29.01.2004

Talking to the Weekly Worker

Various figures from across the left and in Respect speak to the Weekly Worker on the official foundation of the unity coalition

Salma Yaqoob: STWC

This is a wonderful turnout. People are genuinely enthused and excited about the idea of what we're looking to do - build a new alternative to take on New Labour.

Hugh Kerr: SSP press officer

On one level this convention is very impressive. It's a good turnout, very disciplined, good speeches - Salma Yaqoob's speech I thought was excellent. It was different and clearly struck a chord.

But there is a question in my mind. I think it was Ken Loach who said, "Is it a historic day or is it a false dawn?" Many of those on the left as old as me have seen historic days that turned out to be false dawns. In 1998, when I was expelled by Labour, I was involved in trying to reform the unity of the left in London

for the European elections in 1999. We abandoned that after a time, as you recall. But we have shown in Scotland that it is possible to make a difference - to have unity, to allow diversity. We have not expelled or suspended anybody in the five years since the foundation of the Scottish Socialist Party.

I hope this is the beginning of something new, but there are still question marks as to whether the SWP are indeed willing to let go control in the same way that the comrades in Scottish Militant Labour allowed a hundred flowers to flourish in Scotland. Today was very well orchestrated by the SWP - they had somebody ready to oppose every dissident amendment and so on.

However, two things in particular struck me this morning. Firstly, people were talking about the need for democracy and pluralist participation. The coded message was that they don't want the imposition of a line by some kind of democratic centralist structure. That was a hopeful sign.

Secondly, the dissident amendment that got the most votes was of course the worker's wage. Clearly this does appeal to people - it is certainly an extremely popular policy in the SSP. I'm sure there was a three-line whip by the SWP against this, but I suspect that without the whip it would have gone through.

Those things are indicative that maybe underneath there is the possibility of building such an organisation in England. To be truthful, I think a lot of people didn't come today because they were a bit cynical about moves to unify the left, but, if it does take off, if it is allowed to flourish, if the SWP are open and let go control, it could succeed.

As a socialist I am an eternal optimist. If you are going to change society, you can begin by changing the behaviour of people on the left. That's what we've done in Scotland, so let's hope we can do it in England.

Alec McFadden: Merseyside TUC president (ex-CPGB, ex-NCP, ex-SLP)

This is a big step forward, which I find quite exciting. I do a lot of work with students and they are just heartily fucking sick of politicians. So this has come at the right time. From the trade union point of view the policies of Respect - opposition to privatisation, taking the railways back into public ownership, the repeal of anti-trades union laws - are brilliant.

I think it's going to help us particularly in the north-west, where we've got a very bad problem with the BNP, and without Respect the BNP in my view could fill a vacuum and get certainly at least one European MP elected. I would hope the Greens would come in and that the Communist Party of Britain would reconsider their position, and at least look to work with the coalition - maybe as individuals some could become candidates. We must bring in students, the churches and the mosques - muslims have far more influence than the catholics or protestants.

We've got to make sure that the organisation is democratic - I've already said to the SWP I don't want an organisation run by one political party. In Merseyside I expect to become the chair because I want to democratise it. I think that will happen, because George Galloway is very different to Arthur Scargill. Arthur - love him though I do - he's a control freak. He doesn't believe in any democracy whatsoever, because if Arthur says it, it's right - it's as simple as that.

If trades unionists come in - which I think they will do, in droves - they will not put up, under any circumstances, with one political party running everything. To be honest, the SWP have come a long way: they've learned quite a bit. Certainly I've had no problems with them in Merseyside.

Greg Tucker: ISG/RMT militant

I think this is about a project for the long term - I would like to see Respect take on party forms.

The dynamic that's been engaged with today is for it to develop into a political party. That's partly in the hands of some of the main players here, but also actually about how things pan out in the real world, but I think the logic of forming Respect today is about forming a new political party. So I hope we don't set our sights too high and think we've got to have major electoral victories in June and therefore go away in July in despair.

