Boris Johnson’s Government, the most reactionary since Margaret Thatcher was in power, has succeeded in negotiating the withdrawal of Britain from the EU. In the process, leaders of the “Remain” camp in the Tory Party who represent a section  of the British capitalist class whose interests are tied to the EU, have been driven out of the party. Having obtained Parliament’s approval for a general election, Johnson’s government has inflicted a crushing defeat on the opposition parties led by the Labour Party (LP). The British working class face a renewed onslaught from an emboldened, racist and xenophobic Tory Government. The triumph of Johnson’s government amplifies Trump’s victory in the US presidential elections, the rise of fascist parties in Europe and the big shift to the right in international politics.

Johnson’s Tory party represents that section of British capital, which is wedded to striking a trade deal with the USA, and to a low wage economy. Britain will not align itself to EU rules and rejects the jurisdiction of EU courts in any trade deal. The prospects are that the EU will defend its companies from British competitors and there will be the imposition of checks, tariffs and quotas, which will damage the British economy more than that of the EU.  Trump has signalled to the Johnson government that when the negotiations on a US British trade deal take place, the NHS will be in the sights of US firms staking claims leading to further privatisation of the NHS. Friction between the US and Britain is developing over Britain’s business dealings with the Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, which is involved in the development of the 5G telecoms network in Britain. Chinese technology in this field is way ahead of any commercial rival. The US is opposed to the British contract with Huawei for “security reasons” and the US Secretary of State Pompeo has warned Britain that US intelligence would only pass through trusted networks.

Following the defeat of the LP in the general election, Corbyn has resigned as its leader, and is now immersed in a leadership election to replace him. Corbyn was defeated in the election by a combination of the hostile forces of Johnson’s Tory Party, the mass media and a section of the LP, including large numbers of MPs and councillors wedded to neoliberalism and the politics of the Blair and Brown government. The absurd accusation that Corbyn, a lifelong champion of antiracism, is an anti-Semite and that the LP is riddled with anti-semitism was made by Zionists in the LP, who feared a Corbyn government championing the struggle of the Palestinians against the oppressive Israeli government. The Zionists led a campaign supported by other rightwing elements in the LP and reactionary forces outside the LP, pressurising the party to adopt a definition of anti-Semitism linking it to anti-Zionism. Succumbing to these forces, the Corbyn leadership permitted a witch hunt in which prominent anti-Zionists, Jew and non-Jew were expelled from the LP. This betrayal of loyal LP members by the LP leadership was one of the factors which led to the big defeat of the LP in the elections

In the election campaign, the LP put forward an even more radical program than in the 2017 election. It outlined a free care policy for the elderly, it pledged to repeal Tory anti-union legislation, to introduce a Green New Deal and reduce Britain’s carbon emissions to zero by 2030. On Brexit, it accepted the verdict of the British people on the referendum to leave the EU. It was committed to negotiating a “leave” deal within three months of gaining power and placing this deal and the alternative of remaining in the EU in a second referendum before the people. However finely balanced the LP leadership believed its Brexit policy to be, it failed to satisfy many LP supporters. For the “Remain” LP supporters it did not go far enough because it was committed to negotiating a “leave” deal with the EU. The former disenchanted LP supporters in the de-industrialized north of England, turned to Johnson and helped to propel him to victory.

 British Politics: More Turmoil Ahead  

LP  members are in the process of choosing a leader and deputy leader of the LP. There are sharp divisions in the LP with none of the contestants clearly ahead of their rivals. The Tory government is bent on a quick trade deal with the US once Britain leaves the EU. It is obliged to take the lead as the host country for the scheduled COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. The LP has accused the Tory government of not having an agreed plan for the climate summit, nor is it meeting its targets for reducing greenhouse gases. Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the IRA has emerged as the party with the most votes in the recent election in Ireland and is committed to fight for a united Ireland .The SNP (Scottish National Party) which supported “Remain” in the EU referendum, has given notice to the British government that it wants another referendum on Scottish independence. Johnson is emphatic he will not agree to a second Scottish referendum. The break up of the British state is on the agenda, which as a long term consequence of their policies should have been anticipated by the Tory government. This, together with their failure to provide leadership for the climate summit at the end of the year, and their brutal policies leading to endemic poverty and food banks, are certain to lead to further turmoil in Britain.