In a local branch meeting I attended last month, a young Socialist Party member suggested that we use alternative media instead of traditional books. They argued that newer, younger members may struggle to grasp or have the patience to read Marx, Engels, or even Lenin. The member suggested that we 'get with the times' and introduce new forms of media like audiobooks, films, and podcasts.

Personally, I was recommended State and Revolution as an introduction to socialism, but I am middle-aged and haven't had my brain zapped by TikTok and YouTube shorts. So, I ask for advice here: should we offer easier-to-digest media?

Hello comrades, Torquay will see a Stop The Boats protest tomorrow evening 7th of August. for those living there stay safe as right wingers will be bussed up and down from all over Britain.

We: a coalition of trade unions and socialists as well as activists and other such leftist groups will counter protest Stop The Boats but we are only strong in numbers. I am asking if you disagree with these extremists and wish to struggle along side us please come and join.

And with sufficient numbers are voice will be heard.

It has also come to our attention that a protest is expected to take place on Thursday in Exeter.

I am currently organising to counter in my home city of Exeter.

for further information reach out through signal: squid_slime.37

More info: https://www.reddit.com/r/GreenAndPleasant/comments/1ekkyzg/list_of_targets_for_wednesday_night_in_the/

Counter protests being organised accordingly. Check with your local good folk or Stop Racism site. Stay safe, this group is violent. Their target list is below.

ηηηηηηηηηηη WEDNESDAY NIGHT LADS THEY WONT STOP COMING UNTIL YOU TELL THEM... NO MORE IMMIGRATION 8PM MASK UP SPREAD THIS AS FAR AND WIDE AS YOU CAN ηηηηηηηηηηη

ALDERSHOT

• Immigration Advisors Ltd, Victoria Road, GU11 1TH

CANTERBURY

• UK Immigration Clinic, Canterbury Innovation Centre, CT2 7FG

CHATHAM

• Immigration Status UK, Maidstone Road, ME5 9FD

CHELMSFORD

• UK Immigration Information Centre, Violet Close, CM1 6XG

BEDFORD

• Immigration INN, Ford End Road, MK40 4JT

BIRMINGHAM

• Refugee and migrant centre, Frederick Street, B1 3HN

BLACKBURN

• Rafiq Immigration Services, Whalley Road, BB5 1AA

BLACKPOOL

• Immigration Solicitors, Enterprise Centre, Lytham Road, FY1 1EW

BOLTON

• Deane & Bolton Immigration lawyers, Chorley new road, BL1 4QR

BRENTFORD

• UK Immigration Help, Great West End, TW8 9HH

BRIGHTON

• Raj Rayan Immigration, Queens Road, BN1 3XF

BRISTOL

• Gya Williams Immigration, West Street, BS2 0BL

CHEADLE

• Intime Immigration Services, Brooks Drive, SK8 3TD

DERBY

• Immigration advisory Service, Normanton Road, DE23 6US HARROW
• Yes UK Immigration, Pinner Road, HA1 4HN

