An Appeal to London Voters

What is apparent in this election is the extent to which all the parties try and manage the agenda for the election. They all want to encourage the debate to be round the handful of high-profile issues where they feel on strong ground. The assumption is that voters are stupid and can only remember three or four things at a time, so why give them more than that to consider. What it all means is that the campaign may centre around a handful of issues only. That may appear to appeal to ourselves in the Socialist Party. After all we are the ultimate single issue party - Abolish Capitalism. But while this is a single issue no-one is pretending that it is a simple case. Sure its not complicated, the case for putting human need ahead of profit, but soundbites don’t do our case justice. We are also handicapped in the eyes of the modern voter by the fact that we are not in a position to make promises, and what’s more, we aren’t going to “do anything” for anyone. The other parties are falling over each other to be seen to be offering some immediate palliative or reform.

What is important to recognise is that those so-called “local” issues that are high on the agenda of many in the London elections (such as the NHS, local housing and transport) are pressing issues everywhere else. But these are not really local issues after all. Its just that many people (and all of our opponents) think the solution is usually a local one, so there is no point looking elsewhere for the answer. Unhappy with the plans for the local hospital ? Well don’t worry whoever gets elected will have a word with the local Health Board and try and clarify the situation. Concerned about fire-cover at the local fire station ? Don’t worry, one of the politicians will make sure you are consulted about it. Losing sleep over global warming ? No problem, I’ll just turn the thermostat down…

In fact the problem under-pinning most of the supposed “local” issues is usually much broader. Its not just specific local problems (like poor quality consultation documents, or ill thought through proposals). The whole issue of provision of essential services such as health care and fire emergency cover is dictated by the level of resources allocated . And whether it is London or Llannelli, the same picture emerges: social services are stretched. Public sector workers are under pressure to work harder, for less money. The capitalist class don’t want to pay any more than they have to; they don’t want public services that will be able to do anything more than the bare minimum. The reason ? - ultimately these costs come off the profits of UK Capitalism PLC . Let’s be in no doubt, despite the politicians platitudes, the reality is that profit does come before public health and and general welfare. Somewhere in the local authority, there is an accountant doing a cost-benefit analysis. They are working out how small a public sector department can be maintained, and at what point the cost savings from this are outweighed by the costs of the human suffering, which will surely follow.

 In reality, the governments are in control of the economy the same way a duck bobbing around on the ocean is in control of the tides - and the London Assembly even less so! You don’t need to be told not to place too much faith in whichever politician gets elected  - history would suggest that promises made before the election quickly get discarded when in office, and when the pressure of trying to run the profit system in the interests of humanity become too difficult.

Socialist sentiments lurk inside us all, often without us realising it. In the Socialist Party, we don’t just pay lip service to this basic principle though: for us its not just a nice idea - it’s the essence of our position. Only the Socialist Party has the practical case that is consistent with this idea. The Socialist Party advocates the abolition of buying and selling and money and wages. We want the replacement of the system where production is geared to profit, by a system where production is based on self-defined human needs. If in the admittedly very unlikely event that the Socialist Party candidates are elected on 3rd May, we ( as we are a democratic party it wouldn't just be up to the elected individuals to decide) would very probably give our support to any issue which we felt would advance the interests or conditions of the working class. But it is also reasonable for us to not want to allow this to divert us from the mandate we would have been elected on, to push for a world where the satisfaction of human need is the first and last and only consideration of society.