The SSP has selected Kevin McKvey as our candidate in the Glasgow North East by-election (date to be decided).

To read about the campaign go to the blog. To get involved by either donating money or donating time please contact the SSP using the contact details on the campaign blog.

Kevin McVey stands for socialism in Glasgow North East – 2nd July 2009

The Scottish Socialist Party has selected Kevin McVey as candidate for the Glasgow North East by-election.
A civil service trade union representative for 20 years, Kevin was brought up in the constituency, in Ruchazie.
Kevin joined the Labour Party Young Socialists in 1984 and was expelled from the Labour party 5 years later for being a socialist.

Kevin has a long track record of fighting the poll tax, against school closures, and for taxation of the rich to improve public services.

Kevin McVey said this evening:

At a time of daily news bulletins on the stench of corruption arising from Westminster, I am proud to publicly pledge that I will reject the £64,000 MP’s salary and live instead on the average skilled worker’s wage – not a penny more.

After the mainstream parties have been caught fiddling expenses for food, furniture, second homes, and Michael Martin was booted out for trying to cover up these crimes against people struggling to pay the bills, Labour now wants him promoted to the unelected, undemocratic House of Lords.

That’s an insult to ordinary hardworking people. Where I have worked you would be sacked for doctoring expenses or for failing to act against fiddles if you were in a manager’s post!

The people of Glasgow North East deserve a socialist MP who will fight for them, not another chancer who pockets the obscene salary and then grabs even more in expenses.

SSP Glasgow Regional Secretary Richie Venton said today:

We are proud to put up a candidate with such a long and principled history of fighting for the working class.

The SSP has been at the heart of fighting to save several local schools and nurseries from Labour’s butchery. We have helped stop the ambitious councillor Gordon Matheson becoming the Labour candidate, because even the out-of-touch Labour hierarchy knew he would be a complete liability in an area blitzed by school closures, which he was at the heart of. The SSP will make Save Our Schools a major issue in the by-election, demanding class sizes of 20 or less for all kids, to give them a decent start in life and to hire more teachers and nursery staff.

A number of important event have happened locally yesterday.

On Friday it was announced that manufacturing was to close down at NCR. This will also lead to a number of job losses at related companies including Taylor Group Diecastings Limited.

Texol also announced their closure.

The Evening Telegraph has a depressing list of the major job losses which have hit Dundee in the last two years: 1539 jobs in total. This does not include the recent announcements just in time for the end of the financial year and the big bonus payments to the bosses.

It is yet to be seen if these workers will fight back having seen the Prisme workers do so.

There is now a Prisme workers fund, send cheques with payment to: TUC Lobby Fund, to
Prisme Workers Solidarity,
c/o Mike Arnott,
Dundee TUC,
141 Yarrow Terrace,
Menzieshill,
Dundee,
DD2 4DY.

The other event overshadowed by these depressing reports was the election results in the Maryfield by election. As expected the SNP walked it, although surprisingly not in the first round. The SSP had a disappointing result but it was as we expected. In a two horse race like a by election the votes get squeezed for smaller parties. It is unknown how many second votes were given to the SSP after giving a first vote to Labour or the SNP. In a normal council election with multiple councillors being elected these may be passed to us, in this case there was no chance of them ever being passed to us.

The people of Dundee have resoundingly said they want an SNP council. They were the largest party returned at the council elections and at the two subsequent by elections won them both comfortably. It is yet to be seen if the anti-democratic coalition of Labour/Tories/Liberal Democrats. Ian Borthwick got off the fence last time and sided with the will of the voters in Dundee, it is to be seen if he will do so again.

Not that an SNP council will be an improvement for the working class of Dundee. Just ask teachers or nursery nurses in nearby Angus Council how an SNP council treats it’s employees.

Tomorrow is the day of the by election. The last leaflet group have just returned from pounding the pavements of Maryfield having covered around 90% of the ward. Around 10 stalls have been held in the outlying areas of the ward (we have a stall in the city centre almost every weekend and 1 in the outlying areas once every few weeks).