HASTINGS

• Black Rock Immigration, Cambridge Gardens, TN34 1EN

HULL

• Conroy Baker Immigration Lawyer, Norwich House, Savile Street, HU1 3ES

KENT

• Kent Immigration and advice, Castle Hill Road, CT16 1QG

LINCOLN

• Immigration Lawyer Services, Carlton Mews, LN2 4FJ

LIVERPOOL

• Merseyside Refugee Centre, Overbury Street, L7 3HJ

MIDDLESBOROUGH

• Immigration advice centre, Linthorpe Road, TS1 4AT

NEWCASTLE United Immigration Services - Westgate Road, NE4 9PQ

NORTH FINCHLEY

• Immigration and Nationality Services, Percy Road, N128BU

NORTHAMPTON

• Zenith Immigration Lawyers, Talbot Road, NN1 4JB

NOTTINGHAM East Midlands Immigration Services - Stonesbury Vale NG2 7UR

OLDHAM

• Expert Immigration - Ellen Street 0L9 6QR

OXFORD

• Asylum Welcome, Magdelen Road, OX4 1RE

PETERBOROUGH

• Smart Immigration Services, Lincoln Road, PE1 2PN

PORTSMOUTH

• UK Border Agency, Kettering Terrace, PO2 8QN

PRESTON

• Adriana Immigration Services, Church Street PR1 3BS

ROTHERHAM

• Parker Rhodes Immigration Lawyer, The Point S60 1BP

SHEFFIELD

• White Rose Visas, Wilkinson Street, S10 2GJ

STOKE

• ZR Visas, Metcalfe Road, ST6 7AZ

SOUTHAMPTON

• Y-Axis Immigration Consultants, Grosvenor Square, SO15 2BG

SOUTHEND

• MNS Immigration Solicitors, Ditton Court Road, SS0 7HG

SUNDERLAND

• North of England Refugee Service, High Street East, SR1 2AX

TAMWORTH

• Lawrencia & Co immigration solicitors, Amber Business Village, B77 4RP

WALTHAMSTOW

• Waltham Forest Immigration Bureau, Hoe Street, E17 3AP

WIGAN

• Support for Wigan Arrivals Project, Penson Street WN1 2LP`

Once again, I joined a counter-protest standing against the "stop the boats" demonstration. Similar to our efforts in Bristol, we significantly outnumbered them.

A diverse coalition of socialists from The Socialist Party (formerly Militant) and Socialist Workers Party, anarchists, anti-war groups, trade unions, and other activists gathered in the heart of Plymouth to express our disagreement with the protestors—a violent group who resorted to hurling stones, fireworks, unopened cans of beer that exploded on impact, empty glass bottles, and even an iPhone charger, which I will now use for its intended purpose (thanks for the freebie).

The right-wing protesters were aggressive, attempting to flank the police to engage in fights with us. Some even infiltrated our counter-protest, only to be forcefully removed by anarchists and police.

Organizing such a large demonstration was a Herculean effort, but it paid off. Unlike the counter-protest in Bristol, where vandalism and fighting were prominent, this time we showcased our strength through sheer numbers and organization. These right-winger are indeed a minority.

aerial photo.

___ Credit u/theflyingquad on reddit. left - "stop the boats" right - counter demo.

!

me middle of set up

___ teacher union banner

!

> Transport union leader Mick Lynch has said union bosses need to do more to combat flaring anti-immigration protests across the UK and Ireland. > > The RMT (National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers) boss, who has risen to prominence in recent years during public transport strikes in England, gave the annual Connolly Lecture on the opening day of Feile an Phobail at St Mary’s University College on Thursday. > > The union leader’s comments come amid anti-immigrant disorder in the Southport area of England after three children were killed in a knife attack at a summer school. > > Disorder has also been seen in recent months in the Republic with attacks against premises hosting asylum seekers in Dublin and other areas. This Saturday anti-immigrant protests have been organised in Belfast in response to the killings of Bebe King (6), Elsie Dot Stancombe (7) and Alice Dasilva Aguiar (9).

Far-right thugs in violent clashes with police as unrest spreads to cities across UK - by Independent

> Violent outbreaks spread across the UK on Saturday with far-right thugs hurling bricks, bottles and chairs at the police as demonstrations broke out in more than half a dozen cities. > > Home secretary Yvette Cooper condemned the “thuggery” and “criminal disorder” that has followed in the wake of the tragic Southport stabbings, warning that anyone involved in the ongoing violence “will pay the price”. > > “Criminal violence and disorder has no place on Britain’s streets,” she said on Saturday afternoon following clashes in cities including Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Hull, Nottingham and Belfast.

This isn't a "thuggery" issue, this is a social media and class issue. Standing with Bristol's counter-protestors, who had outnumbered the right-wing protestors, I heard chants that weren't about unity but instead division, polarizing both sides further. "Fuck off nazi fascist" might sound good, might be somewhat correct, but a large number of the protestors on the right are working-class people who have been told by GB News that migrants are the cause of our woes. We need a loud and informed slogan that will pull them back.

TUSC and unions are using "Fight the bosses, not migrants - fund our NHS and services," a non-divisive slogan laying the blame where it truly belongs. Meanwhile, BBC's reporting has captured and repeated the anarchist slogan of "Refugees are welcome." This slogan is made to offend and to stir aggression in our division. We can't allow the capitalist media to spin our program and fight by giving them easy wins with vapid slogans.

We need a slogan for the workers. I will be in Plymouth tomorrow as part of a counter-protest led by the trade unions, and I will be chanting "Fight the bosses, not migrants," pushing for a workers' party.

> Many Communication Workers Union (CWU) reps and members will now be thinking about what the union will do under the Starmer-led Labour government. Jeremy Corbyn’s popular manifesto promise had been to bring Royal Mail back into public ownership. This was agreed at Labour Party conference since, but was not in the manifesto. > > Meanwhile, Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, whose business already owns 25% of Royal Mail, is bidding to take it over. > > The Labour manifesto stated: “Royal Mail remains a key part of the UK’s infrastructure. Labour will ensure that any proposed takeover is robustly scrutinised and that appropriate guarantees are forthcoming that protect the interests of the workforce, customers and the United Kingdom, including the need to maintain a comprehensive universal service obligation. Labour will also explore new business and governance models for Royal Mail so that workers and customers who rely on Royal Mail services can have a stronger voice in the governance and strategic direction of the company.”

