Transgender : Xenophobia : Debt recovery violence : Government snooping
In this contribution to Life of the ISL Ashley shows how his recent work reminded him of the true oppressive face of capitalism, and that this view has been reinforced since, with many more oppressive developments by British capitalism.
Stop Removing More Transgender Rights
On Wednesday 6 December 2023, Kemi Badenoch, minister for women and equalities, announced the government will change the list of countries whose gender recognition laws they deem acceptable. She announced that countries which have laws that are more favourable to transgender people such as New Zealand will be removed from said list.
Migrant people who come from countries not on this list will be forced to undergo additional scrutiny of their gender and provide additional information if they want the British government to recognise their gender identity with a GRC (Gender Recognition Certificate).
Claims by the minister that this is just about creating some kind of legal parity between systems of different countries is false. Many countries which have more intrusive and abusive systems of gender recognition than Britain will be added to list of countries which Britain deems acceptable. Some of those countries require surgery to be undertaken and in some cases require transgender people to be sterilised. The British system does not require either.
This exposes what is really at the heart of these changes, more control and oppression in service to elements of British capitalisms obsession with controlling transgender people and controlling migrant people.
The British government continues its colonialist legacy as well as deciding which countries do or do not have acceptable laws and systems when it comes to LGBTQ+ people and their identities, and the British government will continue to punish people who come from countries whose laws they deem unacceptable.
Defend transgender people
End all oppression
Stigmatising and Controlling Migrant People
In the same week the British government announces new proposed attacks on migrant people.
• Ban health and care workers bringing family dependants to the UK
• Increase the annual charge foreign workers pay to use the NHS from £624 to £1,035
• Raise the minimum income requirement (MIR) for skilled workers from spring 2024 to £38,700.
• Raise MIR for family visas from £18,600 to £29,000 in spring 2024; then MIR £38,700 early 2025
• Ask the government’s migration adviser to review the graduate visa route to “prevent abuse”
This exemplifies how the government is doing more and more to stigmatise and control migrant people. The government is attempting again to carry out its disgustingly oppressive and deeply flawed scheme to remove migrant people to Rwanda. Spending vast amounts of money and effort, in the vein attempt to try to criminalise migrant people crossing the Channel but not providing safe roots for asylum.
Refugees are welcome here!
British and foreign workers unite and fight!
The violence of debt recovery
At a recent meeting of the Stockport based anti-austerity group, we had a speaker from ACORN the community union who in addition to other work currently have a campaign to demand councils stop using private debt collection firms for council tax arrears.
The reason most people do not pay the council tax is because they are genuinely struggling and need help, thus sending any kind of enforcement after them to get the money owed is inherently a deeply repulsive, aggressive and bullying practise. The firms used by Manchester City Council have been linked with practises that are in a legal grey area at least if not downright illegal. Such as agents dressing like police offices, lying about their right to seize items from a property, and issuing thinly veiled threats. And then threatening to seize goods, sanctioned by the court to cover debts.
There have been cases of suicide linked to debt enforcement. As well as many more cases of people undergoing immense stress and mental anguish having to deal with debt collection agencies.
These are just a few repulsive practises these companies engage in, all in the pursuit of profit.
Social security and government snooping
The government are attempting further attacks on those who claim social security, including pensioners, universal credit claimants, and employment and support allowance claimants.
A last-minute amendment slipped into the governments proposed Data Protection and Digital Information bill, will allow the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to force a wide range of institutions, initially banks, to hand over their client’s private data – such as how much money a claimant has in their bank account and if the account has been used overseas for more than four weeks.
The DWP has rules on how much money claimants can have in their bank accounts if they want some elements of social security and how long they can travel abroad, These changes are coupled with those announced in the 2023 autumn budget to implement measures to force even more people off disability and illness social security schemes and force them into work. This is a clear attempt to reduce government spending and at the same time force people into increasingly poorly paid jobs with horrendous working conditions. These changes will be backed up with the threat of kicking people off their social security packages if they refuse to comply.
These changes will significantly affect and worsen the lives of millions of people.
Yet again to try and force working class people to pay for British capitalisms failures and to divide British working-class people against each other, the British government plans to descend into even deeper authoritarianism. Every worker, in this age of increasingly unstable and casual employment, should oppose these changes. We are all at risk for in this age of capitalist oppression it could be you who next falls into the DWPs oppressive clutches.
Fear of oppressive bullying from the state will also have the effect of causing working-class people to think they have to endure even worse treatment from their bosses, for out of fear of becoming unemployed and having to having to deal with the ever-watchful eyes and ever threatening fists of the DWP.
Despite an ongoing cost of living crisis, the UK government is adopting policies that removes people’s rights to a safety net and social security and an adequate standard of living, including food and adequate housing.
Unions and unemployed unite and fight!
Build a united struggle against Tory policies and councils that implement them!
