaigning organisation at http://bit.ly/2D19X9s Send passed statements to: SYWA at The Point, South Parade, Doncaster DN1 2DR. They should also be sent to Nigel Walshe at nigelwalshe@gmail.com and Amy Cousens at amycousens123@gmail.com Sign a petition to support Louise at https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/stand-up-for-louise-harrison-south-yorkshire-women-s-aid Contact mayor Ros Jones at Doncaster Council to protest about the treatment of Louise at themayor@doncaster.gov.uk    
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The things they say in Trump's White House
‘It’s going to be wild as shit’—Steve Bannon (Pic: Gage Skidmore) ‘What a fucking idiot’ Rupert Murdoch on Trump ‘Kiss the ass and pay homage to all the grey-beards’ Steve Bannon on the complexities of political fundraising ‘Seriously, can you see me in a bathrobe?’ Trump asks the question on everyone’s lips ‘I’ve never worn a bathrobe. And would never wear one, because I’m not that kind of guy’ In case you didn’t get it ‘Dignity is important’ Trump ‘It’s going to be wild as shit’ Bannon prepares for politics after Trump, and a possible run for the presidency himself ‘The president fundamentally needs to be liked so badly that everything is a struggle for him’ Former Trump staffer Katie Walsh
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As campaigners call a national protest for the NHS on 3 February - let’s make it big
Organisers said some more than 200,000 people joined an NHS protest last March (Pic: Guy Smallman) Health campaigners are planning a national demonstration against the Tories’ assault on the NHS. Called by Health Campaigns Together and the People’s Assembly for Saturday 3 February, it could bring tens of thousands onto the streets of London. Their call comes as Tory budget cuts and privatisation are pushing the NHS to breaking point this winter. The national demonstration can be a focal point for people’s anger. Richard Buckwell, Notts Keep Our NHS Public chair, told Socialist Worker, “Everyone wants to do something about the NHS. If we ever do a campaign stall, we always get a big response no matter the specific issue. “At the moment they’re trying to shut a substance abuse unit in Nottingham,” he added. “You’d think that would be a hard issue because it’s to do with people taking alcohol and drugs. But people get it when you explain to people that preventative care is better, that it will mean fewer people in A&E.” Opposition has already forced the Tories to back down on some issues. The Tories have been trying to slash £22 billion from the NHS by 2020/21 using their Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs). A protester takes on the Tories' STPs (Pic: Guy Smallman) But health campaigns sprung up to oppose the 44 local STPs in England. They forced some, mainly in Labour-councils, to refuse to sign off on the STPs. To get around this quagmire, the Tories are now trailing Accountable Care Systems (ACS) in eight local areas. Profits One of the areas is Nottinghamshire—and it has already meant big profits for the Centene firm. The US multinational, which offers advice on “integration of systems and pathways”, was awarded a £2.7 million contract as part of the ACS trial. Richard said, “All the STP rhetoric about ‘integration’ and ‘care in the community’ is nonsense, NHS cuts have the opposite result.”  Big numbers of people joined a demonstration in London to defend the NHS last year. This was despite lacklustre support from the trade unions. The Unison union half-heartedly backed the protest at the last minute. Unison’s national conference voted to affiliate to HCT and for a national demonstration to defend the NHS. Both the unions and the Labour Party should now throw their weight behind the 3 February demonstration. Richard said, “Lots of people in the Labour Party support our campaign, but Labour is missing a trick by not getting people onto the streets. “They only go for the more traditional methods of going through health scrutiny committees, getting people elected into the right places. “I think some people at the top of Labour and the unions are starting to wake up, but we need more to turn it around.
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SWP conference - fighting racism is the key to building broader resistance
Socialist Workers Party members have been at the heart of building Stand Up To Racism (Pic: Guy Smallman) The Socialist Workers Party (SWP) held its annual conference last weekend. It came as the Tories are in crisis, racism is rising and important developments are taking place in Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party. In an early session Socialist Worker editor Charlie Kimber outlined the depth of the government’s problems following its disastrous general election performance. He said Theresa May is “very weak”. But he argued that the Tories’ problems reflected “a much wider feeling against austerity, attacks on living standards and the political elite”. Charlie added, “The mood of a revolt against the establishment that was shown in the Brexit referendum can’t be wholly divorced from the shattering defeat of 8 June. “There is a bitter feeling in British society that comes out in many ways. Corbyn’s rise is welcome and has boosted campaigners. But it has also encouraged “a sense, particularly in the trade union leaderships, of an attitude of ‘We’re waiting for Jeremy’ rather than fighting now”. Charlie spoke of the need to build resistance as a matter of urgency. “We can’t wait until a general election—which could be as late as 2022,” he said. “We need to drive the Tories out now.” Charlie said socialists can play a role in clarifying issues and raising demands. “We have a vision of a workers’ Brexit,” he said. “We say no to the single market, the customs union and a second referendum, yes to the defence and extension of freedom of movement, more money for public services, and workers’ internationalism. “We should fight for Labour and the unions to take up these demands.” Expectations Charlie said the Tory crisis “raises expectations” that Labour will win the next election. But Labour has “not launched an active campaign of demonstrations and encouragement of strikes”. He warned that, if Corbyn came to office, he would make demoralising compromises or experience immense hostility from the ruling class. Charlie argued for a movement on the streets and in workplaces to “defend Corbyn against the right, and push back against his hesitations and retreats”. The SWP takes part with others in Stand Up To Racism (SUTR). This is a crucial initiative to win unity in the working class and resist all forms of racism. Racism frames every aspect of political life, and the fight against it is a central part of anti-austerity work. All delegates who spoke about this at the conference said being part of SUTR is the party’s central priority. That means local organisation, and in particular big anti-racist demonstrations on 17 March in London, Glasgow and Cardiff. Voting at the SWP's conference (Pic: Socialist Worker) There was debate about how to do this and take up all the other aspects of fighting the Tories and the system. Delegates agreed, “We need to work alongside Corbyn supporters but continue to argue for, and to build confidently and widely, an independent revolutionary organisation centred on struggle rather than parliament.” In this discussion some 33 people spoke. Moyra said that people have “moved left” during the campaign over the Grenfell Tower fire. A number of delegates spoke about attacks on benefits. They explained how Universal Credit attacks people reliant on benefits as well as low-paid workers. A number of delegates discussed how to campaign when