For MARIA GOULDING, John Clare’s poetry is not only uplifting and restorative, but deeply relevant in our age of environmental uncertainty and social unease....
What Now for Scottish Labour?
Last December Labour returned only one MP in Scotland for the second time in three general elections and it’s been out of power in Holyrood for 13 years. The time has come for change, say DANIEL DEERY and CIAN IRELAND, or the party faces continued decline....
Coronavirus: Austerity, Crisis and the NHS
Why has the UK failed so conspicuously to cope with this pandemic? HILARY CAVE points the finger at decades of neoliberalism and 10 years of Tory-led austerity....
Coronavirus: Leeds United to Meet the Lockdown Challenge
JEANNINE SUDWORTH reports from Leeds where council, club and community groups are coming together to help the city’s vulnerable survive the Covid-19 pandemic....
The Root of the Problem
MARIA GOULDING reviews The Overstory by Richard Powers – probably ‘the best novel ever written about trees’, a tale with a compelling political message for our lockdown times. The characters and narrative are engrossing, and the big themes are of urgent contemporary relevance....
Coronavirus: Street Level Aid Breaks Barriers in Hackney
MATTHEW BROWN reports from east London where Labour members have developed a ‘hyper local’ model of mutual aid that could help reconnect the Party with its communities....
Coronavirus: ‘Sheer Goodness’ Shines Through in Beverley
STEPHEN DEAS reports from East Yorkshire where an outbreak of neighbourliness and co-operation are helping the market town of Beverley endure the lockdown. ‘There are lessons for all in this, including socialists.’...
Coronavirus: Community & Solidarity in County Durham
MARY STRATFORD reports from the north east where the spirit of ’84 has stirred local communities and Labour members into building support groups and solidarity networks in response to the Covid crisis....
Why the Left Should be Starmer’s Critical Friends
Keir Starmer has committed to promoting pluralism within the Labour Party. DAVID CONNOLLY argues that the left should give Labour’s new leader a fair chance to prove himself....
Coronavirus: Dronfield Still Blathering Despite the Lockdown
HARRY BARNES reports from North Derbyshire, where the area’s former Labour MP is doing his bit to remain politically active in the face of Covid-19....
Coronavirus: On the Ground in Croydon
In the first of a series of despatches from ILPers and friends around the country, SEAN CREIGHTON reports from Croydon where a network of mutual aid groups, willing individuals and the local authority are working hard to support the community....
Coronavirus: Stumbling into Crisis
Unprepared, indecisive and out of step with much of the world, the British government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic is a result of its flawed ideology, argues DAVID CONNOLLY. We can only hope the crisis creates new space for a radically different politics....