In a referendum on 26 September, a million people in Berlin voted for the expropriation of the major landlords. In the so-called “Deutsche Wohnen & co enteigen” (DWE) referendum (which in English translates as “Expropriate Deutsche Wohnen and co.”), 56 percent of voters voted to expropriate 240,000 apartments owned by the biggest profiteering landlords, including Deutsche Wohnen, with 39 percent voting against. This is the biggest breakthrough in the class struggle in Germany for decades. It gives a flavour of the militant mood building among workers and youth.

55 years ago today, the Welsh village of Aberfan was hit by an avalanche of mining waste, killing 144 people, of which 116 were children. This did not need to happen. As with the Grenfell fire in 2017, warnings by local residents were repeatedly ignored by local officials and state bureaucrats. As we have seen time and time again, the capitalist system has a callous disregard for human life.