The overall election results in the Scottish Parliament are the most dramatic since the parliament opened in 1999. Despite the SNP’s victory there will still be savage cuts in the public sector. The SSP will continue to fight against all public sector cuts and will put forward our socialist alternative. If you want to join the fightback with the SSP click here.

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The North East List is as follows

1) Angela Gorrie

2) Euan Benzie

3) Alan Graham

4) Soraya Kasim

To find out more about Angela and all other of the candidates in the list for the other regions of Scotland click here.

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As usual, the meeting today will take place at 7.30pm in the bar of the Belmont Cinema. It’s a really important meeting, as we have our first hustings debate on the 12th of April. We’ll be going over the party platform, previous election broadcasts and the manifesto from the General Election of 2010 and talking about how we can apply this to our Holyrood election campaign. We have two branch members on the North East Regional List, so come out and support!

Thanks,

Aberdeen SSP

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Just a quick reminder of our meeting tomorrow (16/03/11) at 7.30pm in the Belmont Cinema bar. Primarily discussing plans for the UCU strike on Thursday, organising help for the picket lines and talking about what we can do to support union members.

Hope to see you there,

Aberdeen SSP

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Date and time: 02 March (this Wednesday) 18:30 – 21:30 Venue: Taylor Building A21

If you don’t know where that is leave a comment and we’ll get back to you!

We will be having an informal discussion after the meeting at the pub!

Hope to see you there!

Aberdeen SSP

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Also, there’s a debate happening at Aberdeen University tomorrow about the Egyptian Revolution which we’ve all been witnessing on the news. Details follow below.

For those of you unfamiliar with King’s College, the room KCF22 is located inside the Quadrangle, adjacent to the Chapel. If you go down College Bounds towards the High St., the Chapel is on your left. As you face the chapel, there’s an archway to the right. Go through the archway and you’re in the Quad. The doors around the Quad tell you where the rooms are.
 
Hope to see you there!

Aberdeen SSP

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Read the rest of the Raphie de Santos’ article on the SNP’s budget on the SSP’s website here.

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Hi all,

The meeting this week will be at the earlier time of 7pm on Wednesday, 9th, in the bar downstairs at the Belmont. We’ll be discussing the SSP Special Conference which took place on Saturday, as well as the exciting events which have happened in Glasgow with the student occupation and how they apply to us in Aberdeen. Of urgent interest is the protest against proposed education cuts by Aberdeen City Council. This takes place at 12pm outside the Town House on Thursday, 10th Feb (the day after the meeting!). If you’ve anything else you want to discuss, come along and have your say! See you on Wednesday (at 7!!)

Aberdeen SSP

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We’ll be having a branch meeting on Wednesday, 26th January at 7.30pm at the bar in the Belmont Cinema.

We’ll be discussing:
planning an event in Aberdeen, focusing on protesting against the cuts
preparing for the North East Regional meeting
discussing tactics for the upcoming Scottish Election: stickering, flyering and having a stall in town

plus anything else that any member wants to talk about.

Hope to see you there!

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To kick start 2011, the Aberdeen branch of the Scottish Socialist Party will be meeting next Wednesday, the 12th of January at 7:30pm, in the bar downstairs at the Belmont Cinema. Like all branch meetings, this is an open meeting, so anyone who is interested in the SSP or socialism/left-wing politics in general is welcome to come. There won’t be a set agenda, so the floor is open for you to discuss anything you wish.

If you’ve been thinking about coming along to meetings, this will be a great opportunity to learn more about socialism in Aberdeen and our plans for the Scottish Election in May of this year. It’ll be really informal, so don’t be shy – we look forward to meeting other socialists!

Hope to see you there.

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Here’s a wee Christmas Song for y’all!

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Please be careful when you’re travelling tonight, as it’s still rather icy!

Hope to see you all there!

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In total £70,000,000 worth of cuts have been revealed (some cuts proposed are not yet approved however with only £25.5 million of the cuts been implemented I can only assume that the proposed cuts will be passed easily). Aberdeen City council are not even  halfway through the measures to “save” (nice way of saying “cut”) £120,000,000. The confirmed cuts include a £9,000,000 drop in funding for services that help children with special needs. £1.4 million will be saved by “maximising class sizes” at secondary school. In a shocking move the funding to the Fire department is to be reduced to save £2.1 million! It wont be long until scenes like THESE  are hitting the streets of Aberdeen. However I feel that the most stingy one of all has to be the £173,000 saving the council will make on on closing two council-run care homes!

Two angry Aberdonians!

 This announcement comes only weeks after Aberdeenshire announced plans to axe 900 jobs. Most of these jobs will lost be in education as both City and Shire councils have expressed an interest in cutting the number of schools and amalgamating many. In the list of jobs going  most are from the “ring fenced” sectors. Care assistants are set to lose out as are ; teaching assistants, nurses, fire fighters, paramedics. The list goes on and on! We were told by David Cameron and Nick Clegg that vital services would be “ring fenced” but they clearly haven’t. However being a young student from what many would consider a middle-class town I am used to be lied to by the Lib Dems. As for the Tories they were game for these cuts as it is an ideological want.