Strikes do a few things. 1: they give workers what little dignity can be afforded to them in a capitalist system. 2: they show the flaw of our system.

When met with inflation that surpasses our wages what option is there other than to strike, and we can strike through many ways such as not paying our landlords on mass to impede plans to evict from or demolish our homes, we can strike paying utility's that raise our prices demonstrably, we can as civilian boycott all sorts of industry to demand change. All strikes in one sence do fail, they'll give limited dignity ready to be steadily chipped away at giving way to a new struggle as we live in a system that function on indignity.

But in a socialist sense even the failed strikes are successful in other ways, they can show the inequality between worker and owner, renter and landlord, consumer and shareholder. Each strike is another nail in the coffin of capital and this is why we stand in solidarity with the people at Amazon, the ones working for Stagecoach and the G4S security at jobcenters earning near to minimal wage.

If you see a strike taking place then show them your civic support, bring drinks or have a chat, maybe even pick up a placard.

Hello comrades.

weekend just gone The Socialist Party set up a booth to speak with festival goers and union members, other political groups were present too such as the SWP, Communist Party and the RCP, Workers Party. this year we faced less mud but also less crowds although the weather was mostly wet we all had a pretty good time paying respects to the martyrs of Tolpuddle with banners and flags raised high. looking forward to Socialism 2024 Festival where again we can share in solidarity but hopefully in dryer weather and cheaper beer.

while at Tolpuddle Martyrs we pushed unions to consider forming a workers party with mass union backing, this could be the party to confront Labour and the greater capitalist structure of our politics, we campaigned with flyers as well as through petitions and dialogs in large talk-events held by notable union members.

!

> Who is striking and when? Find out the strikes this week and how they will affect you with the UK Strike Action Calendar. Full date listings of all currently planned regional and country-wide strikes.

> A recent BBC interview with the president of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, has racked up millions of views. In it, he calls out the hypocrisy of the interviewer questioning his government’s plans to extract billions of dollars worth of oil and gas from Guyana’s newly discovered reserves, on the basis that this will contribute to global climate change. > > Ali points out that, even after extracting those resources, Guyana will still be carbon neutral due to its huge untouched forest, covering 80% of the country, with the lowest deforestation rate in the world. > > He poses some questions to the interviewer: ‘If you value biodiversity and the climate, are you [the West] willing to pay for it?’ He argues that the global capitalist system leaves him no choice but to extract the oil and gas: “We have this natural resource. And we’re going to aggressively pursue this natural resource because we have to develop our country.” Around half of Guyana’s population live under the poverty line, but the country has seen economic growth averaging over 40% over the last three years due to the influx of oil money. Profit problem > > This highlights the major problem with attempting to solve the climate crisis under a capitalist system: the lack of profit to be made from protecting natural resources and the inability of capitalist nation states to cooperate in developing global productive potential. Capitalism is incapable of taking the united international action needed to reverse climate warming. > > The serious thinkers of capitalism are only too aware that climate change is an existential threat that needs urgent action. Their proposals, however, are always constrained by the limits of the system they defend. To implement the urgent and sweeping changes needed to avoid climate catastrophe requires a global socialist plan of production, based on nationalisation of major industries under the democratic control and management of the working class. > > In a recent address to investors, the former British Petroleum (BP) chief executive Lord John Browne urged them to consider Aesop’s fable of the rider who stops feeding his horse in peacetime, only to find it lame when war comes. The soldier in the analogy represented the companies who are pulling back on climate action, creating more long-term risk for all concerned as the ever-greater effects of the climate crisis loom.

> We need council homes. Over a million people languish on waiting lists for council housing. In the main, these are people who cannot get together huge deposits either for rent or a mortgage, who can’t afford gruelling private rents, and don’t have the ability to buy a home either. > > So-called affordable housing is out of reach for millions. 40% of council housing built in the last century is now in the hands of private landlords thanks to Thatcher’s ‘Right to Buy’ – kept in place by Labour and Tories since – and the fact sold homes haven’t been replaced. > > Add in to the mix the amount of housing, social and private, that is in horrendous condition with black mould, damp, lack of proper fire access, and everything else making tenants unwell and sometimes causing death. > > A tenant who puts their head above the parapet and complains about the condition of their home faces the threat of a Section 21 ‘no-fault’ eviction. The previous Tory government said they were going to end these but, considering they have so many landlords in their ranks (as with Labour), it’s no surprise that they weren’t willing to make it happen.

