RMT demands Labour deliver on its promise to start the ‘biggest wave of insourcing in a generation’
RAIL union RMT held a mass meeting in Manchester today as part of its national campaign to end outsourcing on Britain’s railways.
The meeting heard from RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey, regional organiser Steve Shaw, Salford Labour MP Rebecca Long Bailey and North West TUC secretary Jay McKenna.
In a recent report, the union warned that despite government plans to bring rail franchises in-house and create the new publicly owned body Great British Railways, a “hidden layer” of contractors continues to profit from the exploitation of thousands of workers.
The report warned that such companies make their profits by keeping workers on low-paid, inferior or casual contracts, leaving them struggling to get by.
RMT argues that all rail jobs, from cleaning to catering, engineering to station services, should be brought back in-house to reverse decades of outsourcing that have driven down pay, eroded conditions and undermined safety.
The union is also pressing the Labour government to honour its pledge to deliver the biggest wave of insourcing in a generation.
Mr Dempsey said: “Outsourcing on our railways is a racket.
“Private firms are cashing in while cleaners, security staff and track workers, among others, are left struggling, often on low pay, insecure contracts and unsafe conditions.
“We have overworked cleaners, for example, working while sick, as companies like Churchill hand millions to shareholders.
“It’s totally indefensible and a waste of taxpayers’ money.”
Protesters hold placards as JD Vance drives by, Ayrshire, Scotland August 14, 2025
US VICE-president JD Vance has arrived in Ayrshire to the sound of rattling pots and a reminder of the millions being starved by the Israeli blockade of Gaza.
The protest on Wednesday formed part of ongoing action by Mothers Against Genocide, which answered the call of journalist in Gaza, Bisan Owda, for people to bang pots and pans.
Protesters are carrying out the pot banging each day at 6pm at more than 20 locations across Scotland to draw attention to the forced starvation of the people of Gaza by the Israeli regime.
But as protesters gathered outside the gates of the private Carnell Estate to greet Mr Vance, they were met by dozens of uniformed police.
A gaggle of undercover cops were also present, working in concert with US secret service personnel who roamed the public roads in golf buggies.
Initial efforts by police to move the protesters on to a “designated protest area” on a roundabout a mile away to “ensure safety” were refused, as was a later request to move from the verge in which they had gathered and on to a nearby side road.
The vice-president’s motorcade set out on the 10-mile journey from Prestwick Airport to Carnell, while police formed a cordon in front of the protesters.
But this did little to quiet the din of pots and pans, or the chants of “JD Vance, USA, how many kids did you kill today?!”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities,mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Pressure on Germany is mounting from multiple fronts: the resilience of Gaza’s people and fighters, the global solidarity movement, and even Nicaragua’s lawsuit against the German government.
Exactly 22 months after the start of the genocide against the people of Gaza, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced on August 8 that Germany would “no longer approve any exports of military equipment to Israel that could be used in the Gaza Strip” – at least for now.
But many left-wing, pro-Palestinian, and peace activists in Germany remain skeptical.
What weapons are we talking about?
It quickly became clear this was not a blanket halt to German arms shipments to Israel. Weapons intended for military operations in the illegally occupied West Bank, southern Lebanon, and Syria are unaffected. So are arms for aggression against neighboring Arab states, Yemen, and Iran.
Ammunition and air-defense technology are also exempt. While officially labeled “defensive”, these systems are used to intercept rockets and drones from the resistance in Gaza, Iran, Yemen’s Ansar Allah movement, and, until late last year, Hezbollah in Lebanon. So in fact they serve not just defense but also to sustain Israel’s broader policy of aggression and genocide.
The ban likely doesn’t apply to equipment for Israel’s navy either – despite its central role in enforcing the illegal blockade of Gaza’s coast. According to a 2024 study by the research group Forensis, German-built ships have also shelled Gaza from the sea. In a move that appeared to underscore this, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems announced on August 8, that it had just secured an export license for more warships and another submarine for Israel. Between 1999 and 2016, Germany delivered five nuclear-capable submarines to the Israeli government.
Arms supplier under pressure
Despite the justified criticism and inconsistency in Germany’s announcement, this partial suspension marks a significant political shift. Immediately after the Gaza genocide began, Germany quickly became Israel’s second-largest arms supplier, behind only the United States. Recently, one-third of Israel’s weapons imports came from Germany – earning the German arms sector hundreds of billions of euros in less than two years.
Merz, a staunch pro-Zionist known for hardline conservative views, open racism, and unabashed neoliberalism, previously sat on the supervisory board of BlackRock and represents the right wing of Germany’s main conservative party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). His decision drew angry reactions not only from the Netanyahu government, Zionist lobby organizations, and the right-wing press in Germany, but also from high-ranking politicians in his own party.
