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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Utopia and myopia
GORDON MUNRO asks what next for Scottish council budgets
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
THE left in Scotland has been a useful prophylactic for the SNP as it was used time and again to hurl petty abuse, chant slogans and march for indy while what Unison calls the “silent slaughter” in Scottish councils has taken place.
The Fraser of Allander Institute put the job losses at 30,000 and for the period 2013-14 to 2017-18 the funding cuts at £750 million, which equates to a real-terms cut of 7 per cent.
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla) tried to make this an election issue by succeeding in getting council leaders of all parties to sign and send a letter to the Scottish government pointing out that Scotland’s councils faced a real-terms cut of £371m for 2022-23.
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The new Scottish Parliament looks set to continue a cycle of managerial tinkering while public services face the axe, writes STEPHEN LOW
Years of underfunding are eroding Scotland’s local services and deepening inequality in communities, says VINCE MILLS
Cuts are sweeping campuses as cash-strapped universities slash staff and politicians fail to act on a growing funding emergency. VINCE MILLS reports