> As the sun rose on 24th February 1834, Dorset farm labourer George Loveless set off to work, saying goodbye to his wife Betsy and their three children. They were not to meet alone again for three years, for as he left his cottage in the rural village of Tolpuddle, the 37-year-old was served with a warrant for his arrest. > > Loveless and five fellow workers – his brother James, James Hammett, James Brine, Thomas Standfield and Thomas’s son John – were charged with having taken an illegal oath. But their real crime in the eyes of the establishment was to have formed a trade union to protest about their meagre pay of six shillings a week – the equivalent of 30p (or roughly £50 when adjusted for inflation to today’s money) and the third wage cut in as many years. > > With the bloody French Revolution and the wrecking of the Swing Rebellion fresh in the minds of the British establishment, landowners were determined to stamp out any form of organised protests. So when the local squire and landowner, James Frampton, caught wind of a group of his workers forming a union, he sought to stamp it out. Workers met either under the sycamore tree in the village or in the upper room of Thomas Standfield’s cottage. Members swore of an oath of secrecy – and it was this act that led to the men’s arrest and subsequent sentence of seven years’ transportation. > > In prison, George Loveless scribbled some words: “We raise the watchword, liberty. We will, we will, we will be free!” This rallying call underlined the Martyrs’ determination and has since served to inspire generations of people to fight against injustice and oppression. Transportation to Australia was brutal. Few ever returned from such a sentence as the harsh voyage and rigours of slavery took their toll. After the sentence was pronounced, the working class rose up in support of the Martyrs. A massive demonstration marched through London and an 800,000-strong petition was delivered to Parliament protesting about their sentence. > > The story of the Tolpuddle Martyrs and the campaign that freed them inspires us to fight on. The annual festival reflects the spirit of those prepared to stand up and be counted and for those just learning about the history it is a joyful celebration of our solidarity.

any comrades coming to Tolpuddle Martyrs festival?

> Every year 5000 people gather in the green fields of Tolpuddle to celebrate our movement, how far we've come, and debate and strategise for how we continue fighting for workers rights in the UK and beyond. Join us in the green fields of Tolpuddle, 19-21 July 2024!

> Now the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) is publishing a statistical review of the election – The 2024 General Election Fact File – a draft report prepared by the TUSC national election agent Clive Heemskerk for the first post-election meeting of the TUSC all-Britain steering committee taking place on July 17th. > > Including the TUSC candidates’ results, after discussion at the steering committee it will be published on the website’s Candidates Page as a public record – as has been TUSC practice for every election we have stood candidates in since 2011.

> The result, in terms of the number of seats, is a Labour landslide, just shy of Tony Blair’s New Labour victory in 1997. But enthusiasm for Keir Starmer’s Labour was absent from this general election. The absolute vote for Labour was 9.6 million, lower than the 10.2 million vote Jeremy Corbyn-led Labour got in 2019, never mind the 12.8 million he got in 2017. Labour’s vote share, at around 34%, is the lowest ever for a general election victor, whereas in 2017 Corbyn got 40% of the vote, the biggest jump for a national party in one election since 1945. > > The turnout, at less than 60%, was at least as low as 2001, and perhaps the lowest ever in a general election. None of this, of course, has stopped spokespeople for Labour, echoed by the capitalist media, spending election night endlessly repeating how it was only Starmer’s successful ‘change’ in the party (in reality into pro-capitalist New Labour) that had allowed them to go from the allegedly ‘worst election result since 1935’ in 2019 to victory in 2024.

> Relief, rejoice, cautious optimism, scepticism… There will be mixed feelings in the minds of working-class people on 5 July. But whatever the cocktail, the fact clear to everyone will be that the Tories, historically the bosses’ primary political party, which has inflicted 14 years of misery on ordinary people, will be resoundingly defeated. > > At the time of writing, before polling, Labour are odds on with the bookies to have an overall majority, too short even to make it worthwhile Tories betting on their own demise. Their electoral annihilation will dissolve any remaining cohesive substance holding the world’s oldest capitalist party together. > > The source of its fragility? The fragile state of the global capitalist economy and particularly British capitalism’s falling standing within it. And Starmer’s Labour will build a government on those same ruined foundations. > > But although Starmer is committed to defend the capitalists’ interests, that doesn’t mean workers can’t or won’t struggle, or that concessions can’t be extracted from the new government, whatever its intentions entering office.

Solidarity to all. Like most of you, I am glad to have witnessed the end of Tory rule, who faced an embarrassing defeat after 14 years of enforcing austerity measures that inflicted suffering on the working class. However, this change will not be resolved by another capitalist party. Labour, under its current leadership, has shown it’s not a workers’ party, a fact that became evident with Tony Blair’s tenure and their eagerness to remove leftist elements from within their ranks during the last election.

