SSP Aberdeen Open Meeting: This Tuesday, 7pm, Belmont cinema upstairs meeting room.

Building on the messages and activism of our election campaign, Aberdeen SSP is holding its next meeting this Tuesday 18^th May at 7pm in the upstairs meeting room in the Belmont cinema. We will be welcoming to the meeting both new members and people who are thinking of joining and want to have some discussion with us, so if you agree with our politics and want to get involved, then now is the time.

The Tories and the Liberal Democrats are now in coalition together and are holding an emergency budget within 50 days to agree stringent cuts in public spending to cover Britain’s budget deficit, in effect forcing the majority of the population to pay for a crisis in capitalism not of their making. These cuts will deepen over the next Parliament and beyond, with pay cuts, job losses, benefit cuts, public services scrapped or privatised, and life made harder for millions of people across the country.

The Labour party and the SNP both accept that these cuts ‘have’ to happen, that there is no other way of dealing with this economic crisis. They are and will pass these cuts on through both the Scottish parliament and local councils. Just today NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde announced it would be cutting over 1200 jobs over the next three years, with more job losses likely in the Lothians. This is the tip of the iceberg, with 100,000 public sector jobs set to go in Scotland over the next few years, as you can read here.

During the election the Scottish Socialist Party has argued that this does not have to happen, and we have put forward a socialist alternative to the economic crisis. The richest 1,000 people in Britain have a combined wealth of £335 billion, an increase of £77 billion in the last year despite the recession, and this is just under half of the entire debt of the British government. We are a country of fantastic wealth which is generated by the work of millions of people, but it is concentrated in so few hands, when it could be used to make life better for everyone.

Therefore we have argued that we need to tax the rich as an alternative to punishing the poor. Rather than taking over the bad debts of the banks and letting them continue to make massive profits as normal, why not also take their assets into public ownership, worth trillions? Why not increase income tax on the super-rich, increase corporation tax, close tax havens, bring the troops home from Afghanistan and scrap Trident? Then instead of the coming ‘age of austerity’, as Conservative chancellor George Osborne has stated we are about to enter, with cuts that are ‘more savage than under Thatcher’ according to Labour ex-Chancellor Alasdair Darling, why don’t we use these measures to pay off the debt and increase public spending to the benefit of all? Why not take transport, energy and finance into democratically-run public ownership, and meet people’s social needs with free transport, and affordable energy and housing, rather than private companies making profits from people struggling to make a living?

That is the socialist answer, meeting the social needs of people, not serving the needs of private profit, and together building an economy and society which protects the environment, rather than the insatiable need for capitalist expansion and profit leading to ecological catastrophe.

In order to resist the cuts, and  state the case for a Scottish socialist republic, the SSP will be putting these arguments out at every opportunity across Scotland. If we can build a mass movement against the cuts and offer a socialist solution, then we will not simply resist the cuts, we will defeat and reverse them, making life better for millions of people. If you agree with this message and feel that you want to get active and do something about the situation we face, then now is the time. You can contact us via facebook, our website, or contact@aberdeenssp.

As the polls open tomorrow, we are urging everyone in Aberdeen North and in the other constituencies we are contesting  to vote for the Scottish Socialist Party, and to support us after the general election, if you agree with our key messages.

Most importantly, we say that the main parties contesting this election are all planning to embark on massive spending cuts and attacks on living standards after the general election in order to cover the budget deficit and pay back the money spent to bail out the banks during the’ credit crunch’. We have criticised this approach by all the parties as offering the voters a set of non-choices in this election, as whoever forms the next government will cut spending, continue the war in Afghanistan and renew Trident nuclear missiles. Instead, we have been arguing that if we scrap Trident, bring the troops home from Afghanistan, close tax havens, raise corporation tax, and tax the super-rich, then instead of us being made to pay for capitalism’s crisis, we can protect public spending and redistribute wealth to raise living standards across the board.

