Tomás Ó Flatharta

Looking at Things from the Left

Archive for the ‘Sharon Graham, UNITE General Secretary elected August 2021’ Category

Political Nonsense Expressed by British MP Zarah Sultana of the new British left organisation “Your Party” – she attacks Volodymyr Zelensky to justify scabbing on the Ukrainian workers – Critics say : “it is perfectly possible to support a people’s struggle for national freedom while opposing the govt or political leadership currently at the head of that struggle”

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The British Ukraine Solidarity Campaign is a growing force.

It recently won the support of the UNITE trade union, which also organises in Ireland.


UNITE the Union votes overwhelmingly for strong solidarity with Ukraine

But some parts of the British left offer policies which pretend to be anti-imperialist, but they stink.

It reminds this writer of bad old days in the 1960’s and 1970’s when many left organisations – from the Labour party to Official Sinn Féin and the Communist party – refused to practice solidarity with comrades in the six-county part of Ireland because they disagreed with the policies of Sinn Féin and the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the main republican organisations which had a mass following.

We can not do anything about political mistakes made in the past – but we can learn from them and do better in the future. One big positive example from those days was the formation of the National H-Block-Armagh.

Readers interested. who like to burrow into useful political history, are invited to read this book review :


Smashing H Block:The Rise and Fall of the Popular Campaign Against Criminalization

In the meantime, congratulations to the Ukraine Solidarity Campaign in Britain.

John Meehan October 28 2025


From Ukraine Solidarity Campaign

We take no joy criticising a young left-wing UK political figure who has often spoken up for workers’ rights and progressive causes. But these barely coherent comments from Zarah Sultana on Ukraine sum up much of what is wrong with her wing of the left: www.instagram.com/reel/DQT62ysjFKK

British Your Party MP’s Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana – Dodgy Ukraine policies on offer

First up – yes, Zelensky is no friend of Ukraine’s working class in the sense that his government pursues right-wing, neoliberal, anti-worker economic policies.

Unlike Zarah Sultana, we actually know something about this, since we are connected to Ukraine’s unions and have been actively involved in helping them fight these policies.

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Will Unite the Union stand with Ukraine?

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This post comes from our comrades in the British Ukraine Solidarity Campaign. The author is Sacha Ismail. Source : https://ukrainesolidaritycampaign.org/2023/06/25/will-unite-the-union-stand-with-ukraine/

Will Unite the Union stand with Ukraine?

By Sacha Ismail

Sharon Graham UNITE General Secretary speakng at a picket – the refuse workers strike in Coventry – strikers had raised Ukrainian flags.

If delegates to Unite the Union’s upcoming biennial policy conference (11-14 July, Brighton) want to support

• withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine
• Ukraine’s right to self-determination
• strong links with Ukrainian trade unions and socialists
• clear demands for strong rights for all refugees

they must support the text submitted by my branch, London and Eastern 524.

Delegates to the first Unite policy conference since Russia invaded Ukraine should vote to push for the UK’s largest private sector union, involved in many of the most successful industrial disputes of the last year, to stand in clear solidarity with Ukraine and its labour movement.

Only one motion on Ukraine has been submitted to the conference (from the Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Process and Textiles ‘Regional Industrial Sector Committee’/RISC for North East, Yorkshire and Humberside). It seems to me, at best, highly politically ambiguous. The substantial amendment submitted by London and Eastern 524 (Central London Voluntary Sector branch) seeks to ensure a strong pro-Ukraine stance. (You can read the text of both below; document with all motions and amendments here.)

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UNITE Trade Union (Britain) Call : “Immediate Ceasefire and a Withdrawal of all Russian Forces From Ukraine”

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The British trade union UNITE – which also has a substantial membership in Ireland, has issued a positive statement about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Unite executive council – statement on Ukraine crisis.

Sharon Graham is the General Secretary of the British Trade Union UNITE

Sharon Graham was elected to lead UNITE in a recent election which produced a surprise result https://www.rs21.org.uk/2021/08/25/sharon-graham-wins-stunning-unite-victory/

The Unite executive council unreservedly condemns Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and stands in full solidarity with the millions of victims of the attack. Unite calls for an immediate cease-fire and a withdrawal of all Russian forces from Ukraine.

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Sharon Graham Wins UNITE General Secretary Election – What Happens Next?

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Here is an interesting initial analysis of Sharon Graham’s UNITE election victory – the union has a new General Secretary. This is the source : https://www.rs21.org.uk/2021/08/25/sharon-graham-wins-stunning-unite-victory/.

Sharon Graham is the new General Secretary of UNITE, a British Trade Union that has a significant membership on both sides of the border in Ireland.

UNITE has a significant membership on both sides of the border in Ireland, where it operates with a large degree of independence from the British mothership. For example, UNITE in Dublin is a significant participant in the activities of the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, and it has been an active supporter of campaigns for Abortion rights in Ireland.

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