Articles from the Socialist, issue 540

2 July 2008

NHS demonstration March 3rd 2007, photo Paul Mattsson

On its 60th anniversary, we call for a mass campaign to defend our health service:

End big business profiteering out of the NHS! Abandon the Private Finance Initiative (PFI). No to private polyclinics replacing local GP surgeries…

Local government strike action: Workers say: ‘enough is enough!’

Glasgow Social Workers on strike , photo Duncan Brown

The pages of the national press have been full of the statistics for months. Bread up 44%, pasta up 20%, utility bills are likely to rise by 40% and petrol is going up faster than you can measure it. Marc Glasscoe, Branch Secretary, Lincoln City Unison (personal capacity) writes.

91% of pay deals are below inflation

Workers united against pay freeze

Education – class segregation grows

A REPORT published by the Department for Children, Schools and Families shows a growing segregation between rich and poor in education since Labour came to power…

Royals down to their last crown?

Union support for demo to stop BNP ‘festival’

National Shop Stewards Network: Rebuilding trade union strength

The second conference of the National Shop Stewards Network (NSSN) on Saturday 28 June was opened by chair Dave Chapple, explaining how his CWU postal workers’ union branch was balloting its 3,000 members for strike action, writes Alison Hill.

Campaign for a New Workers’ Party

Campaign for a New Workers’ Party conference 2008, photo Socialist Party

On Sunday 29 June, 300 people filled the main hall in South Camden Community School in London to round off a very important weekend for the labour movement in Britain and to address the central question facing workers in Britain today: How can we fight for a working class political voice…

Obituary: Terry Fields

Terry Fields addressing a demonstration in support of Liverpool City Council in the 1980s, photo Dave Sinclair

Tragically Terry Fields has died from lung cancer at the age of 71. Terry was a supporter of Militant, forerunner of the Socialist Party, and a defender of the working class. In 1983, after many years as a lay official for the fire fighters’ union, he…

LGBT London Pride: No to homophobia

“You can be gay behind closed doors, you can be heterosexual behind closed doors, but you don’t bring it onto the streets, demanding more rights for it.” So says Richard Barnbrook, a member of the racist and homophobic British National Party (BNP), writes Greg Randall, Socialist Party LGBT group convenor.

Mugabe clique tightens its grip on Zimbabwe

DESPITE MORGAN Tsvangirai’s decision to pull out of the second ‘run-off’ round of Zimbabwe’s presidential elections, ‘voting’ proceeded last week with Robert Mugabe as the only candidate, writes Keith Pattendon.

Poland: Thousands join ‘hands off the Labour Code’ demo

PCS shows action gets results

The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) national executive (NEC) agreed last week to a campaign of action over pay in the Autumn. Three national strikes have already won national agreements to protect members…

For a fighting, democratic Usdaw

Tube cleaners in pay strike

Victory for Belfast Airport shop stewards

East London street cleaners fight privatised employer