'Respect' and George Galloway

A report in the Morning Star of 26 July announced “Starmer’s benefits stance prompts bid for new party”

Professor Dibyesh Anand spoke with Daniel Randall about the recent rise of the Hindu right in Britain, and how the left should approach questions of communalism and chauvinism within and between minority communities.

Labour movement demonstration in solidarity with Ukraine, Paris, 10 December Ukraine was already a poor country before the latest Russian invasion began on 24 February, with a GDP per head of only $3,700. In 2022 the World Bank expects GDP to fall by 35%. Ukraine has been devastated by the needless Russian imperialist war, the brutality of the occupation and the relentless attacks on civilian infrastructure. By mid-November infrastructure damage was estimated at $127bn, and by the summer of 2022 various estimates of the total cost of rebuilding Ukraine were upwards of $350bn. The UNHCR...

According to the Telegraph and the Daily Mail , Jeremy Corbyn’s inner circle is thinking of quitting the Labour Party and standing Corbyn as an independent in Islington North in the general election likely in 2023 or 2024. It looks like malicious “stirring “by those papers. The Corbynista blog Skwawkbox claims Labour right-wingers have been feeding those Tory papers. Though Skwawkbox is unreliable, that is plausible. An exit would be a foolish move by Corbyn. His feeble “Peace and Justice Project“ does not provide the groundwork for a new party. Corbyn might gain local support (he has a good...

Two organisations proscribed by the Labour Party, Labour Against the Witch-hunt (LAW) and Labour In Exile Network (LIEN), have voted to merge. The merged group is making connections with Chris Williamson’s Resist movement and the “Workers Party of Britain” launched by George Galloway and the older Stalinist grouplet CPGB-ML. Resist also has links with the Socialist Party’s “TUSC” electoral vehicle. Four members of the LAW steering committee have resigned in protest at the merger. Both LAW and LIEN subscribe to the idea that the entire issue of antisemitism in Labour was a fake and an invention...

TUSC embraces Chris Williamson Galloway and Bannon Batley and Spen Labour victory despite Galloway threat Notes on a debate with Tony Greenstein George Galloway and Respect Weekly Worker

More on Batley and Spen here . Labour has won the Batley and Spen by-election of 1 July 2021, but only narrowly, after over 20% of the vote was taken by the demagogue George Galloway. Formally Galloway stood for the "Workers' Party of Britain", an ultra-Stalinist sect. In fact he stood to gain publicity (and money, because he makes his ample income as a media figure) for George Galloway. To do that he fomented and used antisemitism and homophobia against Labour and the Labour candidate Kim Leadbeater. Although he blustered about winning, he knew that a big vote for him would give the...

Jewish identity and history is a profoundly important aspect of my life. But I’m not a communalist. I think the idea of a unitary interest for ethnic groups is dangerous, and I think official community leaderships, especially in faith groups, are basically reactionary. An anti-communalist, secularist, anti-clerical critique of the role in Jewish life, and in social and political life in general, of people like the Chief Rabbi has been developed by Jewish radicals over many years, finding perhaps its most exuberant expression in the work of people like Benjamin Feigenbaum. Equivalent critiques...

George Galloway was recently ″papped″ by journalist Natalia Antelava, appearing to hug alt-right pundit Steve Bannon. The photo was taken after both had spoken on a panel at the Eurasian Media Forum in Kazakhstan. Accepting Bannon′s friendly overture was just a matter of good manners, said Galloway afterwards. But in the panel debate Galloway and Bannon′s political worlds did align. Both praised a ″populist turn″ against globalisation. For Galloway it is a matter of trenchant support for a hardline or no-deal Brexit, leading him to cosy up to the likes of Nigel Farage. If you feel like sitting...

The labour movement should rally to the defence of Labour National Executive member and Momentum leader Jon Lansman against George Galloway’s threat to sue him for defamation. Galloway says he has “instructed solicitors to bring a case for defamation against Jon Lansman”. That is a response to a tweet by Lansman defending Jewish comedian David Baddiel after Galloway made a tweet (now deleted) that “no supporter of the Palestinian people” would march “behind” Baddiel (apparently a reference to planned protests against Donald Trump visiting Britain). Over the years Galloway has run or threatened...