Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
SOMETIMES I wish that, alongside the usual Yes, No and Don’t Know options provided by pollsters, there was another possible answer — Don’t Care. I think this might be a popular choice for many people when asked if Britain should stay in the EU.
Until quite recently I felt the same way. Unmoved by either side’s Project Fear, I thought leaving would make little day-to-day difference to my life, despite a drop in house prices. And when it comes to protecting my human rights, I have no more faith in European judges than I do in our own.
Don’t get me wrong, there are strong arguments for staying in, from promises of “peace and prosperity” to protection against a Tory assault on our civil liberties.
All the areas that cause working people to feel insecure have to be addressed, through a return to unashamedly pro-worker politics, if the horror of a Farage government is to be avoided, writes IAN LAVERY MP
CLAUDIA WEBBE argues that Labour gains nothing from its adoption of right-wing stances on immigration, and seems instead to be deliberately paving the way for the far right to become an established force in British politics, as it has already in Europe
Every Starmer boast about removing asylum-seekers probably wins Reform another seat while Labour loses more voters to Lib Dems, Greens and nationalists than to the far right — the disaster facing Labour is the leadership’s fault, writes DIANE ABBOTT MP
While Reform poses as a workers’ party, a credible left alternative rooted in working-class communities would expose their sham — and Corbyn’s stature will be crucial to its appeal, argues CHELLEY RYAN


