The Socialist 18 October 2017

Tories torn - bin them now

Tories torn - bin them now

Schools "can't go any further" - stop the cuts: set deficit budgets now

Young people being strangled by debts

Tories scrap the NHS pay cap: now fight for real-terms pay rises!

Obesity epidemic: end food market anarchy

What we saw

Royal Mail bosses block strike - back postal workers

PCS ballots members on the pay cap

Nationalise to save jobs at BAE Systems

Striking back against sackers' charter at Leeds Uni

North London hospital workers fight cuts and job losses

Unite local government sector plans strike ballot

Salford Unison condemns pay cuts

Russia, October 1917: When workers took power

October 1917 reviews: 'More bright than any heaven'

October 1917 centenary pull-out and poster

No cuts - hands off King George A&E!

Can you donate to the Socialism 2017 appeal?

Uprising to save the NHS!

Hundreds turn out for rally aimed at removing west Wales Tory MP

Sheffield Labour council threatens peaceful protesters with prison

Socialist Students 'welcome' Hillary Clinton to Swansea

Campaign against political repression in Hong Kong

Powerful picture of the Port Talbot steel workers' struggle

Conference on state spies: who's watching who?

'Dazzling' Bad Art show points to socialist future

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Hundreds turn out for rally aimed at removing west Wales Tory MP

Dave Warren, Llanelli and West Wales Socialist Party

Tories out! photo by Mary Finch (Click to enlarge)

Haverfordwest is a small market town in south west Wales and in the marginal Preseli Pembrokeshire constituency of Tory MP and former secretary of state for Wales Stephen Crabb. On 14 October, the town centre was packed with around 300 people attending an anti-austerity rally organised by the People's Assembly and addressed by the political journalist Owen Jones.

A procession of speakers lambasted the Tory government's austerity measures and there was a moving contribution from a local man who had successfully appealed in court against the Bedroom tax as his so-called extra bedroom was in fact needed for a carer for his disabled child.

Owen Jones rightly held out the prospect of replacing this weak and divided government with a Labour government led by Jeremy Corbyn. He is clearly targeting marginal Tory constituencies such as Preseli Pembrokeshire and urged everyone at the rally to talk to neighbours and workmates, knock on doors and so on to win the constituency for Labour.

That is all well and good but Jones did not mention his lack of support for Corbyn prior to the general election. It is only because of the anti-austerity policies represented by Corbyn that Labour now has any realistic prospect of winning Tory marginals and forming a government.

It was left to Socialist Party member Mark Evans to outline a strategy for driving out the Tories. As secretary of the Carmarthenshire County Unison branch, Mark described the effect of local authority cutbacks on his members and pointed out that it was a Labour Welsh government and Labour or Plaid Cymru councils who were passing on the Tory cuts in Wales.

To enthusiastic applause from the rally he said that if local authorities joined together to set 'needs' budgets and refused to implement cuts, this could trigger a campaign alongside the trade unions to force the Tories out.

Socialist Party members held a campaign stall before and during the rally and sold 40 copies of the Socialist.

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What we think

Tories torn - bin them now