Last night was the one and only hustings – see the report in the Courier, where a number of people congratulated Angela Gorrie as being an excellent candidate. The Lib Dem Candidate also showed support for the SSP’s ground breaking Free Public Transport policy, which was surprising and welcome. This was in answer to a question about the best way to get people out of their cars.

So tomorrow if you would have normally supported someone who won’t win or will win by a landslide, consider giving the SSP your first vote. You will increase our vote and if and when we are eliminated, your vote carries to your second choice – it isn’t wasted!

It’s been a frantic few weeks of campaigning in the Maryfield by election and the result will be known on Friday. Before you cast your vote remember this is an election using a Transferable Vote, not just a cross in a box.

You can vote SSP 1, Labour 2 or SNP 1, SSP 2 or whatever way you want. You can’t waste your vote. Vote in order of your preference.

You can still vote tactically.

If you normally vote Labour but want them to care more about working class people then mark SSP 1 and Labour 2. Labour will then get transferred the vote if and when the SSP are eliminated. It sends a message to them about what their voters other priorities are. If one party sees their votes coming to them as a second choice behind the SSP it sends them a clear message that their supporters think they are too right wing or authoritarian.

Vote for what you want not against what you don’t want.

See where you are politically at the Political Compass. For reference the SSP would be left wing and liberal (the same square as Gandhi). Labour would be right wing and authoritarian (the same square as the Tories and the Italian Fascists). You can also see the drift to be both right wing and authoritarian by Labour.

Unfortunately there is no Scotland wide table. On this graphic the SSP would be about the same place as the Greens, with the SNP being a bit to the left of the Liberal Democrats.

Take the test, see where you are and vote for the party or parties who most match your views.

The Stobswell Forum are hosting a hustings meeting on Tuesday 10th March at 7pm in the Boomerang Hall (110 Albert Street).

This is the first and only hustings to have taken place in the by-election. If you live in the ward pop along to quiz the candidates.

Below is a short article written by Colin Fox about the occupation of St Andrews Uni. Come along to our open branch meeting tomorrow night to hear Colin Fox speaking about the Council Tax and Angela Gorrie speak about the Maryfield by election. (see meetings page for details)

Viva La Revolution St Andrews

Students at St Andrews University were in the headlines last week for occupying their College Halls in support of the Gaza Palestinians and in particular against the University’s links with Israeli defence contractors. Last Wednesday as their week long occupation drew to a successful conclusion they asked me to come up and address them. Many of the 200 or so protesters had organised my election campaign to become Rector of the University last October.

These are my remarks to them

I am very proud indeed to be back here at St Andrews tonight. I am especially proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with you at the end of this remarkable occupation. I am proud to see so many of the students who led the campaign ‘Fox for Rector’ in October involved in furthering the cause of the Palestinian people.

I am sure Kevin Dunnion [the successful Rector candidate] is delighted to see you take this action and demonstrate the strength of feeling on campus. – Kevin Dunion was, unbeknown to me, sitting in the meeting as I spoke!

I wish to congratulate you all on behalf of the people of Scotland and indeed the vast majority of the peoples of the world who like you share the view that a terrible injustice has befallen the people of Gaza in recent weeks. You have done both them and yourselves immense credit by the principled and dignified way you have conducted your protest.

You are a credit indeed to us all, to the people who have gone before you at this University and the spirit of learning which this place exists to promote. You have learned that it is right to stand up to tyranny and abuse. It is right to resist injustice and to rebel against exploitation. Read Shelley, read Oscar Wilde, read Malcolm X.

In my experience over 30 years now as an active participant in the international class struggle your actions do matter, they do affect change, you will give huge encouragement to the Palestinian people by this action this past week. News of your protest will have given great encouragement to hundreds of millions of people throughout the world who support the Palestinian cause.

Furthermore your action will have severely irked those who wish you hadn’t done it; the UK Government, the US Government and of course the warmongering Israeli propaganda machine.

They would have rather you hadn’t had this occupation. They would rather you had stayed in the bar drinking and mind your own business or stayed in your halls with a joint getting stoned. In fact they would have far rather you were protesting on their side in favour of BAe’s links to the Israeli military.

I see the Palestinians in 2009 as the black South Africans of the 1950’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s – facing down the barrel of a gun and overwhelming military intimidation for their basic democratic and human rights.

