Democracy & State
Overcoming the enemies within
17 May 2012
The left must unite in order to change the relationship of forces both within and outside the Labour Party, argues Mike Macnair
Sir Keir flies the flag
02 May 2024
Labour told candidates to mark St George’s Day ‘with enthusiasm’. Then there was the England jersey furore. Carl Collins examines the role of hegemony in today’s culture wars
Foibles, fantasies and failure
02 May 2024
For too long much of the left has tailed Scottish nationalism. Yet Humza Yousaf’s fall demonstrates that control is still exercised by Westminster. But it is not just about the legal limits of devolution: there is economic reality too, writes Mike Macnair
Ditch the constitution
02 May 2024
America is in thrall to a dictatorship of the past. That Donald Trump is relying on the Supreme Court to establish his ‘presidential immunity’ from prosecution should act as a clarion call for mass action to achieve a genuine democracy, argues Daniel Lazare
A very Tory ban
25 Apr 2024
With Labour support, the Tories’ smoking ban is likely to pass - but, on historical evidence, prohibition is hardly likely to work, says Paul Demarty
Turning the tide
18 Apr 2024
Ukraine’s summer 2023 offensive was a complete failure and Russia now appears to be making tactical gains. But Kyiv is not going to be a pushover, writes Eddie Ford
Selective memory syndrome
18 Apr 2024
Paul Demarty admires George Galloway’s grand ambitions, but warns about a complete inability to deliver. Meanwhile, a forgetful SWP sticks to ‘strikes and streets’
Gaza and militarisation
11 Apr 2024
Toby Abse reports on the links between Italian universities and Israel’s war machine. Inevitably anyone who dares protest is branded an anti-Semite by the rightwing media
Strengthen those red lines
11 Apr 2024
Left groups are arguing about the class nature of a possible Sinn Féin-led government. Even about joining as coalition partners and getting the perks and privileges of junior ministers. Anne McShane calls for unity around tried and tested principles, not diplomatic fudges
Using every avenue
11 Apr 2024
In what is almost certainly a general election year, Jack Conrad looks at the evolution, limits and possibilities of parliament. We don’t have to settle for Sir Keir’s Labour Party and the lesser evil
Two-party dictatorship
11 Apr 2024
Third parties face a whole series of increasingly impossible hurdles. Daniel Lazare looks at how both Republicans and Democrats oppose democracy
Delight and rising hopes
04 Apr 2024
Esen Uslu highlights the economics and politics behind the huge defeat suffered by Erdoğan’s electoral bloc and the opportunities that have opened up
Notes on the war
04 Apr 2024
At this particular juncture the west’s proxy finds itself on the back foot, says Jack Conrad. Doubtless that explains why Donald Tusk is warning Russia that a wider war in Europe is “a real threat”
Limiting competition is key
28 Mar 2024
Whatever the government does over Rwanda, irregular migrants will keep coming. Eddie Ford defends the right of people to live in whatever country they choose, but we clearly need more than individual rights
Thinking beyond ceasefires
21 Mar 2024
Zionism is predicated on ethnic cleansing, oppression and ultimately genocide. Carl Stevens of the Republican Labour Education Forum gives his take on different possible progressive solutions to the Israel-Palestine conflict
Selective justice is no justice
21 Mar 2024
John McDonnell has rightly called for her reinstatement. But, asks Eddie Ford, what about all the many others wrongly accused of anti-Semitism?