Labour councils implement cuts. Mobilisation Jenny reported from housing campaigns in Haringey. She said, “Mobilisation enabled a purge of the zombie Blairites in the council.” Rory argued that the Corbyn effect in Scotland was growing but limited. Sharon from Birmingham reported on a recent bin strike. “The Labour council is in crisis over the strike,” she said. “But it needed the intervention of socialists to move forwards.” Jon from Portsmouth said the NHS crisis offered a chance to resist and that the SWP should “take a lead in building the protest in February”. Candy from central London warned, “We can’t vacate the anti-austerity territory.” A teacher said anti-racism is a key priority but that there is a danger of missing the boat on some things. An NHS worker said anti-racism is not separate from other campaigns. “The Tories are using racism to divide us over the NHS,” she said. Socialists “have to raise anti-racist arguments”. Phil from Yorkshire said, “We can unite people who voted for and against Brexit.” Paul from Islington said the Labour leadership prevaricating over issues such as academies is “very worrying” and needs to be discussed. He argued that building Stand Up To Racism can “help people resist and let us have the debate”. Clarion call of resistance Speakers in the Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) session underlined why the fight against racism is the SWP’s key priority. Weyman Bennett argued that the rise of Nazi and far right parties across Europe showed the danger of leaving these forces unchecked. He emphasised the importance of stopping racist organisations such as the Football Lads Alliance. And he said SUTR’s role in the descent of Ukip showed how anti-racists can shape the political landscape. Part of the protest outside the McDonald's in north London where a woman was told to remove her hijab (Pic: Socialist Worker) Amy from Sheffield said SUTR had been invited into school assemblies. Ajmal from the University of the West of England said SUTR had challenged a visit by a Nazi group called Gays Against Sharia. Jan said, “In Islington the majority of the SUTR group are Muslim women. That’s why when McDonald’s tried to evict a Muslim woman they led our SUTR activity.” Weyman said a quick response from SUTR activists after people died following contact with the police has put the cops on the back foot. Fatima from Glasgow said SUTR had helped to organise a carnival to undermine anti-Roma and anti-migrant racism. “Lots of people didn’t want us to have a presence,” she said. “But our campaign was the broadest united front possible and that made it a success.” Weyman said Donald Trump’s potential visit to Britain gave an opportunity for protest. He urged people to make the 17 March anti-racist demonstrations an international “clarion call of resistance.” The impact of Corbynism in the workplaces Delegates debated the “contradictory impact of Corbynism” in a session on workplace politics and the fight against austerity. Mark L Thomas led off the discussion. “The election gave expression to the immense bitterness at the base of society,” he said. The big vote for Corbyn “made people feel that they’re not alone”. Mark said this raised the horizons of large numbers of working class people—but also meant many were waiting for another election. “Labour is widely viewed as a government in waiting and that’s having a direct impact on the struggle against austerity,” he said. For instance, a number of unions put in above-inflation pay claims last autumn. Yet industrial action has not yet materialised. CWU union members queuing to vote for strikes The CWU postal workers’ union built an impressive campaign over attacks on their conditions, but national strikes haven’t happened. Victory Huw, a Unison union member from Bristol, agreed that union leaders are subtly pushing the idea of waiting for a Corbyn victory. But he added that this also “makes sense to a lot of people”. Julie Sherry talked about the significance of the McDonald’s strikers, who demanded £10 an hour. “It might have been a tiny group of workers but by taking on a key demand in Corbyn’s manifesto it caught the mood of the whole movement,” she said. Fran, a young teacher from London, said the party should do more to help young workers without trade union experience. “I’m not sure the party puts enough time into training young members in workplaces,” she said. Mark argued that political initiatives, chiefly around racism, could renew trade union strength. He stressed the Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) trade union conference on 10 February. Teacher Sue argued, “Activity around pay isn’t creating a big number of activists, activity around racism is.” And health worker Sam said setting up a SUTR workplace group helped her organise. A world in turmoil Debating how to pull the deep anger at the crisis of capitalism to the left ran throughout the conference. Joseph Choonara set the tone for the conference with a session on A World in Turmoil. “We’re facing a very profound political and economic crisis,” he said. “Martin Wolf, the Financial Times columnist, said that we’re witnessing an end of Western-led globalisation.” Joseph said capitalism’s recovery following the 2007 financial crisis “remains extraordinarily weak”. He said this is a “result of the low profitability across the system” but that mainstream commentators can’t explain this. Huge marches took place to demand Catalan independence (Pic: Guy Smallman) Delegates debated the political implications and lessons of the crisis. Hector from south London said repression in Catalonia had shown the “need for use of force by the state”. Masoud from north London said recent protests in Iran were made up of people “from marginalised, poor parts of society”. He added that Trump’s tweet of support for them was “the biggest blow” and gave “the biggest excuse” for state repression. Joseph said the erosion of mainstream political institutions can give the left opportunities. “A poll found that 52 percent of people in Germany think the term capitalism has negative connotations,” he said. “This is an economy that’s doing well.” He warned about the experience of Greece, where left wing government Syriza has implemented austerity. And he said that anger won’t automatically boost the left but could help racists to grow. “The only thing that can stop this is mass mobilisation,” he said. Opportunities for revolutionaries today Amy Leather led off a discussion on how to build the Socialist Workers Party. She said Labour’s left wing leadership “doesn’t end the need for independent revolutionary organisation”. But she said the most difficult question is whether a revolutionary party can grow when most left wing people are attracted to Jeremy Corbyn. Amy said it was important to build the SWP now to prepare for the challenges raised by a possible Corbyn-led government. Corbyn has won mass support with left wing policies (Pic: Neil Terry) She said the best way to do this was to make the SWP relevant to Corbynism by working alongside Labour supporters in campaigns. Working together would raise ideological questions and opportunities to win people to revolutionary politics. Twenty two people spoke in the discussion. Many described how their local branches have attracted new people and campaigners they are working with. Nahella from Manchester said people sometimes weren’t ready to join the party but that SWP members can build political relationships with them. Lucretia from Chesterfield said book launches “have been our biggest meetings and the ones where we have recruited the most”. Chris from York said socialist educational work can take on the right’s “ideological offensive”. Lois