The struggle continues. Fight for true representation and justice for the working class. The end of Tory rule is a step forward, but our journey towards genuine change is not yet over.

> # Tories nearly out > # Vote Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition > # Because Starmer’s Labour doesn’t fight for us > > > Put the champagne on ice! Because by the time you receive the next copy of the Socialist, the Tories will be out of office. > > We can be as sure of that as the Tory insiders placing bets on the date of the general election. In the last days of Rome, they are rinsing the country for everything they can – showing the same disdain for working-class people as they have for the last 14 years. > > The workers’ movement has to prepare now for the new Starmer-led Labour government. On 22 June, fighting trade union reps met for the National Shop Stewards Network to discuss how (see pages 6-7). > > By striking between 27 June and 2 July, junior doctors have put their pay top of Keir Starmer’s very packed agenda. And from 8 July, Tata Steel workers in Port Talbot will strike to defend hundreds of jobs, demanding action from the new Labour government – nationalisation is needed, with no compensation for the fat-cat Tata bosses. > Years of cuts and crisis > > At this election, 40 candidates are standing as part of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition, including many Socialist Party members campaigning for the socialist policies needed to transform working-class people’s lives after years of cutbacks and the cost-of-living crisis, and a new mass party of the working class. > > Vote socialist on 4 July, celebrate seeing the back of the Tories and get ready for the working-class fightback to continue on 5 July.

This post will be segmented as it has been a busy week. Starting with Exeter.

Exeter:

I have been given the privilege of heading an Exeter branch. Speaking with branch leads and branch secretaries, what once felt like a slight nudge has turned into a full endorsement. I am not the type to appoint myself or to ask, so I am glad to have had the insightful chats over the last two days.

So now, how do I go about creating a branch in Exeter? From what I have heard from others who have done the same, with both success and defeat, they all gave similar insights: “It’s hard, but once you recruit one, it’ll get a lot easier.” So far, I have begrudgingly made a Facebook page and created an email account through Tuta. The rest is feet on the ground, leafleting across Exeter in the hopes of finding committed comrades.

Plymouth:

I was in Plymouth from Monday through to Tuesday morning. We had an early start, leaving Exeter at 7:30 am and arriving by 9 am. We headed to the Branch Lead’s house where we wrote the daily itinerary. Then, we moved on to canvassing Plymouth’s social housing estates. The reception was beyond anything I had seen before; we were selling newspapers left, right, and center, and getting TUSC votes. After that, we went to a school where we spoke with parents and handed out leaflets in a final push for the general election. More canvassing took up most of the day until the public meeting with locals hosted by The Socialist Party. The locals were eager to know who we are and what we represent as a workers’ party. The evening continued with drinking, which went on until the early hours.

Lessons Learned:

Election season is intense. The fun kind, like working a bar with four other staffers on World Cup finals – no time to think, but suddenly the bar is empty and we’re closing. Before we leave, we drink, we chat, and we’re all bound by the same experience.

The general election isn’t about the outcome for us. It’s state machinery and it needs dismantling, so it’s not important. What it’s about for me and my fellow comrades is class consciousness. People wake up and see the reality during a general election. We have contaminated drinking water for profit, electric and gas pricing that enriches shareholders and incentivizes environmental destruction, and a political class that sees us as mere objects to step over. We won’t see rent go down, we won’t come out of austerity, and we will continue to pad the pockets of our overlords.

So, comrades, take this time to push and agitate. Turn up to pickets, knock on doors, and ask, “Why are you voting reform?", "Any thoughts on our NHS?". Be revolutionary.

Solidarity comrades, Squid

> Socialist Party members are standing in the general election as part of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition, which is standing 40 candidates. Socialist Party members campaign for: > > * Fully publicly fund the NHS and other public services. Stop and reverse privatisation > > * Mass council house building. Rent control now. Don’t make workers pay for the housing crisis – reject rent and service charge increases. > > * Stop the slaughter in Gaza. No to war! For mass trade union action to stop arming the Israeli state > > * Renationalise rail, mail, energy, water and steel. And other privatised utilities, under democratic workers’ control > > * For real workers’ rights. For inflation-proof pay rises. For a £15 an hour minimum wage. Repeal the anti-trade union laws. Ban zero-hour contracts and fire and rehire > > * Free education and training. Scrap tuition fees. Grants not loans – for college and university. Votes at 16 > > * Combat climate change. For a free-to-use, expanded, renationalised public transport system. Don’t make workers pay for the bosses’ climate crisis > > * Fight for socialist change. Take the wealth of the 1%. Run society in the interests of the many not the few

As we approach the general election it is crucial that we amplify our voices and champion our cause. We've successfully met our fighting fund goal, enabling us to field TUSC candidates across the board. This is our opportunity to bring about real change.

