The November meeting of the All-Britain Steering Committee of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) agreed to step up preparations for the elections coming up in the period ahead.
These include the 2023 local elections in England which will see over 7,500 councillors elected (see the TUSC directory at https://www.tusc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/473.pdf for the councils going to the polls in May), a bigger battleground in terms of seats to be contested than in either 2021 or 2022. But also, of course, there is the general election, which must be called by the end of 2024 but may well be held much earlier.
With the Labour Party on course with its plan to have a full list of its general election candidates in place by spring 2023, one proposal the TUSC steering committee agreed was for local delegations to be organised to Labours prospective parliamentary candidates (PPCs) to see where they stand on the policies needed to meet the cost-of-living crisis that we face.
A model letter to Labour PPCs was approved highlighting six policy areas where the pledges made in the 2019 general election manifesto under Jeremy Corbyns leadership would go far in beginning to reverse the capitalist political establishments austerity agenda. Sir Keir Starmer, we know, has made it clear that he has put the last manifesto to one side. The slate is wiped clean. There is no prospect of radical change there.
But where do the local candidates stand? And if they cant commit to even the policies that many of them were elected on just three years ago, how can they expect not to be challenged at the ballot box by trade unionists, socialists and anti-austerity campaigners who will?
Building the pressure
The TUSC national election agent Clive Heemskerk explained that the response to the letter by Labour PPCs will be an important factor to take into account in whether or not the TUSC steering committee would authorise a candidate to stand in the general election under the TUSC name in a given constituency.
As the letter says TUSC has always been prepared to not contest seats in which the Labour candidate has stood out against the austerity consensus of mainstream politics and that will be the case again in the next general election.
But the idea of organising a delegation of trade unionists and community and social movement campaigners to meet local Labour PPCs is not just about that. Even where the Labour PPC is an established right-winger they should feel the heat. And what better way is there to convince trade unionists and others of the need for themselves to stand in elections or otherwise support a socialist election challenge than to be told face-to-face that their interests will not be met by their prospective Labour MP?.
Local TUSC groups should use the model letter, adapted to their own circumstances, firstly to go to local trade union branches, trades councils, campaign groups, student societies and so on, to discuss with them the idea of organising a delegation.
This should be done before contacting the PPC. Then, when the letter is sent, there is more chance that the Labour candidate will feel obliged to respond.
And if they refuse to meet a representative delegation that then itself becomes a local news story. Its all a question of building up the pressure before the election – as the movement will inevitably have to do after the election too when faced with a Starmer governments austerity-lite policies.
The model letter, printed below, is also available as a PDF at https://www.tusc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/479.pdf and as a Word document, at https://www.tusc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/480.doc, which can be adapted to the local situation.
The what to do at the ballot box? TUSC tour extended
The steering committee also agreed to extend into the new year the tour of TUSC-hosted forums organised under the heading, Enough is Enough! But what do we do at the ballot box?.
This effort to get a serious discussion going amongst trade union members, community and social movement campaigners, and socialists from any party or none, on how a working class alternative can be put in place for the next general election, started in October and has seen successful meetings in Southampton, Wakefield, Newcastle, Bristol, Swindon, Louth, Sheffield, Plymouth, Northampton, Leicester, Leeds, Liverpool and Swansea.
Further meetings are scheduled for Birmingham, Mansfield, Brighton, Reading, Oxford, York, Cardiff, London and Bradford (see https://www.tusc.org.uk/events for details) and the TUSC steering committee reiterated its support to anyone prepared to get something going themselves if there isnt a meeting nearby.
Supplies of a TUSC leaflet are still available (see https://www.tusc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/476.pdf to view the text, and https://www.tusc.org.uk/resources for how to order) and there is a model letter to trade union branches – from the TUSC national chairperson and former Labour MP, Dave Nellist, and Clive Heemskerk – downloadable at https://www.tusc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/477.pdf.
TUSC conference on February 4th
The steering committee also confirmed the date of the TUSC conference to be held on Saturday 4th February, from 11am to 4-30pm at Birkbeck College, Malet Street, London WC1E.