said Labour members in her area came to SWP meetings “as they’re not getting the activity they need from Labour”. Socialists in the universities Lewis Nielsen opened up a session on student politics and activity. He said the “contradictions of Corbynism” have played out on campus. Some two thirds of students who voted in last year’s general election backed Corbyn. But Lewis said that the majority of Labour societies are either dominated by right wing members or are too focused on internal arguments. Socialist Worker Student Societies (SWSS) can grow by offering radical politics and activity. A key emphasis for students this year will be the student Stand Up To Racism conference on 3 March. Lewis said, “There are huge numbers of students who are with us on these issues and are ready to fight for a different kind of society.” In the discussion SWSS members talked about the debates and challenges students face. Sophie from Sheffield Hallam denounced Tory university minister Jo Johnson’s attacks on universities under the guise of defending “free speech”. “Our Islamic society is scared to be political because of Prevent,” she said. Bethan from Manchester agreed but added, “We shouldn’t be completely uncritical of the way some people on the left have used no platforming tactics. “No platforming is something we should reserve for fascists.” Fight for trans rights In the session on fighting against oppression and for trans rights, Sue C argued that “all oppressions are rooted in class society”. She added, “Women’s oppression is not the fault of trans people.” Sue said anger at Donald Trump and the #MeToo campaign gave activists “a mandate to resist”. Sexual harassment scandals have opened up debates about how best to fight oppression. Speakers reaffirmed that trans women are women and trans men are men. But some on the left don’t support the right of people to self-identify their gender. Teacher Mike described a “battle” raging in the NUT section of the NEU union over the issue. NEU member Anna shared her experience of supporting transgender students. She said a major task in schools and colleges is to put forward demands, such as for gender neutral toilets and uniforms. Votes and elections The conference elected the leadership bodies of the SWP. The central committee, which leads the organisation on a daily basis, was elected unopposed. Its members are Weyman Bennett, Michael Bradley, Sue C, Alex Callinicos, Sally Campbell, Joseph Choonara, Charlie Kimber, Amy Leather, Lewis Nielsen, Brian R, Julie Sherry and Mark L Thomas. Conference elected a national committee of 50 members to guide the party’s work. The disputes committee is an elected body which looks at matters of discipline and conduct within the SWP. As part of it’s annual report back the committee prepared a statement of expected behaviour of members. This is in addition to the SWP’s existing policy and procedure against sexual harassment, and members will be provided with a copy. Each session saw a number of comrades agreed to prepare a commission to reflect the discussion. These were open to amendments and then voted on.
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Industrial round-up - Mears housing workers strike in Manchester
  Mears workers on strike last November (Pic: Guy Smallman) Mears housing workers have launched a series of strikes over pay. The Unite union members struck this week and plan to strike every Monday and Thursday this month, with further action planned for February. The 180 workers are involved in a long struggle for pay parity and an end to outsourcing. They are employed by private company Mears. They are paid up to £7,000 less than if they were employed directly by the council’s housing association Northwards. The workers are determined to beat the greedy bosses, despite reports that their strike pay has not been paid for several weeks. Fight for Yassar continues one year on One year on from his death at the hands of police, Yassar Yaqub’s family vow to continue their search for justice. Some 100 supporters joined a candlelit vigil organised by his family and the Justice4Yassar campaign group on Tuesday of last week. Yassar was shot at point-blank range by police after being stopped by an armed response unit. His family is fighting to bring the police to account. Roger Keely Strike raises spirits at fork lift company Workers at a fork lift truck engineering company in Bolton struck on Monday. Over 80 percent of workers at GNB Industrial Power voted for industrial action after bosses offered them a below-inflation 1.5 percent pay “rise”. Unite union members have called an overtime ban and a series of 24-hour and 48-hour strikes in January, February and March. Picturehouse vote for sequel to action Workers at the Picturehouse cinema chain have voted for more strikes in their long-running dispute. Some sites have voted by 100 percent for action. The workers are members of the Bectu arm of the Prospect union. They are fighting for the London Living Wage of £10.20 an hour. They also want maternity and paternity pay, sick pay and union recognition. Firefighters walk out at Sellafield Firefighters at the Sellafield nuclear decommissioning plant in Cumbria plan two strikes this month. The walkouts were set for Thursday of this week and Monday 22 January. They are part of the GMB union members’ dispute over job evaluation. Workers had planned to walk out last October, but the action was suspended. Demo to remember Christopher Alder The Justice for Christopher Alder campaign, backed by Stand Up To Racism, has called a protest to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his death. Christopher died in Hull’s Queen’s Gardens Police Station in April 1998. His family has suffered injustice after injustice. In 2011 it was revealed his body had not been buried and had been used for training. The family had been given the wrong corpse. Protest Sat 31 March, 1pm, Queen Victoria Square, Hull Mustard workers are keen to keep jobs The Unite union has vowed to fight compulsory redundancies at the Colman’s Mustard factory in Norwich. Unilever, which owns Colman’s Mustard, is ending two centuries of mustard production in Norfolk by 2019. Redundancies are set to take place in September. Unite national officer Rhys McCarthy said, “We still do not believe that closure is the only possible option.” Stop the War meetings tour set to start The Stop the War Coalition is organising a “Why We Need An Anti-War Government” tour of meetings. They will also raise opposition to a Donald Trump visit to Britain. Speakers include Gary Younge, Lowkey, Salma Yaqoob, Moazzam Begg, Maz Saleem and Lindsey German. Meetings scheduled so far are: 11 Jan Luton, 23 Jan Norwich, 26 Jan Merseyside, 3 Feb Newcastle, 7 Feb Bristol, 15 Feb London, 15 Feb Cardiff, 17 Feb Manchester, 21 Feb Birmingham, 21 Feb Cambridge. Click here for meeting details Back Amy Murphy in Usdaw union election Usdaw union members are set to vote on a new union president over the next few weeks. Socialist Worker supports Amy Murphy in this election. Murphy is the candidate of the Broad Left and a member of the Socialist Party. She is challenging a right wing candidate. Murphy won 45 percent of the vote when she stood in 2015 and has received more branch nominations this time. A victory for Murphy would show that there is a mood for Usdaw to become a fighting union on the left. The ballot opens on 19 January. Doosan Babcock workers face redundancy threat Hundreds of engineering workers have been issued with redundancy notices across central Scotland. Doosan Babcock is laying off staff on short-term contracts at Grangemouth and the Levenseat waste management site. The GMB union said 350 staff could be affected.