All that shows the mounting pressure Merz and the German government face. That pressure comes from multiple fronts: the resilience of Gaza’s people and fighters, the global solidarity movement – including in Germany – and international actions such as Nicaragua’s lawsuit against the German government.
Leon Wystrychowski is a former member of the Palästina Solidarität Duisburg (Palestine Solidarity Duisburg, PSDU).
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities,mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Protesters in New York City protest genocide in Gaza (Photo: Wyatt Souers)
Amid Israel’s starvation of Gaza, a broad coalition of pro-Palestine groups are planning a march of thousands through the streets of New York City
On Saturday, August 16, demonstrators are set to march in protest of Israel’s starvation of Gaza in a “Mass March for Humanity” through the streets of New York City. Over 200 organizations have endorsed, coming from an array of diverse backgrounds including the Palestinian diaspora, pro-Palestine solidarity groups, labor unions, anti-war groups, faith groups, and others. Buses are set to travel from across the northeastern United States, including from Baltimore, Boston, Burlington, New Hampshire, Philadelphia, Providence and Washington, DC.
Endorsing organizations include, but are not limited to, the Palestinian Youth Movement, the People’s Forum, the ANSWER Coalition, the Arab American Association of New York, the Palestinian American Organizations Network, American Muslims for Palestine, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Democratic Socialists of America, SEIU Local 509, Jewish Voice for Peace, CODEPINK, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the Green Party of the United States, Healthcare Workers For Palestine, the National Women’s Studies Association, and Doctors Against Genocide.
Doctors take a stand against mass death
“Genocide will never stop without global intervention,” Dr. Nidal Jboor, the cofounder of Doctors Against Genocide, told Peoples Dispatch. In May of this year, Jboor was arrested while sitting in a US congressional building holding a sign that read “Let the children eat. Let the children live,” while Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
“We cannot abandon the victims to the mercy of their killers. Humanity must rise, mobilize, and save the starved population of Gaza – because governments will not act unless we force them to through relentless, unyielding pressure,” said Jboor.
Members of Doctors Against Genocide, along with over 100 medical professionals across the globe who have volunteered in Gaza have signed onto a letter in solidarity with Palestinian medical workers.
“We refuse to remain silent while our colleagues are being starved, and shot by Israel,” the letter reads. “Palestinian health workers are collapsing from hunger while performing surgeries, operating without basic medical supplies, and enduring relentless attacks on hospitals, clinics, and ambulances.”
The letter demands urgent protection for Palestinian civilians and healthcare workers, an end to attacks on medical facilities, the lifting of Israel’s blockade to allow full humanitarian access, an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and accountability for those responsible for violence and abuses in Gaza.
Journalists’ contingent to denounce Israel’s targeting of Palestinian journalists
The recent assassination of six Palestinian journalists by Israeli forces, including Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif on Sunday, August 10, has fueled a surge of outrage. On Saturday, journalists and media workers will join the demonstration to denounce the attacks on their colleagues in Gaza.
Among these journalists include a group of writers organized by Writers Against the War on Gaza, a group that has been active since the first weeks of the genocide in October of 2023. WAWOG’s organizing hit the ground running with bold, targeted action against mainstream media outlets, including blocking a shipment of the New York Times newspaper at its printing plant in Queens, New York in March of 2024.
According to Nicki Kattoura, a member of WAWOG, “there is no press freedom if Palestinian journalists are being killed.”
“Israel is targeting Palestinian journalists because they are threatened by the exposure of their war crimes,” says Kattoura. “But we also find, this is not the whole story, politically, although it may be, and also feels true, psychologically.”
“One thing that we can say with certainty is that Israel is killing Palestinian journalists because they are Palestinian. The Zionist entity’s clear stated intent is to exterminate the Palestinian people,” Kattoura continued. “And I would say the killing of Hossam Shabat or Anas Al-Sharif is as much about breaking the Palestinian spirit, because they are the beloved voices of the Palestinian people, as it is about ethnically cleansing the Gaza Strip.”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities,mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Buenos Aires march on Saturday, August 9. Photo: Argentine Committee for Solidarity with the Palestinian People
Protesters on Saturday also denounced the very close relationship between the governments of Milei and Netanyah
On August 9, thousands of Argentines took to the streets of the capital, Buenos Aires, demanding an end to the genocide being committed in Gaza, Palestine Israel. The slogan of the march was “We are all children of Gaza”.
The protesters denounced the indiscriminate attacks and forced starvation that, they claimed, Israeli forces are perpetrating against the civilian population.
