Last Wednesday, a new government in the Republic of Moldova was sworn in to the tune of mass protests outside of its Parliament buildings. Opposition figures claimed an attendance of 100,000 people in Grand National Assembly Square in the capital, Chisinau. Demonstrators clashed with police officers and ultimately broke into Parliament in an attempt to stop the swearing-in-ceremony of Pavel Filip of the Democratic Party as Prime Minister. The new government inaugurates another period of the rule of the Liberal Democratic, Liberal, and Democratic Parties, which have governed under the banner of joining the EU for 5 years.

Mass protests are continuing in Moldova, one of the poorest countries in Europe. On 6th September, around 100,000 protesters [in a country 0f 3.5 million] took to the streets of the capital Chișinău [a town of less than 700,000 people]. Workers, civil servants, students, and pensioners have been protesting against the hike in prices and tariffs for utilities, and against corruption and poverty. The protesters, engaged in clashes with the police, are attempting to storm administrative buildings and have already set up a tent camp in the centre of the capital.

The first two months of 2015 have seen coal miners in Poland, a traditionally well organised and powerful section of the working class in that country, flex their muscles and remind the bourgeoisie of the power of a militant labour movement.

Since the beginning of 2014 the word “recovery” has been looming large in all reports on the UK economy. The BBC speaks of a “remarkable performance”, with projections for growth for 2014 now standing at 2.5%.