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New developments in the Royal Mail dispute
Royal Mail workers in the CWU union marched last year (Pic: Guy Smallman) Postal workers’ union leaders have suggested they could soon reach an agreement with bosses in a dispute over pay, pensions and conditions. In a bulletin last week the CWU union told its members, “Our confidence grows that we will reach a negotiators’ agreement which will address all the issues we have campaigned on.” It means a national strike by workers in Royal Mail now seems increasingly unlikely. Workers voted overwhelmingly to strike in a ballot last year. Bosses and union officials have been in talks for several weeks after Royal Mail won an injunction to stop workers from striking. The union says it has already won a major concession over pensions. And it has hinted that it could win more over pay and future working conditions. Bosses had previously wanted to scrap workers’ defined benefit pension scheme and replace it with a defined contribution scheme. This would have left the amount workers received in retirement at the mercy of the market. Now bosses have agreed a “defined ambition” scheme that gives workers a wage in retirement—but does not guarantee how much that will be. Meanwhile the CWU has also rejected a 2 percent pay offer. And there have been no announcements on proposed changes to Royal Mail’s delivery model, which could see working conditions significantly worsened. The CWU bulletin also warned to “be mindful that these talks could break down at any stage. “We may still find ourselves having to take action to get an agreement over the line.” The CWU must call action if it cannot get an agreement that: Protects all of its members’ pensions Includes an above inflation pay deal Guarantees no changes to deliveries that disrupt workers’ lives
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Family launches campaign over the ‘contentious’ conviction of Jemma Beale
Some of the media coverage of Jemma Beale's trial The family and friends of Jemma Beale have begun a campaign over what they describe as a “contentious” conviction. Jemma was found guilty last year of perjury and perverting the course of justice. A jury found that she had made up claims of rape and sexual assault. Jemma was sentenced to ten years in prison, longer than the average sentence for rape. Jemma’s father Roy told Socialist Worker, “The Daily Telegraph newspaper quoted the following from DS Kevin Lynott from the Metropolitan Police, which investigated three of the four allegations. “It said he ‘insisted that each of her claims had been investigated independently and that there was “credible” evidence that cast no doubt on her allegations’. “This credible evidence still exists. Please read the documented evidence and share the facts.” Her family has said false stories were published in the mainstream press. Some headlines declared that Jemma had made claims against 15 men. Her family said Jemma accused three men in relation to four incidents across three years. They said “prejudicial” headlines were published while Jemma’s trial was ongoing. They have also questioned the basis for some of the charges against her. The perjury charges followed an ex-girlfriend, Anuska Pritchard, claiming that Jemma had confessed to lying about being raped. Jemma’s family said, “Pritchard has never gone to the police with details of the alleged ‘confession’.” Police became aware of the allegation following a visit to Pritchard in 2014. Believe Jemma’s family added, “The police commenced an investigation into Jemma simply because they did not believe it was possible for a woman to be sexually assaulted four times in three years. “However, the Mumsnet survey “We Believe You”, which received 1,600 respondents, sadly shows that 23 percent of women who had been sexually assaulted suffered on four or more occasions.” Mahab Kassim Kerow, who uses the name Mahad Cassim, was found guilty in 2012 of raping Jemma in 2010. He was sentenced to seven years in jail, then released after his conviction was quashed in 2015. Jemma accused Noam Shahzad of taking part in a vicious gang attack on her in 2012. Her father said the group that allegedly assaulted Jemma stole her mobile phone and answered a call from him during the assault. Shahzad hasn’t been convicted of any crime in relation to the alleged assault. Jemma also accused Luke Williams of assault. Her family said, “There are seven documented allegations within six years, from different women and children against Williams.” He has never been convicted of any of the allegations of sexual assault or rape. Jemma was found guilty of two charges of perjury because she twice denied ever having consensual sex with a male. But her family said this refers to sex with an ex-boyfriend when she was 14 years old. A child under the age of 16 is not legally able to give informed consent to sex. Jemma’s family condemned her treatment. “The fact that Jemma’s private life, sexuality and sexual history was investigated and publicised represents a huge step backwards in the challenge of encouraging women to come forward and report rape and sexual assaults,” they said. Go to www.jemmabeale.info for more information
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Mahienour el-Massry jailed for two years as Egyptian state extends state of emergency
