CP election manifesto 2015 Scotland

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For a Federal Republic Communists call for a Federal Republic that provides Home Rule for Scotland and Wales and also enables working class unity to be developed across the nations of Britain. The Federal Parliament would exer- cise control over currency, banking, interest rates, taxes on wealth and capital, foreign policy and defence. All other powers would be devolved to national parliaments – including taxes on income and consumption and the power to intervene industri- ally and develop public ownership of infrastructure and production. The Federal Parliament would be constitutionally required to redis- tribute income derived from taxes on wealth and profits in light of social need across the nations and regions of Britain. Challenging Big Business Power The power of big business is concentrated at British level. Most of the big companies that own the Scottish economy are based in London. They depend on the Brit- ish state to support them – as when the British Treasury bailed out the banks in 2008. They use the British state against working people – in terms of anti-trade union laws and a labour force policed by penal policies against the unemployed. And the wealth they accumulate is concen- trated in the south-east and invested overseas through the City of London. This is why the independence called for by the SNP would leave all the key levers of big business power over Scotland still in their hands. The currency, interest rates and government borrowing would be all controlled from London; the European Union would continue to enforce neo-liberal market control – outlawing public ownership and state aid to industry. But working people in Scotland would have no democratic way of contesting that power. Communists do not believe that constitutions by themselves can resolve problems of class power and exploitation. Only political action by working people and their allies can do that. But constitutions can help or hinder this process. Independence on SNP terms would directly prevent working people in Scotland from join- ing with their fellow workers in Wales and England in challenging big business power at British level. A Federal state would enable working people across Britain to do so – to demand greater taxa- tion on wealth, greater redistribu- tion across Britain and the dis- mantling of the anti-trade union laws that restrict organisation by the great majority of us who have to work for a living. Why class unity is essential The ConDem Coalition launched an unprecedented attack on work- ing people. They claimed the budget deficit was caused by undue spending on social services. It wasn’t. It was caused by bailing out the bankers. They demanded cuts on a scale not seen since the 1930s. They allowed wages to be forced down by over 10 per cent and at the same cut taxes on wealth and profits – with the richest 1,000 doubling their wealth to over £530 bil- lion (equivalent to almost two-thirds of the National Debt). Now they propose further attacks on trade unions, further attacks on the poorest and further tax cuts for the wealthy. Only organisation by working people can reverse this assault – trade unions, communities, all those who are vulner- able and need support. The Commu- nist Party backs the People’s Assembly as the first step in creating an alliance that can in turn transform politics from below and, in particular, ensure the Labour Party returns to the socialist objectives set by its founders. Devo Max is a Trap Making Scotland solely reliant on taxes raised in Scotland stops the redistribu- tion of wealth across Britain. The pro- ceeds from Scottish revenues, includ- ing oil and gas, will be far too small to make up the current deficit. Depending on whether oil prices recover and how fast oil extraction declines, Scotland could be poorer by anything between £4 billion and £10 billion – more than the Tories have already cut. The SNP case for Devo Max is that by controlling all taxes they could grow the economy by attracting more investment – espe- cially external. But that will mean cut- ting taxes on big business even further. Communist Party Scottish Election Manifesto 2015 FOR WORKING CLASS UNITY AND A FEDERAL REPUBLIC Trident, NATO and the Drive to War Trident - Britain’s nuclear weapon system - is a relic of the last Cold War. It is dangerous, unaffordable and militarily useless in today’s world. And opinion polls show that it is extremely unpopu- lar. Over the next decade it will consume over one third of Britain’s defence procurement budget and divert resources away from spending to meet social need. 2016 will be the crunch year for Trident - the UK parliament will decide whether to go ahead with the Trident replacement pro- gramme. After that date the main contracts will be signed and it will be harder to stop. Just 18 months ago the UK parliament voted down a ConDem motion to take us into war against Syria - preventing a new Mid- dle East war and for the first time breaking ranks with the US. This happened after a decade of anti-war campaigning. We can do the same with the Trident programme. NATO and the new Cold War There is a growing threat of war in Europe. It is a crisis triggered by the aggressive expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). When the Cold War ended, instead of being wound up, NATO was expanded from 16 members to 28, moving into eastern and southern Europe and posing a new threat to Russia. The real purpose of the alliance is to provide a cover for the spread of US power - binding other countries into support for US foreign policy and US-led overseas military intervention. And now NATO is using the crisis in Ukraine - a crisis largely cre- ated by the US-inspired coup in that country - to ratchet up the military stakes: a new NATO Spearhead force of 5,000 troops ready to attack Russia within 48 hours backed up by a larger force of 25,000 troops to be de- ployed within 4 weeks new NATO bases and command centres in 6 coun- tries of Eastern Europe all adding to the military encirclement of Russia. The Cold War plays into the hands of military hawks - those determined to push ahead with a new generation of nuclear weap- ons and increase UK defence spending. 2016: CRUNCH YEAR FOR TRIDENT Communists say: Scrap Trident and spend the money on health, education and welfare Support the campaign for a global ban on nuclear weapons as advocated by 140 countries across the world Break the ‘special relation- ship’ that binds us to US policy and support for US- led wars around the world. Get out of NATO - an aggressive military alliance controlled by the United States Zoe Hennessy, leader of the Young Communist League, lives in Anniesland and has a degree from the Glasgow University. Active in her trade union, she is 24 years old and works in a supermar- I am proud to stand as a candidate for the Commu- nist Party. Our party has a long tradition of campaigning and organising in the trade union move- ment and in Scottish communities to fight for a better standard of life for working people. In the last five years the Con-Dem government has waged a relentless war on working people and their families in an attempt to claw back all the gains we have won since the Second World War. Their austerity agenda is not about fixing a deficit, it is about maximising profits for the super rich whilst ordi- nary people are made to suffer. Yet the Labour Party leadership has failed to stand on the side of working people and is pledged to continue austerity. The SNP have pandered to big business, and not working people. They have voted down the living wage, they want tax breaks for big business and have pushed local councils into making massive cuts in spending. I am standing in order to challenge both the SNP and Labour on their commitment to stand up for working people and end austerity. ZOE HENESSY for Glasgow North West

