Long-term monitoring gives an in-depth picture of marine heatwaves around our coastline, writes TIM SMYTH
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In a sea of centrist dross, try the Labour Left Podcast
Despite mainstream political podcasts drowning in centrist drivel, Labour Left Podcast offers an authentic grassroots perspective from decades of working-class struggle and resistance, writes SOLOMON HUGHES
ANNOYING YET OMNIPRESENT: The podcasting left must find ways to break the painful dominance of Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart
Starmer should not need to wait for the High Court’s decision on F-35 parts in order to do the right thing, warns CLAUDIA WEBBE
SABINA PRICE reports from the World Federation of Democratic Youth general assembly in Namibia
A devastating new 44-page report reveals Labour’s cuts will push 400,000 into poverty and cost disabled people up to £10,000 annually, while the government refuses to make savings by cutting spending on war instead, writes Dr 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
Recent charges under Scotland’s Hunting with Dogs Act highlight enforcement gaps, writes KIERAN COLES, revealing how police routinely give hunts notice of their presence in advance, effectively removing any chance of catching lawbreakers red-handed
DIANE ABBOTT MP argues that Labour’s proposals contained in the recent white paper won’t actually bring down immigration numbers or win support from Reform voters — but they will succeed in making politics more nasty and poisonous
IF you are trying to find a podcast to listen to, but your ears are curling over and closing in disgust at the endless lapping of sensible centrist soundwaves, I might have an answer.
Listening to podcasts — including those full of political chat — is an increasingly popular pastime. But it can be a bit of a struggle to find a podcast that doesn’t have some horror like Alastair Campbell, Rory Stewart, Emily Maitlis, Alastair Campbell, Jon Sopel, Jess Phillips, Alastair Campbell, Ed Balls, or even Alastair Campbell bombastically blabbing along.
But here is one solution. The Labour Left Podcast has been running for around a year now. It’s a podcast which manages to combine the grit of the grassroots with the surprising, entertaining and informative.
It helps that the Labour Left Podcast is hosted by Bryn Griffiths. He’s currently an activist in Colchester Labour Party and Momentum, but Bryn has been active on the Labour left since the 1980s — so he knows his stuff and knows people to talk to, and talks to them in a natural and engaging way.
Recent Labour Left Podcast guests range from former left-wing Labour national executive committee member Mish Rahman, Andrew Fisher, Labour director of policy under Corbyn, talking about the successes and shenanigans inside the party, Mike Jackson of Lesbians and Gay Men Support the Miners looking back on the miners’ strike and left academic Jeremy Gilbert talking about the meaning of Thatcherism.
Bryn also has been active in the Labour Party both in the “up” times of Bennism and Corbynism and the “down” times of Blairism and Starmerism.
This means one of the themes is the question of any useful way of being a Labour activist when the leadership seems rotten. Whether you ultimately agree with the case to stay with Labour (and Morning Star readers will fall on both sides), Bryn has the personal history to talk it through with depth.
His episode on the Labour left in Brighton in the 1980s, with the Falklands war, miners’ strike, the Labour councillor who refused to “condemn” the IRA even after they blew up the Grand Hotel as it was hosting the Conservative conference and a guest appearance from Gerry Adams (in Brighton to meet the Labour left, not the podcast) is very gripping.
To try to avoid being too long or dry or heavy, each Podcast now breaks into two half-hour slots; this was a good idea, and I wonder if it might be worth making them into separate half-hour episodes.
You can watch the Labour Left Podcast on YouTube or listen on all the usual digital outlets, including Spotify, Audible, Amazon and Apple. Just Google or search “Labour Left Podcast” and you will find it.
Follow Solomon on X @SolHughesWriter.
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