The Corbyn “revolution” has severely shaken the Establishment and continues to do so. It is a joy to watch!

But work is well underway now to undermine and discredit his leadership and what he stands for - and to discourage, and demoralise the hundreds of thousands of new Labour Party members.

The  jobs-worths and the Establishment’s little helpers in the Party and in the wider labour movement are busily working away seeking to sabotage Corbyn’s agenda. They want a Party where the membership is merely a passive and obedient audience! - as it was in Blair's day...

Already, according to the Financial Times, a key socialist policy has been abandoned - the re-nationalisation of the money-grubbing energy companies. They, you may recall, nearly had a collective heart attack not long ago when Miliband (remember him?) had the gall to suggest that energy prices might be frozen for a while!

According to the FT (29th Sept), - Lisa Nandy, the shadow energy secretary, dropped the plans during her speech to the Labour conference in Brighton. “Jeremy and I don’t want to nationalise energy,” she said. “We want to do something far more radical. We want to democratise it.”

How thoroughly fatuous. How on earth can these companies be “democratised” whilst they are privately owned by the faceless equivalents of Harold Wilson’s "Gnomes of Zürich”!

Re-nationalisation of the rapacious utilities is a massively popular policy amongst voters - as poll after poll has consistently shown. For good reason. Nationalisation would be vastly more efficient in its use of resources - and a socially owned energy sector could be run as a public service - resulting in smaller (and simpler) energy bills!

Why must pensioners and poorer families be worried about turning on the heat during winter?

But this policy has been abandoned! Already!

This is why the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition will not give an easy ride to right-wing Labour MPs and those similarly bloodless and cynical Labour councillors up and down the country!

As was agreed at the successful TUSC National Conference last weekend, insofar as we are able, we will continue to stand against all Labour candidates who are not with Corbyn; who are not prepared to fight for the people they are supposed to represent. They will not be given a free ride.

In the shape of thousands of new Labour Party members, Corbyn’s agenda has many friends inside the Labour Party. And his agenda has many friends outside the Party too. Those friends are in the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition!

The Labour Party, at last, has a chance not only of becoming a “nice” party, but also of becoming a fighting party - a party supporting working people struggling for a better life.

WHAT A MARVELLOUS RESULT FOR CORBYN! 

UK politics will never be quite the same again! TUSC wholeheartedly and unreservedly welcomes the result!

Very many thousands of people, young and old, through their enthusiasm and motivation have delivered this result. Hopes everywhere have been raised that at last we might start the push back against the pro-austerity, pro-rich onslaught of the last period.

Some anti-austerity and socialist arguments are beginning already to gain a wider audience. As a result the corporate media is spitting blood and bile. We will see much more of this in the weeks and months ahead.

Many of Corbyn’s policies are, of course, those that TUSC has been pressing forward for some time - against cuts in public expenditure; for the renationalisation of the utilities, Royal Mail, the railways; ending privatisation; opposition to war and conflict abroad, etc. Policies consistently supported by the wider public.

We look forward to continuing our work in friendly partnership with Corbyn’s supporters in building a renewed movement for democratic socialism and a powerful and unflinching working class party.

But the right-wing of the Labour Party will fight back. We don’t yet know what form that will take. It is likely they will bide their time before they act openly - leaving the media to do their dirty work; seeking to undermine Corbyn and his supporters.

He will find he suddenly has many “friends” from Labour’s right-wing who will suddenly rediscover left-sounding phraseology. They will curry favour - there will be much flattery and fawning - especially since Corbyn has said he will be “inclusive”.

However, some Labour MPs have already made plain they will not co-operate. Let’s not forget that Corbyn’s support amongst Labour MPs hitherto has been around 10% at most!

We mustn’t lose sight of the fact that the body of the Labour Party is still pro-austerity. For example, compare Corbyn’s pronouncements with the contents of Labour’s Manifesto!

Labour became an undemocratic, Tory second eleven through a long and painful process which was started in the 1980s with the expulsion of many left wingers - TUSC Chair Dave Nellist (once a Labour MP himself) amongst them.

