Socialist Party member Ben Golightly is an elected coordinator for Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) Cymru. He is the lead Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) candidate in Gwyr Abertawe (Swansea and Gower) for the Welsh Senedd elections.

£200 a month has been cut from new Universal Credit claims for those unable to work. This is biting now. And it was voted for by 25 out of 26 Welsh Labour MPs.

My driving force in standing for election is fighting the UK Labour government disability cuts. We need a Welsh Government that stands up for us. Not a Labour First Minister of Wales who says: “It’s up to MPs”.

Welfare cuts will increase demand for services, while simultaneously reducing the council’s ability to charge for them, as residents’ incomes are slashed.

And there’s a black hole in local planning. Swansea Council documents reveal it has made “no provision for any increased costs or reductions in income arising from changes to welfare reform”. I challenged the councillors on this.

Some of the councillors that either voted in favour of the cuts budget, or merely abstained, are now Senedd candidates – Labour, Green, and Lib-Dem. I am standing to hold their feet to the fire.

And I’m not just a disabled activist. I’m fighting for the whole working class.

We’re providing a positive alternative to Reform. ‘Lesser evilism’ isn’t enough.

People are right to complain about the lack of affordable housing, healthcare, services, and the cost of living. Reform argues about who should be first in the queue.

But the problem is the queue itself – rationing services. While we squabble over our place in the line, big business gets away with looting our public services.

Without a socialist alternative, things will only get worse, and working-class people could grow more divided, and pay the price for the bosses’ crisis. We need trade unions to boldly confront these issues, and build a new mass workers’ party to cut across racism and division.

Socialist Party member and Swansea Trades Union Council secretary Mark Evans is also standing for TUSC in Gwyr Abertawe. Mark played an important role in winning TUC Cymru (Wales Trades Union Congress) – which represents 400,000 workers – to call on councils to adopt needs-led budgets to defend council workers, service users, and residents, from cuts and council tax rises.

Welsh Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) candidates are the only option on the ballot paper supporting policies like this, and the only candidates with the track record to back it up.

All Welsh TUSC candidates have pledged that, if elected, they will forgo the full £76,380 Senedd member salary, and take home only a worker’s wage. Welsh TUSC is also standing three candidates in Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf. See ‘Cardiff workers’ Senedd election stand’ at socialistparty.org.uk