Solidarity comrades, Squid.

Today on Barrack Road, Exeter, medical professionals lined up out side Exeter hospital to demand better. Our NHS is failing. Nurses, NHS carers, and doctors have been vocal, shining a light on our failing NHS, which has been left to rot by the likes of Tories and Labour government.

As socialists, we also demand better. We call for a full restructuring of our NHS, offering incentives such as bursaries, retention schemes for junior doctors and nurses, adequate equipment, and hospital beds to meet demand. We also demand the removal of the corporate rot that has parasitically sucked our taxes out.

We stood in solidarity with our junior doctors today, we stood with our NHS carers last week, and we will continue to stand in solidarity demanding meaningful change for all workers.

> Plymouth’s LGBTQ+ Pride parade had been fractured in the lead-up to the event. Some people broke away from planning the march after hearing of the involvement of companies Babcock and BT. > > Babcock, a UK-based multinational corporation, has made applications for export licences for military equipment to Israel, making them a questionable and inappropriate sponsor of Pride. Trans Pride and others stated: “No Pride in genocide”. > > BT has announced that 55,000 of their 130,000 employees will be laid off over the next six years, as part of a move into ‘AI automation’. This will affect people in Plymouth.

Written by me edited by socialist parties in house editor's. I am also the one on the right in the picture looking uncomfortable as always.

It has been a busy two days! Being firstly tasked with writing a report for Plymouth's pride event has been challenging but a challenge that has been overcome and will be published online tomorrow and in print in the next issue of our physical paper. The article briefly goes over pinkwashing, the pride event and corporates unattractive affairs and how that juxtaposed grassroots workers movements even going as far as to undermine.

3 comrades and myself once again canvassed more of Plymouth, we are slowing making our way through the area rallying support for Alex Moore a TUSC candidate and dedicated socialist. Reception has been great, even reform voters are willing to talk and listen, some have realised that Nigel Farage is not the politician for the workers, many comrades have taken to dismantling Reforms 'social contract'/manifesto to help would-be reform voters vote within their interest.

Events ended today but not before visiting the RFA's picket line and showing our support for Plymouth government employees who have been hit with massive pay cuts over 15 years, but RFA strikers stood strong and seem very hopeful going into the next election.

>Frank Hester, the Tories' largest donor, has given the Tories £15 million, despite his private company, TPP, profiting from £135 million contracts with the Department of Health and Social Care in under four years. Hester was paid £515,000 in 2021-22 and receives £10 million of dividends. The Tories received thousands more from him after his racist and sexist comments were exposed. The second-biggest donor, billionaire Mohamed Mansour, was a minister in Egypt between 2006 and 2009, giving the Tories £5 million and £600,000 from one of his companies. There are reports that Tory donations are drying up, and Labour is also receiving big donations from the ultra-rich.

Summarized

Another beautiful venture to Plymouth with Plymouth branch Socialist Party formally militant.

Today I had got together with comrades, about 8 to show solidarity at the Pride March.

It was a truly amazing turn out and Plymouth branch were well organised through-out. moving with the march.

We mostly went to show solidarity but also to speak with peraders about the strange sponsor's Pride had. One of which is a military contractor Babcock who have been vying for Israeli contracts. Another BT who are planning to lay off 55,000 workers over the next 6 years as it pivots to ai automation. A somewhat unholy partnership. Most pride goers find irritation in this like myself, its purely monitory influence to elevate their ethical legitimacy whist being corpates bastards.

> It won’t surprise anyone to hear that NHS waiting lists have gone up yet again – despite the Tories repeatedly claiming the opposite – to a staggering 7.57 million. That’s 40,000 more people living with the fear and pain these long waits impose.

> The NHS has been at breaking point for so long now it’s become routine. The Tories have devastated services across the board, creating chaos and misery. People struggle to see their GP, wait for hours in overcrowded A&E departments, get stuck in hospital because there is no available care in the community, or wait months for operations they desperately need.

My second venture to Plymouth.

More door knocking and speaking with Plymouth's working class in the lead up to the general election. We had a few people say they will vote tusc: the party we support. we also heard a few say reform: A bosses party dressed up to entice the workers.

As revolutionaries, we must educate our brothers and sisters, read the parties' manifestos, Labour, Tory, and Reform. In doing so, we can show people the true nature and present a socialist alternative.

