Opinion

Opinion: Osime Brown’s Case Highlights the Ableism and Racism of the British State

Autistic, 21-year-old Osime Brown's upcoming deportation exemplifies a long list of systemic injustices, which migrants and other marginalised people are made to face by the British state, writes Ana Oppenheim.

Opinion: Labour MPs Now Accept Brexit Because Jeremy Corbyn is No Longer Their Leader

On Sunday Labour’s Rachel Reeves went on the Andrew Marr Show and argued we need to get Brexit done. The sad truth is that many Labour MPs have changed their tune on Brexit for one simple reason: they’re no longer looking to attack the party leader, argues Aaron Bastani.

Opinion: We Must Not Let the Government Blame Students for a Second Wave

It isn't safe for students to return to university campuses, and letting them do so gives the government somebody else to blame if Covid cases rise again. Dana Mills argues that lecturers must heed the call of unions and learn from the example of the United States, and insist that teaching happens online.

Eamon Ryan, leader of the Irish Green party

Opinion: Greenwashing the Establishment: How the Irish Greens Sold Out Environmentalists and the Working Class

The Irish Greens are currently in coalition with the two parties that have dominated Irish politics for almost a century, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. By propping up the faltering establishment at this critical juncture of the climate crisis, the Greens have given up a historic opportunity to break the cycle of conservative rule and agitate for radical change.

Opinion: The Government Scrimped on School Safety. Now Students and Staff Are Paying the Price

Just over a week since schools reopened, coronavirus outbreaks are forcing hundreds of pupils across the UK back home. Primary teacher and trade unionist James McAsh reports on an avoidable crisis.

Opinion: Reopening Universities Isn’t Just a Threat to Staff and Students – It’s a Threat to Communities Too

Reopening universities in the middle of a pandemic is a threat to the safety of staff and students. In cities like Coventry, already hit badly by Covid-19, there’s also a huge risk to the local community, writes Sarah Kraus.

Opinion: Boris Johnson Wants to Blame Young People for Coronavirus. He Has Nobody to Blame but Himself

The government has settled on a scapegoat for the recent spike in Covid-19 cases: young people. Yet from rushing children back to school to breaking their own rules with impunity, it's clear who's really at fault, writes Liam Young.

Opinion: Keir Starmer’s Strategy is Revealing His Politics – and They Aren’t Progressive

The first question we need to ask of any leading Labour figure is this: are their politics managerial, or are they transformative? Although many say Starmer’s politics are yet to be defined - or are simply ‘non-ideological’ - his strategy has already told us otherwise, argues David Wearing.

Opinion: David Graeber Was Right to Recognise the Importance of the Kurdish Struggle

David Graeber was an early and committed supporter of the Kurdish freedom movement. We can remember him the way he remembered the people of Rojava who gave their lives in the fight against Isis, writes Giran Ozcan - by living out our ideas in practice and making a commitment to solidarity that goes beyond words.

Opinion: Boris Johnson’s Plan to Ditch the Withdrawal Agreement Shows His Mandate is Built on Lies

Boris Johnson won the 2019 election having secured, in his words, an ‘excellent’ withdrawal agreement for the UK. If he now undermines this agreement - potentially in favour of a no deal Brexit - his mandate will be built on lies, argues Aaron Bastani.

Opinion: Labour’s New Focus on ‘Competence’ Will Find Its Limits Once the Economic Downturn Hits

Against the initial wave of the pandemic, Keir Starmer has capitalised on popular frustration with the Tories' handling of the public health crisis. Yet as the national conversation pivots to the economic downturn, the Labour leader will struggle without economic propositions of his own, writes Oliver Eagleton.

Opinion: The Cosmic Right Is on the Rise in the UK. The Left Must Fight It With Reason

QAnon and the 'cosmic right' are gaining traction in the UK by re-enchanting a mundane world and offering easy solutions to complex problems. Political economist Keir Milburn argues that the left should use the best weapon in its armoury to fight this worrying trend: reason.

Opinion: I Witnessed Labour Staff Working to Undermine Jeremy Corbyn’s Leadership

As John McDonnell's economic advisor, James Meadway saw Labour staff work to undermine the leadership through a steady drip-drip-drip of small, deliberate failures, which, he writes, added up to major dysfunction, almost certainly costing the party the 2017 election.

Opinion: Experts by Experience: Benefit Claimants Should Design Our Social Security System

People who have become experts on the benefits system by navigating it themselves are designing an alternative to the harmful and counterproductive model the government has created. Ellen Clifford explains.

Opinion: Is Capitalism to Blame for Covid-19?

Deforestation and climate change will increase the likelihood of future pandemics. Aaron Bastani asks: how many more outbreaks will it take before we realise our economic system is not only undermining the health of our planet, but our health as a species too?

Opinion: What Would a Biden Presidency Mean for the Rest of the World?

In the context of US imperialism, the differences between presidents can feel small. But even though violence and exploitation will continue irrespective of this year's election result, the choice between Biden and Trump is a real and urgent one, argues David Wearing.

Opinion: Britain’s Channel Crossings Policy Comes Straight Out of Fortress Europe’s Playbook

The UK government has pledged to make Channel crossings completely “unviable” for migrants. Brexit doesn't mean we're leaving Fortress Europe - it's the birth of Fortress Britain, argue Chloe Haralambous and Barnaby Raine.

Opinion: Climate Change is Still Accelerating (Even If We Aren’t Talking About It)

Last weekend California’s Death Valley hit 54.4°C - a potential new record for the hottest temperature anywhere on Earth. While the coronavirus crisis has grabbed the headlines in 2020, this has also been the year in which runaway climate change became normal, argues Aaron Bastani.