Mahienour el-Massry in court (Pic: Egypt Solidarity Initiative) Campaigning lawyer Mahienour el-Massry and leading trade unionist Moatasem Medhat have been jailed for two years by an Egyptian court. Their “crime” is breaching a law on public gatherings imposed by the British colonial authorities in 1914. The jailings come as the Egyptian regime of General Abdel Fattah has extended a nationwide state of emergency by another three months. Mahienour and Moatasem have been in jail since their trial in November. They will appeal against the sentence on 13 January. The only witness for the prosecution is a police officer. His written report on the incident stated that the defendants had left before he arrived at the scene. Campaigning group Egypt Solidarity said, “The charges against Mahienour and Moatasem and their colleagues relate to a demonstration during the wave of protests against the transfer of the Tiran and Sanafir Islands from Egypt to Saudi Arabia. “But it is clear that the real goal is to lock up campaigners who put themselves at risk to defend workers and activists persecuted by the authorities.” Acquittal Mahienour is well known for her work defending activists, trade unionists and Syrian refugees from the authorities’ attacks. She was jailed in 2015 in a case connected with protests over the acquittal of policemen charged with the murder of Khaled Said. He was the man whose death in 2010 sparked the protest movement which paved the way for the 2011 uprising. During an earlier period in jail she wrote from prison, “I don’t know much about what has happened outside since my prison sentence was confirmed. But I imagine that just as when someone else in our circles was jailed, cyberspace is filling up with slogans demanding “freedom for so-and-so” or “the bravest are in jail” and so on. “But ever since I entered Damanhour Women’s Prison and joined the other inmates, I can only think of one thing, ‘let’s tear down this class system’.” While awaiting the latest trial, her sister wrote, “Mahienour is in a very overcrowded cell with 31 women, each of them gets a space of around 50cm width to sleep in. They ended up dividing sleeping hours among them, so Mahienour manages to sleep for only two hours a day.” Moatasem is one of the founders of the independent trade union at the Lord Company shaving equipment factory. He was union secretary before being victimised and sacked for his trade union activism. Mahienour and Moatasem are only two of tens of thousands jailed on trumped-up charges by Sisi’s authoritarian military regime. Solidarity messages, protests and support are important. For details of solidarity action go to Egypt Solidarity and follow Free Mahienour on Facebook
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Solidarity conference in London against Recep Erdogan’s repression in Turkey
Film maker Ken Loach plans to speak at the conference (Pic: Cornerhouse/Flickr) Solidarity with the People of Turkey is holding a conference on “Turkey under the state of emergency—campaigning to win change!” It takes place on Saturday 20 January at the NUT union headquarters in London. Speakers include Turkish and Kurdish activists, film maker Ken Loach, columnist Owen Jones and NEU education union co-president Louise Regan. Turkey has been under a state of emergency since shortly after a failed coup on 15 July 2016. The failed coup continues to be used as a pretext to crush all opposition and supress all democratic rights. Repression also takes place on social media. The Kurdistan Solidarity Campaign (KSC) Facebook page was taken down on Friday of last week. It had posted reports of the arrests and jailing of MPs and activists from Turkey’s People’s Democratic Party (HDP). Group administrators Rosa Gilbert and Mark Campbell also found their personal Facebook profiles had been blocked, although they were reinstated after appeal. The KSC page was also restored following an appeal, but all the original posts had been deleted. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has branded social media “the worst menace in society”. For details of the SPOT conference go to bit.ly/2CTnlii
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Fat Cat Thursday is an indictment of a system that enriches a few at our expense
Tim Sanders on feckless fat cats (Pic: Tim Sanders) Thursday 4 January 2018 was Fat Cat Thursday. The amount already grabbed this year by the average top executives passed the median annual salary of £28,758 for workers. A chief executive can expect an average of £4.5 million a year. The massive pay gap is an indictment of the system we live in that allows a tiny handful to get outrageously rich at our expense. Tim Roache, general secretary of the GMB union, said, “Does anyone really think these fat cats deserve 100 times more than the hardworking people who prop up their business empires? “Workers who have to scrimp and save to feed their families and put a roof over their head, and like most of Britain’s working population will now be feeling the pinch after the festive period.” And just a few days ago the TUC union federation said workers in Britain are set to suffer the biggest pay cuts of the world’s 32 most advanced economies in 2018. The TUC analysis puts Hungary at the top of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development pay growth league, with an expected 4.9 percent rise. Greece is 27th with a rise of 0.2 percent. Yet wages for workers in Britain are expected to fall by another 0.7 percent. Wages are set to remain below 2008 levels and they aren’t forecast to recover until 2025. Shocking Rebecca Long Bailey, Labour’s shadow business secretary, said, “It’s a shocking sign of just how out of control inequality has grown that top CEOs have already been paid in three days what most people earn in an entire year. “The next Labour government will tackle rampant pay inequality with a real living wage of at least £10 per hour, with an excessive pay levy and by rolling out maximum pay ratios of 20:1 in the public sector and in companies bidding for public contracts.” TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said, “Workers are suffering the longest pay squeeze since Napoleonic times, but fat cat bosses are still getting salaries that look like telephone numbers.” But the trouble is such criticisms don’t worry bosses at all. They just keep taking the money. It’s good that the TUC has called a protest on 12 May around the slogan, “A new deal for working people”. However, reversing the pay cuts will mean calling and organising more than one protest and, crucially, the strikes that have the power to beat the bosses. The TUC march will take place on Saturday 12 May
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Freedom of speech for all?
