Trump’s escalation against Venezuela is about more than oil, it is about regaining control over the ‘natural’ zone of influence of the United States at a moment where its hegemony is slipping, argues VIJAY PRASHAD
Mark Serwotka’s contribution must be recognised
At the helm of Britain’s eighth-largest union for a quarter of a century, he is rightly seen as one of the most principled and effective class fighters of our times, writes JOHN McINALLY
General secretary of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, Mark Serwotka (centre), joins union members of the on the picket line outside the office of HM Treasury, in Westminster. Around 100,000 civil servants from 124 government departments, the Border Force, museums, February 1, 2023
Evidence suggests Lammy’s proposals would come at a high cost: reduced fairness, diminished trust and greater racial inequality in the criminal justice system, argue TARA LAI QUINLAN and KATHARINA KARCHER
From the workhouses of the 1840s to today’s market capitalism, A Christmas Carol remains a sharp critique of charity rationed by class, says KEITH FLETT
The argument for a “significant expansion” of nuclear power will deliver soaring electricity prices that condemn underserved communities to unending hardship and poverty, argues LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
The new plan sets out an uncompromising bid for global dominance, casting even allies as obstacles to be subdued, writes DIANE ABBOTT
As we approach the half-anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy, the community gathers to remember loved ones while grappling with mixed emotions surrounding the ongoing deconstruction of the tower and the hopeful plans for a memorial, writes EMMA DENT COAD
MARK SERWOTKA’s retirement after nearly 25 years as general secretary of Civil Service and outsourced workers’ union PCS, is a significant moment for the union itself and the wider movement.
When I visited him in Papworth Hospital as he awaited a heart transplant in 2016, a procedure fraught with danger, we were both aware it may be the last time we met, yet he focused little on his own precarious situation but expressed great concern toward me following a dreadful bereavement.
His concentration and strategic foresight in the detailed conversation that followed was, given the burden of his condition, remarkable for its analysis of PCS’s perspectives and identification of the tasks ahead.
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With new faces being elected to both to government and to my union, PCS, 2024 has been a year of change – with new challenges ahead for 2025, writes LYNN HENDERSON