The struggle for justice for the Palestinians today is every bit as important as the anti Apartheid campaign. The treatment of Palestinians is no less brutal that that meted out to the black majority in South Africa. The injustice is rife, the military odds stacked against them virtually insurmountable. Yet the international support is as it was for Nelson Mandela and the ANC.

And lets not forget they won and so will the Palestinains.

Your occupation this week has played its small part in bringing the day the Palestinians achieve the rights the rest of us already take for granted that bit closer. I salute you , you should be proud of yourselves and each other. Thank you.’

The Scottish Socialist Party has for years campaigned to abolish the council tax, which hits the poorest hardest, and replace it with the Scottish Service Tax, which is based on income and ability to pay.

Open Branch Meeting
All welcome
DVA,
10 Constitution Road
Thursday 5 MARCH, 7.30 p.m.
Speakers—Colin Fox, SSP Co-Convenor,
Angela Gorrie, SSP candidate for the Maryfield by-election

Come along to the meeting and find out about the radical alternative to the council tax.

Democracy isn’t just putting a cross or some numbers on a bit of paper every four years, no matter how much the pro-capitalist parties would have you believe. There are other essential parts such as recallability and accountability. One way of holding elected representatives to account is to challenge them when they stray from their manifesto promises, for example the SNP abandoning pledges to scrap council tax and student fees.

A website has been set up called VoteWise, it’s purpose is to allow a space for people to publicly challenge candidates up for election.

Maryfield by-election page has been set up. So send your questions to the candidate and whoever wins, make sure the stick to what they claim they will do and will not do on it and their leaflets etc.

Dundee SSP announced our candidate in the Maryfield by election Angela Gorrie.

The Maryfield by-election leaflet is now produced, the text is below with links to images of the leaflets. If you would like to help in the campaign by leafleting, canvassing or making a financial donation to help then get in contact with us. Unlike the SNP, Labour or Tories, we don’t have multi millionaire backers so anyway to help out would be appreciated.

Vote for the SSP

Leaflet front

Vote for the SSP the campaigning party

The Scottish Socialist Party campaigns on the streets of Dundee every week, not just during elections.

• The City of Dundee has one of the highest council tax rates in Scotland. The SSP has for years campaigned for it to be replaced by a tax based on income and ability to pay.
• Dundee has a student population of 17,000. The SSP says, Abolish all fees and loans. Bring back grants.
• The Scottish Socialist Party supports workers in struggle and during the local authority dispute last year stood firmly behind the council workers.
• When Post Office closures were announced in Dundee last year, the SSP mounted a campaign against the cuts.
• The Dundee SSP has taken direct action against the parking charges at Ninewells Hospital, with stalls both on the street and within the car park at Ninewells Hospital itself.
• The Scottish Socialist Party is the party committed to campaigning on behalf of working class communities.

To join the Scottish Socialist Party, or for more information, contact us at
PO BOX 6773
DUNDEE, DD1 1YL
or online at www.dundeessp.org

Leaflet back

Capitalism in crisis – Who pays?

The Scottish Socialist Party is an anti-capitalist party. We believe in people, not profit. As socialists, we fight for a different type of system where the needs of the many are put before the greed of the bosses. The current economic crisis is a result of the insatiable drive for profits of capitalism. While the bankers get obscene bonuses, we face redundancies, home repossessions and cuts in services. We believe it does not have to be this way:

• End the fat cat bonuses
• Stop all home repossessions
• Fully nationalise the banks under workers’ control

Wars and the attack on Gaza

The city of Dundee is twinned with the Palestinian town of Nablus, which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967. During the recent Israeli attacks on Gaza, the SSP has helped to organise demonstrations in solidarity with the people of Gaza, medical aid and the boycott of Israeli goods. We oppose all imperialist wars and play an important role in the anti-war movement in Scotland.

For free public transport

The Scottish Socialist Party believes that free and efficient public transport would benefit both the people and the planet.

As the world’s climate heats up it makes sense to reduce our oil dependency and get cars off the road. We should also be investing in research and development of alternative sources of energy for the future.