Western politicians pretending to defend free speech are hypocrites (Pic: Tim Sanders) The Tories are apparently desperate to defend free speech. Universities minister Jo Johnson has appointed odious free schools fanatic Toby Young to head up a new Office for Students. This will police universities to check whether they are protecting freedom of speech. Those found wanting could be fined — or even suspended from operating. This is part of pushing the government’s “British values” which supposedly include free speech. It’s nonsense. There is little freedom of speech under capitalism. Laws such as copyright and libel law limit what can be said and published. But more importantly capitalism prioritises the rich—so those with the most money get to shout the loudest. The tiny group of people who own and control the media have a daily platform to push their opinions. Government ministers and those deemed “respectable” get invited onto news bulletins to air their views. Meanwhile the state limits the right of ordinary people to express themselves. In Britain the government’s Prevent strategy has seen Muslim speakers banned, children questioned at school and Islamic groups harassed. The state banned schools from teaching “the acceptability of homosexuality” until the law was repealed in 2003. Today schools have been ordered to promote “British values” to children. Meanwhile the Trade Union Act makes it even harder for workers to make their voices heard through strikes. Their slashing of legal aid cuts makes it harder for poorer people to challenge injustice and fight for their rights in the courts. States also sometimes use violence, repression or censorship to suppress dissenting views. Protesters have being jailed after using their free speech by joining demonstrations, such as the student fees protests in 2010 or the anti-poll tax protest in 1990. And governments in the US and Britain are currently trying to impose more restrictions on the internet. In the US groups seen as “controversial”, such as revolutionary socialists, could be banned by internet service providers. The right presents itself as the champion of free speech fending off intolerant Muslims and left wing students. In reality the left has been at the forefront of defending free speech. This includes defending the right of Palestinian societies to organise. And building solidarity with activists hounded by the state in Egypt. It means supporting people facing persecution such as Chris Stephenson, a socialist lecturer in Istanbul who was charged with possessing “propaganda for a terrorist organisation”. But supporting free speech doesn’t mean that anything goes. People who talk of “political correctness gone mad” and claim they can’t say what they want really want the freedom to be offensive. Context matters. There is a big difference between protesting at the powerful and targeting oppressed groups. Cartoons When the Charlie Hebdo magazine published cartoons mocking the prophet Mohammed in 2012, it claimed it was exercising its freedom of speech. Yet when people in France wanted to protest against the cartoons the French authorities banned the protests. What Charlie Hebdo did was make Muslims, who were already under severe attack, an object of ridicule by mocking their faith. The cartoons made it easier for every other racist to have a go at Muslims and made Islamophobia more acceptable. It was the same in 2005, when the Danish paper Jyllands-Posten published Islamophobic cartoons. The next year, a number of right wing papers across Europe reprinted them. They loftily declared that they were promoting free speech. In reality they were promoting racism. Die Welt in Germany said the reprinting of the cartoons was justified because free speech is an “absolute”. We’ve already seen that this is rubbish. In fact, everyone accepts limits to free speech. That’s why, for example, the mainstream press wouldn’t publish child pornography in the name of free speech. The right claims that left wingers who oppose bigots are intolerant. But they are attacking the left in order to advance their own nasty agenda. For instance, some have denounced progressive anti-racist campaigns such as the Rhodes Must Fall campaign at Oxford university. Others have smeared Palestine supporters as antisemitic for criticising Israel. Jo Johnson claimed that students at some universities had drawn up lists of “trigger words” that shouldn’t be used, and demanded books be removed from libraries. Yet much of the media’s reporting on the banning of speakers at universities is false or exaggerated. The right are seizing on either false or exceptional examples to push through a more general attack. Socialist Worker is not in favour of banning people from speaking—except if they are fascists. Fascists aren’t just people who have obnoxious ideas. They organise to try and bring about a society that will get rid of all our rights. To defend freedom of speech for Nazis is aid groups that want to demolish all of our freedoms. And allowing them a platform lets Nazis pose as just another legitimate, political party. It helps them to hide their true agenda. Student groups, unions and others have every right to democratically decide to have a no platform policy for fascists in their colleges, universities and workplaces. But no platform is a specific tactic that has proven effective in stopping fascist groups from growing. It shouldn’t be applied to everyone who holds reactionary opinions. So it was wrong for Charlie Hebdo and Jyllands-Posten to print racist cartoons, but they shouldn’t be banned. Likewise the Daily Mail and Sun newspapers, both of which publish racist and sexist cartoons, images and articles, shouldn’t be banned. Powers Giving the state more powers to decide what can and can’t be said and published will mean more clampdowns on left wing and oppressed groups. It is understandable why some people do favour bans on racists, sexists, homophobes and transphobes. There is real oppression under capitalism and many people suffer violence and abuse because of it. This leads to all kinds of reactions and arguments about how to respond. But the best response is one that empowers people. So there should be protests against sexists, racist and Tories. When the racist Ukip party launched its manifesto for last year’s general election, Socialist Worker supporters were at the heart of a protest that disrupted it. Socialists and others have led protests against the ­anti-abortionists including the Spuc group, and demonstrations at Miss World contests. Socialist Worker supported the Filipino health workers who rallied outside the Daily Mail offices in 2015 in protest at a racist feature. We are for challenging the sexists and the racists—through actions by ordinary people, not bans from the authorities. This kind of action can give people more confidence and involve more people in political activity. Right wingers, who have no qualms about banning Muslim speakers, claim that such protests undermine free speech. Some have said that protests against MPs undermine democracy. In fact these things are expressions of free speech and democracy. We should accept no limits on our rights to protest against the powerful. Organising protests is also an opportunity to engage with people who might hold some reactionary ideas. Under capitalism, people tend to have a mix of ideas. They may support the NHS on the one hand and back more immigration controls on the other. It would be wrong to write off these people because we don’t like some of their views. The dominant ideas in society are the ideas of the ruling class, so many people will accept some of them. The solution isn’t bans that shut down debate. Instead we should be confident about winning people away from racist or sexist ideas—and fight to engage people in struggles that can transform them. This has been done before. During the 1970s women fought for trade unions to support abortion rights—and they won. Workers also successfully organised to shift unions over other issues, such as opposing homophobia. Socialists want the maximum freedom of speech, not as an end in itself but so that people can speak out against the system. We also want a socialist world where freedom of speech isn’t crushed by the rich. Find out more Should fascists be allowed freedom of speech? bit.ly/1U9TKmO Should we be in favour of free speech? bit.ly/2Ec2GDo Fascism: What it is and How to Fight it by Leon Trotsky Countering extremism in British schools? by Theresa O’Toole and John Holmwood £12.99 Available at Bookmarks, the socialist bookshop. Phone 020 7637 1848 or go to bookmarksbookshop.co.uk  
