I thought I’d said my piece on Ken and would now wait to see if he could muddle his way through to a Labour victory, however unlikely it might seem. However it seems that Ken can’t help himself: he seems doomed to throw the election because of one thing: his own extraordinary lack of self-awareness. Firstly it… Continue reading Livingstone logic
Author: robert.marchant
Public sector pay: the Chicken Licken model
As part of the Budget run-up, on Friday Britain’s labour movement was convulsed at the thought of the latest Osborne proposal: that national public sector pay rates might be scrapped. But, before we join the voices of the major trade unions and the TUC who are, understandably, trying to look out for their own interest… Continue reading Public sector pay: the Chicken Licken model
A trip to Stockholm for London Labour
This week’s revelations about Ken Livingstone’s tax affairs are not shocking. They are not even very surprising. But they are important in another sense: in the direct contradiction they highlight between word and deed. Now, as many readers of Labour Uncut will know, its contributors are not generally renowned as class warriors. But, as a… Continue reading A trip to Stockholm for London Labour
Why Occupy failed
I have to make a confession. I haven’t really engaged with Occupy London – evicted yesterday from St Paul’s – in the few months since it started out. Perhaps I missed something vitally important about it all. I think I’ve written about them only once, in passing, mainly because I wasn’t sure that they were… Continue reading Why Occupy failed
Welcome to the 2010s: the era of reactive, populist, say-anything politics
What has David Cameron done so far, which has marked him out as a prime minister? The answer is, surprisingly little, as John Rentoul observes in theIndependent on Sunday: “…the Prime Minister seems unformed. He is adroit at reacting to events, but not so good at making them happen.” But that does not mean he… Continue reading Welcome to the 2010s: the era of reactive, populist, say-anything politics
The so-called party of law and order is failing on counter-terrorism
On Monday, Abu Qatada, widely recognised to be one of the world’s most dangerous men, was released on bail. Everyone thought it was wrong, including the government. But when the executive starts blaming the judiciary for the implementation of the laws its own leaders are responsible for drafting and maintaining, something is usually wrong. Shadow… Continue reading The so-called party of law and order is failing on counter-terrorism
A good day for corruption
I know, I am not Spanish, and perhaps this subject is very boring for my (mostly British) readers. I am only Spanish by marriage, and through friendships. But rarely have I felt so strongly about a legal injustice as what happened last week in Madrid. On Thursday night, I was struggling to remember the last… Continue reading A good day for corruption
What Chris Huhne’s departure tells us about British politics
So, Chris Huhne has left the cabinet. Entire forests have already been destroyed over the interceding months, since the story broke about the speeding points allegedly taken for him by his wife. He will now be charged and is innocent until proven guilty: that is the fair play to which he is entitled. We will… Continue reading What Chris Huhne’s departure tells us about British politics
Camps vs Garzón: an extraordinary inversion of justice
Carlos Liria, friend of former President Camps, on the hotel balcony minutes before the jury was Imagine a major British political figure, like the Mayor of London or the First Minister of Scotland, in the middle of a political scandal which everyone thought he would go down for. At the last minute a jury finds him not guilty… Continue reading Camps vs Garzón: an extraordinary inversion of justice
Labour needs to get back in touch with business
This month, Alex Smith’s pamphlet, Labour’s Business, is being published online, chapter by chapter. Today is the turn of my own chapter 3, Reaching out: engaging with business at every level of the party. To mark the occasion, I posted this at the Huffington Post, and you can read the chapter online here. In all the furore… Continue reading Labour needs to get back in touch with business