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Although much of the world is now engulfed in chaos after the US and Israel launched an illegal and unprovoked attack on Iran on Saturday morning, I want to turn back the clock to the day before the “war” began, and the resounding victory, in a crucial by-election in Gorton and Denton, in Manchester, of Hannah Spencer, a local working class plumber standing for the Green Party, who secured 14,980 votes (42% of the total votes cast) over Reform’s 10,578 votes, and Labour’s 9,364 votes (halving their vote from when they held the seat at the General Election in 2024), dealing a seismic blow to the domination of British politics by an entire political class — from Labour to the Tories and Reform — that functions solely through negativity, corruption, oppression and division.

At her victory speech, echoing what she stated throughout her campaign, she said:

I am no different to every single person here in this constituency. I work hard. That is what we do. Except things have changed a lot over the last few decades. Because working hard used to get you something. It got you a house, a nice life, holidays. It got you somewhere. But now? Working hard? What does that get you?

Because talk to anyone here and they will tell you, the people who work hard but can’t put food on the table, can’t get their kids school uniforms, can’t put their heating on, can’t live off the pension they worked hard to save for, can’t even begin to dream about ever having a holiday, ever. Because life has changed. Instead of working for a nice life, we’re working to line the pockets of billionaires. We are being bled dry.

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