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Bus drivers vow to keep up the fight as they begin their 13th week of walkouts
Bus workers on the picket line (Pic: Unite North West 159/Twitter) Manchester bus drivers vowed to keep fighting this week as they kicked off their 13th week of strikes. The Unite union members at the First Bus depot in Rusholme have been fighting for pay parity since September last year. They are are now striking every Monday, Wednesday and Friday on alternate weeks. Workers are currently paid up to £5,000 a year less than workers at a First Bus depot just a few miles down the road. Drivers voted unanimously on Monday’s picket line to send an invitation to bosses for talks at the Acas conciliation service. Driver Howard said, “We’re looking for £10.50 an hour now, with a written promise pay will go up to the other depots’ rate by 2020.” Trade unionists have been holding solidarity protests from 4am on strike days that have stopped buses from leaving the depot. Managers called police last month after scab buses had to stay in the depot. Some routes are tendered by the council—and if First Bus fail to run these, they are fined. Striker Robert said support for the strike had been “amazing”. The strike remains solid. Robert said, “No more people have been persuaded to go back in.” Bosses are running a much reduced service on an army of scab managers recruited from as far afield as Scotland and Bristol. Despite bosses claiming they were “doing everything we can to resolve the situation”, Robert said they “weren’t moving” at all. Robert is confident they can win. “We’ve picked up momentum before, we can do it again,” he said. First Bus is part of FirstGroup, which reported a profit of £37 million in its bus operations last year. Yet First Bus managing director in Greater Manchester Phil Meddlicott regularly tells strikers that there is no money to pay them. Everyone should join the solidarity protests at Rusholme depot and support the drivers in getting the pay rise they deserve. Joint fundraiser with the Mears strikers—Unite workers Band Aid, 14 January, 2-8pm at the White House Club, 193 Middleton Road, M8 4JZ
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Two deaths after long ambulance waits - Tory cuts are to blame
Ambulances are delayed due to Tory cuts (Pic: Martin Addison/Flickr) At least two people have died this month because of Tory cuts to the NHS. An 81 year old woman was found dead in her home in Clacton, Essex, after waiting for nearly four hours for an ambulance. And Peter Wilkinson in the North West died at the beginning of the month after waiting 98 minutes for an ambulance The official target is that ambulances should arrive within 18 minutes of a call. Their deaths are just the latest sign of the NHS winter crisis caused by Tory cuts and privatisation. The East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST) said it had “more than 4,200 calls across the East of England” in one day. Dave Powell is the GMB union regional official who organises workers at EEAST. Powell said the figure showed the pressure on ambulance workers during the winter crisis and added that it was “much more widespread than the public is aware”. “Three hours and 45 minutes is totally unacceptable for an elderly woman on her own with chest pains,” he said. “Something has got to be done and the government has got to wake up to this crisis.” He added, “My concern is now that we are actually suffering deaths whilst people wait for ambulances.” Some 16,893 patients were forced wait more than half an hour on ambulances outside accident and emergency units during the week up to New Year's Eve. That’s up 42 percent from 11,900 in the week before. The growing scale of the NHS crisis is putting pressure on the Tories. Even Theresa May was forced this week to issue a half-hearted apology to the thousands of patients facing delays. “I know it's difficult, I know it's frustrating, I know it's disappointing for people, and I apologise,” she said. That’s why the national demonstration over the NHS winter crisis is crucial to build opposition to the Tories’ attacks. It was called by Health Campaigns Together and the People’s Assembly for Saturday 3 February. Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour Party and unions should throw their weight behind the demonstration.
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McMafia brings the bosses’ infighting to our TV screens
Alex Godman wrestles with his family's past and tries to sanitise it McMafia grapples with the differences between “good” and “bad” capitalism—and makes thrilling drama at the same time. The BBC series is based—loosely—on journalist Misha Glenny’s book, which looked at organised crime across the world. In the adaptation the fictional Godman family is dispossessed by Vadim Kalyagin, a powerful Russian drug magnate. Some oligarchs, who got rich quick, fell out of favour with the Kremlin in the chaos of 1990s Russia. Now living as exiles in London, the Godmans wallow in wealth and alienation. Their son and the show’s protagonist Alex had an affluent upbringing near Knightsbridge. Father Dimitri drinks and dreams of Moscow. Uncle Boris also dreams—of revenge. The tension between “good” and “bad” capitalism is personified by Alex’s relationship with Dmitri. It plays out in their day to day interactions. Transparent Alex builds his investment fund, Godman Capital, using legal means, focusing on being “transparent” and “ethical”. But disaster strikes in the first episode. As investors pull their money from Godman Capital following rumours, he is forced to go to dodgy Uncle Boris. Alex is increasingly pulled into a murky world. Beneath his public school politeness, he is capable of ruthlessness, sometimes to his own surprise. With successful business deals come the death of rivals and unwilling partners. Because of his slow descent Alex is an uncomfortably sympathetic protagonist. And, at times, the gulf between gentlemen and gangsters is played up too much. But the show also hints that organised crime isn’t just a carbuncle on capitalism. Banker Sydney Bloom is keen to lecture on the need for ethical capitalism, lest ordinary people lose faith in the free market. He made his “clean money” stripping down African ports. McMafia has ranged from gang warfare in Moscow to human trafficking in its first two episodes. Its plot could develop into a story about a good man’s descent into capitalism’s underbelly. It also has much richer potential to point to how organised crime is part of the swindle at the heart of capitalist society. And that “good” and “bad” capitalism are two sides of one rotten system. McMafia is on BBC One on Sundays at 9pm. Also available on iPlayer
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Tories starve mental health services for Grenfell victims
