Contemporary Marxist-Leninist thought on Britain and the world and contains Workers'Daily Internet Edition and archives. http://www.rcpbml.org.uk en http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/ http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/images/wdbut2.gif 144 27 The Downing Street Declaration of December 15, 1993, issued by then Prime Minister John Major and Irish Taoiseach, Albert Reynolds, paved the way for a new stage in the struggle for Irish self-determination. It followed the 1992 Sinn Féin document “Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland” which pointed out that a lasting peace must address the root cause of conflict, British intervention and colonial rule, and be grounded in democracy and self-determination....more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-076.htm On November 10, Prime Minister Gordon Brown delivered a speech at the Brandenburg Gate at the events commemorating the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. ...more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-075.htm Racism has always been a systematic policy of the British state. It has been cynically utilised by successive British governments imbued with the chauvinism of a “great power” that will not view human beings as having rights simply by virtue of being human. These facts cannot be lost sight of in the recent clamour about the danger from the “far right”. The theme of the cartel of the big parliamentary parties over the recent period has been that problems in society have been caused, or at least exacerbated, by a mistaken immigration policy. This is one of the ways in which the racism of the state has been manifest particularly since the reactionary focus on the danger of “Islamic extremism” as well as the movement of migrants from Eastern Europe, as well as elsewhere....more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-074.htm The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, appeared before the Treasury Select Committee on November 24, and for the first time revealed details of the size of emergency loans to the Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS last year. His remarks were confirmed by Chancellor Alistair Darling the following day in a statement to the House of Commons. ...more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-073.htm On November 25, the government published its White Paper on Scotland’s future within the “United Kingdom”. One of its key proposals is to cut the UK rate of income tax by 10p in Scotland and give the Scottish government tax-raising powers. The White Paper proposals are being presented by Secretary of State for Scotland, Jim Murphy, as strengthening the devolution settlement, following the final report of the Commission on Scottish Devolution led by Sir Ken Calman. ...more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-072.htm Party activists and democratic people are responding to the necessity to step up the work to discuss the programme for political renewal and for an anti-war government by organising or participating in political forums. This crucial work, part of the work whereby people are empowered to give voice to their concerns and to discuss the way forward, is a vital step in developing a programme to block the retrogression being imposed by the ruling elite in the service of monopoly capital and to open up society’s path to progress. ...more http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wdie-09/d09-071.htm