Socialist correspondent

The UK's famously unwritten constitution means the country is effectively governed by the Privy Council and its executive committee in the Cabinet, composed of what John Mclean called 'The Old Gang' in his open letter to Lenin in 1921. Its longevity is testament to the continuities of class rule in this country.

Israeli weapon systems and tactics , touted and priced as "battle tested" on Palestinians, are being applied in their current war on Iran and Lebanon, employing a strategy aimed at destroying the resistance and its social and material basis as was trialled in Gaza.

Keir Starmer and his leadership team do not pretend to be socialists, or even reformists. They are advocates of the status quo, establishment managerialists of a socio-economy in enduring crisis, and a foreign policy in service to British imperial interests. Like previous administrations they want to off-load the crisis onto the working classes, at home and abroad.

Europe is weaker relative to the US now than at any time since the end of World War 2 – the result of deliberate US strategy to subordinate its allies in order to create a disciplined bloc ready for major war against China. The Iran war has accelerated Europe’s difficulties.

On 28th February the United States and Israel launched an unprovoked military aggression against Iran, assassinated its Supreme Leader and many more of its political and military leadership. Operation Epic fury had the openly stated intention to overthrow the Iranian regime and bring about the total disintegration of the Iranian state. This ongoing aggression has already claimed the lives of nearly 3000 innocent Iranian civilians, destroying Iran’s civilian energy infrastructure, bombing schools, hospitals, public media outlets and razing entire civilian neighbourhoods to the ground.

The West’s multifaceted crisis is undermining the established norms of power, alliances and economic systems. This has been exposed and made worse by the United States and Israel’s war against Iran and all its unintended consequences. No one can predict the longer term implications of Donald Trump’s miscalculation over launching the war or whether it will mark a decisive point in US decline. However the trends marking that decline, discernible in recent years, have certainly been exacerbated and there are lessons for countries and peoples across the globe.

A poem by Tawfiq Zayyad (1929-1994) who was a Palestinian leader and member of the Israeli Communist Party. He was elected to the Knesset in 1973, representing Rakah and later Hadash until his death in 1994. He was elected mayor of Nazareth in 1975 and served in that role until he died. Between 1958 and 1962 he spent long periods under arrest in Israeli prisons and later was the target of several assassination attempts. On March 30 1976 he led a nationwide strike against land confiscation, a day now commemorated every year as Land Day. He wrote poetry throughout his life.

Many difficulties face contemporary lorry drivers, from working within a complex employment network disconnected from their clients to being closely watched and managed by GPS, digital tachographs, and advanced driver assistance programs to keep them in line.