Later in the evening, the Plymouth branch held an open meeting in the industrial corner of the city, LeadWorks. A full room listened to an older lady and long-time member who read from papers to the Plymouth branch. She shared concise facts about our NHS spanning from its birth to the caucus and how it came to be such. The atmosphere shifted from informal to electric as members raised their hands, eager to speak next. Each one slammed the NHS harder about how the capitalists have sold it bit by bit from under our feet or how the NHS has failed us. Emotions were rightfully high, almost as if mourning a loss and a deep betrayal.

• NHS Documentry

Today I woke up at another comrades house who'd kindly put me up in their spare room, we quickly made our way to a picket line outside Plymouth's hospital. NHS worker about a hundred stood clutching signs along a busy T-junction. Horns beeping and chants echoed, the energy was high and outlook promising.

I was also able to visit the g4s strike outside the job centre. A slightly different energy from that of the NHS care workers, g4s is owned by an american company and it is doubtful that they will yield.

We are currently seeing the beginnings of class consciousness awakening from its slumber and now we must push with determination, be active members as funding isn't enough, We have to be revolutionaries!

Solidarity,

squid.

I am sure we've all heard the argument that "socialism is easily corruptible." This is a misconception. While there is and has been corruption in socialist structures, it would be of a lesser level to that in capitalist political and corporate society. The only difference is that capitalism calls the same corruption farcical names like "lobbying," "corporate influence," "campaign contributions," "regulatory capture," or "crony capitalism." institutionalized corruption.

The Tory Network of Climate Denial and Fossil Fuel Funding: Write up

Credit to @sabreW4K3@lazysoci.al for posting over on !climate@slrpnk.net

>We think MPs are paid too much. If you’re elected as a trade union rep in an office or a factory, you don’t get three times the wages of your workmates or four times their holidays. You live on the same terms and conditions, face the same bills, and try and deal with the same financial pressures and problems as the people around you.

> MPs should be the same. When I was an MP in the 1980s, my family and I took only the average wage of a skilled worker in a unionised factory in Coventry. We weren’t isolated or insulated from the problems of the people in our city. When I complained about the cost of living, it was because it hit my family exactly the same way it hit the people I represented. And every Socialist Party member standing as part of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition in this general election makes the same pledge. If elected, we would be socialist MPs living on a worker’s wage. I think that’s worth supporting. I hope you do too.

A politician should not be a professional career! Its telling when we hear Richie Sunak went without sky TV' as a misguided means to be relatable to the working class. MP's should struggle with us, in doing so they would know the meaningful changes we need. Soon we will see Labour take the wheel with more career politicians. We want better.

The Socialist Party Formally Militant pays all party staff a skilled workers wage, our news papers to be competitive and without predatory advertisements are sold at a loss whilst also printed weekly in house and articles are often submitted in by members, all propped up by memberships and donations.

I don't ask that you join my party but I do ask that if you are a socialist you seek to join one of the many leftist parties here in the UK, I ask that you mobilise. The working class are crying out for an alternative, we want change.

>The Labour Party today unveiled its manifesto for the 4 July General Election, with wealth creation and economic growth at the heart of the party’s plans. > >Unveiling the party’s manifesto at the Co-op headquarters in Manchester, Starmer told the audience: “The way we create wealth is broken. It leaves far too many people feeling insecure. Wealth creation is our number one priority. If you take nothing else away from this today, let it be this. We are pro-business and pro-worker. A plan for wealth creation.” > >He went on to add: “It is too hard for working people to get on, opportunity is not spread evenly enough and too many communities are not just locked out of the wealth we create, they’re disregarded as sources of dynamism in the first place.” > >The Labour Party leader pledged to ‘turn the page forever’. So, what are the key themes and takeaways from the manifesto. We’ve got a breakdown of some of the key pledges: > >Economy > > - The Labour Party made clear its commitment to its fiscal rules, that the current budget moves into balance, so that day-to-day costs are met by revenues and that debt must be falling as a share of the economy by the fifth year of the forecast > - Planning reform in order to build 1.5 million new homes > - Set up the publicly owned GB Energy in order to cut bills for good > - £1.5bn to new gigafactories “so our automotive industry leads the world” > >NHS > > - Alongside pledging to reduce NHS waiting lists, the Labour Party will deliver 40,000 more NHS appointments each week, during evenings and weekends too > - New dentistry rescue plan, including 700,000 more urgent appointments > - Recruit 8,500 additional mental health staff > - Double the number of cancer scanners > - Bring back the “family doctor” > >Immigration > > - Create a “Border Security Command” -with hundreds of new investigators, intelligence officers, and cross-border police officers, funded by ending Rwanda scheme > - Hire additional caseworkers to tackle the asylum backlog > - Reform the points-based immigration system > >Education > > - Recruit 6,500 new expert teachers in key subjects > - 3,000 new primary school-based nurseries > - Free breakfast clubs in every primary school > - High-quality apprenticeships and specialist technical colleges > >Constitutional reform > > - Votes for 16 and 17 year olds > - Immediate reform of the House of Lords > - A new Ethics and Integrity Commission > - Enforced House of Lords retirement age of 80 > - Establish “modernisation committee” for House of Commons > >Law and order > > - Crack down on antisocial behaviour with more neighbourhood police > - Recruit “thousands” of new police officers > - Introduce new offences for spiking and for the criminal exploitation of children > - Refer every young person caught in possession of a knife to a Youth Offending Team to receive a mandatory plan to prevent reoffending, with penalties including curfews, tagging, and custody for the most serious cases. > - A ban ninja swords, lethal zombie-style blades and machetes, and strengthen rules to prevent online sales