Time to show the "Red Hand of Aberdeen" to the council!

How can I spell this out to you? I can use three words, “Aberdeen is fucked”. We have been lead by an awful council who have managed to royally fuck everything up! I emphasise EVERYTHING! The case for socialism is as strong now as it ever will be. Aberdeen City Council has been lead by right wing policies aimed at making profits at the expense of the people. The councillors are rolling out savage cuts but continue to lust for Sir Ian Wood and his dreams of concreting over Union Terrace Gardens. Whilst the citizens of Aberdeen are walking the un-gritted streets as the council cannot afford to grit them the council are seriously considering  subsidising this millionaire’s wee project so he can make more profit! It’s madness! As socialists we are fighting against these regressive cuts that are targeting the working classes and the vulnerable. It drives me round the bend when I hear people saying “Socialism doesn’t work”, what evidence is there to show this? Capitalism is failing, miserably! All you have to do is see how this country has been brought down to it’s knees by the rich bankers and this country’s solution? Punish the poor, punish the working classes, punish the students, punish the pensioners in fact punish anyone apart from the people who cause the crisis. That is way our country is run and it is great to see some resistance to this. From students in Aberdeen occupying Tory HQ to students doing mass walkouts in cities all over Scotland. Hopefully this will stimulate more militant action from Aberdeen.  Aberdeen is a great city but at the hands of capitalists it is becoming a soul-less,  poorly maintained city that is at risk of becoming gripped in mass poverty due the public sector being destroyed, the over-reliance on oil companies and the increasing size of the private sector.

Scottish Socialist Youth

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Offering a socialist alternative

by Kevin McVey, SSP National Secretary

Party members have decided to stand on the Regional Lists across Scotland and so give every voter the opportunity to vote for socialist candidates who will challenge the dismal consensus for cuts that will define the election.

The elections in May 2011 will take place against the background of the imposition of savage cuts to public spending being demanded by the Parliament’s ConDem pay masters in Westminster.

A glimpse of the severity of these cuts was given in the recent Beveridge Report produced for the Scottish Parliament, which has highlighted options including the loss of 60,000 public sector jobs, scrapping free personal care for the elderly and imposing tuition fees for students as it spells out ways that ordinary people can be made to pay the price for restoring bankers profits.

So far the response from the capitalist parties has been telling; with offers of cross party discussions, not to consider how this cuts agenda can be defied, but on how best they can implement the cuts without losing their cushy parliamentary positions.

The growth of support for a Scottish parliament was linked with the need to resist an unwelcome Tory government through the 1980s and 1990s and people will be expecting more than a Parliament that simply acts as a transmitter belt for the dismantling of our key public services.

This background throws into sharp focus the need for the SSP to stand on a platform of building resistance and defiance to Westminster’s cuts. The impact that socialists in parliament can have has already been shown by the impact of our campaigning on issues like scrapping the Council Tax, for free school meals and scrapping prescription charges.

In a similar vein the SSP will use the election campaign as a platform to promote mass defiance to the imposition of cuts, whilst elaborating a socialist alternative that will call for a massive re-distribution of wealth from rich to poor and for a massive extension of the public ownership of Scotland’s economic resources to offset the need for the destruction of the welfare state to pay for capitalist greed.

With our candidates committed to taking no more than the average skilled workers wage, the SSP remains committed to ensuring that MSP’s have some understanding of the problems we all face in paying the bills and don’t end up living on a different planet to the vast majority of their constituents.

Similarly, our commitment to gender balance across regions and on our lists remain as a way to tackle the serious under representation of women amongst our elected representatives.

Particularly significant as this under representation has become even more marked in both the Westminster and Holyrood parliaments.

Opinion polls have shown support for the SSP on the list vote, generally known as the second vote, at about 3 per cent, although our recent showing in first past the post elections have been lower than that.

No one is underestimating the scale of the challenge involved in fighting a campaign across Scotland.

However, against a background of the most unprecedented attacks on working class people for many years the need for at least one party manifesto that points out who caused this economic crisis and demands that it should be them that are made to pay for it, is an absolute necessity.

These elections will be another opportunity to advance the case for socialism and independence as a real antidote to the poisonous prescriptions of cuts and privatisation that will be on offer from all the other free market parties in Scotland.

Originally distributed via the SSP national website.

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Mass Demonstration Shows Strength of Anti-Cuts Feeling in Scotland

Last Saturday (23rd) a massive anti-cuts demo took place in Edinburgh as 20,000 people, including SSP members, took to the streets to protest against government spending cuts and demand a fairer alternative that protected public services. Community campaigners and trade union leaders called for resistance as industrial action to defend public services was declared “inevitable” if the cuts outlined by the Con-Dem government last week were implemented. As an elderly Glaswegian community campaigner said to me on the march, “people keep saying to me that “somebody should do something” and “if everybody did something then we could sort this out”, so we need to get “somebody” and “everybody” on the streets with us.”  Saturday’s march represents a first step toward building a mass campaign that can get ‘somebody’ and everybody’ involved in fighting the cuts. For news coverage of the march and SSP analysis of the public spending cuts, what they represent and what is required to successfully resist them, see our main site here.