Will Labour MPs and the thousands of Labour councillors now start fighting back against cuts in social expenditure and privatisations?

Will Labour councils now start refusing to implement Tory cuts and policies? Will Croydon Council, to be specific, lead this process? What will Steve Reed do?

It is clear there is much still to be done. Some of that work will occur within the Labour party no doubt (if its undemocratic structures will permit!). But very much work will take place in the wider Labour movement - and that’s where TUSC comes in.

For TUSC the question is - how can this significant left victory be converted into  long-lasting change; how can it help build a renewed, unflinching working class party that will rid us of the Tories and everything they represent?

FOR ANSWERS, COME TO THE NATIONAL TUSC CONFERENCE IN LONDON ON SATURDAY 26th SEPTEMBER. 

> STUDENT CENTRAL, MALET STREET, WC1E 7HY.

> 11am until 4.30pm.

The opening session, "The role of TUSC in the new situation", will be a chance to assess these issues and what needs to be done after Jeremy Corbyn's success.

A great start has been made.

Big business and its craven representatives within Labour have collectively taken a solid left hook!

It's left them staggering. Let’s follow it through!

For more info - see HERE.

>>>>  STOP THE BNP IN CROYDON! <<<<

Join the anti-BNP demo on SATURDAY 5th SEPT! 


We fully support this demo against the so-called British National Party.

The BNP is not welcome in Croydon!

They are an anti-working class party. They want to divide workers against each other.

This is a gift for Tories who will welcome whatever diverts attention from their austerity policies.

_____________________________________________________

The BNP want to blame “non-white” workers and refugees for what is happening.

But it wasn’t refugees, immigrants or “non-white” workers who tanked the economy!  

THEY aren’t the ones withdrawing vital benefits and pushing people into poverty - Government is doing that!

THEY aren’t holding down wages and conditions - employers are doing that!

THEY aren’t responsible for zero-hour contracts - big business is!

THEY aren’t putting up rents - landlords are!

THEY aren’t privatising the NHS and schools! The Tories are!

THEY aren’t avoiding £Billions in tax (which we have to make up) - big business is doing that!

THEY aren’t blocking truly affordable housing - Government and house builders are doing that!

THEY aren’t cutting essential social services - the Tories and right-wing Labour councils are doing that!

_____________________________________________________

THE BNP ARE THE TORIES’  LITTLE HELPERS.
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TUSC STANDS FOR SOLIDARITY IN THE FIGHT FOR A BETTER LIFE FOR ALL


BNP - the Bosses’ Narks Party!

THE CORBYN CAMPAIGN

Corbyn will need maximum support when he's elected Labour Leader. The vast majority of Labour MPs are hostile to everything he stands for - see yesterday's article about TUSC in the Coventry Telegraph HERE.

In particular, as Dave Nellist says in the article, "his first action [as leader] should be to instruct local Labour councils to halt cuts and direct a strategy to resist austerity".

He will have our unqualified support if he does that!

Already, hundreds of Labour councillors have come out in support of Corbyn, (many who support TUSC). But they constitute only a small percentage of existing Labour councillors - so there's much work to be done!

LABOUR "VALUES"

You would think that a political party would welcome 600,000 new members and supporters, but Labour's right-wing are saying that many of those people don't share' "Labour's values".

But what "values" would they be? Support for free market, big business capitalism?

Compare the clauses below and see which values we might be talking about. New Labour's values are not ours. We believe they are not Corbyn's either.

Clause IV Part 4 (1918) - deleted by Blair and Co.

To secure for the workers by hand or by brain the full fruits of their industry and the most equitable distribution thereof that may be possible upon the basis of the common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange, and the best obtainable system of popular administration and control of each industry or service.

Clause IV Part 2A (1995)

A dynamic economy, serving the public interest, in which the enterprise of the market and the rigour of competition are joined with the forces of partnership and co-operation to produce the wealth the nation needs and the opportunity for all to work and prosper with a thriving private sector and high-quality public services where those undertakings essential to the common good are either owned by the public or accountable to them.

TUSC and the Corbyn Campaign!

