31.03.2010
Let diversity flourish on left
CPGB members from Milton Keynes and Northamptonshire are supporting Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition general election candidate Paul Crofts in the Wellingborough and Rushden constituency. Dave Isaacson spoke to him about the campaign
What was it that made you decide to stand as a candidate?
A number of us have been meeting over the past four years or so under the heading of ‘Independent Socialists in Wellingborough’. The group is made up of people from some political parties (Labour and Socialist Party), although most are not in any party, but have been traditional Labour members or supporters. We came together originally to support my bid to be re-elected to Wellingborough council as an independent socialist after I left the Labour Party (we were successful!) and also to campaign on local issues - especially activity to oppose the British National Party - and to undertake progressive social activities, such as attending the annual Tolpuddle Martyrs festival
We have also organised some interesting public debates that have been well attended and attracted media interest: one on religion and socialism, and one on faith schools. We have tried not to take ourselves too seriously, but we are committed to carrying the banner for socialist ideas and principles into the 21st century in Wellingborough.
Standing in the general election became an extension of the group’s work. We also decided that we were fed up of not having a socialist candidate for whom we could vote positively (as opposed to our usual position of having to vote Labour or Green because the alternatives were worse).
It is now clear to us that a Labour government is no longer for working people - it will not defend public services, it will fight illegal wars, it will privatise what it can, it will abuse human rights (especially in the areas of policing and immigration), it will not tackle the public sector deficit by (for example) cancelling Trident or by taxing the rich and powerful - but will pass the burden onto those who have absolutely no responsibility for causing it. In short, we wanted to present an alternative to Labour and the other political parties and a vision that things could be different.
How has the campaign been going so far?
Given our limited resources, we have no high expectations of mounting a mass and comprehensive campaign. We will, however, be distributing a leaflet to every household (courtesy of Royal Mail), will be holding a public meeting (probably on Saturday May 1) and will be organising street stalls. We also hope to attend publicly organised debates and to get around as best we can to try and present the broad case that there is an alternative. We have set a target of raising £1,500 towards the costs of the campaign and we are making good progress on this - and we still welcome contributions!
When and why did you leave the Labour Party?
It came about at the end of a long process of growing disillusionment and questioning, which essentially started with the Iraq war, but resulted in a ‘final straw’ moment, when the government announced proposals for schools to become foundations - effectively to be privatised. My father was a long-standing Labour Party member and campaigner for comprehensive education. He would have turned in his grave at these proposals.
Over a period of several years (after the election of the second-term Labour government) it also became increasingly apparent that I disagreed with nearly every announcement from government. I asked myself the simple question: why am I in a political party many of whose significant policy announcements run counter to basic values I hold dear? The final decision was easy, but the process leading up to it was difficult.
However, I remain friends with many Labour Party members and bear no grudges against them either politically or personally. I made a personal/political decision of my own and respect their decision to remain Labour Party members. Many of these friends hold similar views to my own and are deeply disappointed with Labour, but they have made a different decision to me. I respect this. I still work closely with the small Labour group on Wellingborough council, with whom I have no serious disagreements in the face of a reactionary Tory administration.
What do the Independent Socialists of Wellingborough stand for?
At an early stage we adopted some basic values/principles/ideas that we felt we could all sign up to, but we are not a political party and welcome anyone who broadly describes themselves as socialist getting involved with the group.
Our ‘values’ statement ends with bullet points which call for “quality public services”, “secure and decent employment conditions for all”, “human rights and equality”, “rights of working people”, “economic fairness and justice - the rich must pay for the problems they have caused”, “compassion and solidarity for the poor, the marginalised and those most in need”, “from each according to their ability, wealth and income and to each according to their social and economic needs”, “fair taxation” and “a specific tax on the finance system worldwide (the Tobin or ‘Robin Hood’ tax)”.
Given our limited resources (we will be producing only one A4 leaflet), we have broadly decided to concentrate on promoting our positive socialist values, rather than outlining detailed policies (as we are unlikely to get elected, these are really rather rhetorical - but illustrative of our overall approach). We have agreed to support the national Tusc and their more detailed policies.
We are really thinking beyond the election and standing to offer an alternative that some people may relate to. Hopefully, they may wish to get involved in the group and local campaigns. We see some of the major challenges ahead taking place after the election - as, whatever government we get, it is clear there will be a major assault on working people’s terms and conditions of employment, standard and quality of life and the services they are dependent on.
The CPGB is supporting all Tusc candidates in the general election and calling on our members to do what they can to help with the campaign. We do, however, have differences with the political platform that Tusc has adopted. For example, the platform mentions the word ‘democracy’ or ‘democratic’ a number of times, but it does not flesh out what is actually meant by this. We think this is a problem because the capitalist state also claims to be democratic, but in fact acts in the interests of corporate capital. How do you envisage democracy being won?
I believe that democracy cannot simply be reduced to class interests. Democratic and political advances (such as the right to vote; collective trade union rights) have been secured through the struggle of working people historically and these must be defended. However, democracy can also be a two-edged sword, particularly in the hands of populist, racist and/or reactionary politicians, so we are not naive on the value of democracy in an abstract sense, or closed to the reality of contradiction between (say) some individual rights and collective rights.
Democratic and political rights also have to stand alongside social, human and economic rights - which challenge injustices in the allocation of resources, income and wealth and present a vision of a different kind of society based on different values.
Another area where we think that the platform could be improved relates to Tusc’s position on Europe and international working class action. Resistance to the cuts would be so much more powerful if it was coordinated. How do you think we can advance workers’ unity across Europe?
I am not sure how I can answer this - a bit off my radar, I’m afraid. What I can say is that we need to have much greater unity and cooperation between socialists both within the UK and across Europe. I am horrified sometimes by the extent of divisions and sectarianism on the left, and our inability to work together for the bigger picture in a spirit of respect for differences and disagreement, but united on those things we agree about.
There are some very interesting developments in Europe where socialists are coming together and they are beginning to make an impact (eg, Die Linke in Germany and the work of the United Left grouping in the European Parliament.) We need to build on these growing signs of unity and cross-border solidarity.
We want to see the left united into a genuine party of the working class - a party that insists on working class independence, thoroughgoing democracy and internationalism. What are your hopes for Tusc after the general election?
I think it may provide a framework for the developing unity that I have spoken about, and this is one of the reasons that Independent Socialists in Wellingborough welcomed the opportunity to work with Tusc and be part of the national general election campaign (it also enabled us to have ‘socialist’ in the description of a candidate in the election. This was important to us.)
We were also impressed and pleased by the degree to which we could maintain our autonomy as a local group, whilst broadly signing up to the coalition. We were not required to ‘sign on the bottom line’ to a purist programme.
I think the success of Tusc in the future will be how much autonomy it allows both individuals and local groups to enjoy within its umbrella, or how much sectarianism raises its head - with competing parties trying to impose a purist and true ‘line’ on everyone. I think we need to chill out a bit on this and let diversity on the left flourish a bit in a true (rather than tactical) spirit of unity.
What can readers of this interview do to support you between now and polling day?
We need help with money (sorry to be so materialist!) and for people to contact us, offering support with things like street stalls. We would also like as many people as possible to attend our public meeting on May 1 (to be confirmed).
Website of Independent Socialists in Wellingborough: www.wellsocialists.org.uk