The Socialist Alliance is standing five candidates in the local elections in 2002. Our campaign is concentrating on anti-privatisation and antiAll the political parties on Kirklees council, including the Greens, have voted unanimously to close old people's homes, sell a local housing estate to a private developer, and set up an arms-length company to run TAP rest of council housing in Kirklees. Kirklees was a flagship New Labour council at the forefront of "modernisation" in local governuntil the elections in May 2000 when the liberals became the largest party. Not surprisingly the remaining Labour councillors, despite the odd concern being raised occasionally, Louise van der Hoeven have all tood the Blairite line and have refused to mount any fight against central government under funding and the privatisation agenda.
This will be the third time the Socialist Alliance has stood locally. Prior to the general election in 2001, where we stood a candidate in the Huddersfield Constituency, we had stood in a local by-election.
Our experience so far is that despite working hard on the streets leafleting and canvassing, and getting a good response from people on the doorstep, this has not translated into a respectable vote.
Unfortunately Arthur Scargill's Socialist Labour Party deliberately stood against us last year, and split an already small socialist vote of about 500 down the middle.
This year the SLP are not standing, and we have made a pact with the Socialist Party not to stand against each other.
The Socialist Party are standing in one ward. Their withdrawal from the Socialist Alliance will make very little practical difference, as they never devoted serious resources to it anyway, preferring to build only their own profile.
The BNP have often stood candidates in North Kirklees and this year they are contesting four seats in the Dewsbury and Batley area. They are trying to tap into the "race riots" which affected Bradford last year.
Luckily the fascists have not managed to operate in the Huddersfield area since the late 1970s when the labour movement stopped the NF setting up their national headquarters here.
However there are some areas of Dewsbury that are not well integrated racially, and the fascists have a job and a salary of over £80,000. history of greater influence there.
Unfortunately we have not yet been able to establish a Social Alliance branch in Dewsbury, and all we have been able to do is distribute anti fascist leaflets there, but this did get a good response.
A number of our candidates in Huddersfield have been actively involved in the local refugee support group, and asylum rights is another of our points in the election campaign.
Of the candidates, one is Asian but unfortunately all are male. After the election the Alliance will have to make a systematic effort to recruit more members, particularly women, youth and blacks. We will also have to make sure we continue to campaign seriously and try to gain resnect from class people who feel disillusioned with electoralism.
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