Long Read

Long Read: The Centrist Delusion: ‘Middle Ground’ Politics Aren’t Moderate, They’re Dangerous
In every civilisation, the centre ground of political opinion has been home to dangerous, inaccurate and oppressive ideas. The toxic centrism currently pervading Britain and rest of the world requires a rapid, bold, ambitious change of direction, writes Raoul Martinez. 
Long Read: In the North’s Leave-Voting Seats, Disillusionment Is Labour’s Biggest Enemy
With Labour engaged in a last minute battle to shore up northern support, Craig Gent reports on the party's struggle with disillusionment - and what can be done about it.
Long Read: How Hostile Environment Confusion Is Continuing to Damage Asylum Seekers’ Health

Despite the formal suspension of data-sharing practices between NHS Digital and the Home Office in the wake of the Windrush scandal, the policy has left behind a legacy which continues to create confusion among medical practitioners while putting up barriers for people fleeing danger.

Long Read: Under a Blue Moon: Reflections on the Last UK General Election
"You began to sense that something had been let out of the bag." For a brief moment, the 2017 election result seemed to puncture a hole in a nationwide malaise. In a touching memoir, Alex Niven recalls the emotional journey of the last election and how it signalled new possibilities.
Long Read: Catalonia, Alone? Lessons From the Contradictions of the Independence Movement
Between a Draconian Spanish state, an ambivalent left and an institutional impasse, it’s not clear where the Catalan independence movement goes next. Bue Rübner Hansen argues the challenges facing independentists reflect a far wider cycle of struggle.
Long Read: The Red Locomotive in Brussels? Interview with the Workers’ Party of Belgium
Bucking the apparent trends of the European elections, last month the Workers' Party of Belgium enjoyed breakthroughs at regional, federal and European levels. Denis Rogatyuk spoke to new MEP Marc Botenga about the party's recent successes, euroscepticism, and wrestling narratives back from the far right.
Long Read: Child Sexual Exploitation, ‘Asian Grooming Gangs’ and the Left
While the far right is shameless in making political hay out of young people's suffering, it is sometimes contended that the left does not have an adequate response to child sexual exploitation. What does CSE mean, how does is it perpetrated, and how the left can show solidarity with its victims?
Long Read: 5 Things You Should Know About the Australian Election
This weekend Australia will elect its newest administration. In recent years, Australian leadership spills have happened at a breakneck speed, with most prime ministers barely cracking two years, and none seeing out a full term.
Long Read: A Design for Life: How Platforms Are Weaving Their Way Into the Fabric of Capitalism
With platform companies such as Apple and Facebook running up against the limits of their business models, they are turning to new ways to leverage your data for profit. In this week's column, James Meadway examines the measures platforms are taking and asks what it means for the future of capitalism.
Long Read: Latin American Community ‘Betrayed’ by Council Plans to Let Private Developers Demolish Tottenham Market
Pueblito Paisa Latin market has been fighting demolition for more than a decade. Now the community has just six weeks to push forward with a pioneering, community-orientated redevelopment plan, before Haringey Council acts on a compulsory purchase order.
Long Read: Can Football Fans Resist the Far Right Surge?
From Tommy Robinson to the National Front to the Football Lads' Alliance, far-right organisers have long been trying to take over the beautiful game. Kieron Monks reports on football fans trying to stop the fascists once and for all.
Long Read: The Troubled History of the Two-State Solution
We need to think about an end to the Israel/Palestine conflict which means self-determination without colonial domination.
Long Read: How Labour’s Dreadful Antisemitism Debate Has to Change
The standard of debate around Labour’s antisemitism saga has been dire from the start, and both Corbyn's critics and his supporters on the left have been to blame, argues Barnaby Raine in this Sunday’s Long Read.
Long Read: Financial Globalisation Has Been a Disaster. Brexit Gives Us a Chance to Resist It
Sunday Long Read: Any attempt to build a socialist government in the UK requires opposing global financial capital. Brexit gives us an opportunity to do just this, argues Grace Blakeley.
Long Read: Grenfell Was the Result of a Campaign of Racial Terror
Dr Remi Joseph-Salisbury & Dr Laura Connelly unpack the legacies of racism and white supremacy that laid the groundwork for the tragedy at Grenfell Tower.
Long Read: #OurUCU: The Real Culmination of the UCU’s ‘Turnaround Year’
Attempts to avert any discussion of Sally Hunt's leadership of the University and College Union at its annual congress have exposed a schism between two models of trade unionism.
Long Read: “These Guys Are Either Incompetent or Dishonest” – Betting Against the Bank of England
When it comes to interest rates, the only thing reliable about the Bank of England’s predictions is that they’re consistently wrong. In this week's long read, Ben Tippet and Jack Browne talk to an ex-Citibank insider who bet against the Bank of England's financial forecasts - with lucrative results.
Long Read: How Power Hungry Politicians and the Far-right Are Turning Italy Against Refugees
For years, the liberal left has thought of Italy as a humane country where refugees are welcomed. But following a series of attacks on African migrants, this appears to have suddenly changed. Dig a little deeper however, and it quickly becomes clear that far-right violence didn't rise out of nowhere, it was inspired by a toxic politics of race in Italy that has been worsening since the economic crash of 2008. Hsiao-Hung Pai reports from Sicily.