The Wider Significance Of ‘Agenda For Change’ In The NHS

Performance-related pay has become a central part go the employers’ armoury to lower pay and undermine union organisation. We are publishing the article below from the Anarchist Federation outlining the intentions of the government’s Agenda for Change in the NHS Representatives of the approximately 20 trade unions who collectively bargain for workers within the NHS have been negotiating at…

Republican Socialism And Left Unity

Steve Freeman of the Republican Socialist Alliance in England spoke, along with Bernadette McAliskey and Mary McGregor (RCN) at the ‘break-up of the UK’ session at the Radical Independence Conference on 23rd November in Glasgow. The following week on November 30th in London Steve spoke at the Left Unity Party founding conference putting the case for…

RIC and the Catalan Struggle

The RCN supports an ‘internationalism from below’ perspective within the campaign for Scottish self-determination. Edinburgh RIC branch proposed the workshop The Break-up of the UK: the Case for ‘Internationalism from Below’ for the very successful RIC conference on November 23rd. Dundee RIC branch proposed the workshop to address the denial of Catalan (and Basque) self determination by…

The Ghost Of James Connolly – Book Launch

THE GHOST OF JAMES CONNOLLY James Connolly and Edinburgh’s New Trade Union, Independent Labour and Socialist Movements(1890-96) James Connolly’s role in Irish history is well known and celebrated. However, Connolly also played a prominent part in the ‘New Union’, independent Labour and Socialist movements in Edinburgh. Allan Armstrong, who conducts Radical Walks in the city, has…

2nd Radical Independence Conference – ‘After The UK: The Future Of 4 Nations’

The RCN received the unanimous backing of the Edinburgh branch of RIC to ask the RIC National Steering Committee to organise a session at the second national RIC conference on November 23rd in Glasgow, entitled ‘The break-up of the UK – the case for ‘internationalism from below’’. This was then unanimously agreed by the Steering Committee, subject to…

2nd Radical Independence Conference ‘Emancipation & Liberation’ Special

Our Emancipation & Liberation Radical Independence Conference Special will be available at the conference on Saturday, November 23rd.     CONTENTS   Editorial(also posted below) Scottish Self-Determination: For a Scottish Wannabe Ruling Class or for Scotland’s People? – RCN Why is Venezuela relevant to Scotland’s Radical Independence Movement? – Ewan Robertson Women and Independence –…

The Party We Need

Bob Goupillot (RCN) makes a positive response to the article, The party we need, by Moshe Machover, founder member of the Israeli Socialist organisation, now living in England. I was really heartened to read Moshe Machover’s article The party we need (WW November 7th 2013) as it succinctly summarises important aspects of our classes experience around…

The Radical Independence Campaign – ‘Emancipation & Liberation’ specials

We are posting a new link to an electronic version of the special issue of Emancipation & Liberation the RCN produced for last year’s Radical Independence Conference. This will provide some basis for assessing the changes which have occurred in the political situation in Scotland over the last year, and how RIC has met the…

100th Anniversary Of The Dublin Lockout

Jim Slaven of the James Connolly Society has written the following article on the 100th anniversary of The Dublin Lock-Out. The leadership of the Irish Transport & General Workers Union provided by Jim Larkin and James Connolly in the face of Dublin boss, William Murphy Murphy, stands in marked contrast to that of Len McCluskey…

Socialist Unity – The RCN Asks 12 Questions

The RCN has been involved in preliminary discussions with Frontline, the International Socialist Group (Scotland), individual members of the International Socialist Network and Defense of Our Party faction in the SWP, as well as other individuals mainly from an SSP background. Frontline published the views a number of socialist organisations, which we reposted at Socialist Unity. Stemming…