THE GOVERNMENT set out major attacks on people's liberties in last week's Queen's Speech. They include abolishing, for some people, the centuries-old right to a jury trial, and extending catch-all "anti-terrorist" laws.
THOUSANDS OF students planned to hit the streets on Thursday for the National Union of Students (NUS) demonstration against tuition fees. Students at Sussex University had already scored a victory in their protest over fees on Wednesday of last week. Around 40 of them halted a society dinner hosted by Lord Attenborough by occupying the venue.
DEPUTY PRIME minister John Prescott unveiled plans in parliament last week to impose "congestion charges" on cars driving into Britain's cities. Under one plan up for consideration, for example, car drivers would be charged £5 a time to drive into London and then have to pay £2,000 a year to park in the city.
MANY OF Britain's major banks met in Harrogate on Tuesday to discuss plans to fleece people even more than they already do. Barclays was pushing for the banks in the Link network to charge people to withdraw cash from hole in the wall cash machines. People could have to pay a flat rate charge of between £1 and £2.50 simply for taking their own money out.
A NEW study has shown that global warming has had an even greater impact on the polar ice caps than was previously reckoned. A study of sonar data gathered by naval submarines showed that the Arctic ice cap has shrunk by almost 40 percent in the last few decades. Up to now satellite pictures have been used to measure the shrinkage. But the sonar soundings show that melting UNDER the ice caps is happening. The melting ice caps mean that sea levels will rise.
CHIEF EXECUTIVES of Britain's top companies have pay and bonus packages that on average are 94 times higher than their workforces', according to research by the Trades Union Congress. Another report found that some bosses think they are worth even more.
AN ASIAN teenager was badly injured when an axe was thrown through his car window in a racist attack in Oldham, Greater Manchester, last week. Eighteen year old Liaqet Ali suffered a broken jaw and lost several teeth after the car he was travelling in was cornered by a white gang in a Ford Escort.
PENSIONERS WERE due to hold protests across Britain on Wednesday this week. Last week pensioner activists held a mock Queen's Speech outside parliament to show their anger at government policies.
ON WEDNESDAY of last week 24 copies of Socialist Worker were sold on the picket line at Westbourne Park bus garage in west London. On Monday morning this week 9 papers were sold to striking BT call centre workers in Manchester, 8 in Cardiff, 6 in Glasgow and Sheffield, 5 in Liverpool and 3 in Brighton. 25 papers were sold at the PTA plant at Ford Dagenham with 9 more sold at the engine plant. And 62 were sold on workplace sales across Hackney in east London last week. They included 7 papers sold at Homerton Hospital, 4 at Upper Clapton post office, 3 at Shoreditch fire station, 3 at Paragon Road post office, 2 at Andrews Road council depot and 8 at Homerton School. Thanet's first industr
THOUSANDS OF postal workers across London are to vote on official strikes as management tries to cut costs over Christmas. The ballots will include almost all delivery workers and some drivers in the big distribution centres. The issues vary in different areas. They include:
THE BATTLE for the future of Glasgow's 80,000 council homes is hotting up. The city's Labour controlled council and the Scottish Parliament are split over how to transfer all the homes to private landlords. The council wants to sell all the stock to one company or a newly formed private housing association. It plans a ballot in November 2000 at the latest, with the transfer taking place in April 2001. However, the Scottish Executive is pressing for smaller transfers now.
