After years hidden away, Oldham’s memorial to six local volunteers who died fighting fascism in the Spanish civil war has been restored to public view, marking both a victory for campaigners and a renewed tribute to the town’s proud International Brigade heritage, says ROB HARGREAVES
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The culture wars and rolling back the state
The right-wing ‘war on woke’ is being used as a smokescreen for the dismantling of regulations on business and the economy, while workers’ rights and local government funding are eroded and cut back, argues JOHN GREEN
While pretending to seek peace, Europe is heading toward a collision course with Russia – using security guarantees, troop deployments, expropriation and censorship as tools, writes SEVIM DAGDELEN
Alba party leader KENNY MacASKILL makes some suggestions on how to save our pubs and reduce irresponsible drinking
The catastrophe unfolding in Gaza – where Palestinians are freezing to death in tents – is not a natural disaster but a calculated outcome of Israel’s ongoing blockade, aid restrictions and continued violence, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
Opinion polls point to electoral collapse, parliamentary rebellion and a looming leadership challenge as Starmer’s Labour haemorrhages working-class support and the far right exploits the vacuum left by a hollowed-out party, says NICK WRIGHT
The long-term effects of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange mean that the impact of war lasts well beyond a ceasefire
AT THE recent virtual Tory Party conference Boris Johnson demonstrated that his government is ratcheting up its attacks on the role of the state and using Brexit to divide working people by using nationalist and jingoist rhetoric.
“We are proud of this country’s culture and history and traditions; they literally want to pull statues down, to rewrite the history of our country, to edit our national CV to make it look more politically correct,” he said.
“We aren’t embarrassed to sing old songs about how Britannia rules the waves … while the Labour opposition … continue to flirt with those who would tear our country apart.
“I remember how some people used to sneer at wind power, 20 years ago and say that it wouldn’t pull the skin off a rice pudding.
“They forgot the history of this country. It was offshore wind that puffed the sails of Drake and Raleigh and Nelson, and propelled this country to commercial greatness.”
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