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Launched on 14 April 2015. For working class unity and a federal republic

Transcript of CP election manifesto 2015 Scotland

Page 1: CP election manifesto 2015 Scotland

For a Federal RepublicCommunists call for a Federal Republic that provides Home Rule for Scotland and Wales and also enables working class unity to be developed across the nations of Britain.The Federal Parliament would exer-cise control over currency, banking, interest rates, taxes on wealth and capital, foreign policy and defence. All other powers would be devolved to national parliaments – including taxes on income and consumption and the power to intervene industri-ally and develop public ownership of infrastructure and production. The Federal Parliament would be constitutionally required to redis-tribute income derived from taxes on wealth and profits in light of social need across the nations and regions of Britain.

Challenging Big Business PowerThe power of big business is concentrated at British level. Most of the big companies that own the Scottish economy are based in London. They depend on the Brit-ish state to support them – as when the British Treasury bailed out the banks in 2008. They use the British state against working people – in terms of anti-trade union laws and a

labour force policed by penal policies against the unemployed. And the wealth they accumulate is concen-trated in the south-east and invested overseas through the City of London.

This is why the independence called for by the SNP would leave all the key levers of big business power over Scotland still in their hands. The currency, interest rates and government borrowing would be all controlled from London; the European Union would continue to enforce neo-liberal market control – outlawing public ownership and state aid to industry. But working people in Scotland would have no democratic way of contesting that power.

Communists do not believe that constitutions by themselves can resolve problems of class power and exploitation. Only political action by working people and their allies can do that. But constitutions can help or hinder this process. Independence on SNP terms would directly prevent working people in Scotland from join-ing with their fellow workers in Wales and England in challenging big business power at British level.

A Federal state would enable working people across Britain to do so – to demand greater taxa-tion on wealth, greater redistribu-tion across Britain and the dis-mantling of the anti-trade union laws that restrict organisation by the great majority of us who have

to work for a living.

Why class unity is essential The ConDem Coalition launched an unprecedented attack on work-ing people. They claimed the budget deficit was caused by undue spending on social services. It wasn’t. It was caused by bailing out the bankers. They demanded cuts on a scale not seen since the 1930s. They allowed wages to be forced down by over 10 per cent and at the same cut taxes on wealth and profits – with the richest 1,000 doubling their wealth to over £530 bil-lion (equivalent to almost two-thirds of the National Debt). Now they propose further attacks on trade unions, further attacks on the poorest and further tax cuts for the wealthy.

Only organisation by working people can reverse this assault – trade unions, communities, all those who are vulner-able and need support. The Commu-nist Party backs the People’s Assembly as the first step in creating an alliance that can in turn transform politics from below and, in particular, ensure the Labour Party returns to the socialist objectives set by its founders.

Devo Max is a TrapMaking Scotland solely reliant on taxes raised in Scotland stops the redistribu-tion of wealth across Britain. The pro-ceeds from Scottish revenues, includ-ing oil and gas, will be far too small to make up the current deficit. Depending on whether oil prices recover and how fast oil extraction declines, Scotland could be poorer by anything between £4 billion and £10 billion – more than the Tories have already cut. The SNP case for Devo Max is that by controlling all taxes they could grow the economy by attracting more investment – espe-cially external. But that will mean cut-ting taxes on big business even further.

