Vote socialist and trade unionist on Thursday

Philip Stott

Tomorrow’s general election will, in all likelihood, result in a crushing defeat for Sunak and the Tory party. After 14 years of brutal austerity, millions of workers and young people will welcome their demise. 

The election of a Starmer-led Labour government would mark a decisive new situation for the workers’ movement. Posing an urgent assessment of the anti-working class character of this Labour government from day one. 

While the Tories will be gone, what won’t end is the onslaught against the working class propagated by a Labour leadership utterly committed to defending the interests of big business.

As the former Bank of England committee member, Andy Haldane, described when assessing the Labour and Tory manifestos: “There is unlikely to be much more than a lettuce leaf between the main parties in aggregate growth terms. This is the logical consequence of them committing to near-identical fiscal rules.” 

Or in the words of shadow Labour chancellor Rachel Reeves, when addressing leading bankers in the City of London during the election: “I really hope that when you do read it [Labour’s manifesto]….. that you will see your fingerprints all over it.” 

For the trade unions and the working class the need to build mass struggle under a Starmer government to win increased spending on public services, pay rises and an end to all austerity will be essential. Central to that will be moves to build a new workers’ party based on the trade unions.

While the mood to get rid of the Tories has been overwhelming in this election, the lack of trust and enthusiasm towards Starmer was almost universal in Scotland.

It even gave the cuts-making, discredited SNP a space to attack the fact that billions in further spending cuts would take place under a Labour government. And that the SNP would “fight tooth and nail against Labour cuts”. Of course what the SNP leadership mean by fighting “tooth and nail” is actually meekly passing on cuts from Westminster – as they have done since coming to power at Holyrood in 2007. 

The SNP will suffer significant losses from the 48 seats they won in 2019. They are likely to lose MPs to Labour in many working-class areas – although it is not certain that Labour will emerge as the biggest party in Scotland. In an election where the issue of independence has been pushed to the background compared to the cost of living crisis, cuts to public services and a desire to get the Tories out, the election campaign has underlined just how far the SNP has lost support among working-class communities. 

However, support for independence is still at record high levels. While there is little confidence that the pro-capitalist SNP leadership has any fighting capacity to confront a Starmer government over the right to a second referendum, nevertheless, the issue of independence can save some SNP MPs from losing their seats. 

Against the backdrop of unprecedented distrust towards the main capitalist parties, the campaign of the Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition – spearheaded by Socialist Party Scotland – pointed to what is possible. Scottish TUSC is standing in four constituencies, alongside the 36 TUSC are contesting in England and Wales. 

While our votes will be modest, the enthusiasm for our key demands: Tories Out – but Labour and the SNP don’t stand for us, build a new party for the working class, a £15 an hour minimum wage, an end to all cuts, public ownership of the economy and an end to the slaughter in Gaza resonated with many. We have received enthusiastic support from many trade union activists and working class fighters. 

The fact Scottish TUSC has among our candidates key trade union leaders who have a record of leading struggles and were committed to living on the average wage of a skilled worker also marked us out. On the left, Scottish TUSC stood the largest number of candidates. We produced 250,000 leaflets during the campaign, with dozens of street stalls and door-to-door canvassing activities organised. 

So tomorrow, in Glasgow South, Glasgow North East, Dundee Central and Aberdeen North, vote socialist and trade unionist. And join us in the fight for socialism.