Our full policy stance can be viewed in the ‘General Election 2010′ section of this website, however along with the above argument we have stated our position as an anti-war and anti-nuclear socialist party who support a green socialist republic in Scotland, with  equitably shared wealth in society and public services, including free public transport, which serve people’s needs rather than private profit.

It is after the election that the fight against public spending cuts and for a socialist alternative to capitlaism’s crisis will begin. If you want to help us to build the mass movement required to successfully defend our public services and standard of living, and to promote this socialist alternative, then now is the time to support us, vote for us, and join us.

Members of Aberdeen SSP were flying the flag for socialism at the International Worker’s Day event on Saturday. Members of the Scottish Socialist Party also attended similar May Day events taking place in the other major cities of Scotland.

Yesterday members of Aberdeen SSP were again out in the city centre to spread our message for our Aberdeen North general election campaign. We continued our themes on opposition to ALL public spending cuts, and stressing that if we withdraw the troops from Afghanistan, scrap Trident, and introduce a progressive tax on the very-wealthy, then we need not cut one job or penny from our public services.

Additionally, the campaigning became a bit of a family affair, as the mother of candidate Ewan Robertson and election agent Catriona Robertson, Anne (also an SSP member), came out leafleting on the streets with us!

The campaigning finished in Union Terrace Gardens, where Ewan stressed his support for the Peacock Arts project for the gardens over the Ian Wood proposal, as well as performing his campaign song!  This is because the Peacock project maintains and enriches Aberdeen’s civic green space, and is complimentary to the gardens, whereas Ian Wood’s proposal would destroy the space altogether by concreting over the gardens to build a commericial civic square, not something Aberdeen is desperately in need of after the building of the Union Square shopping complex. Also, with the council being in financial difficulties, we feel that the council should use its funds to protect jobs and services, not spend millions trying to satisfy the wishes of one of Scotland’s richest men.

Next week we will continue to campaign on the streets, as well as leaflet resisdences around the constituency and increase our visual presence on lamposts and windows. If you would like to come along and help us out or have a chat, we have a meeting Wednesday evening in the Belmont cinema cafe downstairs from 7.00pm, or you can contact us via phone or facebook.

Yesterday saw a full day of campaigning from Aberdeen SSP, which began in the student Shared Planet cafe at Aberdeen University during the afternoon, before an organisational meeting in the Belmont cinema downstairs cafe with leaflet folding and political discussion in the evening, and a rendition of SSP Aberdeen North candidate Ewan Robertson’s campaign song (see the YouTube link in a previous post) from the stage at Drummonds cafe at night!

The issues we were discussing most were the SSP policy of free public transport, which would aim to reduce congestion and emissions though increasing the use of  a greatly expanded public transport service, encouraging people to leave their cars and opt for the bus/train/ferry. This policy would also act as a financial relief for millions of Scots, which through spending the saved money elsewhere would also act as a positive boost to the economy.

We were also discussing our key points over rejecting the argument that planned cuts in public spending are necessary, and that the majority of the population should not have to suffer for an economic crisis not of their making, as well as reiterating our committment to withdrawing the troops from Afghanistan.

Overall, it was a fun and energetic day of campaigning! If you want to come along and find out more about our policies and ideas, we will be in the centre of town (most likely in St. Nicholas square) from 12pm this Saturday.

 

Aberdeen SSP will be represented at the following two hustings which are coming up next week. The tickets for the Thursday hustings are already pre-allocated, however the Friday hustings are open to the public, so come along on the Friday if you want to support us and hear what we have to say.

1) Thursday 29 April, Aberdeen College (Gallowgate), 6pm (refreshments from 5pm).
Audience: All tickets already pre- allocated and so this event is full.

2) Friday 30 April, Quaker Meeting House, Crown Street, (Organsed by the Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament), 7.30pm. Audience: Open to the public.

