Vote to Block a Conservative Government!
Let Us Speak in Our Own Name!

The polls are showing that the gap between the Conservatives and Labour is narrowing, but predict that the Conservative Party will win an overall majority and be able to form a government. But given the fact that in the 2017 general election the polls seriously miscalculated, or that the pollsters were unable to form public opinion in favour of Theresa May, then this is not a foregone conclusion. And the movement to reject the status quo is growing.

It is crucial that the people go all out to make sure that the status quo cannot continue. The status quo means business as usual for pursuing the neo-liberal agenda of privatisation, austerity, war production and allying with those forces abroad that also pursue that same agenda.

The number one priority when casting a vote on Thursday, December 12, is to ensure that the status quo cannot continue with the government claiming a mandate for the continuation of the anti-social offensive against the working class and people. To be sure, resistance struggles will continue for working people if the result goes against them. But the people want space to pursue their own agenda of bringing about a society where the welfare of all is put at the centre of its organisation with the economy in their service, and establishing this as the paramount aim.

The electorate therefore must go all out to unite as one to reject the factions of the ruling elites vying for power which seek to block the change in the direction of the economy and society which is required.

There is another factor which is a consideration in the election. That is that the working people should view it as a vital step in the fight for real change, change which involves the complete renewal of the institutions and processes which are said to be democratic, but which keep the people themselves out of political power. This is a change which has a broad perspective for the benefit of the whole of society. How can the factions of the ruling elite which represent the rich claim to be representatives of working people who make up the majority of society? Particularly from the time of the invasion of Iraq in 2002, the deleterious consequences of which are still being experienced, the people have declared that the actions of a pro-austerity, pro-rich, pro-war government are Not In Our Name!

This underlines a fundamental principle in democratic renewal, that the people must speak in their own name, that they must be vested with the decision-making power, that the political processes and institutions must serve them, not the rich and the financial oligarchy, not the forces who benefit from the present way society is organised and the political agenda is set.

The conclusion is clear: defeat Boris Johnson and his cabal; make certain that factions representing the status quo are rejected. This will benefit the movement to change the fundamental relationship between electors and elected, between people and Parliament.

All Out to Prevent a Conservative Majority! All Out for Democratic Renewal!

Terina Hine, posted in Stop the War News & Comment

Thousands assembled on Tuesday evening to join the No to NATO protest for the 70th anniversary NATO summit

Thousands assembled on Tuesday evening [December 3] to join the No to NATO protest as NATO leaders came together for the 70th anniversary NATO summit. For a US President to visit the UK in the middle of a General Election campaign is unprecedented and protesters came out in force on this cold December evening to make their feelings known. Not only were anti-war protesters braving the cold but also a large contingent of NHS workers along with doctors and nurses, to make it clear that the NHS is not for sale.

Rousing speeches were given as the crowd assembled in the late afternoon. Reiner Braun from the International Peace Bureau and Medea Benjamin from Code Pink gave an insight into how NATO is perceived in Europe and the US; representatives of the Kurds in London were protested against Erdogan's recent atrocities against the Kurds, while Tariq Ali and Lindsey German of Stop the War spoke of Trump and the so called Special Relationship. Kate Hudson (CND) told of the devastating impact and escalating cost of nuclear weapons. Speaker after speaker made it clear how NATO is a force for war not peace and how much Trump and all he stands for is reviled by the British public.[1]

The demonstration began in Trafalgar Square and aimed to march down the Mall to Buckingham Palace in time for the arrival of the NATO leaders attending a reception with the Queen. At least that was the plan. In reality police action inhibited the march and the assembly of the protest. By refusing to close the roads at the assembly point at Trafalgar Square, and twice blocking the route as thousands poured down the Mall, the police succeeded in preventing the protesters from greeting the Queen's guests as they arrived.

