SOLOMON HUGHES examines the shift in Labour rhetoric on racism and Reform UK – and what’s driving it
Tackle ‘flags of convenience’ and protect domestic shipping
The lesson from the pandemic is clear: the global maritime industry must be properly regulated, warns MARK DICKINSON
A general view of the Port of Liverpool
A new report says the government’s purchase of US nuclear-armed aircraft prioritises transatlantic politics over military needs and ignored its own Strategic Defence Review, writes LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
MAT COWARD reminds us that the resilience of ordinary folk can turn the tables on the mighty and 'entitled'
JACK DAVIDSON explains the motivation behind the UCU strike action at the University of Sheffield
DYLAN MURPHY focuses on the big tech oligarchs’ war against workers and how AI and robotics could destroy 100 million US jobs by 2035
Davie and Turness are two scalps for Trump, Farage and Johnson, writes STEPHEN ARNELL
FLAGS of convenience (FOCs) are a legal aberration and a stain on the shipping industry. They provide shipowners with the means of avoiding effective control by the countries of ownership, mostly from the global North, and the enforcement of strict rules and regulations that protect seafarers.
They have become a powerful vehicle for social dumping by allowing shipowners to exploit weaker legislation and lack of enforcement meaning lower wages, longer tours of duty and hours of work, and unsafe working conditions for seafarers.
Low or no taxes are also a key motivating factor behind a shipowner’s decision to use FOCs, many of which are considered tax havens.
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MARTYN GRAY asks TUC congress to endorse measures that would help stop the present exploitation of seafarers
