London Assembly Elections and the Socialist Party

The crying need of the workers is an independent political party of the workers, a socialist party. Sad to admit, we are not that party as yet, functioning more as an educational advocacy group at this present time rather than an effective mass party of class-conscious workers. The great task still remains: to break working people away from the capitalist parties. Our Party’s present participation in the electoral process allows us to popularise the Socialist Party’s principles and give some people the opportunity to support a genuine working-class alternative to the capitalist parties like the Labour and the Conservatives. Neither the Tories nor Labour before them have been able to solve the calamitous economic situation. The ruling class remains as ever divided over how best to reap their profits.

For working people the situation is becoming ever more difficult. Cuts in wages and employment conditions, cutbacks in welfare benefits and the gradual deterioration of education and health-care services are becoming realities of life for the working people today. Each of the pro-capitalist parties claims it can solve the country’s problems. But who can believe them. A vote right now for the Socialist Party is a vote to support a political party that is opposed to capitalist exploitation and oppression. It is a gesture to support a party that is pledged to fight for a socialist society. 

Socialist Party candidates will be running in the London Assembly elections. For our party the election period will be an occasion to criticise the capitalist parties and defend the only rational option of socialism. We will expose the other parties as representatives of differing sections of the ruling class’ interests. Throughout our campaign, Socialist Party candidates will stress that socialism is the only solution for working people and it is only by ending the system which a handful of parasites benefit from that the working class will emancipate itself from exploitation once and for all.

Our aim is not just to collect votes. Above all it is to popularise our viewpoint, draw working people into the fight for socialism and rally workers to our organisation. The Socialist Party is not just an electoral machine like the capitalist parties, which only come around once every so often, making promises they will never keep in order to win workers votes. We will call on our fellow workers to intensify the class struggle and reject the demagogy and false promises of the capitalist parties.

The election booklet distributed to all 5 million or so electors in London will contain not just the candidates for Mayor and their statements but also the names and parties of all those contesting the GLA seats. So everyone who reads the booklet will know we are standing in 3 of the 14 constituencies and covering 8 of the 32 London boroughs.

Our candidates will be:

Bill Martin - London North East

Kevin Parkin - Lambeth & Southwark

Adam Buick - London South West