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
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What’s in Labour’s in-tray?
From ending austerity to tackling climate change, years of Tory negligence means Labour will face the toughest inheritance of any incoming administration in living memory, writes JOHN McDONNELL MP
Food laid out in crates at a food bank in north London
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
Special report by PEOPLE’S WORLD
NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
AS Labour conference meets this week — following the festival of reaction which was the Tories’ annual gathering — consistently strong polling leads for the last year and the ongoing and multiple failures of the incumbent government show that the party is likely to win the next election.
As a report we have launched this week on “Labour’s in-tray” shows, the inheritance of that government will be the toughest of any incoming administration in living memory.
Across our public services, we can see the destructive impact of over a decade of ideologically driven austerity: underfunding, backlogs and chronic understaffing are the reality across the board and getting worse.
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