 Nature of the Cuts, Nature of the Mainstream Political ‘Opposition’                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  We have long argued that the austerity measures taking place across Europe are an attempt to make the mass of the population; workers, students, pensioners, the unemployed, pay for the current crisis in capitalism. It is also an ideological attempt by the Conservatives to do away with many of the social gains made over the 20th century in the form of the welfare state, by attacking universal public services and welfare benefits, including attacks on free/accessible education provision. However, while marginal differences exist across the mainstream political parties on the balance between tax rises and spending cuts in the austerity measures, the SNP and Labour are also fully signed up to the cuts agenda. They will offer only lukewarm criticism of the Con-Dem cuts in opposition, while in power they will implement cuts themselves via the Scottish parliament and local councils, as indicated by recent comments by Alex Salmond  and by Labour’s cuts programme both before and after  the general election. In the absence of mass mobilisation and resistance by the population, they will not attempt to oppose cuts by setting illegal ”anti-cuts budgets” or supporting anything more than symbolic, but ultimately ineffectual resistance. They will not want to “rock the boat”, and thus they are unable to represent the grassroots sentiment among the thousands who took to the streets on Saturday. This is likely to become increasingly clear as the savage force of these cuts begins to bite in communities and workplaces across Scotland and Britain.

A Strategy We Need

What we need is to build a pluralist, grassroots, and mass-based campaign against the public spending cuts, creating a social movement not seen since the successful anti-poll tax campaign twenty years ago, where mass non-payment of the new tax and mobilisation of the population forced the government to retreat and Thatcher to resign from office (for an excellent account of the successful strategies used to defeat the poll tax, read “The Poll Tax Rebellion” by Danny Burns, details here). This is not just rhetoric, but our societal reality. These austerity measures will only be defeated by a mass mobilisation of popular democratic power and direct action, and if an alternative equitable and socially-just solution to addressing Britain’s budget deficit and capitalist crisis is developed, campaigned for, and implemented.  The SSP in Aberdeen and across Scotland is committed to both these tasks, and the need is urgent.

Building Resistance in Aberdeen

The sheer brutality of these cuts in Aberdeen is becoming clear, with one possible cost saving measure considered by the council being to close every public park in the city.

To discuss these issues and the work of the Aberdeen SSP, feel free to come to our branch meeting this Wednesday (27th), in the Belmont cinema cafe at 7.30pm, where those who were at the march on Saturday will report back on the events of the day.

Also, there is a meeting organised by the Aberdeen anti-cuts alliance on this Thursday (26th) 6.15 pm at the Butchart Centre, Aberdeen University, about what can be learned from the French resistance to the cuts being imposed in that country. This will certainly be a useful event for both discussing strategies to oppose the cuts and for people to begin building the kind of campaign described above. Further details of the meeting here.

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Also, for SSP coverage and viewpoint of the impact of the cuts and the need to oppose them with a socialist alternative see Colin Fox’s Morning Star article and economist Raphei de Santos’s analysis on the main SSP site here

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After the success of Suffragette City, we are continuing the energy and momentum of that night with our SSP meetings. While short notice, we will be meeting in the bar downstairs in the Belmont Cinema this Wednesday (13th) at 7.30pm. The draft agenda includes (1) Past activities of Aberdeen SSP, (2) Future actions including the 2011 Scottish Elections and involvement in local democracy campaigns (Trump/UTG), and (3) organising a day school/social in December.

Don’t worry too much if you can’t make this meeting – we’ll be organising meetings every two weeks on the same day, at the same time. 

                                                                                                                                                 We look forward to seeing you all on Wednesday!

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Originallywritten by Aberdeen SSP member syebot in http://ssy.org.uk/2010/10/im-back-from-suffragett-city/

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     “Part call to action, part show, part club night”

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Aberdeen SSP will be present at a radical cultural event this Wednesday 29th September in the Tunnels, Carnegie Brae. The event is called Suffragette City, and brings together radical and activist groups from around Aberdeen. Along with the Scottish Socialist Party, groups present include the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), Tripping up Trump, and the Scottish Palestinian Solidarity Campaign. Each group will have a stall with their materials and will have a chance to get across their views on the issues that concern them. Along with being a chance for various groups of the left to meet with each other and share ideas and experiences, it will also be a chance for particularly young Aberdonians and students to meet the political and activist groups in their area and talk to them about their politics.

   The other aspect of the evening is radical and anti-establishment entertainment. This includes a range of live acts and a clubnight, with full details  from the event’s facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=124475147603533&ref=ts. One of these acts is a political folk set from our General Election candidate Ewan Robertson (i.e. myself) and a special guest! The event starts at 8pm, and entry is free.

