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
AT THE end of one of the hardest years in living memory, disabled campaigners are determined to make celebrations for this year’s International Day of Disabled People extra special.
After a decade of austerity and welfare reform measures deliberately designed to hit disabled people hardest, along came Covid-19 and official responses to the pandemic that explicitly rated disabled people’s lives as worth less than those of non-disabled people.
The year 2020 was also the anniversary of two important disability-related milestones: the first was the passage of the Disability Discrimination Act in 1995; the other was the founding of Disabled People Against Cuts.
Digital ID means the government could track anyone and then limit their speech, movements, finances — and it could get this all wrong, identifying the wrong people for the wrong reasons, as the numerous digital cockups so far demonstrate, warns DYLAN MURPHY
Here are the voices of DANIEL KEBEDE, FRAN HEATHCOTE, HOLLY TURNER and LEANNE MOHAMAD explaining why they will be taking part in the People’s Assembly No More Austerity demo next weekend