The demonstration ended at Plaza de Mayo, where, according to some media outlets, more than 10,000 people demanded an end to the repressive actions in Palestine: “ Gaza is starving, time is up!” and “Palestine will prevail from the river to the sea” were some of the slogans chanted by the protesters as they waved Palestinian flags.
The march brought together human rights organizations, left-wing political parties, and various social movements, which declared that the only solution to any conflict in Palestine is peace, respect for sovereignty, and a dignified life for those who live there.
“We are facing genocide, which is confirmed by Israeli leaders themselves when they openly say that it is lawful to starve and dehydrate the entire population of Gaza, including its children. This genocide must be denounced relentlessly,” said Gabriel Solano, one of the leaders of the Left Front, during the mobilization.
For its part, the Palestinian Embassy in Argentina posted on X: “THANK YOU ARGENTINA, WE WILL NEVER FORGET! An impressive demonstration took place on Saturday, August 9, in Buenos Aires to denounce the genocide being carried out by the state of Israel against the Palestinian people.”
A close relationship between the governments of Argentina and Israel?
The demonstration also criticized the close ties between the Argentine and Israeli governments, which Argentine President Javier Milei (who recently traveled to the occupied Palestinian territories) has never denied. One of the slogans heard at the march was: “Milei, Zionist, you are the terrorist”.
Milei has announced that in 2026, he will relocate the Argentine embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a move that Palestinians and several governments around the world have heavily criticized. For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that he will soon come to Argentina on an official visit, a move that various Argentine political movements and parties have strongly denounced.
In addition to Buenos Aires, demonstrations against the genocide in Palestine took place in other Argentine cities, such as San Carlos de Bariloche, El Bolsón, Trelew, Comodoro Rivadavia, Ushuaia, Río Grande, San Salvador de Jujuy, Salta, San Miguel de Tucumán, San Juan, La Rioja, Catamarca, Mendoza, Santa Fe, Concepción del Uruguay, Córdoba, Cosquín, Alta Gracia, Villa Dolores, La Plata, Bahía Blanca, Mar del Plata, Neuquén, and Viedma.
Solidarity with Palestine continues to grow
“The last three demonstrations have grown due to the news about the genocide taking place in Gaza,” Gabriela B., an activist with Nuestramérica and member of the Argentine Committee for Solidarity with the Palestinian People, told Peoples Dispatch. For her, there is a significant increase in support for the cause, “If there was ever a belief that people could ignore the situation in Palestine without it affecting their humanity or without their stance being noticed, that idea has been shattered.”
She also pointed out the importance of Israel in Argentina: “In Argentina, the situation is very difficult. As a colleague mentioned, Argentina is considered the capital of Zionism [in Latin America], which means that the mainstream media only broadcasts voices that cover up the genocide. Furthermore, any action or complaint related to Palestine is framed within the concept of anti-Semitism, making solidarity and questioning of the situation even more difficult. The silence is already unsustainable, and Netanyahu’s possible visit, as well as the famine in Gaza, have triggered acts of repudiation. This resulted in posts on the accounts of famous artists during the week and in the large march that took place not only in Buenos Aires but in 30 other locations throughout the country, including cities and provinces.”
Regarding the demands made by the protesters, Gabriela said: “The main demand was a call to stop the genocide and famine, and to reject the possible visit to Argentina by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.” Other demands included:
The withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon.
Ending diplomatic relations with Israel. Cancelling the Mercosur-Israel agreement (a Free Trade Agreement between Israel and a bloc of South American countries).
Stop the persecution of those who show solidarity with the Palestinian people.
In Argentina, two prominent political figures are currently being persecuted for tweeting about the genocide in Gaza: Vanina Biasi and Alejandro Bodart.
When asked about the criticisms raised during the march against Milei’s close relationship with Netanyahu, Gabriela B. said that in the last month, key political and progressive movements have begun to join the movement in support of Palestine and rejecting Israel’s actions. After Saturday’s march, momentum has continued to build, “various complaints were filed after Saturday by trade unions and human rights organizations, demanding Netanyahu’s arrest if he visits Argentina. The same complaint alleges that Netanyahu committed ‘genocide and war crimes’ against the Palestinians (presented by the secretary general of ATE Buenos Aires, Daniel ‘Tano’ Catalano, and the representative of the H.I.J.O.S. group, Verónica Castelli).”
She added: “However, as far as Milei and the ruling party are concerned, nothing has happened. No media outlet, except for alternative ones, has reported on the large march. The only news that managed to break through the media blockade and name Israel as a murderer was the news of the six journalists who were killed on Sunday. This march has served to denounce the Zionist alliance that the government maintains and to continue raising awareness among our people.”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities,mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
RMT members in Manchester, August 14, 2025
