Labour prospects in May elections may be irrevocably damaged by Birmingham Council’s costly refusal to settle the year-long dispute, warns STEVE WRIGHT
Christmas: a time when authority is subverted
The short days and cold weather make work hard and insurrection appealing, writes KEITH FLETT
REBELS IN RED: A group of revellers gather for the raucous and often riotous ‘santacon’ street party
HENRY FOWLER and ROB POOLE explain the significance of today’s Megapicket
One hundred years after 1.7m workers shut the country down in defence of the miners, the struggles that sparked the 1926 General Strike are still with us – and will be honoured on London’s May Day march this year, writes MARY ADOSSIDES
The Labour Growth Group and its think tank partner, the Good Growth Foundation, have taken funding from major lobbying firms linked to housebuilders, banks and Heathrow – raising questions about corporate influence at the heart of Starmer’s pro-growth project. SOLOMON HUGHES reports
The fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a registered nurse and union member, has sparked nationwide protests and renewed calls from National Nurses United to dismantle Ice and related agencies, says MARK GRUENBERG
A Vatican photo-op, a hard-right donor and a rhetoric of mass deportations reveal how appeals to ‘Christian values’ are being reshaped by Reform and Tory MPs, says SOLOMON HUGHES
FOR those who support a zero-Covid strategy to deal with the ongoing pandemic, the decision of all four UK governments to ease restrictions on social interaction for a few days over the Christmas period looks like a concerning one.
Infections are likely to rise as a result, with all the problems and difficulties that can bring.
At the same time, way beyond Boris Johnson’s dreams of herd immunity, there is perhaps an understanding that Christmas genuinely is a time like no other.
Similar stories
JULIA THOMAS unpicks the mental processes that explain why book-to-film adaptations so often disappoint
KEITH FLETT revisits the 1978 origins of Britain’s May Day bank holiday — from Michael Foot’s triumph to Thatcher’s reluctant acceptance — as Starmer’s government dodges calls to expand our working-class celebrations
Starmer’s slash-and-burn approach to disability benefits represents a fundamental break with Labour’s founding mission to challenge the idle rich rather than punish the vulnerable poor, argues KEITH FLETT
DENNIS BROE appreciates the work of TV writer Steven Knight, and his systematic exposure of the debilitating effects of British capitalism