Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
THIS weekend the founding convention of the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance for Reason and Justice (Bundnis Sahra Wagenknecht, or BSW) will put Germany’s newest political formation firmly on the map.
For a brand new party formed of 10 MPs who have quit the Left party (Die Linke), primarily over its increasingly pro-war stance, it’s doing well: one voting intentions poll this week put it on 14 per cent, equal to the Social Democrats of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, ahead of his coalition partners the Greens (on 12) and the Free Democrats (on 4), and with more than three times the support of the party they have just left, which trailed on 3 per cent.
Trump threatens war and punitive tariffs to recapture Iranian resources – just as in 1953, when the CIA overthrew Mossadegh and US corporations immediately seized 40% of the oil, says SEVIM DAGDELEN
NICK WRIGHT returns to Berlin and finds a city in darkness and political turmoil
In an address to the Communist Party’s executive at the weekend international secretary KEVAN NELSON explained why the communists’ watchwords must be Jobs not Bombs and Welfare not Warfare


