Socialist Register 2026

Some see a new ‘post-industrialism’ in which the provisioning of non-standardized services replaces commodity production; others foresee increasingly authoritarian states fusing with far-right movements. It is important to identify contending themes in this ‘late-stage capitalism’. In what ways does the return of Donald Trump to the American presidency represent this new phase of capitalism? Is the capitalist class to be barricaded off from the anger of the working classes and the storms of climate change? And where is the left scratching out new political spaces amidst the economic ruins?