  I would urge anyone who is looking for a fun night of radical music and dance, combined with meeting many of the left activist groups in Aberdeen and having a chance to find out more about their politics, to come along this Wednesday and take part in both the show and the call to action!

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Newcomers are always welcome.  

Finally, for those who were interested in capitalism and the environment after our discussion at the last meeting, a list of good resouces can be found here on the Socialist Resistance website: http://climateandcapitalism.com/?page_id=309

See you there!

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 The story starts back in November 2008. Aberdeen’s Peacock Visual Arts centre had secured 75% of the £13.5 million funding needed to build a new contemporary arts centre in UTG, which would complement and regenerate the existing green space, turning the park into a centre of creative expression, artistic exploration, and overall one of the most exciting cultural projects for Scotland in some time, as you can see here.

Then, Sir Ian Wood, one of Scotland’s richest men and chair of multi-million pound energy firm the John Wood group stepped into the fray with Aberdeen City and Shire Economic Future (Acsef) with an alternative proposal: The City Square Project. This £140 million project involves concreting over the gardens entirely, raising them up to street level (the gardens sit in a valley, much like Edinburgh’s Princes St. Gardens) and creating a square bigger than Moscow’s Red Square, surrounding it by shops, and sticking in a parking garage underneath. To sweeten the deal, Wood offered £50m of his own cash, if the taxpayer could pick up the bill for a good chunk of the rest. This is despite the fact that the council is broke, as we complained in our video here, and in the context of the Lib/Lab/Con/SNP spending cuts, will likely be trying to cut services again soon. Needless to say this hasn’t gone down well with a large section of the Aberdonian population, many of whom prefer the idea of an arts centre, as you can see here at compare the square.

   Of course, backed by favourable local press coverage and the business community, Wood pressed on with the project, and Acsef organised a public ‘consultation’ to try and get a stamp of legitimacy for their City Square project, saying they wouldn’t go ahead without public support. Despite a skewed proposal whereby the Peacock Arts centre was not included as a future option for the gardens, and the default answer on the online version was ‘yes’ to the City Square project unless someone changed it, out of 12,000 respondents, 55% said they didn’t want Wood’s ‘vision’. As people familiar with the Donald Trump fiasco will not be surprised by, Wood turned round and said that it was actually up to the council whether the project went ahead or not, and if they didn’t back him then he would walk away with his £50m (saving the council a ton of money in the process of course!).

 So this Wednesday 19 May the council is set to vote on the project. One idea is for some kind of merger of the two projects, but with the projects being pretty much mutually  exclusive, this is unlikely, and so more likely is that it’s going to have be one or the other. In the run up to the vote the I♥UTG campaign have been urging people to write to local councillors and MPs/MSPs to stress their support for the UTG and opposition to the City Square project. There have also been weekly music jams and yesterdays’ picnic to show the council that the gardens are well used and need to be developed further, not buried under tonnes of concrete. While many members of the Aberdeen SSP support I♥UTG, anyone else reading this who wants to do the same can visit here for more information on the campaign, as well as make their views clear to local councillors ahead of Wednesday’s vote.

Public Space and Local Democracy

However, isn’t there something familiar about this? Arrogant millionaire? Local councillors bending over backwards? Determined business community backed by compliant local press? Destroyed green space and common heritage to make way for private development? Local opposition campaign ignored or marginalised? Oh yes, that Trump thing…

In fact, both the Trump affair, the UTG controversy, and several other examples around Aberdeen, allude to a worrying phenomenon which socialists need to be proactive and campaign against. In a society with stark inequality, men or women with millions of pounds can command a far higher clout in decision making and planning in public life than ordinary people do. This is why organising together into mass campaigns is the only way to stop wealthy individuals overriding what is supposed to be a democratic planning process. As has happened in Aberdeen, when the cash is waved, reporters courted, and glossy plans purporting civic benefits produced, local democracy can take the back seat. This is despite the very questionable nature of these largely or wholly private developments in terms of benefiting the population: remember that the companies advocating these developments are ultimately in it for what profit they can get out of it, rather than thinking about what is most suitable for the needs of a local area or population. And in an age where the four main parties are about to massacre the public sector in waves of spending cuts, cash-strapped councils are going to be all the more tempted to grab that offered private cash, as again and again councillors turn a deaf ear to protest and the press prints what is needed to keep that advertising revenue flowing in.

   What the grassroots campaigns of Tripping up Trump and  I♥UTG  point to the importance of is that along with having to defend our public services against cuts and privatisation in the coming years, socialists need to get prepared to defend our public spaces, so they can be enjoyed by all of us, not run for the profit of just a few of us, as is certainly the case for Trump’s elite golf course, and will very likely be the result of Wood’s City Square vision. In getting involved in such community campaigns, not only can we ensure that public and green spaces are kept that way, but we can fight for local participatory democracy. This is essential for creating both a democratic and inclusive planning process, and laying the building blocks for a better society, where members of a super-rich elite and their representatives cannot treat the views of ordinary people and local democracy with such contempt.

