Britain - Socialist Action

Corbyn’s Labour is leading a general left advance in Britain

21st June 2017 Socialist Action 0

The 2017 British General Election was of course most spectacularly marked by the advance of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party and the loss of the Tories’ overall majority. But it also saw a shift to the left of the main part of the political spectrum and an increased polarisation with a decline of forces outside the two main left (Labour) and right (Tory) political parties. Votes for the main centre party (Liberal Democrats) continued to decline.

Two key reasons for Corbyn’s stunning advance

19th June 2017 Socialist Action 0

The following article by Tom O’Leary, on Labour’s General Election campaign, was previously published by Socialist Economic Bulletin.

Under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership the Labour Party has staged a stunning revival, prevented Theresa May achieving a landslide which she would have claimed as a mandate for ‘Hard Brexit’ and has caused a crisis of Tory government which will make it harder to make new cuts in public spending, apart from rising inflation. None of Corbyn’s opponents could have possibly achieved that outcome.

Grenfell Tower – an avoidable disaster

19th June 2017 Socialist Action 0

By Paul Taylor

A huge wave of grief and righteous anger has swept across the country in the wake of the horrific loss of life at the Grenfell Tower fire.

Britain can be poor and racist – or better off and non-racist

13th June 2017 Socialist Action 0

By Robin Jackson

Labour achieved a huge success at the election because it stuck firmly to focusing on how to improve people’s living standards – as was analysed here before the election in Why the Corbyn campaign is so effective. This follows the fundamental rule of elections that the party which sets the agenda advances. By focusing the campaign on opposition to austerity, by an explicit pledge on the triple lock for pensioners, on re-nationalisation of the railways, on abolition of tuition fees and numerous other progressive measures Labour focused the agenda clearly on defence of living standards. It was this which produced the sharp increase in turnout at this election – the cornerstone of Labour’s success.

Labour – oppose Hard Brexit and prepare to form the next government

9th June 2017 Socialist Action 0

By Ian Richardson

Theresa May called the general election because living standards were already deteriorating due to the inflation caused by the fall in the pound’s exchange rate after the Brexit referendum. She effectively lost the election because the decline in living standards has already become widely apparent.

Why the Corbyn campaign is so effective

5th June 2017 Socialist Action 0

Editorial

The final results of the general election campaign are not yet known but it is already clear that Labour’s campaign in 2017 is vastly more effective than in 2015. This is accepted even by non-Corbynites such as John Prescott.