PARTY CONFERENCE SEASON RECAP

Posted on October 12, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged Amber Rudd, Boris Johnson, Brighton, conference, economics, general election, grant shapps, Green, Iain Duncan, jacob rees-mogg, jeremy corbyn, Labour, neil kinnock, party, Plaid Cymru, policy, politics, pundit, Sirte, snp, speech, theresa may, Tory, uk, UKIP, vince cable.

by Chris Jarvis

Political punditry’s busiest time of the year has come to a close, as most of Britain’s political parties have wrapped up their annual festivals of spin, spectacle and speculation – only Plaid Cymru and the Scottish Greens remain un-conferenced. What a season it has been.

Typically speaking, party conferences go mostly unnoticed, change little in the political landscape, and are quickly forgotten as the cogs of history whirr on unshaken. 2017 will be more than an aberration to that pattern. True, the ‘smaller’ parties failed to make a mark this time round too. Little of note came out of the SNP or Green Party of England and Wales conferences. The sole memorable moment of the Liberal Democrat soiree was the laughable assertions trotted out to the press time and again, that Vince Cable could soon be the next Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. UKIP’s will only be recalled as the final subdued howl of Little England defiance as it casts itself into electoral and political irrelevance. That notwithstanding, this year was a bumper crop.Continue Reading

THE 2017 GENERAL ELECTION – LEFT US HANGING

Posted on June 9, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged #GE2017, Amber Rudd, austerity, Brexit, Britan, caroline lucas, Chris Jarvis, coverage, democracy, exit poll, forecast, general election, greens, jeremy corbyn, John Bartley, Labour, leadership, libdems, manifesto, media, MSM, NHS, nick clegg, nicola sturgeon, Norwich Radical, paul nuttall, people, Plaid Cymru, PLP, politics, poll, prediction, propaganda, Scotland, snp, theresa may, Tim Farron, tony blair, Tory, uk, UKIP, vote, voter, voting.

by The Norwich Radical

The following piece was created, compiled and co-written by a number of Norwich Radical contributors, across a number of locations, devices, and even countries. We followed the exit polls, the first counts, the calculations and predictions as they became available across the media. We do not have any inside information, but have combined our experience and information during the night to produce this article in time for the morning readers.

There is no final result confirmed at the time of publication, but it has been confirmed that we have a hung parliament, as it is mathematically impossible for any party to claim an overall majority.

A BEGINNING, NOT THE END – THE 2017 GENERAL ELECTION

Posted on June 8, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged #GE2017, austerity, Brexit, Britan, caroline lucas, Chris Jarvis, coverage, democracy, exit poll, forecast, general election, greens, jeremy corbyn, John Bartley, Labour, leadership, libdems, manifesto, media, MSM, NHS, nicola sturgeon, Norwich Radical, paul nuttall, people, PLP, politics, poll, prediction, propaganda, Scotland, snp, theresa may, Tim Farron, tony blair, Tory, uk, UKIP, vote, voter, voting.

by Chris Jarvis

In a couple of hours, polling stations will close, and the fate of the United Kingdom will have been decided. Throughout the night the gentle trickling of results will sprinkle their way in, as the aftermath of the most fascinating election for a generation will begin to unravel. Psephologists will debate the relative merits of their predictions, political spin-artists will argue their respective parties have actually done quite a lot better than they expected, and the hacks (myself included), will drift further into the early hours, wearing out their laptop keys.

Right now, we know that the election campaign has been riddled with ups and with downs. We’ve seen Labour climb steadily in the polls, narrowing the Tory lead from over 20 points to single figures; two atrocities claimed the lives of 34 people; campaigning was suspended twice; the Tories launched a manifesto into a whirlwind of negativity; UKIP’s support collapsed; and Labour proposed a political programme further to the left of any Government in four decades. Any one of those alone would make this election remarkable. Combined they make it unique.