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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.

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The other good news from the election night was Caroline Lucas winning the Brighton Pavillion seat to become Britain’s first Green MP and the utter failure of the British National Party in Barking, where they lost all 12 of their councillors and Nick Griffin completely failed in his bid to take the Westminster seat from Labour.

In this election we have stood on a socialist platform against the planned cuts in public spending, against the occupation of Afghanistan, and against Trident nuclear weapons. Instead, we have stood for taxing the rich, scrapping Trident, and bringing the troops home as an alternative to making ordinary workers, students and pensioners pay for capitalism’s crisis. We have also argued that it is time for a democratic socialist republic in Scotland, with genuine participatory democracy, equally shared wealth, and key sectors of the economy taken into public ownership, to raise living standards for all. For people, not profit, and for environmental protection, not ecological destruction.

At the time of writing it is uncertain who will form the next government, but whichever party it is will embark upon a program of savage cuts to public spending in order to cover Britain’s budget deficit,  created from bailing out the banks. This will be the biggest attack on living standards in a generation as politicians attempt to prop up an ailing capitalist system, and the SSP will be resisting these cuts every inch of the way. However, succesful resistance will require a mass social movement which is also able to offer a socialist alternative to both the economic crisis and spending cuts. This is the task that the SSP will be undertaking across Scotland. If you want to be part of creating this mass socialist movement, then now is the time to join us. Here in the Aberdeen SSP we will be arranging our next meeting soon, and we are always welcoming of newcomers, so if you are interested in our politics and thinking about joining then come along.

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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.

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Aberdeen SSP will have members at the May Day march on Saturday, meeting at 11am in St. Nicholas Graveyard, which we would encourage everyone to come along to.

We are also leafleting the constituency as much as possible over the next week, getting placards up on lamposts and windows, and boosting our online presence as much as possible. For those who have not yet seen it, our campaign video is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBDTU2TveOI. Anyone who wants to find out more or help us out, don’t hesitate to get in contact.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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

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.

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Scottish Socialists launching UK election manifesto

The Scottish Socialist Party has vowed to clean up politics In profile: Scottish Socialist Party The Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) has launched its UK election manifesto with a warning that Westminster-imposed cuts will threaten 100,000 Scots jobs. The party has offered a five-point plan to voters, focussing on the economy and cleaning up politics after the MP expenses scandal. The SSP, which is fighting 10 Scottish seats in the 6 May election, launched its manifesto in Edinburgh. They aim to offer an alternative to the “doom and gloom of mainstream parties”. SSP leader Colin Fox hit out at the UK government for its handling of the economy and said a Tory election victory would be blamed on the “failure” of Labour’s three terms in power at Westminster. The SSP manifesto pledges to: Oppose cuts which threaten 100,000 jobs. Take action to guarantee jobs for young people. Back immediate withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. Clean up Westminster expenses scandal with MPs on a “workers’ wage”. Back an independence referendum to create a green, Scottish socialist republic. Mr Fox, a former MSP, said: “After 13 years of New Labour, the thought of a Tory government still sends a shiver up the spine. “But it’s clear to anyone who’s watching this election that politics in Scotland is about to be turned upside down. “Let’s be clear from the outset, that if the Tories do return to power at Westminster, the blame for that lies with New Labour and the failure of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown these last 13 years, who have quite frankly exploited working people, with the poorest and most vulnerable being hit hardest.” http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/scotland/8616551.stm Scottish Socialists pledges to fight Scottish job cuts Tuesday 13 April 2010 Scottish Socialists have pledged to resist cuts that could see the loss of tens of thousands of jobs in Scotland. Launching its manifesto in Edinburgh, the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) warned that the public-spending cuts promised by the major three parties directly threaten 100,000 Scottish jobs. In its five-point programme the SSP pledges to oppose the job cuts, guarantee jobs for young people, withdraw troops from Afghanistan, give MPs wages in line with workers and call for an independence referendum. The SSP is contesting 10 seats across Scotland including Ewan Robertson for Aberdeen North, James Nesbitt for Glasgow Central and Jimmy Kerr for Paisley and Renfrewshire South. SSP national spokesman Colin Fox, who is standing against Chancellor Alistair Darling in his Edinburgh South West seat, said: “Across Scotland the SSP campaign will sound the alarm about the massive threat to jobs and services from public-spending cuts and offer a socialist alternative which demands that the rich pay for the crisis their greed caused.” The SSP is standing in: Aberdeen North (Ewan Robertson) Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintiloch East (Willie O’Neil) Dundee East (Angela Gorrie) Edinburgh South West (Colin Fox) Glasgow Central (James Nesbitt) Glasgow East (Frances Curran) Glasgow North East (Kevin McVey) Livingston (Ally Hendry) Paisley and Renfrewshire North (Chris Rollo) Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Jimmy Kerr) Link: http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/index.php/news/content/view/full/89121

SCOTTISH SOCIALIST PARTY LAUNCH ABERDEEN NORTH CAMPAIGN WITH KEY PLEDGES

The Scottish Socialist Party has followed its national launch on Tuesday with the launch of the Aberdeen North campaign for candidate Ewan Robertson. In keeping with the national aims of the party’s campaign, the Aberdeen branch emphasised a threat to 100 000 Scottish jobs if cuts planned by the establishment Westminster parties go ahead.

