Left Slate for Local Elections 2009?

Planning for the Local Elections 2009

There have been some exploratory discussions among some groups on the left about the possibility of a left slate of candidates for the local elections in 2009. The text below is an article from the October edition of "the Socialist" outlining the Socialist Party's attitude to this issue for those interested.

Left slate of candidates for Local Elections 2009?

THE SOCIALIST Party has made a proposal to a variety of left-wing organisations aimed at building a common platform for next year’s local elections and maximising the left vote.

Our proposal is aimed at giving working class people an alternative to the parties that support the capitalist market - Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, Labour, the Greens and Sinn Fein.

The Socialist Party is in favour of left co-operation and unity on specific issues and campaigns as long as it is done on an open, genuine and democratic basis. Therefore, in relation to the local elections we are in favour of discussions with a view to seeing if it is possible to arrive at a left slate of candidates.

If there is going to be a slate of left candidates, it is vital that some political criteria apply to ensure that the slate is made up of genuine left forces that are committed to building a socialist alternative.

We want genuine left candidates who are opposed to the market and capitalism and who would argue for and are committed to building a new party of the working class that fights for socialism.

Opposition to coalition at local or national level with right wing parties – including voting for Mayoral candidates from the right wing parties needs to be a pre-condition to any candidate participation. Any slate of candidates should be opposed to double taxation service charges including water, bin, recycling and sewerage charges.

We believe it is crucial that any candidate who participates in a slate has a real record of activity and campaigning on issues in the community. The alliance would need to be confident that in recommending every candidate to working class communities that they can be trusted in relation to the political positions they put forward.

Recent experiences such as with Respect in Britain are an example of what can happen when alliances are formed on a loose political basis involving groups and individuals who were not truly on the left. Respect eventually split and disintegrated with many of its councillors joining New Labour, the Liberal Democrats and even the Tories! The Respect experience has damaged the idea of building a new working class party in Britain and we must avoid making the same mistakes in Ireland.

The Socialist Party has made this proposal because if it is possible to form a left slate and this results in left candidates being elected as councillors around the country it would potentially represent a step forward for working class people