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
IT SEEMS an age ago that the Tories claimed to be the voice of the working class.
Since the fall of the so-called “red wall” when workers lent them their vote to get Brexit done as many saw it, this rotten Tory government has relentlessly attacked workers by slashing services and driving down wages at the height of a cost-of-living crisis.
In the transport sector the government’s so-called levelling-up agenda has involved bulldozing through a wave of cuts not seen for a generation.
On the eve of the 157th Trades Union Congress, MICK WHELAN, general secretary of Aslef, the train drivers’ union, celebrates victory in his campaign to get dignity for drivers at work
Our members face daily abuse, being spat at, sometimes even deadly assaults, and employers fail to take the issue seriously despite the increasing danger, writes RMT general secretary EDDIE DEMPSEY


