Everyone should read this account of Firefighters being run down by scabs.

Utterly despicable.

What are the chances these events will get the same level of coverage as the whining about the fire-fighters striking to defend services?

On Tuesday there was an early day motion in Westminster on a referendum on proportional representation.

Although a small number of MPs from a number of parties voted for it – not a single Lib Dem did!

Anyone who has watched the Nick Clegg video where he pledges to oppose and vote against increases in tuition fees won’t be surprised.

We sincerely hope that all those who voted for the Lib Dems because they were radical and different from Labour and the Tories will have reconsidered doing so again in future.

During the election we did a partial mailout in the Dundee East constituency. Unfortunately a number of people who live within the postcode areas we had leaflets delivered to have reported that they received none of ours.

If you live in Dundee East can you let us know if you did or did not receive an SSP leaflet delivered by Royal Mail. This would greatly help us in tracking where they were/were not delivered.

Another is formed. The misnamed Liberal Democrats appear to be propping up the Tories. Given that Nick Clegg recently praised Thatcher it should come as no surprise. No doubt the 4 key policies of the Lib Dems will be abandoned for a few ministerial seats.

The initial David Cameron speech made it plain that any Lib Dem/Tory pact would be like the old Spitting Image sketch.

We share these policies so come and support us in implementing them (paraphrasing)

Who we should feel sorry for are those tens of thousands of people who believed the media hyped Cleggmania and thought they were voting for a radical liberal alternative to the two main Tory parties.

There is a radical liberal alternative to these three parties, it’s called the SSP. Join us and help make a difference.

The indispensable WIkiLeaks has released a video showing the pilots of two US gunships murdering reporters and children in cold blood.

To usual form they claimed that it was only Iraqi Insurgents killed etc etc.

Dundee SSP members were among the hundreds who took part in a march and rally today in Broughty Ferry to defend the Balmossie Fire Station from downgrading.

The Fire Board have for the second year in a row marked it for cuts. It needs to be defended for the second year in a row.

Read about the campaign at the website Save Balmossie

If one of your councillors is on the Fire Board please contact them to ensure they vote against downgrading.

A list of members can be found at the campaign site

They include

• Elizabeth Fordyce (Maryfield)
• Helen Wright (Coldside)
• Rod Wallace (The Ferry)
• David Bowes (Coldside)
• Andy Dawson (North East)
• Richard McCready (West End)
• Christina Roberts (East End)

So basically 6 of the 8 wards in Dundee.

There are also other councillors from Angus and Perthshire.

The Guardian has published an article on the Post Office closures and consultations. It details a parliamentary committee criticising the sham consultations and closure program.

When the press are telling us daily about the damage posties are doing to the service they are attempting to defend it’s worth remembering who the privatising parasites really are who are gutting the service by both tiny attacks and huge.

We wrote about the sham consultation at the time.

David Cameron has been all over the press today with his sweeping radical reforms as he likes to call them.

These include:

• seriously consider[ing] the possibility of fixed-term parliaments
• reducing the number of MPs by 10%
• Text alerts on progression of Bills.
• More publication of expenses
• possible curbs on the whipping of votes
• backbenchers would get powers to choose the chairmen and members of select committees

These, he claims, will transfer power from the state to the people. Sounds good, unless you realise this is a man who voted for people to be detained by the state without charge for 28 days.

So lets look at the list:

seriously consider[ing] the possibility of fixed-term parliaments.

Not only is it a pitiful reform but it is surrounded by two weasily non-commital caveats. Why not fixed numbers of terms for MPs if you want to fix terms? (The SSP voted for 2 terms at our conference a number of years back)

reducing the number of MPs by 10%

In a parliament which is a representative type this makes the body less accountable, not more.

Text alerts on progression of Bills.

Post a reply if you can name one Bill currently going through parliament.

Yep, thought not.

The bills are available here if you wish to see.

More publication of expenses

Long overdue, but whilst MPs make the rules they then defend themselves by not breaking it is toothless and purely populist.

possible curbs on the whipping of votes

How exactly would this be enforceable? Notice again the weasely caveat.

backbenchers would get powers to choose the chairmen and members of select committees

Well hold me back, that is exactly the demand being made by everyone on a daily basis, the problem with parliament being the backbenchers don’t get to choose chairmen of talking shops. Sounds more like throwing a bone to get the support from backbenchers though.

Reforms which were noticeable by their absence included

• Reducing pay of MPs or linking to some measure of wages/income. Might we suggest a maximum of 5 times the state pension? Then there might be some action on pensioner poverty.
• Abolition of the unelected and undemocratic House of Lords
• Abolition of the unelected and undemocratic Privy Council
• Recallability of MPs – by petition of a percentage of constituents or triggered by voting against election promises or by changing their political affiliation
• Proportional Representation – deliberately excluded by Cameron
• Extending the franchise
• Overhauling voter registration to remove the current ease to commit fraud with postal vote registration.

None of these are revolutionary demands. They are basic reforms which are far more radical than anything Cameron has just dreamed up. Of course further reforms would be a real democracy, with the parliament chosen by lot, rather than the oligarchy we have now.

Scottish Socialist co-spokesperson Colin Fox has repeated the party’s policy that anybody elected under their banner would refuse the “lottery winners” lifestyle enjoyed by other politicians.

Instead he repeated the SSP policy that anybody elected for the party will live on a skilled worker’s wage.

Former MSP Fox is top of the SSP candidate’s list for the European elections on June 4th.

He said:

The Scottish Socialist Party is entitled to have voters reminded that each and every one of their candidates is pledged to refuse the highly inflated salary of an MP/MSP/MEP and live instead on the average wage of the people whose interests they seek to represent.

And since promises in politics today are seen to be usually worthless it is important to remind voters that the SSP MSPs honoured that promise for the entire time they were at Holyrood between 1999 and 2007.

Each one of us lived on the average wage in line with party policy.

In the forthcoming European elections in June we will once again pledge to live in a skilled worker’s wage and shun the millionaire lifestyle beloved of MPs which has rightly outraged the public.

The entire sleazy episode nullifies any credibility ‘career politicians’ have about their motives for going into politics. It’s a funny way to ’serve the public’ stealing from the public purse and the SSP will have none of it.

The media for a week has been full of stories of the outrageous expenses claims by MPs.

From tampons (for a man) to moat cleaning there is seemingly no receipt these parasites will not claim for at taxpayers expense.

This is not democracy.

David Cameron: Quick, someone grab a receipt, the peasents can pay for this meal

Democracy is not just crossing a box once every four years, it is also about transparency and accountability.

If the police won't get involved we'll have to catch the leaker ourselves.

The Scottish Socialist Party has a policy we call the Workers Wage. Our elected representatives take home no more than an amount linked to the average wage of working people. This helps keep your elected representatives linked to the life you lead – they know how much a council tax rise affects you because it affects them too.

There is no chance of any of our elected representatives having you pay for their chandeliers or moat cleaning and most don’t own their first home never mind second, third or gated estate.

Come June the 4th vote for a representative who will be representative of the lives of most people in Scotland – vote Scottish Socialist Party.