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ACTIVISTS protested outside the Egyptian embassy in central London on Friday of last week against the jailing of five Egyptian anti-war campaigners. Demonstrators were urged to attend the second Cairo conference which has now been arranged for 13 and 14 December.

MEMBERS OF the Association of University Teachers (AUT) in 12 London universities voted last week to support further strike action in their London weighting campaign. The AUT is the main lecturers' union in the old universities. The vote came despite a low-key summer campaign and the union leadership calling off action earlier in the year. In most colleges at least two thirds voted for further action, which surprised the AUT leadership. The results also gave a boost to Unison union members, who have taken five days of strike action over London weighting so far this year.

HORNSEY coroner's court in London has come up with a worrying innovation. It is the first court in Britain to record a verdict of "suicide by cop". Michael Malsbury was killed by a police gunman after a siege at his home in November 2001. The inquest decided he had tried to get himself shot.

THE FIRST ever Walthamstow festival took place this weekend in north east London. The themes of the festival were "Peace on our streets" and "Celebrate our cultural diversity". The main stage saw some fantastic acts from across the world. There was a respect stage with a massive Love Music Hate Racism banner across the top of it, an urban peace stage, a dance stage and a comedy gig with Mark Steel and Shazia Mirza.

A DEMONSTRATION was taking place this week in defence of Egyptian anti-war activists. It is scheduled for Friday 12 September from 5pm to 6.30pm outside the Egyptian embassy at 26 South Street, London W1 (nearest tube Green Park).

GET ON your bike to raise funds for the Socialist Worker Appeal on Sunday 26 October. There are two routes covering 30 miles or 60 miles, both setting out from Victoria Park in London.

THE PARLIAMENTARY by-election in the Brent East constituency in west London takes place on Thursday of next week. Brian Butterworth, a Unison union branch secretary, is the Socialist Alliance candidate. He spoke to Socialist Worker about why he is standing, and why he thinks Brent needs a socialist alternative:

A WEEK of protest against a huge government-sponsored arms fair kicked off with a march through central London last Saturday. On Tuesday morning there was a lively protest outside the arms fair itself in east London's Docklands, and yet more protests were set for Wednesday. The British government is pouring hundreds of thousands of public money into the Defence Systems and Equipment International (DSEi) arms fair.

THE BLACKOUT that hit London and the south east of England last week was another vivid reminder of the madness of privatisation and spending curbs.

Brent THE SOCIALIST Alliance created a real buzz in Brent, west London, last weekend. Brian Butterworth is standing as the Socialist Alliance candidate for MP in the Brent East by-election, called for 18 September.

VOTING STARTED this week in a ballot of 58,000 workers employed by local councils across London over their long-running London Weighting dispute.

TUBE DRIVERS in the RMT union at Edgware Road, London, will ballot for strike action over the sacking of a colleague.