Public meeting to discuss a workers’ election candidate for Rutherglen and Hamilton West

Matt Dobson

A by election is likely in the Westminster constituency seat of Rutherglen and Hamilton West. MP Margaret Ferrier was suspended by the SNP after admitting to breaching self-isolation rules by traveling to Westminster while infected with Covid-19 at the height of the pandemic. 

Ferrier, at the time of writing, is appealing a thirty-day suspension from the House of Commons. Both the new SNP leader, Humza Yousaf, and Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, say they are in favour of a by election. 

If an MP is suspended for more than 10 working days, a recall petition is automatically triggered in the constituency which remains open for six weeks. If 10% of eligible voters sign the petition, a by-election is automatically triggered in which the incumbent MP can stand.

Both the SNP and Labour are pouring activists into the seat even before a by election is called. The backdrop of the SNP’s escalating crisis means Scottish Labour think they can take the seat. In effect, this local by election could be seen as a national barometer on the SNP’s record on the cost of living crisis , independence and a range of other issues. But the neo-Blairite domination of the Labour Party means they offer no alternative either for the working class.

That’s why, in the view of Socialist Party Scotland, the workers’ movement must intervene with a trade union-backed socialist candidate.

In the snap general election of 2017, when Jeremy Corbyn was leader, Scottish Labour briefly regained the seat from the SNP, until losing it again in 2019. 

However Corbynism and his left policies have since been jettisoned by Scottish Labour under Sarwar. The Scottish leadership also fully back Starmer’s purge against the left, including the Labour whip being withdrawn from Diane Abbott and the Labour NEC voting to prevent Corbyn standing as a Labour candidate. 

Labour in South Lanarkshire council, which the seat covers, passed a cuts budget this year including council tax rises with the support of the Liberal Democrats and an Independent.

The SNP also cannot be relied upon to fight back against Tory austerity and the cost of living crisis. Repeated cuts budgets from Holyrood, the latest in coalition with the Scottish Green’s, underlines that fact.

Margaret Ferrier, as MP, failed to campaign for nationalisation of the Clydebridge Steelworks despite a number of threats to local jobs by private bosses who have overseen a rundown of the plant. 

Socialist Party Scotland and the Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (Scottish TUSC), in contrast, collected thousands of petition signatures calling for nationalisation and backed trade union demonstrations when Clydebridge and Dalzell Steelworks in Motherwell were under threat of closure in 2015-16. 

We believe a socialist and trade union activist standing would also far better represent the recent strike wave which has seen many workers in the area take action, including teachers, postal and rail workers. South Lanarkshire council workers are also currently balloting for strike action against a below inflation pay offer by Cosla and the Scottish government.

Socialist Party Scotland calls on the trade unions to campaign to give workers a political alternative. A workers’ candidate in the likely Rutherglen and Hamilton West by election could be step towards drawing up a list of candidates for the general election that could then be a step towards launching a new workers’ party. The trade unions should also support Corbyn standing independently of Labour as part of a trade union backed list.

Socialist Party Scotland is already campaigning in the constituency. Scottish TUISC has stood consistently against the pro-capitalist parties in Scottish elections since 2010, the only exception being when Corbyn was leader of the Labour Party. 

Scottish TUSC has organised a public meeting on May 17 to discuss the need for a workers’ candidate to stand on policies like no cuts budgets, for above inflation pay and benefit rises, socialist nationalisation as well as the right to a second independence referendum and an independent socialist Scotland.

The meeting details are: 

Wednesday 17th May 7:30pm

Number 18 Venue. 18 Farmeloan Road

Rutherglen G73 1DL