Held for forty minutes on the Mall, mounted police announced to the marchers that they were being kept back for their own safety; in reality it was blatantly clear that crowd safety was the last thing on the police's mind. The crowd was penned into a small, narrow space, repeatedly told to "stop pushing" although it was hardly possible to move, and when one protester became panicked was jeered and mocked at by the police officer from whom she sought assistance. Once the "danger" of being in the line of sight of passing dignitaries had passed, the protesters were allowed to continue to the Palace, to be met by even more police and the handful of Trump supporters who had been permitted to greet their hero.

Not to be deterred the protest continued and protesters waited for the reception to end so they could make their voices heard. They may not have seen or heard the protest on their arrival at the Palace, but with the drums, trumpets and whistles of the protesters, the NATO leaders could not fail to miss it on their departure.

Back at Trafalgar Square, the R3 Soundsystem - Dance Music Against Trump - was in full swing with dancers blocking the road and music echoing down Whitehall throughout the Trump-Boris Johnson meeting at Downing Street. GloSticks, Dump Trump and No To Nato placards were held high and thrust in the air in time to the beat. This was Trump's third visit to London and the third London welcome he has received. Hopefully it will be his last.

The demonstration was organised by Stop the War Coalition, CND and the International No to War No to NATO network.

It was supported by: Stop Trump, Stand up to Trump, Keep our NHS Public, Muslim Association of Britain, UK Students Climate Network, Venezuela Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Bolivia, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stand up to Racism, Love Music Hate Racism, R3 Soundsystem, Kurdish Solidarity Campaign, Unity of Democratic Forces (Kurdish and Turkish Community Centres), Friends of Al-Aqsa and the People's Assembly.

Ed Note:

1. Lindsey German, the Stop the War Coalition convener, also called for the election of an anti-war government, urging people to make sure on December 13 we have Jeremy Corbyn in 10 Downing Street.

Activists from RCPB(ML) participated in the rally and march. They distributed copies of the Party's statement, "Britain Out of NATO! Dismantle NATO!", as well as being interviewed by independent news media.

The demonstration followed on from the No to Trump, No to NATO counter-summit, which had taken place on the previous Saturday, November 30, in central London. The speakers exposed that NATO was a warmongering alliance, a Cold War relic, and not a force for peace. International participants came from France, Belgium, Germany and the US.

Protest against NATO outside Buckingham Palace


Health workers taking part in protest No to Trump, No to NATO!


Protest against NATO in Edinburgh


Counter-summit Saturday, November 30, central London


Protest in Watford where the summit was held

Tata Steel to make one in eight of its British workforce redundant

Hundreds of steel workers from Redcar, Tata and Caparo steel plants marched on Parliament to confront the government over the steel industry closures on October 28 2015

Workers in the steel industry are facing yet another dose of wrecking of steel production. Tata Steel has announced it expects to cut over 1,000 jobs across Britain. Two thirds of the job losses will be management and office-based roles, Tata said. In the Netherlands 1,600 positions are also set to go, with 350 others cut elsewhere in the world. Port Talbot employs 4,000 workers - nearly half of Tata's British workforce. Tata has one steel-making site and five other facilities in Wales.

Community, the union which represents Steelworkers, said it was "seriously concerned about the direction that Tata Steel Europe is taking". It said it wanted to see "a vision for the future, which includes plans for investment".

"We have been presented with short-term plans, which only create worry and uncertainty.

"It feels like the company is just managing decline and we need a significant change of direction that can inspire the workforce that they have a future."

Recently, the collapse of a planned merger with Germany's Thyssenkrupp, which would have created Europe's second biggest steelmaker was stonewalled, showing that the monopoly,Tata and the steel oligopolies, including various Global Capitalist States like Britain, were not able to solve the world steel crisis. The European Commission blocked the deal citing pricing and competition rules.

Tata blamed a drop in demand for steel across the EU for the job cuts, which it said was made worse by global trade tensions. The capitalist global market and ruthless competition represents in built systemic failure and is riddled with crisis. Tata also cited an increase in the cost of emissions allowances for the heavily polluting industry, showing clear that carbon capture technology needs to be investment and also research.

Much of the British steel production has become dependent on recycling rather than fresh iron ore. It led to closure of various bessamers. Heating and forging has been faced with fossil fuel use rather than modern electric smelting. Tata has said that it is necessary to improve production processes.