The SSP is contesting ten seats across Scotland and will put a five point programme to voters offering a socialist alternative to the narrow spectrum of cuts now versus cuts later offered by the mainstream parties.

Ewan Robertson, a first time candidate running in Aberdeen North, and postgraduate student at Aberdeen University, explained his key pledges as “Opposition to the ‘cuts or more cuts’ mentality of the main parties. We need to be working to guarantee jobs for youth, not cutting public sector workers while the super rich continue to get richer.” Other key pledges include immediate withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, a commitment to taking a workers wage if elected, and support for an independence referendum for Scotland.

Ewan Robertson said ” I am really looking forward to talking to voters in Aberdeen North about these pledges. Opposing spending cuts and making the bankers pay for the economic crisis they created, wanting troops out of Afghanistan, decent wages, and a real debate about independence – these are things that I feel strongly about and I know a lot of Aberdonians do too – now we just need to take it to the polls, and to Westminster!”

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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/

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The 2010 General Election will see the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP)
contest the seats of Chancellor Alistair Darling in Edinburgh South
West, Overseas Development Secretary Douglas Alexander in Paisley and
Renfrewshire South, one SNP front bencher, Stewart Hosie, in Dundee
East alongside the Livingston seat previously held by suspended Labour
MP Jim Devine, in a campaign covering 10 constituencies across
Scotland.

In contrast to the discredited expenses system which has so revolted
the public all our SSP candidates will be standing on a platform of
only accepting a skilled worker’s wage not the lottery winners
lifestyle of current MPs.

These contests mean that the SSP will challenge two key figures
involved in Labour’s cuts and war policies–Chancellor Darling in
Edinburgh and Overseas Development Secretary Douglas Alexander in
Paisley.

Our challenge to SNP Westminster finance spokesman Stewart Hosie will
increase the pressure on the SNP to tell voters how they will
translate words against the cuts into action to defend jobs, services
and communities.

On May 6th voters will be offered a dismal choice of cuts, sackings
and war by politicians polluted by the duck houses and mortgage
expenses scandal.

All three Westminster parties are in race to see who can cut deepest
while the SNP wring their hands but will cut services while blaming
London.

These cuts will decimate vital services and directly threaten the jobs
of 100,000 Scottish workers.

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

Colin Fox, SSP challenger on Edinburgh South West said:

“The key message from the SSP in this election is that there is an
alternative to the cuts sackings and war on offer from the other
parties. We will demand that tax dodging by the rich which costs a
massive £135 billion a year is ended and troops are pulled out of
Afghanistan.
“In the choice between the greed of the rich and the needs of the
people we stand for jobs and services and making the rich pay for the
economic mess they have created.
I look forward to debating these ideas with Chancellor Darling who has
shovelled billions to bankers while supporting cuts in services.”

Frances Curran, who is to contest Glasgow East said :

“This election is the opening shot it what will be a battle to protect
and expand jobs and services opposing cuts and sackings to bailout the
super rich.”

“The message the SSP will take in our campaign from Aberdeen to
Paisley is that lack of money is not the problem, it is that it is
held by a tiny greedy minority. Working people did not cause the
banking crisis and should not pay for it with their jobs and
services.’
[ends]

Note: Frances and Colin are also national co-spokesmen for the
Scottish Socialist Party,

10 seat SSP challenge

Aberdeen North – Ewan Robertson
Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintiloch East – Willie O’Neil
Dundee East – Angela Gorrie
Edinburgh South West – Colin Fox
Glasgow Central – James Nesbitt
Glasgow East – Frances Curran
Glasgow North East – Kevin McVey
Livingston – Ally Hendry
Paisley and Renfrewshire North – Chris Rollo
Paisley and Renfrewshire South – Jimmy Kerr

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Overall, we will be putting forward the case for real, participatory democracy in both political and economic planning, reversing the policies of New Labour and the Tories by redistributing  wealth from the super-rich to the rest of society and eradicating poverty, and arguing for a modern, inclusive democratic republic in Scotland, stating our belief that another world is possible and stating the case for socialism in the 21st century: for people, not profit.

If you agree with the above sentiments, then now is the time to join us and help out with our campaign. Details of up and coming meetings and chances to get involved will be updated.