OP: any thoughts from my fellow comrades? personally i find it revealing that wages and rent are missing. he also speaks of building new houses but we aren't struggling with a lack of houses, more-so ownership of those house, i am sure Labor's MP's will have 1.5 million houses to sit on though, but i do like that they're lowering the voting age.

Hello comrades,

I had the pleasure of spending two days with the Plymouth branch of The Socialist Party formerly Militant. It was notably hectic with enthusiasm, which is a given with the general election around the corner. We started with laptops out, a large board for scribbling an action plan, and a table covered with maps showing districts around Plymouth, highlighted to mark areas that have been visited. We spoke about the campaign at length. I spent time with TUSC candidate Alix Moore, an ex-Militant member, now Socialist Party member. Alix and I went door to door speaking with locals—all very lovely and fed-up people due to the current political climate. Concerns around the NHS, schooling, stagnating wages, and sky-high rent were prevalent, and these are all issues TUSC aims to address with rent caps, a £15 minimum wage, and restructuring and funding of public services, to mention a few.

Alix and I busily made our way to a union conference where we listened intently to the issues of our rail workers. Alix then gave a great speech and gained the support of the union. We had a cheeky beer before heading off to the Plymouth branch members' meeting held at a lovely live music bar in an industrial corner of Plymouth. The branch Secretary gave a heartfelt speech about UK housing and how it's failing us—which it is.

The next day, I woke up at the home of a very kind-hearted comrade who had given me his sofa for the night, where I slept off the bustling of the previous day. But that wasn't the end. We set off to Exeter at 11 to set up a stand to sell our papers and speak with shoppers and workers alike. Though there for only an hour, we had very insightful chats with Exeter's residents and received kind-hearted donations.

The working class of the South West is crying out for an alternative to the current situation and what lies ahead after the election. I sincerely ask that my comrades stand up, join the fight, and be active members of your branch and the wider party. This is what mobilization is about and this is our fight!

In solidarity,

Squid.

> With the general election less than a month away Starmer remains on course for Downing Street. “Things can maybe get a bit better”, was how the Economist magazine summed up its very faint hopes in the incoming Labour government. Millions of people who, on 4 July, will grit their teeth and vote Labour feel the same, but for very different reasons to the pro-capitalist, neoliberal Economist.

Credit to @Zacryon@lemmy.wtf for posting in a comment section of another community.

A visual scrolling graph demonstrating wealth in america.

This graph can acts as a great example, easily deployable and any sensible person will see the absolute ludicrously that is often misunderstood. I hope anyone out in the field can find utility in this.

Solidarity.

> Polluting for profit > > But why should anyone expect anything different? After all, these privatised companies are simply doing what they are in business to do – reward their shareholders.

>Renationalisation

>What happens now is still uncertain, but if the investors decide to walk away from the company it will face a crisis, as its current financial reserves will only enable it to continue functioning until May next year. The idea of renationalisation – for the government to step in and take ownership of the company to ensure a continued service, is being increasingly raised as a possibility by the capitalist press. The Tories are ideologically opposed to this; it would be a tacit admission that the claim Thatcher’s neoliberal privatisations would encourage more investment is false. Pressure would grow to nationalise other polluting water companies, the crumbling railways, the postal service or the profiteering energy companies as well.

this will be a pinned post to find different political parties/coalitions.

comments should look like: Socialist Party Formally Militant is a Trotskyist party with branches around the UK and strong union connections.

another example: TUSC Trade Union Socialist Coalition.

Article outlines flaws in UK electoral system as well as incremental changes over recent years to benefit the bosses