Communist Party Scottish Election Manifesto 2015

FOR WORKING CLASS UNITYAND A FEDERAL REPUBLIC

Trident, NATO and the Drive to War

Trident - Britain’s nuclear weapon system - is a relic of the last Cold War. It is dangerous, unaffordable and militarily useless in today’s world. And opinion polls show that it is extremely unpopu-lar. Over the next decade it will consume over one third of Britain’s defence procurement budget and divert resources away from spending to meet social need.

2016 will be the crunch year for Trident - the UK parliament will decide whether to go ahead with the Trident replacement pro-gramme. After that date the main contracts will be signed and it will be harder to stop.

Just 18 months ago the UK parliament voted down a ConDem motion to take us into war against Syria - preventing a new Mid-dle East war and for the first time breaking ranks with the US. This happened after a decade of anti-war campaigning.

We can do the same with the Trident programme. NATO and the new Cold WarThere is a growing threat of war in Europe. It is a crisis triggered by the aggressive expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). When the Cold War ended, instead of being wound up, NATO was expanded from 16 members to 28, moving into eastern and southern Europe and posing a new threat to Russia.

The real purpose of the alliance is to provide a cover for the spread of US power - binding other countries into support for US foreign policy and US-led overseas military intervention.

And now NATO is using the crisis in Ukraine - a crisis largely cre-ated by the US-inspired coup in that country - to ratchet up the military stakes:

� a new NATO Spearhead force of 5,000 troops ready to attack Russia within 48 hours

� backed up by a larger force of 25,000 troops to be de-ployed within 4 weeks

� new NATO bases and command centres in 6 coun-tries of Eastern Europe

� all adding to the military encirclement of Russia.

The Cold War plays into the hands of military hawks - those determined to push ahead with a new generation of nuclear weap-ons and increase UK defence spending.

2016: CRUNCH YEAR FOR TRIDENT

Communists say: � Scrap Trident and spend

the money on health, education and welfare

� Support the campaign for a global ban on nuclear weapons as advocated by 140 countries across the world

� Break the ‘special relation-ship’ that binds us to US policy and support for US-led wars around the world.

� Get out of NATO - an aggressive military alliance controlled by the United States

Zoe Hennessy, leader of the Young Communist League, lives in Anniesland and has a degree from the Glasgow University. Active in her trade union, she is 24 years old and works in a supermar-

I am proud to stand as a candidate for the Commu-nist Party. Our party has

a long tradition of campaigning and organising in the trade union move-ment and in Scottish communities to fight for a better standard of life for working people.

In the last five years the Con-Dem government has waged a relentless war on working people and their families in an attempt to claw back all the gains we have won since the Second World War.

Their austerity agenda is not about fixing a deficit, it is about maximising profits for the super rich whilst ordi-nary people are made to suffer.

Yet the Labour Party leadership has failed to stand on the side of working people and is pledged to continue austerity. The SNP have pandered to big business, and not working people. They have voted down the living wage, they want tax breaks for big business and have pushed local councils into making massive cuts in spending.

I am standing in order to challenge both the SNP and Labour on their commitment to stand up for working people and end austerity.

ZOE HENESSYfor Glasgow North West

Page 2: CP election manifesto 2015 Scotland

Winning Economic DemocracyThe role of a Scottish Parliament should be first and foremost to advance economic democracy by developing the public sector, enhancing local democ-racy, supporting the co-operative sector and creating steady, well-paid employ-ment.

Scotland’s economy is very vulnerable despite its skills and its first rate uni-versities and colleges. Without public sector intervention the oil industry is set for decline - very fast unless oil prices recover substantially. Chemicals, food, drink and IT are all under exter-nal ownership and mostly contracting. New areas such as the creative indus-

tries require public support. Scotland’s infrastructure, also mainly externally controlled, lacks investment. Profits flow externally. Little comes back.

The Scottish Parliament has powers for industrial and eco-nomic intervention. It has not used them mainly because of the EU ban on state aid and insistence on competi-tion. Its ability to raise funds for public sector investment is also limited by EU restric-tions on public debt. EU neo-liberal dogma defends big business control. This is why combined campaigning is required, along with the other nations of Britain, to lift the anti-democratic grip exercised by the EU on behalf of British big business.

Expanding public sector employment, including locally-

controlled services in local government, is the most effective way of ensuring steady, well paid employment with trade union rights. Parliament also has the power to insist on trade union recogni-tion, collective bargaining and a living wage across virtually all sectors of the economy if public control is expanded. Trade union bargaining power has always been the most effective way of addressing inequality – not partnership on terms set by employers.

