The Burner: The Burner Episode #218: Dystopia Now?
The lockdown is about to be renewed – but what do we actually know about the scientific group advising on it? Plus, why is dystopia in such easy reach in responses to the pandemic?
Tag: coronavirus
‘I Tried to End My Life’: Covid-19 Exposes the Injustice of ‘never-ending’ Prison Sentences
Naomi Larsson and Alexandra Genova
Under the new coronavirus restrictions, the safety and wellbeing of prisoners still jailed under the draconian and now-abolished Imprisonment for Public Protection sentence will be put at further risk. In an exclusive video and article, prisoners currently serving the sentence speak to Novara Media about how they are being impacted.
The Burner: The Burner Episode #217: a Tech Exit to Covid-19?
James Butler asks: what would a tech-led exit from lockdown look like? And James Meadway tells us what we should make of the OBR’s ‘bouncing ball’ scenario on the economic shock.
Novara Live: The Coronavirus Crash (With Adam Tooze)
As economies around the world go into deep freeze, Aaron Bastani is joined by economic historian Adam Tooze to discuss the scale of the downturn and what it means for modern capitalism.
The Burner: The Burner Episode #216: Labour Leaks and UK’s Coronavirus Response
Ash Sarkar tackles the weekend’s leak of an internal Labour dossier and what it reveals about what was going on at the top of the party. Plus, leading thinkers on the left tell us about how the UK should really be responding to the coronavirus crisis.
‘I’m terrified of going back to the streets’: Coronavirus Shows We Could End Street Homelessness
HG
The government have housed thousands of homeless people overnight, but campaigners say extra support must extend beyond lockdown or rough sleepers will be worse off than before, writes HG.
Migrants Want to Volunteer for the NHS, but the Government Isn’t Letting Them
Jessie Williams
Despite being made to feel the full force of the UK's hostile environment, many undocumented people are still eager to devote their time and skills to helping the country fight coronavirus. The government, however, is not allowing them to help, writes Jessie Williams.
The Burner: The Burner Episode #215: UK Government, Brazil and Nature’s Return
James Butler asks: can Covid-19 tell us anything about climate change? Vincent Bevins brings us the lowdown on the crisis in Brazil. Michael Walker delivers a verdict on the UK government’s handling of the pandemic.
The Bastani Factor: Britain and the Coronavirus: a Timeline of Failure
Despite previous claims by the government that it was well-prepared for the Coronavirus, Britain is now expected to have one of the highest death tolls in the world. In this video Aaron Bastani examines precisely what happened in recent months, and how public authorities – broadly unchallenged by the media – let a tragedy unfold.
Opinion: An Unprecedented Economic Crisis Is About to Hit the Global South. We Must Cancel Debts Now
Grace Blakeley
Economic turmoil is about to hit the global South, as the instability of a global pandemic sends investors fleeing. Wealthy nations must write off debts immediately, argues Grace Blakeley, to avoid catastrophe in the world's poorest countries.
Of Course the Right Value Old People’s Lives Less – Our Ageing Population Is a Problem for Capitalism
Aaron Bastani
As the coronavirus pandemic escalates, the lives of elderly people are increasingly portrayed as less worth saving. Given the immense problem demographic ageing presents to market capitalism, this is as unsurprising as it is unsettling, writes Aaron Bastani.
Novara Live: Yanis Varoufakis on the Coronacrisis
Yanis Varoufakis had a front row seat for the EU’s last existential crisis. Now that Europe is struck with coronavirus, are its leaders making the same mistakes all over again.
Ash Wednesday: Why They Always Lyin’?
There’s another epidemic raging in the UK, concentrated in the highest echelons of government. It’s called lie-abetes.
Novara Live: Counting the Cost of COVID-19
Do official statistics show the true death count and economic cost of COVID-19? Plus Rebecca Long-Bailey’s communications boss Matt Zarb-Cousin joins Michael Walker and Aaron Bastani to discuss how the left lost the Labour leadership race.
Freelance Work Has Always Been Precarious, Not Aspirational. Coronavirus Has Made That Clear
Sophie McKay
With the government’s most recent measure to support self-employed workers leaving many with no support at all, the dangerous and uncertain nature of freelance work has been exposed, writes Sophie McKay.
ACFM: #ACFM Microdose: Acid Lockdown
The #ACFM crew discuss life in lockdown including cheese care packs, the moral economy, and the crisis of liberalism.
Opinion: The Corona-Crisis Reveals There Is No Such Thing As Low-Skilled Labour
Phil Jones
The coronavirus pandemic has shown that our lives are in fact precariously balanced on the supposedly low-skilled labour of others - a vast majority of them women. This ugly revelation is a chance to learn and reimagine the way we value work, writes Phil Jones.
‘We Want a Rent Strike Now’: the People Poised to Take on Their Landlords
Sophie K Rosa
In the absence of government-backed rent relief or rent suspensions, people across the country are unable to pay their rent. Sophie K Rosa speaks to some of the people ready to go on rent strike.