As a warm up to the election, Aberdeen University Students Association (AUSA) organised a “Question Time” hustings on Friday 12 March, with representatives from various parties who intend to stand in the Aberdeen area in the election. Below are a couple of photos, including AUSA President Robin Parker (right) and Ewan Robertson posing after Ewan signed a pledge that if elected, he will resist and vote against any policy to increase tuition fees for students in the next parliament. A few of the others are from our public meeting on Afghanistan at Aberdeen University on Wednesday 17 February, and some members of the Aberdeen SSP branch standing outside on Aberdeen University campus with our (still a work in progress!) banner.

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The event is in the Fraser Noble building, 6pm, this Friday.  The event will be chaired by Professor Trevor Salmon, from A.U. Politics and International Relations Department.

The following will be participating:

Ewan Robertson, Scottish Socialist Party

Sue Edwards, Green Party

Anne Begg MP, Labour Party

Alex Johnstone MSP, Conservative Party

Richard Thomson, Scottish Nationalist Party

John Sleigh, Liberal Democrats

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Aberdeen SSP Public Meetings
End the Occupation of Afghanistan

Wednesday 17th February

Meeting 1: Aberdeen University, NK10, 2pm
Speakers: John McAllion (former Labour  MP, MSP) Joan Humphrys (Military Families Against the War)

Meeting 2: Aberdeen Trades Council Social Club (Adelphie Lane), 7.30pm
Speakers: Colin Fox (former MSP, SSP national co-spokesperson), Mohammed Asif (Chair, Scottish Afghan Society)

PRESS RELEASE

The continuation of the war in Afghanistan is an indictment of our democracy, says Colin Fox, leader of the Scottish Socialist Party. “None of the parties supposedly representing us at Holyrood oppose this war,” said Fox, “at a time when over 70% of the population believe we should not be in Afghanistan”

Fox’s comments come ahead of a day of meetings and discussion in Aberdeen, organised by the city’s SSP branch. An afternoon meeting, with guest speakers former MSP John McAllion and Joan Humphreys, will be followed by an evening meeting with Fox and the Scottish Afghan Society leader Mohammad Asif. Humphries recently joined the Scottish Socialist Party, to much publicity, after her grandson Kevin Elliot was killed in Afghanistan.

John McAllion echoes Fox’s comments on democracy, saying “”The anti-war voice on Afghanistan has been effectively silenced in Westminster and in Holyrood by the British establishment’s cynical exploitation of the real sacrifices of young soldiers to rally support for a war which in reality is based on a tissue of establishment lies. ”

Fox emphasises that the SSP is the only party that has continuously opposed the invasion and occupation of Afghanistan, saying “Britain has been occupying Afghanistan for the past 8 years. Tony Blair said the invasion in 2001 was in retaliation for the 9/11 bombing. We know now, as he knew then, that not one single Afghan was involved in those heinous attacks. Afghanistan has never threatened us yet some 50,000 innocent Afghan civilians have been killed as a result of our invasion. The latest poll, conducted for The Washington Post, shows that 80% of Afghans want British and American forces to leave their country. Here in Britain three quarters of us want the troops to be withdrawn”

Joan Humphreys said “the war in which my grandson was killed is an immoral and unnecessary conflict”, she made clear that although her personal experience obviously had a huge impact on her, this feeling is wider than her own family connection to the conflict.

Aberdeen SSP Secretary Ewan Robertson said he is looking forward to the day of meetings as an opportunity for dialogue and discussion, adding “What makes these major public meetings so important is that it gives the general public a chance to learn about the brutal realities of British involvement in Afghanistan from those who have lost loved ones on both sides, as well as the  political analysis of experienced and principled politicians.” McAllion adds “The truth about Afghanistan rarely surfaces in the mainstream media, making anti-war meetings like this all the more important for the citizens of what is still supposed to be a democracy.”

When: Wednesday 17 February, 2pm, Aberdeen University New Kings 10, and 7.30pm, Trades Union Social Club, Adelphi (off Union Street).

ALL WELCOME

ENDS

Press Contact Sarah Campbell, Aberdeen SSP Press Officer

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For the google map: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/place?sourceid=navclient&rlz=1T4DVXA_enGB314GB243&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=aberdeen+trades+council+social+club&fb=1&gl=uk&hq=trades+council+social+club&hnear=aberdeen&cid=9198887716327302110

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http://www.scottishsocialistparty.org/new_stories/issues/politics-2010.html

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Members of the SSP Aberdeen branch were again out leafleting and campaigning (again in terrible weather!) to get troops in Afghanistan brough home and an end brought to this pointless, destructive war.

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This was a ballot where over 80% of the UNITE members involved voted and of those who did, 92% supported strike action. Yet in the face of this overwhelming mandate an individual and unaccountable judge can back up BA’s bullying management and invalidate the result.

It marks a further extension of the interference of the courts into the democratic decision making processes of Trade Unions and loads the dice even further in favour of employers seeking to attack workers like those in BA.

It is the latest twist on what is a sustained assault by BA management on their workforce, seeking to emulate companies like Branson’s Virgin Airways and Ryanair in driving down wages and conditions in the airline industry.

