Devon Socialist Party

No2EU-Yes to Democracy, the European Elections platform initiated by the Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMT), and involving the Socialist Party, has announced its lists of candidates for the June 4th poll.

Nationally, the candidates include Bob Crow (RMT General Secretary, London region), Dave Nellist (Socialist Party councillor and former Labour MP, West Midlands), Keith Gibson and John McEwen (two of the leaders of the Lindsey Oil Refinery Dispute, Yorkshire and East Midlands respectively), Roger Bannister (UNISON Branch secretary, North West), Rob Williams (Unite Union Convenor at Linamar in Swansea, Wales), Kevin Nolan and Frank Jepson (Union convenors at Visteon in Enfield and Basildon respectively, London and South East regions), Kevin Hayes (Ford worker and 'save the Transit' campaigner, South East) and Tommy Sheridan (former MSP and co-convenor of Solidarity-Scotland's Socialist Movement, Scotland).

It has been a couple of months since the Devon Residents Against Incinerators campaign was launched in Barnstaple.  Since then the campaign has managed to leaflet hundreds of people attending consultation events ran by the council, leafletted people from Socialist Party and Green Party stalls in town (and Peter Hames' book stall in the Pannier Market), sent letters to every GP in Barnstaple and the public health consultants at the hospital, got several letters in the local newspaper, and attracted the interest of the Council Leader Brian Greenslade and other councillors.

Brian Greenslade sent the campaign a letter, which makes clear the confusion of the council leaders, and the misinformation that has been fed to them by the council's unelected officers, Ben Jennings in particular.  Our efforts go into making the argument to councillors, but also getting the information out to the people of Barnstaple, which means our media campaign will continue, as well as a campaign of door-to-door leafletting.  A public meeting is being planned at which we hope to have a representative of our successful sister campaign in Cornwall, Rod Toms, debate Brian Greenslade on the issue.  We also continue to hold meetings in the Owl Cafe on Maiden Street.  The next meeting will be at 7pm on Wednesday 29th April.  The meeting has been brought forward by a week, and usually the meetings are held on the first Wednesday of the month.

Devon Socialist Party, along with Socialist Party members from around the country on the 2nd of April made their way up to London to march on the day of the G20. The G20 consists of the twenty richest countries in the world coming together to discus the current finical crisis. So as part of Youth Fight For Jobs we demanded for a future for the people of this country and that we should not pay for a crisis that was not our doing. The Capitalists and their political parties (Labour, Conservative and the Lib Dems) have been waxing lyrical for years taking credit for the economic system of less and less regulated markets yet when it all went belly up they wash their hands and suddenly go very quiet about causing the mess and want us to pay instead!

The march started at 11am from from London Bridge and ended at 3pm at the Excel Center in Canning Town. We walked 8 miles through the financial district and areas with some of the worst unemployment in the country. 600 people attended the march in total.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers Union (RMT) have announced an electoral alliance with a number of left parties in the UK, including the Socialist Party. The alliance's main objective is a protest against the EU constitution which was re-branded as the Lisbon Treaty. It ingrains free market economics into EU law. The EU is nothing more than an undemocratic, big business club trying to take more and more control, forcing privatisation and anti-trade union directives onto nations. 

While this is a temporary alliance, it is still a very important and historic move that a major trade union, the fastest growing and most militant in the UK, is finally making a stand against the 30 years the three major political parties have been drunk on capitalism, creating anti-trade union laws, privatisation and allowing profit for the rich to soar and wages for workers stagnate and go down.