Category: Articles

It is mayors living close to the people who understand what is needed to tackle climate change better than national politicians in their private jets and chauffeur-driven cars, writes KEN LIVINGSTONE

IT is amazing that at exactly the same time as the press is full of stories about the devastating effects of climate chaos on people in Europe and around the globe, we are also seeing headline after headline about pressure on both the Tory and Labour leaders to ditch even more policies aimed at protecting our environment, alongside a media and hard-right scare campaign against the mayor of London’s extension of the Ultra Low Emission Zone.
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Tory attempts to ban ‘boycott, disinvestment and sanctions’ are part of decades of refusing to support international law when it comes to Palestinian rights writes KEN LIVINGSTONE

IN MY autobiography, I recount how while travelling in the 1960s in Algeria — and before I was politically active or a member of the Labour Party — we went to a local Palestine Liberation Centre.

At the time, I did not know that the Palestinians had been driven off their land in the Nakba, or about how many of them then (as they are now) were in refugee camps.
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With the 25th anniversary of his first election approaching this year, KEN LIVINGSTONE writes on the achievements and legacy of an important figure in Latin America’s history

I HAVE written in the Morning Star before on when Hugo Chavez visited London and my later visit to Venezuela.

Now — at this time of great neoliberal crisis, the decline of the US empire and a new “left wave” in Latin America, the upcoming 25th anniversary of his first election towards the end of the year is an opportunity for both the left and Latin America solidarity campaigners to again reflect on his continuing relevance and significance today.
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KEN LIVINGSTONE writes on the importance of devolution – and using devolved powers for progressive ends

THROUGHOUT my spells in London government, I always sought to use whatever powers and resources we had in order to make the biggest difference possible for the majority of residents.

Whether it was giving public transport the investment it was crying out for and ensuring that it was a common-sense, affordable option or backing initiatives for social equality, we were committed to making the most out of the office voters had put us in.
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Wide-ranging attacks on ‘enemies within’ are reminiscent of Thatcher’s assault on the miners, GLC, and black and Irish communities in the ’80s, writes KEN LIVINGSTONE

SINCE becoming politically active in the 1960s, I have seen 11 different leaders of the Conservative Party, representing various internal factions and interests.

But one thing that has been a consistent feature is a reluctance to engage in meaningful debate about the direction of the country on real issues of importance: anyone would think they’re aware that openly acknowledging their commitment to pursuing policies which leave the majority worse off to ensure the class who fund them continue getting richer is not exactly a vote-winner!
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25 years after the Good Friday Agreement, KEN LIVINGSTONE writes about his unique, long-running role in the peace process that saw him vilified, then eventually vindicated — and salutes a future united Ireland

BACK in March this year, I met up in Camden Town with Francie Molloy. Today Molloy is the Sinn Fein MP for Mid Ulster, but when I first met him he was a councillor in Dungannon, Northern Ireland.
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Although May ’68 itself failed to deliver a revolution, the lessons of the era – alliance-building by including liberation struggles outside of socialism – shaped my later time in power, writes KEN LIVINGSTONE

S this is my last regular column before May Day 2023, I thought I would take the opportunity to reflect on the significance of the 55th anniversary of May 1968, and what lessons and inspiration we can draw from that historic time for the left today.
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Within a few short years we have gone from celebrating links with China to ripping up essential relationships and paving the ground for military conflict — we must now oppose Aukus and a new nuclear arms race, writes KEN LIVINGSTONE

AS SOMEONE who lived through the first cold war against the Soviet Union and its allies, and who was in some important respects politically shaped by it — including in terms of my decades-long opposition to nuclear weapons — I recognise all too well the depressing signs of a new cold war against China, being fomented by the US, Britain and a handful of other countries.
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KEN LIVINGSTONE salutes the millions who marched against the war and looks back at how the London mayor’s office was able to aid the movement even as the Westminster government carried out its bloody invasion

IN my time as leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) and mayor of London, I had many occasions to be proud of the majority of ordinary Londoners, who again and again showed much better judgement on key political and social issues of the day than our political (mis-)leaders in Westminster.
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ONE of the things I will always remember from my time as mayor of London was the close political relationship we managed to build with Hugo Chavez, the then president of Venezuela, who so tragically passed away 10 years ago in March 2013.

Many readers will no doubt remember when in 2006 Chavez visited London. During his visit he addressed the TUC, a packed meeting of MPs in Parliament and a huge public rally, where he gave an extensive outline of his views on how to create a better world.
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