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About The Socialist Party

Who we are

THE SOCIALIST Party has a long and proud history of supporting and leading struggles and campaigning for socialist ideas. Previously, as Militant, we led the magnificent battle of Liverpool City Council in the 1980s to get more money from the Tory government to build homes, improve public services and create jobs.

We went on to lead the national anti-poll tax movement, a campaign of non-payment involving 18 million people that defeated the hated tax and brought down Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

The Socialist Party was the first organisation on the left in Britain in the 90s to characterise New Labour as an openly capitalist party. We campaign for a new mass party that can draw together workers, environmental and community campaigners, anti-capitalist and anti-war protesters etc to represent and fight for the interests of ordinary people.

Capitalism and war

Socialist Party members have been involved in the anti-capitalist and anti-war movements from the beginning and have taken part in all the major demonstrations internationally and in Britain.

As well as helping to build these movements, we put forward constructive ideas to develop them further, with a strong emphasis on the need for democracy within them.

Most leaders of the anti-capitalist movement argue that 'another world is possible' without saying what kind of world it needs to be, so we also play an important role in putting forward socialist ideas.

Likewise in the anti-war movement, we don't just limit ourselves to being against a war on Iraq and to publicising the inevitable horror and carnage that would result.

We explain the real motives of Bush and Blair; that war is inevitable under capitalism and that only a new form of society would end war permanently.

Socialist Party members initiated a new anti-capitalist, anti-war organisation specifically for young people, called International Socialist Resistance (ISR) which is part of an international movement.

ISR held a successful founding conference at the end of last year and this year has been organising anti-war student and school student strikes, protests and demonstrations.

For free education

In colleges and universities throughout the country, Socialist Party members are building the organisation Socialist Students, which has been campaigning for free education as well as on other issues. Socialist Students organised many activities and meetings against up-front tuition fees before the government withdrew them.

Now that the student financing system has been changed so that students face greater debt levels than ever, Socialist Students will continue to campaign against the new measures: post-graduation fees, top-up fees and a completely inadequate student grant.

Racism and Fascism

Socialist Party members initiated the organisation Youth Against Racism in Europe (YRE) in 1992, which is also organised in Greece, Germany, Belgium and Sweden. YRE's first activity was a very successful European-wide anti-racist demonstration of 40,000 people in Brussels in 1992.

In Britain, YRE co-organised two large demonstrations in 1993 that shut down the BNP's headquarters in South London and has since been involved in many other anti-fascist demonstrations.

Socialist Party and YRE members have recently been campaigning against the BNP in Lancashire and in Stoke following BNP activity in those areas and for community defence campaigns against racist attacks and fascist violence. A YRE anti-racism education pack has been bought by schools, youth clubs and trade unions.

Domestic Violence

In 1991, women members of the Socialist Party took the initiative to set up the Campaign Against Domestic Violence, a broad based, grass roots organisation that has become well-known for its work in increasing awareness of domestic violence, in recognising it as a workplace issue and in campaigning for improved services for women facing domestic violence and for legal change.

All of the Socialist Party's campaigning work is of key importance to women as well as men, such as our campaigning against low pay or on environmental issues. However, women members of the party also have regular meetings to discuss issues that are particularly relevant to women and to initiate campaigns.

Workplaces

Socialist Party members are amongst the most determined fighters in workplaces and trade unions for decent wages and conditions.

We have been in the leadership of many disputes and strikes and are always on hand to offer support and advice based on past experience, and to help develop struggles and solidarity from other workers, such as in the current firefighters dispute.

Recognition of our work by rank and file workers is shown by the fact that 12 Socialist Party members are presently elected on to the national executive committees of their trade unions.

In these positions they are able to play a leading role in the battle against privatisation, low pay and worsening conditions.

They are also arguing the need for trade unionists to put pressure on their unions to stop funding the party that is attacking workers' pay and conditions - New Labour - and instead to fund and stand election candidates that represent their interests and to campaign for a new mass trade union based party.

Community campaigns

A large number of our members are immersed in campaigns in their local communities on a wide variety of issues, from stopping a hazardous waste dump being sited near people's homes to fighting the closure or part-privatisation of hospitals and schools.

As a result of long-term campaigning work, with many victories gained, we have built up a reputation in working class areas where we are present for being bold fighters for the interests of ordinary people.

This has been reflected in our ever improving election results and the fact that we are the only socialist organisation in England and Wales to have four elected councillors - three in Coventry and one in Lewisham in London.

These councillors recently moved motions of support for the firefighters' pay claim in their council chambers and were applauded by local firefighters and other workers for doing so.

Our public representatives live on the average wage of the workers they are representing, so they understand the problems of those workers far better than political and trade union leaders who live on inflated salaries.

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