Here in the Aberdeen Branch of the Scottish Socialist Party we haved moved our general election campaign in Aberdeen North onto another level with the launch of our first video on youtube. Candidate Ewan Robertson sings for your vote and deals with what has been going wrong with the four main parties, Aberdeen Council, and Donald Trump, as well as why you should support the SSP in the election and beyond. Follow the YouTube link below to view. Those who like what they see (and hear) are encouraged to tell their friends!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBDTU2TveOI

UPDATE: See our new video here, as candidate Ewan Robertson is rudely interrupted while trying to explain his party’s free public transport policy:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roF3Xg7Kk8I

Members of the Aberdeen SSP branch were out leafleting in the city centre yesterday, on what turnout out to be a sunny, enjoyable and successful afternoon! As part of our campaign to support SSP candidate Ewan Robertson for Aberdeen North in the general election,  our central arguments were that we must oppose public spending cuts aimed at making the majority of the population pay for an economic crisis created by the bankers and politicians at Westminster, as well as arguing for the withdrawal of troops in Afghanistan and the need for a locally-owned, free public transport service in Aberdeen rather than the current rip-off service from privatised First Bus. If you want to come and speak to us or support us during the campaign, we will be having a stall at Aberdeen University this Wednesday, a meeting in the Belmont cinema cafe downstairs this Wednesday evening, and more stalls in the city centre this coming weekend.

 

The Press and Journal covered the report of the SSP manifesto on Tuesday, which can be found here: http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1688824

The Aberdeen campaign is ready to be launched! We will be in the centre of town, most likely next to the St. Nicholas centre, on Saturday afternoon, arguing our points over making bankers and the rich pay for their economic crisis and arguing for a withdrawal of the troops from Afghanistan. The key points from the  SSP General Election Manifesto are as follows:

For an independent socialist scotland

No cuts, no wars, for an end to corruption

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On May 6th voters will be offered a dismal choice of cuts, sackings and wars by  politicians  tainted by corruption, duck houses and other expenses fiddling.

All three Westminster parties are in a race to see who can make the deepest cuts while the SNP wring their hands and blame London.

They all recommend cuts to vital public services which will hit the most vulnerable hardest and directly threaten the jobs of 100,000 Scottish workers.

In contrast the unequivocal message from the Scottish Socialist Party is that there is an alternative which avoids cuts and insists instead that the greedy pay for the disaster they created, that also ends our involvement in the Afghan war and offers jobs and justice not misery and war.

This belief is reflected in our programme for a Scotland which aims to meet peoples’ needs, not pander to the rich, for people not profit.

100,000 jobs Are directly threatened by the cuts promised by the Westminster parties and vital services for our most vulnerable citizens will go.
We say that faced with such a threat words are not enough—action is needed. Scotland needs nothing less than a resistance movement of mass peaceful protest on the scale of that which defeated the poll tax. We will bring all the experience of the SSP to build such a movement.

Jobs for youth

The spectre of mass unemployment has returned twenty years after Margaret Thatcher was ejected from office. Many communities in Scotland are still suffering from the legacy of the 1980s with the poverty, heroin addiction, alcohol abuse and crime that goes with this chronic joblessness.
Today the SSP says: ‘Mass unemployment No More’. Instead of slashing Scotland’s budget, the SSP will fight for emergency funding to protect our young people from becoming another wasted generation.

Let’s Get Out of Afghanistan

This is a senseless military occupation  which damages Britain’s international reputation and does nothing to make the world a safer place. We are occupying a country that doesn’t want us to be there. More than 50,000 innocent Afghan civilians have been killed. Some 280 British soldiers have also died. All the polling evidence suggests that 70% of the population here want our armed services withdrawn. The Scottish Socialist Party gives voice to that majority.

Clean up the Westminster ‘midden’

In just 12 months Westminster has gone from ‘the mother of parliaments’ to ‘the mother of all corruption’.
The public has watched open mouthed as MPs attempt to justify obscene expenses claims  which would get an ordinary worker sacked. MP’s have repeatedly shown how they are all out of touch with the people they pretend to represent.
For the SSP the answer is simple and it is to end the circumstances where becoming an MP brings a huge salary and expenses. We have long argued that MP’s should live on the wage of those they represent. Our MSPs did just that at Holyrood thus keeping them in touch with the real lives of voters.