HERE is National TUSC Secretary, Clive Heemskerk, interviewed on the BBC talking about claims that TUSC is "infiltrating" the Labour Party to vote for Jeremy.

If the pro-market right-wing are so concerned about this phenomena, here's an idea for them.

Why don't they (the people who introduced this election system in the first place), why don't they get all their millions of supporters to sign up and vote for Kendal or the other talking heads?

Oh. They don't have as many supporters as Jeremy - despite the support they get from almost the entire corporate media.

Shame.

LABOUR LEADERSHIP ELECTION!

NEW LOCAL TUSC LEAFLET NOW AVAILABLE!

The leadership election in the Labour Party is again bringing to the foreground the importance of building a socialist political voice for working people.

That, in essence, is the basic platform of Jeremy Corbyn - and polls have suggested he is now a front runner.

Much enthusiasm is, understandably, being generated.

But for it to be truly meaningful, a “rejuvenated” Labour Party would need to go hand-in-hand  with bold, democratic socialist policies; aimed squarely at delivering real and lasting benefits for  workers - combatting head on the propaganda of big business capitalism.

It would, to paraphrase an old Labour Party manifesto, seek plainly to tilt the balance of power in society decisively in favour of working people and their families.

Whether the “renewal” process is successful remains to be seen. The forces of the right - supported enthusiastically by the corporate media and the numerous establishment toadies within the labour movement - are seeking to make sure that any leftward move is halted.

Even master toady, Blair, (for it is he) has been wheeled out to offer his vacuous tuppence-worth.

It would certainly transform the political scene in the UK (and beyond) if Corbyn was elected and he set out in this direction - with the enthusiastic help of socialists inside and (perhaps more importantly) outside Labour.

Given the steady degeneration of New Labour since the 1990s, we remain somewhat sceptical about what he can achieve, however. Nonetheless we wish Jeremy the best of luck.

In the meantime we cannot rely on that process entirely. We must build TUSC as a bulwark of the socialist left, and a growing powerful voice for working class (and middle class) people.

A new local TUSC leaflet is available for general distribution purposes. You can see it if you click - HERE.

Please contact us if you need a wad of them. Use them at meetings, your workplace, family and friends, special events - or simply stand outside a railway station and hand them out! ;-)

Email us at - SuttonCroydonTUSC@gmail.com

Lets raise our voice!

LABOUR COUNCILS - DO SOMETHING!!

The policies of austerity - shamefully not opposed by the dominating right-wing of the Labour Party - are having a devastating effect on local communities.

These are some key facts so far since 2010 - according to the Financial Times today. 

Around 150,000 pensioners have lost access to vital services. (Note these are vital services!)

There has been an 8% cut in child protection spending. That’s child protection!

Per child spending on children’s centres (0 - 4 yr olds) has dropped from £446 in 2010, to £319 in 2013 - a 28% cut.

Factory health and safety inspections in 2009 (in England) numbered around 56,000. By 2009 this had been slashed to around 5,000. A 90% reduction. Fifty three councils have abandoned pro-active inspections altogether!

Here’s a straight quote from the FT - “Children’s social work departments, faced with a surge in referrals after public awareness was raised through a series of abuse scandals, have seen their funds cut by the equivalent of more than £600 for every referred child”.

Overall, there’s been a cut of £18 billion to council budgets - nearly 20% of spending.

And there’s another £9.5 billion of cuts to go before 2020!

WHAT ARE LABOUR COUNCILS DOING ABOUT THIS?!

Instead of breaking the law by organising a fight back, they are instead breaking the law by putting more and more families with children into B&B accommodation for longer than 6 weeks at a time!

From Tory and Liberal councils we might expect nothing but seat warming inactivity and perhaps some occasional hand wringing, but from so-called Labour councils we should expect more. 

Unfortunately - with some very honourable exceptions (being TUSC or left-wing Labour, for example) - most Labour councillors seem not to have a recognisable backbone between the lot of them! 

Why doesn’t Jeremy Corbyn respond to this by calling on all Labour councils to rise up against the cuts to services?  Without this; what is Labour for?