Other producers have faced similar problems. 4,000 jobs were recently saved at British Steel after the Chinese firm Jingye bought the company's Scunthorpe site.

Roy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community union which represents workers in the steel industry, said,

"I think the way the company have handled this has been atrocious, it's never a good time but having this announcement hit us a few weeks before Christmas is absolutely scandalous.

Militant demonstration of Teesside steelworkers, 2015

He told BBC Radio Wales the plans had "no credibility" for the unions and Tata had been told to "go away, think again, and come back with a clear strategy, come back with a strategy for the future".

"We want to know about investment, what the future holds and all they've done is come up with this awful proposal just to cut jobs.

"Tata Steel has previously confirmed that they intend to seek to avoid compulsory redundancies and I will be impressing on the company the importance of standing by this commitment."

David Rees, Labour AM for Aberavon, said the "uncertainty" of not knowing where the UK roles would be cut "does not help steelworkers, their families and the wider community".

Of concern also to the steel-workers is the talk about the "pension liabilities", which means that the government puts the rightful claims of the workers to their pensions to the bottom of its concerns. Sajid Javid, Conservative government business secretary under Teresa May, ruled out taking responsibility for the workers' pensions.

The British steel industry is going through a crisis that threatens its very existence. Rather than take either practical emergency measures or make longer term plans to safeguard the present and future of this essential part of the national economy, the government has continually claimed that nothing could be done. Non-establishment candidates in the General Election argue the contrary that things can be and must be done.

Britain, exporting more steel than it imports, has the potential to produce all the steel required by the national economy. Any surplus or deficit in production could be traded with other countries in a planned and controlled manner to the benefit of both Britain and its trading partners. In conditions of unrestricted monopoly-controlled trade, with local production competing with global production, crisis is inevitable. An alternative direction is required, social production needs a pro-social economy. Closure of plants, making workers redundant and the loss of skills seriously erodes the self-reliant potential of the economy.

An economy cannot be built to ensure the claims of society on it without a manufacturing base, which requires basic materials such as steel. Steel is still ubiquitous, not least in machinery and infrastructure. Steel remains a necessity for the functioning of the economy.

The present crisis of Britain's steel industry today is the culmination of years of closing of plants and selling off the remaining assets to private interests of what was previously the state-owned British Steel Corporation.

The Labour Party Election manifesto refers to the steel industry. Workers have demanded that the issues that have faced British steel production in the last three years in particular, should be addressed. The Labour Manifesto under a Corbyn government says, "A thriving steel industry will be vital to the Green Industrial Revolution. Labour will support our steel through public procurement, taking action on industrial energy prices, exempting new capital from business rates, investing in R&D, building three new steel recycling plants and upgrading existing production sites". [Labour Manifesto, 2019]

The steel industry is a vital part of the economy. It must not be destroyed!

The RMT has fought the attack on the role of the guard over the last few years on a whole number of train companies. The role of the guard is critical in maintaining public safety.

RMT action in defence of safety on South Western Railway has seen around 900 RMT members embark on 27 days of planned action.

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said: "RMT members are standing rock solid and united on South Western Railway this morning as we begin a full month of strike action in support of the safest method of train operation and dispatch. This strike is solely about protecting safety and accessibility on SWR trains. RMT is angry and frustrated that a set of proposals that would have guaranteed the safety-critical role of the guard at the point of dispatch, and which would have cost the company absolutely nothing, were kicked back in our faces last week. There is no rational explanation for the company position and we can only assume that either they or their paymasters in Government wanted this strike action to go ahead for politically motivated purposes."

Mick Cash continued: "Instead of spending a fortune mobilising an army of under-trained and potentially dangerous Contingency Guards the company should be back round the table with the union concentrating on reaching the negotiated settlement that is easily within grasp, which they committed to verbally in earlier talks and which would cost SWR nothing."

It is reported that SWR is being compensated by the government on any losses caused by the strike of up to £86 million for the days when it is not running trains.