Democratic rights and local communitiesThe Communist Party calls for a local income tax to fund local government on the basis of an ability to pay – within

boundaries that fully capture rich and poor areas. This will enable voters to decide on what services they want, bor-row for investment and to end centrally imposed cuts.

We believe that properly-democratic locally-accountable government is the best way of building people’s confi-dence that society can be changed for the better, that the appalling problems of homelessness, poor housing and high rents can be overcome, that the elderly can get the care they need and that properly staffed education can be provided from the nursery onwards.

Democratic local government provides a key platform for advancing a green agenda – through radically enhanced public transport and locally-owned re-newable heat and light provision. This has been achieved in other countries. It has been killed here by privatisation and austerity cuts.

Renewing local democracy also pro-vides the best avenue for addressing social rights and ending discrimination. Women have been disproportionately hit by the cuts in local government where 65 per cent of employees were women. So have the young and black and minority ethnic communities.

Providing security for all remains the best antidote to discrimination and the rise of racism and hate crime.

A full outline of Communist Party poli-cies is provided by the Manifesto on the British website www.communist-party.org.uk and the party’s programme Brit-ain’s Road to Socialism.

Young People have paid a heavy price for the ConDem governments austerity. Cameron and the Tory party might try to boast about falling unemployment, but youth unemployment figures paint quite another picture. In 2014 youth unem-ployment sky-rocketed to 14.4%, or half a million, with 16-24 year old being 3 times more likely to be unemployed than people over 24. If re-elected the Tories have promised fresh attacks on Britain's unemployed youth. Young people will be forced to work full-time in order to receive benefits – at the same time as being expected to find work. The cruel and unfair use of benefit sanctions to attack the vulnerable and deter people from claiming benefits they're entitled to will continue.

End Benefit SanctionsThe Young Communist League calls for an end to benefit sanctions and an end to the involvement of private companies in our welfare system, Young people should be offered the opportunity of meaningful work, apprenticeships and vocational education or free university education. The working class youth of Scotland shouldn't stand to be pun-ished because Capitalism as a system cannot provide full employment.

Those young people who are 'lucky enough' to be in work face a grim real-ity. 80% of jobs created pay less than £8 an hour. Super-exploitative working practices have grown massively under this Tory government. The number of people on zero-hours contracts has grown massively to over 1 million. Not only do these workers have no job security or guarantee of work, they also receive no sick or holiday pay. Low hours contracts - contracts where workers are contracted for less than 16 hours a week - have also become more widespread. Again this allows bosses to dodge holiday and sick pay and at the same time claim Job Seekers Allow-ance. In effect the British Government is subsidising the pay of some of Britain biggest employers – supermarkets like Tesco and Sainsburys, and fast-food chains like MacDonalds. The SNP gov-ernment have done nothing to combat these practices and have voted down living-wage legislation in Holyrood.

Ban Zero Hour ContractsThe Young Communist League calls for zero-hours contracts to be banned in all sectors of the economy. Companies which reap millions of pounds of profit

every year can't be allowed to circum-vent holiday and sick pay. Workers deserve security and protection. The Young Communist League demands the introduction of a living wage now - not in 2020 - which keeps above the rate of inflation.

Attack on EducationYoung Scots in education have also felt attacks from the ConDem govern-ment and the SNP administration which has passed on the cuts without pause. Primary school budgets have been slashed and the SNP government has broken its flagship promise on class sizes. Under the SNP college places have been cut by over 100,000. Scot-tish Government cuts to University budgets have led to course closures and reductions in staffing.

The Young Communist League de-mands a properly funded and compre-hensive education system for Scot-land's youth. Student loans should be replaced by free bursaries. This would make further education free not just in name but in practice and stop Scottish students being saddled with thousands of pounds of debt after going to univer-sity. A 'living rent' should be enforced and free university living accommoda-tion should be expanded. There should be no barriers to working class students pursuing their education.

Only unity between young workers, trade unions and students can deliver these gains. Without change the future for young working class people in Scot-land is bleak – starting in underfunded education, with restricted access to university and further education and ending in low paid precarious work. A strong vote for the Communist Party will show that young people demand change now.

Democracy and Scotland’s Economy Manifesto for Youth

YOUNG PEOPLE - PAYING A HIGH PRICE FOR AUSTERITY

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Promoted by George Kirk-patrick, Unity Office, 72 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 7DA

On behalf of Zoe Hennessy, Communist Candidate for Glasgow North West, Unity Office, 72 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 7DA

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