The possibility does exist to build a movement, even in the time before June, which could have some electoral success, but it's not the defining factor as far as I'm concerned. Obviously what's important is that you are bringing together in this room people who have a broad range of political views on the left, and we have to find a way of working together.

Clearly politically it's pitched at a slightly different level than the Socialist Alliance, and it has the potential to be much broader, attracting in particular people from the anti-war movement who weren't prepared to fight to broaden the alliance. The SA made some mistakes in the way we played it to the anti-war movement, and that can be dealt with in Respect.

Building a left alternative relies on us learning to work together, and that means we've all got to examine how we've operated over the last few years and operate differently. People have got to decide what they're priorities are. They've got to put Respect first and, while arguing their positions, not seek their advantage. That's what's important is building a new party.

Dr Ghayasuddin Siddiqui: Muslim Parliament of Britain

Dr Ghayasuddin SiddiquiIt's a great day. We have taken a big step towards bringing about change in this society, in order to make it more democratic, more representative, more accountable and more transparent.

When people work together, there will always be issues where they do not agree. But what is important is to concentrate on the 80% where we all do agree - that should be in the forefront of our minds.

Obviously it's just the beginning. The big challenge still lies ahead. But it's a fresh start - something, at least in my lifetime, new and exciting.

Ken Loach: film-maker

It seems very open. People have come together with a really strong intention to make it happen, rather than to be divisive, so, although inevitably we may have some false starts on different points, I think it's very encouraging.

Eventually, we will have to have a leadership democratically elected by delegates, but this is incremental. We've just got to move in stages. We've got to get a basic organisation in place.

Paul Foot: SWP veteran

You'll misquote us, whatever we say. But it's been a wonderful morning and a tremendous occasion. There is much enthusiasm for the organisation, and all socialists should be in it, including you.

Michael Lavalette: SA councillor

I think the numbers are fantastic. The spirit, the speeches have all been very positive, and if you take that spirit from today, and start to build Respect, then we'll at least put ourselves in a position where we can think about challenging New Labour.

We're probably still under-represented when it comes to the muslim population - I know, for example, that there are no muslims here from Preston. One of the reasons for that is that the imam and several members of the mosque committee stayed behind to attend a large civil rights meeting.

I think it's too early to say what will happen to the Socialist Alliance, which is an integral part of Respect.

Gordon McLennan: former general secretary of the CPGB

This is a very important development in which people on the left can come together to express their views and opinions and try to find common ground for campaigning. An alternative policy to that being put forward by the government on so many issues is needed - I believe that in a proportional representation system it might be possible to win a voice in the European parliament and the Greater London Assembly, similar to the voice that Tommy Sheridan and the Scottish Socialist Party now have.

My own view is that it's going to take a long time to develop a political party that is credible in British circumstances to contest elections under the first-past-the-post system. But in the final analysis it is not elections that will determine what Britain does, but mass struggle of working people on all the great issues. And today is a contribution towards developing the kind of unity needed for that struggle.

I don't think the circumstances exist, or will exist for quite a long time, for a party similar to the Communist Party of Great Britain, of which I was proud to be the general secretary. But political discussions of this nature lay the basis for that possibility - not necessarily a Communist Party, but a party to the left of Labour that will increasingly and seriously put forward the kind of policies needed by our country.

George Galloway

I think that today has been a fantastic success. The numbers attending, the breadth of the crowd that's here - demographically, in all senses - age, race, religion, geography, and also I think politically. It's very impressive. As good as we could have hoped for and on a very wintry day, when trains are cancelled and so on. We have achieved a great platform, I think, for the Unity express, which leaves the station today, and its first stop is the European and GLA elections on the June 10. By the way, I wish Weekly Worker reporters would stop falsifying the accounts of the meetings that they are attending. The description of the meeting in Cardiff in last week's paper is a caricature of what actually happened and in fact reflects the fact that the journalist was not called to speak. It was a petty and vindictive account, which is unworthy of the Weekly Worker - a paper that I read avidly, as I said at the meeting.