Contrary to the pernicious propaganda being spoon-fed to the mainstream media by BA, this is a workforce that does not luxuriate in a pampered lifestyle and earn inflated wages.

The unprecedented support for industrial action reflects the anger of people who have been consistently undermined in the job they are trying to do and facing a brutal employer who wants to boost its profits through wage cuts and staff reductions.

UNITE is now saying it will re-ballot. It is essential that the solid support for action is maintained and indeed informal, unofficial action may not be ruled out such will be the anger against the court’s unfair decision.

The SSP will continue to support the BA worker’s in their fight. The party believes the court action should mark the point where the Trade Union movement starts to roll back the attacks of employers and the incursion of the state into their legitimate business. It is a fight against the greed of big business and for all our democratic rights.

UNITE might also wish to consider its ongoing support to a Labour Party that after 12 years in power has allowed the anti-union legislation, which Tony Blair boasted as being “the most restrictive in the Western world”, to remain in place as a weapon in the armoury of every bullying boss like Willie Walsh and his minions at BA.

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The strike by BA Cabin Crew, a strike that received 92.5% of the vote in a ballot of members, has been declared “illegal”.

The High Court called a halt to the strike as members who had taken redundancy were able to vote. This technicality is a relic of Britain’s draconian anti-Trade Union laws. Designed in the Thatcher era, the laws are intended to prevent a Union from taking quick and decisive action, or, as today’s ruling would seem to indicate, any effective action at all.

This ruling will severely curtail the right of workers to strike.

In a gross understatement, Derek Simpson called the cancellation “a disgraceful day for democracy”. Even if all of the members who had taken redundancy had voted AGAINST the strike, there would still have been an overwhelming majority in favour of it.

The implications of this ruling are terrifying. Every time that a group of managers are facing a dispute in future, they will turn to their reliable friends in the courts to declare the strike illegal.

If they can do this to Unite, they can do it to ANY Union.  Virtually all Union ballots include a few people who have already resigned as the Union receives no automatic notice of this; members need to do it themselves. As a former member of Unite, I was receiving ballot papers for elections three months after I left my job.

If this logic was applied to the rich and powerful we would not have a Parliament! Our electoral register is full of people who are not legally entitled to vote; from foreign students and people who have moved, to those who are dead. However, I do not anticipate the High Court will be declaring our expenses guzzling MPs” illegal” anytime soon.

Any person reading the British press over the past week is likely to regard BA Cabin Crew as a collection of airborne grinches, determined to steal Christmas from Britain’s travellers. Absolutely no consideration is given to the fact that BA management’s job cuts, caused by BA management’s errors, are going to steal every Christmas for the foreseeable future from BA Staff and their dependants.

The vitriol that has been directed against the Union members is awful. These workers are not ‘selfish’, as so many have called them. These are ordinary people like you trying to defend their livelihoods. You may ask if they could not hold their strike after Christmas; but what leverage would they have against management except at the busiest times? Would you rather they disrupted your summer holidays?

Perhaps you are even thinking that they should not strike at all. If you are, I ask you what you would do if your job was at stake? If your wages were to be slashed? Roll over like some supine fool in worship of your boss?  Or fight to defend yourself? The Union used the only option that was left after all other forms of negotiation failed.

Let’s make one thing clear: British Airways Management are responsible for this strike not the workers.

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The online ‘advance’ of Aberdeen SSP continues with the launch of our facebook page, which you can also use to contact us. In addition, (thanks to our chair Catriona), we even have some lovely images of our politics lighting up the currently grey political landscape of Aberdeen.

Check us out at: http://www.facebook.com/groups/edit.php?members&gid=209898501260#/group.php?v=wall&gid=209898501260

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Obama Wins Peace Prize - Frank Boyle

Frank Boyle, cartoonist at the Edinburgh Evening News, has responded to an SSP appeal for contributions to our campaign against the occupation of Afghanistan with the graphic that illustrates this article. The cartoon by Frank Boyle and article by Ken Andrew offer sharp analysis of the current  propaganda struggle by the British establishment, which we can witness daily in the news, which is attempting to reverse the waning support for the British occupation of Afghanistan. The link below is to the article on the main SSP website. http://www.scottishsocialistparty.org/new_stories/issues/time-for-peace.html

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In fact, I was reading Colin Fox’s blog earlier, and he quotes a key verse from Hamish Henderson’s ‘freedom come all ye’ which is worth repeating here:

‘Nae mair will our bonnie callants
Merch tae war when our braggarts crousely craw
Nor wee weans fae pithead and clachan
Mourn the ships sailin doun the Broomielaw
Broken families in lands we’ve harriet
Will curse ‘Scotland the Brave’ nae mair, nae mair
Black and white ane-til-ither marriet
Mak the vile barracks o their maisters bare’

To realise the above sentiments, we will be out on the streets as often as possible to campaign on this issue, and we also plan to hold further public meetings to raise awareness and increase pressure on the establishment.

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