Robinson successfully defended his school from closure, fought for the unification of the teaching unions, mentored future trade union leaders and transformed teaching at the Marx Memorial Library, writes JOHN FOSTER
Rail privatisation isn’t working
RMT president ALEX GORDON says privatised railways stand exposed as unable to deliver safe, reliable public transport, or the modal shift from road to rail that our planet needs
The first named train as part of the London North Eastern Railway (LNER) Azuma fleet on the East Coast route, is liveried at Bounds Green Depot in London, May 15, 2023
A judge in a German court ruled that the ban activity imposed on renowned Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah was unlawful, reports LEON WYSTRYCHOWSKI
At the very moment Britain faces poverty, housing and climate crises requiring radical solutions, the liberal press promotes ideologically narrow books while marginalising authors who offer the most accurate understanding of change, writes IAN SINCLAIR
From Gaza protest bans to proscribing Palestine Action, political elites are showing a crisis of confidence as they abandon Roy Jenkins’s apologetic approach for Suella Braverman’s aggressive ‘hate march’ rhetoric, writes PAUL DONOVAN
ANSELM ELDERGILL examines the legal case behind this weekend’s Tolpuddle Martyrs’ Festival and the lessons for today
Ben Chacko talks to RMT leader EDDIE DEMPSEY about how the key to fixing broken Britain lies in collective sectoral bargaining, restoring unions’ ability to take solidarity strike action and bringing about the much-vaunted ‘wave of insourcing’
The summer of 1950 saw Labour abandon further nationalisation while escalating Korean War spending from £2.3m to £4.7m, as the government meekly accepted capitalism’s licence and became Washington’s yes-man, writes JOHN ELLISON
PRIVATE companies now run less of our rail network than at any time since Tory rail privatisation began in 1993.
Of 17 passenger train operators across Britain, seven are run by the Department for Transport’s Operator of Last Resort or its equivalent in Wales and Scotland, three by foreign state-owned companies, and three by joint ventures that include foreign state-owned companies. Only four train operators are now run by private companies.
Rail privatisation was sold to the public as a way to bring competition, innovation and investment from the private sector. A total illusion, of course.
More from this author
RMT’s former president ALEX GORDON explains why his union supports defence diversification and a just transition for workers in regions dependent on military contracts, and calls on readers to join CND’s demo against nuclear-armed submarines on June 7
RMT president ALEX GORDON exposes the government's bellicose foreign policy
ALEX GORDON details how Stop the War Coalition’s efforts have shaped the TUC’s stance, with motions calling for a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel and workplace action for a ceasefire
ANGELO ALVES is a member of the political committee of the Portuguese Communist Party. He spoke to Alex Gordon on the 50th anniversary of Portugal’s Carnation Revolution of April 25 1974 about the legacy and the struggle of young workers and trade unionists today against Portugal’s latest right-wing government
