The Milburn review presents itself as a plan to help young people into work, but Dr DYLAN MURPHY argues it is laying the groundwork for a harsher benefits regime
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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
Campaigners from across the continent will gather in Brussels on June 14 to oppose Europe’s accelerating militarisation and cuts to public services, write MAGGIE SIMPSON and BOB ORAM of No Cold War Britain
National co-ordinator for General Strike 100, HENRY FOWLER, continues his nationwide tour of partner organisations by visiting the Modern Records Centre at Warwick University
GEOFF BOTTOMS recalls meeting Fidel Castro in the ’90s after joining a Pastors for Peace caravan to Cuba, and reflects on how international support is still vital to help the island withstand economic warfare
The Ivors Academy’s hike in entry fees could turn this respected peer-assessed event into an exclusive preserve for those wealthy enough to compete, warns BEN LUNN
Peter Murrell’s weakness for the allure of prestige goods is symptomatic of modern consumer culture, says MATT KERR
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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The biggest strike in global history is a template for our future. The silence tells you all you need to know, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE
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JOE GILL appreciates a lucid demonstration of how capital today is an outgrowth of the colonial economy
MARTYN GRAY asks TUC congress to endorse measures that would help stop the present exploitation of seafarers
The Bill addresses some exploitation but leaves trade unions heavily regulated, most workers without collective bargaining coverage, and fails to tackle the balance of power that enables constant mutation of bad practice, write KEITH EWING and LORD JOHN HENDY KC