18 Doughty Street tonight
I’ll be appearing on the internet television show Vox Politix at www.18doughtystreet.com between 10pm and midnight tonight. Other guests will be Phillip Lee, the GP and Westminster hopeful who secured a deposit-losing 816 votes for the Tories in Blaenau Gwent at the last general election; Labour activist Mark Hanson; and Boni Sones, author of ‘Women [...]
McJobs and trade union rights at McDonald’s
McDonald’s has launched a campaign to get the word ‘McJob’ stricken from the Oxford English Dictionary. The effort is being supported by Labour MP Clive Betts, who has even tabled an Early Day Motion on the issue. He really should know better. Multinational corporations have many powers in this world. Thankfully, these do not include [...]
Plaid Cymru: coalition talks with Tories & Lib-Dems
Plaid Cymru – logo pictured left – has since 1981 officially considered itself a socialist party. The importance it attaches to that stance is now being put to the test, following elections earlier this month that left the Welsh Assembly under no overall control. Plaid leader Ieuan Wyn Jones has pulled out of discussions with [...]
The problem with plastic
Listing on London’s Aim market today is Plantic Technologies, an Australian company that has developed a low-cost fully biodegradable soft plastic based on corn starch. This is potentially wonderful news for the environment. For a start, traditional plastics are manufactured from non-renewable resources, such as oil, coal and natural gas. What’s more, they are a [...]
Tommy Sheridan: perjury inquiry
I’m now back in London following my long weekend in Edinburgh, where more than a little booze was knocked back with the Scottish comrades. Inevitably the pub talk centred on the local political situation, especially this story in the Sunday Herald: STAFF IN the sex club at the centre of the Tommy Sheridan defamation trial [...]
Scotland Libre: Friday open thread
From Friday through to Monday, I will be taking some time out in Edinburgh, the capital of the first part of the UK in over a decade to throw off the oppressive shackles of New Labourite Blair-Brownofascism and elect a nationalist minority government backed by a Green rump instead. Alex Salmond – take the power! [...]
Workers’ Power: demands on the Labour left and unions
The Central Committee of Workers’ Power has announced the demands that it is placing on both Constituency Labour Parties and the Labour left. Oh, and it also insists that the trade union bureaucracy launch a public sector general strike until everything privatised over the last quarter of a century is restored to full Morrisonian state [...]
After McDonnell: what next?
This press release from John McDonnell – pictured – says it all, really: DATE: 16.05.07 For immediate release MCDONNELL CONCEDES LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE John McDonnell said: “With Gordon Brown having gained 308 nominations from Labour MPs, it is now mathematically impossible for me to reach the nominations I require to stand. There will not now be [...]
McDonnell ‘drops Labour leadership challenge’
McDonnell has reportedly thrown in the towel. Unsurprising, really: Mr McDonnell has until 1230 BST on Thursday to get 45 backers. Only 27 Labour MPs have yet to nominate. But according to BBC research at least four of the 27 are planning to nominate Mr Brown and three plan not to nominate anyone. That leaves [...]
McDonnell: appeal for nominations
Labour leadership contender John McDonnell is making one last-ditch effort to secure the necessary nominations. But sadly it is starting to look like this just ain’t gonna happen: CALLING NOTICE…………….CALLING NOTICE For immediate release PRESS CONFERENCE 4 pm Jubilee Room House of Commons LAST CALL FOR LABOUR MPS TO NOMINATE MCDONNELL – AN APPEAL TO [...]
