by David Kaplan, TUSC candidate
Just nine months into a new government, the Labour vote in St Ann’s ward, Haringey, collapsed as a result of their austerity policies. The Labour-run council has just increased council tax by 5%; it is attempting to increase class sizes in secondary schools; and is in dispute with housing repair workers over pay. There is massive anger at Labour, and the Greens were seen as the party which could unseat them.
Photo: London SP
Haringey and Camden Socialist Party stood a candidate as part of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition in the by-election. We were the only party calling for a needs-based budget. Rather than campaigning for a socialist candidate, Stand up to Racism distributed a leaflet simply calling for people ‘not to vote for Reform’, not offering a political alternative to Labour austerity.
The Green candidate, while pledging to oppose the cuts in opposition to Labour, would not commit to such a promise if they ever manage to gain control of the council.
We campaigned a lot in the area over the last four weeks, knocking on doors and distributing leaflets to every house in the ward. We had lots of positive discussions on the doorstep and will have further discussions with people who were interested in our ideas. We have planted the seeds of a socialist, working-class alternative.