A few extracts from the platform speeches at the LSA’s 1,200-strong April 13 rally.
Dave Nellist
"The decision by Ken Livingstone is I think an important turning point in British politics. It will have the effect of loosening the ties by significant sections of working class people to what they thought in the past Labour represented, rather than the reality of what New Labour is today – a party wedded to big business.
"Of course Ken won’t pose things in those terms – he won’t explain things or draw the conclusions that many of us have done for some time now of the need for a new mass workers’ party, one which offers a real socialist alternative and is controlled from the bottom up rather than the top down.
"Ken’s likely victory on May 4 will shatter the seemingly iron grip which my former room mate in the House of Common’s, Tony Blair, has seemed to have had for the last three years."
Jean Kyso
"I have always been someone who could never keep her mouth shut, and as you know it doesn’t do you a lot of good: but it gives you a lot of satisfaction…
"I feel that the life blood of the working class is haemorrhaging away. This Labour Party is not remotely connected to socialism or anything I have believed in all my life. That’s what has driven me back to politics. The London Socialist Alliance is the only party that I could ever really believe in again – so don’t let me down."
Alain Krivine
"Across Europe we are confronted with a massive neo-liberal offensive imposing flexibility, the end of full time work, and privatisation of the public sector . In the face of this offensive of the bourgeoisie the so-called traditional left parties are capitulating – in France, Italy and Britain.
Last month at the Intergovernmental Conference in Portugal you could see an axis between Tony Blair and Aznar of Spain. This conference was officially called to discuss social problems but it did nothing in this regard and instead represented a total adaptation to neo-liberalism.
Some people speak about French exceptionalism, but we don’t believe in this. It is clear that the Socialist Party in France is forced to use different words from Blair – but if you look underneath the policies are identical.
The one difference between Britain and France is the relationship of forces – fortunately we did not have the experience of Mrs Thatcher, and so the working class is more healthy. In 1995 we had big strikes, and then one month ago again there were fantastic strikes, for example by teachers which forced the government to replace the Education Minister.
Today there are two questions posed: the issue of social resistance and then matter of political answers. On the question of social resistance we are at the beginning of the beginning of the beginning.
You had the fantastic demonstration in support of Rover in Britain, and you can see in some countries there is the beginning of a new wave of strikes. We should not exaggerate – its only at the beginning but its important.
On a European scale there is the beginning of co-ordination of workers strikes – like you had with Renault around Vilvoorde three years ago. There has been the beginning of the co-ordination of the unemployed on a European scale with the marches in Amsterdam in 1997 and Cologne in 1999. This year there will be the summit in France and and another march.
And on a world scale we can also be optimistic because there was the fantastic experience of the counter-demonstration in Seattle. And then there will be the World March of Women. So we can see that there is a new internationalist consciousness appearing in Europe and in the world.
But if you have the beginning of new social movements, the big problem is that these movements have absolutely no one to represent them. Its clear that the reformist parties in government are absolutely not addressing them. Increasingly the workers and young people are disgusted by their policies.
And now what is new is that in some countries there is the beginning of regroupment of anti-capitalist forces.: In Denmark for example there is the Red Green Alliance in which you have left ecologists, Trotskyists, and some ex-members of the CP – and they get 10% of the vote in Copenhagen and 5 MPs in the National Parliament as well as one MEP.
In Portugal one year ago you had the development of the Left Block, with Trotskyists, Maoists and a wing which left the Communist Party, and this new party got 5-7% in some cities in the elections last year and had two people elected to the Portuguese parliament.
And then you had Scotland, which I think you know better than us: but it is the same experience. People from different traditions, from different origins agree to take responsibility to leave behind the old polemics.
I don’t say that these polemics were useless, but many, many people are ready now to fight for an alternative. When there is unity these people feel that there is a new dynamic and they are ready to support it.
That is why a victory for the London Socialist Alliance would be not only important for you but for all of us across Europe.