WE STAND ON A PRECIPICE – THE SNAP GENERAL ELECTION

Posted on April 18, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged austerity, benefits, Bernie Sanders, Brexit, british politics, caroline lucas, civil liberties, climate change, comprehensive schools, conservative party, conservatives, corbyn, cuts, education, election, elections, emmanuel macron, GE17, general election, grammar schools, Green, Green Party, green surge, greens, incarceration, international development, islamophobia, jean-luc melenchon, jeremy corbyn, Jonathan Bartley, Labour, labour party, leanne wood, Liberal Democrats, macron, market, melenchon, migration, military intervention, NHS, nick clegg, nicola sturgeon, Northern Ireland, owen smith, paul nuttall, politics, privatisation, progressive alliance, public sector, public services, sanders, schools, Scotland, scottish national party, SDLP, Sinn Féin, snp, social democratic and labour party, theresa may, Tim Farron, Tories, Tory, tory party, uk politics, Wales, war, welfare, xenophobia.

by Chris Jarvis

With Theresa May having all but called an early General Election, on June 8^th, the UK will go to the polls for yet another vote that will have long-reaching consequences for the future of the nation, the third in as many years. For the people of Scotland and Wales it will be the fourth – and those living in Northern Ireland will face their fifth. Right now, our political leaders can’t seem to get enough of sending people trudging out to schools, churches and community centres to scribble little pencil crosses in printed boxes.Continue Reading

WHY THE LEFT SHOULD CARE ABOUT CELTIC INDEPENDENCE

Posted on November 28, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged anti-capitalism, anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism, Barry, Capel Celyn, capitalism, Celtic, clean energy, cymru, establishment, EU ref, flags, Gwynfor Evans, identity, imperialism, independence, industry, indyref, Ireland, jeremy corbyn, leanne wood, left, leftist, Llyn Celyn Reservoir, nationalism, nicola sturgeon, Plaid Cymru, politics, Scotland, snp, socialism, uk, unionism, Wales, westminster, working class.

by Tara Debra G

“Flags don’t build houses”, said Jeremy Corbyn last year, criticizing Scottish nationalism and the SNP. Well, no, they don’t, but neither does an unelectable party, so swings and roundabouts really. But he does have a point: nationalism as a political framework doesn’t inherently support leftist values, or the working class, or is particularly anti-capitalist.

In fact, the strongest argument I hear against Celtic nationalism from the English left is that it doesn’t solve the foundational economic equality at the heart of class oppression in the UK. I’m a Welsh nationalist and I agree. But the left shouldn’t care about Celtic independence because it’s intrinsically anti-capitalist, because it’s not that – the left should care because leftist ideals should encapsulate anti-imperialism.

HOW SUSTAINABLE WILL BRITAIN BE POST-BREXIT?

Posted on October 8, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged Amber Rudd, arms trade, Brexit, Britain, british politics, campaign against arms trade, conservative party, equality, immigration, international, Labour, labour party, migration, NHS, snp, theresa may, uk politics, war.

By Faizal Nor Izham

With negotiations for Brexit to be finally executed come March 2017, as announced by Theresa May last week, a burning question yet to be properly tackled by the Conservative Party is: what exactly is their overarching plan to ensure future economic sustainability and prosperity for the country? Now that a major source of economic strength has been cut off (read: migrants), a fully laid-out plan to outline Britain’s steps towards continued economic growth in their absence has yet to be tabled.

WHAT IS DONE CANNOT BE UNDONE. WE ARE THE ARCHITECTS OF OUR FUTURE.

Posted on July 1, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged austerity, ballot box, Brexit, capitalism, climate change, creative writing, cuts, daesh, democracy, devolution, eu ref results, EU referendum, Europe, european union, eurozone, expression, financial collapse, future, Greece, human history, immigration, Iraq War, left, left leave, Lexit, Merkel, NHS, Northern Ireland, opinion, pluralism, politics, progressive parties, prose, response, riots, Scotland, snp, solidarity, strength, terrorism, test, tuition fees, Unite, unity, voting, xenophobia.

by Natasha Senior

I keep replaying the same slide show, projecting it on the back of my mind. I see the temperature rising, 9/11, the Iraq war, financial collapse. I enter the ballot box for the first time, eager for change. The coalition forms. Mass extinctions. The SNP wins a majority. Tuition fees triple. The Arab Spring. House prices rise. Riots. The Olympics. Food banks. Austerity. Austerity. Austerity. Benefits slashed. The NHS in turmoil. The Eurozone crisis. Scotland votes for unity. Greece votes for change. They are hung, drawn, quartered. We reach the 1°C threshold. The ballot box takes away a piece of me every single time. The far left brings hope but the far right brings hate. They spread their infectious disease. Storms, droughts, forest fires. Everything I fear begins to materialise in front of my eyes. Refugees fleeing the wars we started but we just condemn them to their fates. Floods everywhere. Terrorism. Xenophobia. Half-truths and outright lies. A vote for fear, a vote for suspicion, a vote for fascism.