For a Green, Socialist Republic

The Scottish Socialist Party is a pro-independence party – no ifs, buts or maybes. We say Yes to an independence referendum and Yes to independence
We will work with other pro-independence parties to deliver a resounding referendum YES vote.
Beyond that, we stand for an independent socialist republic where the wealth is fairly distributed; where protection of the environment is paramount.
Such a republic would  prioritise the needs of people over profit and our environment over the greed of profiteers.
The development of our colossal natural resources would be publicly owned to ensure the skilled jobs required are based in Scotland and the profits generated used to provide services not multinational profit
All citizens would be equal irrespective of gender, race, religion or sexuality in a country where the economy is no longer driven by greed and profit.

Donald, Donald, Get Tae F**k

Ah yes, Donald Trump and his golf course, well where can I start? Should I start with the sleaze involved to bend the rules for its potential approval or just highlight the overwhelming arguments against golf course that Aberdeenshire council were oblivious to notice?
What a state of affairs! One minute Aberdeenshire council has turned it down but what’s this? It’s the SNP and their pro-business and anti-environmental policy makers. They decided it was their business to basically over throw Aberdeenshire Council. We have great people ruling at Hollyrood don’t we? They can’t even trust local authorities to make decisions. It’s called democracy and it seems like the SNP don’t know the basic principle of it. All of these councillors are elected by the people to make decisions for the people in Aberdeenshire (they sometimes don’t but it is their job to do so). The main sleaze point of this is that the SNP did not intervene until the course was turned down, now would they intervene after an election result so they get their way? I would not put it beyond them. The SNP were basically expecting a golf course for their Christmas but got a lump of coal and like a bunch of spoilt wee gabshites they stamped their feet and held a strop and illegally made sure Trump got to get his golf course so he can add and billion of two to his bank account and apparently give the people what they want. Who actually wanted this? 13% according to the latest YouGov poll.
“This project will increase employment in the area. We sometimes have to think of the social benefits over the environmental benefits”. That was the most pathetic answer from an Aberdeenshire councillor from Kincardine after being confronted by an SSP member in Portlethen (I wonder who that was?!). Increase employment? Well it will but these jobs are going to be pish. They will be long hours, poorly paid, temporary and seasonal jobs. Donald Trump is not building this golf course out of the kindness of his own heart so the unemployed can get employed. As I have said the jobs will be in the kitchens of the complex, cleaning the hotels. There will also be jobs on the course itself but considering it is in one of the most exposed areas of the coast, the weather can mean lead to the course being closed for weeks; do you think the green keepers will be paid by the Trump organisation when his course can’t run because of its location? I won’t even bother answering that!
I am absolutely baffled by Aberdeenshire council’s decision to potentially let Trump use compulsory purchase orders! Let’s take a step back. Even if he gets his golf course he surly can’t be allowed to force people out of their houses. Isn’t that against their…oh what are they called…. human rights?! Patrick Harvie MSP of the Green Party stated that “Compulsory purchase was meant for public projects that serve the common good, not as a lever the rich can use to pry people from their homes for profit.” In this case the CPOs are being used by the rich as a lever to pry people from their homes. It is sad that even in the 21st century the government are endorsing a direct attack on the most vulnerable in society by the rich so they can get slightly richer.
To sum up how thick the Trump organisation are; they claimed that their “golf course” (which is basically a misplaced housing scheme) will replace the oil industry. Good luck with that, just take into consideration that 33,000 people in Aberdeen are employed by the oil industry and an additional 400,000 across the UK. So this scheme will have more than 433,000 jobs, just under 10% of Scotland’s population will be employed by Donald Trump! NOOOOO!!!!!

Euan Benzie

For more info visit http://www.trippinguptrump.com/