The shell of Grenfell Tower is a constant reminder of the tragedy to residents of the nearby estates (Pic: Guy Smallman) Thousands of people suffering mental health problems as a result of the Grenfell Tower fire are being let down by the Tory government. Some 11,000 people are estimated to be suffering mental health problems as a result of the fire. But Jessica Cooke, a spokesperson for the Central and North West London Trust, told Socialist Worker that the true figure could be even higher. As of last month the trust’s outreach team had contacted people 4,226 times. “Experience shows that different people come forward at different times,” said Jessica. “Some may need to come back to the NHS again, future events can also trigger a response.” Therapists working with survivors on the ground back this up. Liz Sippy spoke to Socialist Worker about the types of shock survivors are dealing with. “With a lot of people the trauma they are suffering is not just about Grenfell,” she said. “What Grenfell has done is bring back past trauma in their lives and make them relive it. “Some children feel awful guilt about why they survived and their friends didn’t. “I treat one young man who is suicidal. There have been suicides and attempted suicides and no one’s talking about it.” The impact of Grenfell spans across London and beyond. Families and friends of those who died are spread across Britain and will need treatment but may fall through the cracks in the system. Jessica described how widespread the problem is. “We are dealing with a few people in other countries who were, for instance, on the phone to a loved one at the time of the disaster,” she said. “We are also dealing with families who have now arrived to support their own loved ones.” Liz talked about how volunteers who spent days, weeks and months helping in the aftermath are in need of help as well. “They started immediately and have worked so much,” she said. “I see young mothers who feel they have neglected their own children because they have been out there helping in the community.” As ever it is ordinary people—workers and volunteers—who are providing services to Grenfell survivors while those at the top try to avoid responsibility. Over £2 million was spent by central government between June and December last year on the mental health response. It’s not enough. The Tories are dragging their heels over every aspect of the response to the fire. They need to be forced to stop treating people with contempt. Deportation threat puts Grenfell migrants in danger Campaigners demand a full amnesty for undocumented migrants (Pic: Guy Smallman) The threat of deportation is stopping undocumented migrants from seeking mental health support. Migrants also worry they could be deported if they come forward with information about the fire. Immediately after the disaster Theresa May said no one should feel scared about coming forward. Then immigration minister Brandon Lewis announced a pitiful one-year amnesty for undocumented migrants living in the tower. Now he has said survivors can apply for permanent residence, but only after a five-year period of regular observation by the state. This has meant that people aren’t coming forward with crucial information for the public inquiry and the criminal investigation. And survivors suffering from various kinds of trauma are not being treated. “There are a number of people who are too scared to even come to us,” said Liz. “We are worried about not giving help to people who need it.” She pointed out that the amnesty only covers people who were living in the tower. Jessica said, “The service is provided to anyone living in the area and we have expertise dealing with undocumented migrants—care comes first. We want to reassure everyone that the NHS is here for everyone.” Healthcare workers want to provide the best care possible. But the Tories’ backtracking over amnesties means that their jobs are harder and the full impact of Grenfell may never be known. Why won’t Tories pay for safety? The Tories have backtracked on promise after promise after the Grenfell Tower disaster. Previously Theresa May said that money would not be an object when it came to safety work. Then she said it is “up to the council to make decisions”. The Department for Communities and Local Government said councils should contact them with requests for funding to make buildings safe. The Grenfell Tower fire and the anger that refuses to fade   Read More But when it comes to concrete requests for funding the Tories have refused them time and again. Housing minister Alok Sharma told Nottingham council that sprinklers were “additional, not essential.” Now Croydon council has asked for a face to face meeting with the Tory minister after he turned down two previous requests for additional funding. The Tories’ meanness seemingly knows no bounds. But that shouldn’t be used as an excuse for Labour councils to pass the costs of fire safety work on to other essential services. That means a fight will have to be waged to wring cash out of the Tories for sprinklers and other safety work. Jeremy Corbyn’s petition calling for £1 billion to be made available for retrofitting sprinklers is a start. Sign the petition at bit.ly/2zA0KpD
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Don’t fall for the right wing myth of the ‘white working class’
Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner (Pic: Guy Smallman) Tory austerity provides a real opportunity to unite working class people in resistance. There is huge anger over the NHS crisis, school funding cuts, attacks on benefits, lack of affordable housing and low pay. Meanwhile, Theresa May has repeatedly failed to assert her authority over her party and faces continual crisis. The Labour Party and union leaders should seize on this crisis to organise united action. Instead, some are echoing tired stereotypes that divide us. Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner gave an interview to the right wing Spectator magazine last week. She claimed that girls and ethnic minority children have been encouraged to get ahead at school while white, working class boys are left behind. Rayner said white working class boys “are under the impression that they don’t need to push themselves, in the way that disadvantaged groups had to”. She added, “We need to do much more about the culture of white working class.” But there is no separate white working class, nor is there one white working class “culture”. The working class in Britain is multicultural and multi-racial. White workers don’t have separate interests to black and Asian workers. Victims Rayner’s comments, whether intended or not, will have been welcomed by racists who claim that white people are the real victims of the system. They say white people have been abandoned and ignored by the establishment as black and Asian people get more attention. This turns the reality of racism on its head. And the idea that black people somehow get “special favours” is a reactionary attempt to undermine anti-racists. It’s true that many white children are written off at school. And in many areas of Britain white people are stuck in dire poverty with no hope of a job. Many white people suffer the Tory assaults on benefits and pensions. But this is because they are working class, not because they are white. And racism means that black and Asian workers suffer even more than white workers do. They are more likely to be unemployed or on low pay. TUC union federation figures confirm that there is “more poverty in every ethnic minority group than among the white British population”. The fact that so many working class people have few opportunities in life should be an indictment of the system. But right wingers want ordinary people to blame other working class people instead of those at the top. Black and Asian workers don’t cause unemployment, low pay, poor housing or underfunded services—the Tories and the rich do. The whole working class has an interest in uniting together to beat them.
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