Durham is known worldwide for its 900-year-old cathedral. But there is another historic building in the north-east city that holds a special place in the hearts of local people, one being reborn as a hub of heritage and hope for the county’s stricken communities. MARY STRATFORD explains....
A new book on Durham Coalfield communities is a timely testament to working class resilience, says MARY HULL, bringing together evocative tales of ‘marras’, meetings, strikes and marches as well as banners, brass bands and allotments. ...
With the world in crisis and the UK government floundering in response to the rise of the populist right both here and abroad, WILL BROWN assesses the challenge for the left and asks what it means for the ILP. ...
Eight MPs have signed an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons to recognise Barry Winter for his “pioneering political and intellectual work over seven decades as a writer and organiser” with the ILP....
Our friend and comrade Barry Winter, former ILP secretary and editor, has died at the age of 80. NEIL RHODES remembers a teacher, writer and thinker who embodied the organisation’s commitment to political honesty and unwavering humanity....
As a church minister, CHRIS WILSON at least knows “the boss” is OK, although “the middle management can be a real problem”. Clergy need trade unions as much as any other workers, he says....
Poet, campaigner and pioneering author – Blackburn ILPer Ethel Carnie Holdsworth was a radical writer of the early 20th century who made history as the first working class woman to have a novel published in Britain....
After a week of parliamentary rebellion and government chaos, ERNIE JACQUES assesses the outcome and impact of Labour’s ‘crazy’ welfare proposals....
The success of Sheffield Renewables has shown how attitudes to energy policy can be changed with local engagement and a co-operative business model that offers much more than profit. DAVE BERRY explains....
Sick of waiting for free markets and trickle-down economics to make us all better off, ERNIE JACQUES looks for hope in the legacy of a northern factory owner and philanthropist whose social reforms inspired the welfare state. ...
The Co-operative Party has teamed up with the Labour Climate and Environment Forum to launch a new report on “the role that community-owned energy in playing in building climate consensus at a local level”....
Proportional representation is not the only answer to voter disengagement, argues JOHN CUNNISON. Compulsory voting, party primaries and a new parliament should also be part of a radically re-worked political system. ...