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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A bad time for Johnson is letting the SNP off the hook
VINCE MILLS writes that the SNP's piecemeal progressivism around income tax is dwarfed by its cuts to local services — but with a universally reviled Tory Party in charge in Westminster, little criticism sticks
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
LAST WEEK saw one of the biggest blows to the credibility of Boris Johnson’s awful Tory government — and more specifically to Johnson’s personal standing.
Note: this was not because of the reactionary Nationality and Borders Bill, which will make the perilous Channel crossings even more deadly, nor the authoritarian Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill for England and Wales, a godsend for any police chief who wants inconvenient demonstrators off the streets.
Nor was it even the Tories’ Internal Market Act which concentrates all powers over state aid and competition policy in the hands of the Westminster Parliament, taking away the powers delegated to the Scottish Parliament — or for that matter, the Subsidy Control Bill also designed to protect “the free market” from the dangers of public authorities using subsidies in progressive ways.
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Tackling poverty in Scotland cannot happen without properly funded public services. Unison is leading the debate
Attempts at haggling to win a deal over the Scottish Budget still leave public services short-changed, writes MATT KERR
As polls show Scottish Labour’s support crumbling and Reform rising even among independence supporters, an urgent need emerges for an alternative based on public investment paid for by radical progressive taxation, argues VINCE MILLS