This will discuss both the local and general election plans. The committee had previously agreed a draft core policy platform for the local elections to be discussed at the conference (see https://www.tusc.org.uk/17696/09-10-2022/for-a-socialist-response-to-the-cost-of-living-crisis-tuscrsquos-draft-policy-for-the-2023-elections) and a draft general election platform of core policies, also up for debate, will be published after the next meeting on December 7th.
Conference registration and other details will also be published on the Events page on the TUSC website after that meeting but book the February 4th date now. There are busy times ahead!
Model letter to Labour Party Prospective Parliamentary Candidates (PPCs)
To:
Constituency:
Meeting with local trade unionists and anti-austerity campaigners
Dear
We are writing to you as the Labour Partys prospective parliamentary candidate for this constituency to try and arrange a time convenient for you to meet a delegation of local trade unionists and anti-austerity activists to discuss the next general election.
The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC), co-founded by the late general secretary of the RMT Bob Crow, is determined that working-class people should not pay for a crisis we did not cause, and we support parliamentary representatives who take the same stance.
For that reason we campaigned in support of Jeremy Corbyn and his anti-austerity manifestoes in the 2017 and 2019 general elections. However, Sir Keir Starmer has repeatedly confirmed that under his leadership the slate is wiped clean. He has confirmed support for very few of the commitments in the 2019 manifesto, and some have been explicitly abandoned.
That is why we would like an in-person meeting with you to ascertain what position you hold on the following points from Labours 2019 manifesto which we believe are critical minimums needed to reverse the austerity agenda.
Public ownership of rail, mail, water, telecoms and power
The manifesto pledged to bring our energy and water systems into democratic public ownership. This was to include a publicly-owned UK National Energy Agency to own and maintain the national grid infrastructure and oversee the development of our decarbonisation targets, and for the supply arms of the Big Six energy companies to be brought into public ownership. In addition the railways, Royal Mail and British Telecom were to be renationalised.
Reverse privatisation and restore public services and benefits
The manifesto committed to end and reverse privatisation in the NHS and to ensure services are delivered in-house. In addition it pledged to offer free prescriptions for all and free basic dentistry, and to fund free personal care for older people and extra care packages. It also promised to restore council spending powers to 2010 levels over the lifetime of the parliament and to bring services – from bin collections to management of local leisure centres – back in-house. Universal Credit was to be scrapped and replaced with an alternative system which treats people with dignity and respect.
Council house building and rent control
The manifesto pledged that by the end of the parliament Labour would be building at an annual rate of at least 150,000 council and social homes, with 100,000 of these built by councils for social rent in the biggest council house building programme in more than a generation. In addition, it would scrap the Conservatives bogus definition of affordable, set as high as 80% of market rents, and replace it with a definition linked to local incomes. It also promised to take urgent action to protect private renters through rent controls, open-ended tenancies, and new, binding minimum standards.
Free education from nursery to university
Under this policy heading the manifesto pledged that all two, three and four-year olds will be entitled to 30 hours of free preschool education per week. It also promised to abolish tuition fees and bring back maintenance grants for all higher education students.
Tax the rich not workers
Labours pledge in 2019 was for taxes to rise only for the wealthy, with commitments to a new additional income tax rate payable from £80,000 and a new super-rich rate for those earning over £125,000. Corporation tax would rise to 26% (with a 21% small profits rate), dividends and capital gains would be taxed at income tax rates, and a financial transaction tax would be introduced.
Fighting for workers interests and supporting trade unions
The manifesto pledged to give everyone full rights from day one on the job, to end bogus self-employment, and banning zero hour contracts and strengthening the law so that those who work regular hours for more than 12 weeks will have a right to a regular contract. It also pledged to repeal anti-trade union legislation including the Trade Union Act 2016 and create new rights and freedoms for trade unions to help them win a better deal for working people.
As you will be aware the above policies are widely supported in the trade union movement. That is why we would like you to explain your views on these issues to a delegation of local trade unionists.
TUSC has accepted from its inception that there will be Labour candidates who share our socialist aspirations and will be prepared to support measures which challenge the austerity consensus of mainstream politics.
But it is also committed to standing candidates or supporting others if that is the only way a working class anti-austerity socialist alternative can be articulated at election time.
Yours sincerely,