The weather joins us in this violence as we drive another dagger into the heart of the world. I tell myself lies to ease the pain, looking for ways to return to the past. Hindsight is 20/20 but we never learn from our mistakes. Hatred and fear, symptoms of this deeply tortured nation. I want to leave this place, I want to end the nightmare, but there is no place on Earth that isn’t infected. I collapse into the carnage. I am in free fall. At the mercy of the past. It’s over.

But it is not over. I will not let it be over.Continue Reading

BREXIT — THE FIGHT OF OUR LIVES STARTS NOW

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged Brexit, british politics, campaign, conservatives, environment, EU, eu citizen, EU ref, eu ref results, EU referendum, european commission on human rights, european union, fight, grassroot, greens, human rights, immigration, Labour, Leave.EU, left exit, Lexit, migration, Plaid, points based system, refugees, snp, trade, TTIP, UKIP, vote, Vote Leave.

by Josh Wilson

For all those who voted and campaigned to leave the European Union I would like say congratulations, we may have had a difference of opinion but that shouldn’t leave any animosity between us. For all of those that voted and campaigned to remain within the EU, like myself, it is okay to cry. It is okay to feel upset, angry and disappointed. It is not easy to let go of something you believed in so passionately. The future is scary; it is uncertain what direction the country will now head in, whether we will enter into another period of recession and who our next Prime Minister will be now David Cameron has said he will resign. But this is exactly why we must come to terms with the fact that Brexit is going to happen, and the fight has only just begun.

The referendum was largely fought between different sides of the right-wing of British politics, but the opportunity now lies with the Left. I truly believe everyone on the Left, whatever your party affiliation and which ever way you voted must unite and galvanise around a campaign for a progressive exit from the EU. This view was recently aired by Paul Mason in the Guardian, although in fear of being a hipster, I thought of this before it was ‘cool’ (You can read Paul’s more eloquent article here). In this article I want to cover another angle and lay out some of the biggest battles that are going to be thrown our way in the very near future.Continue Reading

IT’S GRIM UP NORTH: HOW THE NORTH OF BRITAIN HAS BEEN LEFT BEHIND

Posted on May 4, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged austerity, British Isles, City, crisis, divide, economy, Game of Thrones, george osborne, GoT, Great Britain, independece, industry, inequality, london, mining, North, Plaid Cymru, politics, poverty, recession, Scotland, snp, south, steelworks, the north remembers, UKIP, Wales, westminster.

by Pierce Robinson

The North – South divide in the British Isles is still one of the most controversial topics in contemporary UK politics and society. The economic and political differences between the two ends of the country have been a common characteristic of these islands for decades. If you live anywhere north of Birmingham, the signs that you have entered a different part of the country are clear, even just the fact that you would choose gravy chips over a kebab – but most importantly, the level of poverty increases dramatically. The United Kingdom has the highest level of inequality in Western Europe, yet with a capital city that continues to flourish every day, why are we not seeing the similar signs of fortune increase in the North?Continue Reading

THE 10 BIGGEST POLITICAL WINNERS OF 2015

Posted on December 23, 2015 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged angus robertson, Britain, british politics, caroline lucas, chuka umunna, conservative party, conservatives, david cameron, Green Party, jeremy corbyn, jess phillips, john mcdonnell, Labour, labour party, nicola sturgeon, Parliament, politics, radical review, scottish national party, snp, theresa may, tom watson, year in review.

By Chris Jarvis

2015 has been a tumultuous year for politics. From the rise of the SNP to the shock victory of the Conservatives in the General Election and from the election of Jeremy Corbyn as Leader of the Labour Party to the decimation of the Liberal Democrats, it has been a year like no other. As the year draws to a close, our Co-Editor Chris Jarvis offers analysis as to who are the 10 biggest political winners of 2015.

snp

PARTY CONFERENCE SEASON RECAP

THE 2017 GENERAL ELECTION – LEFT US HANGING

A BEGINNING, NOT THE END – THE 2017 GENERAL ELECTION

WHY THE LEFT SHOULD CARE ABOUT CELTIC INDEPENDENCE

HOW SUSTAINABLE WILL BRITAIN BE POST-BREXIT?

WHAT IS DONE CANNOT BE UNDONE. WE ARE THE ARCHITECTS OF OUR FUTURE.

BREXIT — THE FIGHT OF OUR LIVES STARTS NOW

IT’S GRIM UP NORTH: HOW THE NORTH OF BRITAIN HAS BEEN LEFT BEHIND

THE 10 BIGGEST POLITICAL WINNERS OF 2015

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