Once the bustling heart of Christian pilgrimage, Bethlehem now faces shuttered hotels, empty streets and a shrinking Christian community, while Israel’s assault on Gaza and the tightening grip of occupation destroy hopes of peace at the birthplace of Christ, writes Father GEOFF BOTTOMS
We cannot continue like this – the housing crisis is here and now
Millions of young people want to leave their parental home and stand on their own two feet, but are unable to do so due to a supercharged housing market and no access to social housing. NEIL FINDLAY calls for action to fix a broken system
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
The June 2025 attacks on Iran have heightened the risk of a wider war, exposed the fiction of a rules-based international order and left ordinary Iranians trapped between external aggression and internal repression, says the Committee for Defence of Iranian People’s Rights
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
A WWI hero, renowned ornithologist, medical doctor, trade union organiser and founder member of the Communist Party of Great Britain all rolled in one. MAT COWARD tells the story of a life so improbable it was once dismissed as fiction
The long-term effects of chemical weapons such as Agent Orange mean that the impact of war lasts well beyond a ceasefire
LAST week I spoke to a young recent graduate employed in the NHS. Working in Edinburgh, she loves her job in a large city hospital where she treats cancer patients and wants to build a long-term career in our greatest national institution.
Like many recent graduates, she left university saddled with a high level of student debt, paid out mostly to private landlords for exorbitant levels of rent.
Having spent two years flat-sharing with friends who have now moved to other cities, she found herself having to look for her fifth flatshare in as many years.
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Our housing crisis isn’t an accident – it’s class war, trapping millions in poverty while landlords and billionaires profit. To solve it, we need comprehensive transformation, not mere tokenistic reform, writes BECK ROBERTSON
While the council can generate much-needed income with this new charge, making the city sustainable and affordable for its all-important workers needs a wider approach that’s not just focused on tourism, writes IAN MacCORQUODALE
A new Bill seeks to prevent price-gouging landlords evicting tenants under dubious grounds only to hike up the rent for the next tenant. Living Rent is campaigning hard to make sure this provision becomes law, writes ADITI JEHANGIR