Which makes me think that if you're going to vote, you should simply vote Green. Respect's main backers are all too ready to cozy up to Labour.

Ta! For the repost of the local rags report. But is this Indymedia news.

It might help if it was actually posted by an activist who knew these people and what the poitical differences were - but I am not convinced.

quick someone hide this before indymedia (again) gets accused of leaving anti-respect news up while hiding pro or neutral respect news....

Before you all go jumping on the anti-Respect bandwagon, and go and vote green out of spite for the SWP, take a look at their manifesto for the European Elections. If this isn't left wing, I don't know what is!

A referendum on Blair
The European elections will be the first national poll since two million people marched in the biggest demonstration ever seen in this country against war and racism and in defence of democracy and civil liberties. The first since Tony Blair took us into the Iraq war against the wishes of the majority of people in this country. The first since the proposal for top-up tuition fees in the universities, the introduction of foundation hospitals, and a raft of New Labour policies which adversely affect the lives working people.


Tony Blair wants us to forget that he took us to war on a lie. He wants us to forget that thousands of innocent people were killed and vast resources wasted on the false claims that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction which were a "real and present threat" to this country.


This election, therefore, is not only about getting MEPs into the European parliament who will represent the interests of working people. It is also about expressing our view on Blair's role in the war and the appalling record of New Labour in office. It is time for Blair to pay the price for his support for Bush, as well as his own domestic policies of privatisation and deregulation.


Reject a Europe of cuts and deregulation


Respect welcomes the new hope which is springing up across Europe in the form of new resistances, new struggles, and new horizons. We want to be a part of that new hope and inspiration. We reject the Europe of big business and the multi-national corporations, which the European Union represents. The EU lacks basic democracy in its structures. It is regulated by the infamous Growth and Stability Pact - designed to restrict government borrowing and thereby the ability to spend on public provision, particularly in adverse economic conditions. The result is repeated attacks on social services and welfare within the member states as governments attempt to keep within the criteria.


In the EU today pensions are under repeated attack. Social security systems are dismantled and privatised. Health and education are faced with privatisation and deregulation. Trade unions are threatened and labour markets deregulated; jobs are made part-time and insecure. These policies are shaped by the EU itself and implemented at national level by both centre-right and social democratic governments (including New Labour in Britain) alike. Tony Blair seeks to play a major role in the EU, shaping its development along these lines.


Against racism and third world exploitation


The EU's Fortress Europe policy, based on the 'white list' principle, is designed to reinforce its external borders against those victims of war, globalisation and oppression who seek entry for political asylum or economic survival. It strengthens internal control (through the Schengen Information Service) against those who manage to get in, it promotes racist ideas and strengthens the far-right.


The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) continues to be a mechanism which destroys agricultural production in the countries of the impoverished South through the subsidies it pays to EU producers. These subsidies bankrupt Third World producers even when they work under starvation conditions. The negative financial impact of the CAP on the economies of the South is greater than the sum-total of aid paid by Western governments to those countries.


The proposed EU constitution


We reject the EU constitution currently being negotiated by the leaders of the EU. It would set in stone, as EU basic law, the neo-liberal management of the European economy. It would set in stone a Europe in which the decisions of elected parliaments (with all their limitations) are handed over to an unelected bureaucracy. It would institutionalise the EU's democratic deficit through increasing the voting power of the biggest and most powerful member states. It would marginalise the smaller countries and make the 10 new countries joining the EU this year into second-class citizens, existing as a pool of cheap labour with their citizens having restricted rights of movement within the EU. We call for a referendum in Britain before this constitution is accepted. Let the people decide!


No to the Euro and the stability pact


We note that the British government has pledged to hold a referendum if they propose membership of the Euro-zone. We will strongly oppose the anti-European xenophobic right wing in such a referendum. Because of the role and effects of the stability pact we will vote 'no' in such a referendum on this issue. We will propose, against Gordon Brown¹s five economic tests for membership, our own five political tests:


Who would benefit most from membership, the working people of Europe or the big corporations?

Would it democratise European society or concentrate power into fewer hands?

Would it challenge the neo-liberal agenda, of privatisation and deregulation, or integrate it more thoroughly into the EU?

Would it defend and preserve welfare provision or coordinate the attacks on it more effectively?

Would it undermine racism and xenophobia or institutionalise it still further?

For a different Europe


We will campaign for a different Europe, a Europe based on need not profit. A Europe which is a clear alternative to global capital, which opposes militarism and war, is open to the needs of the countries of the South, which defends human rights and human dignity. A Europe of solidarity and hope.


We want a Europe free from the neo-liberal polices of the WTO and the IMF, free from NATO, free from foreign military bases - a Europe free from weapons of mass destruction. A Europe which rejects war as a means of settling international conflicts. A Europe which has respect for the cultural, religious, political, and personal choices of its citizens. A Europe which rejects nationalism and xenophobia. A Europe of internationalism which supports the struggles of the oppressed, including the struggle of the Palestinian people.


Defending the environment


We need a Europe which takes the environmental crisis seriously, which recognises the need for a radical shift in energy consumption and transport policy, based on sustainable energy sources, to tackle the nightmare of global warming and climate change - with its disastrous effects on agriculture and on sea levels. Nuclear energy must be phased out and replaced by cleaner, safer and renewable alternatives.


Corporate power


The time has come to challenge the doctrine of the free market and the power of the financial institutions and big corporations - organised within the EU as the European Round Table of Industrialists (ERT). The ERT is a powerful and effective lobbying group for the big business agenda and against the interests of the people of Europe. Against their agenda we advance the rights of working people. We defend the rights and interests of wage earners in the workplace. We insist on their right to earn a living wage, in decent working conditions, with trade union protection, and with their jobs protected against the ravages of local and global capital. We call for public services which will guarantee equal rights to education, health care free at the point of need and transportation and which will be democratic and accountable.


The lies, hypocrisy and bloodshed by Blair and Bush have brought the urgent need for a political alternative. An important start can be made in these elections. There is a crisis of representation at the heart of politics in Britain. Respect is determined to address that crisis by presenting a real alternative. MEPs elected on behalf of Respect will demand:


'No' to a Europe of big business

An end to the occupation of Iraq.

A referendum on the proposed European constitution

End privatisation, bring the railways and other public services back into democratic public ownership.

A free, fully funded, comprehensive, education system which gives an equal opportunity to every child.

Health provision free at the point of need

Pensions linked to average earnings.

A minimum wage raised to the European Union Decency Threshold.

Tax the rich to fund welfare: close the growing gap between the poor and the wealthy few.

Repeal the Tory anti-union laws.

Defend the rights of refugees and asylum seekers.

Opposition to the European Unions's Fortress Europe policy.

Below you will find a statement from MAB in
regards to George Galloways statement in regards to
abortion.

MAB support Galloways stand on the grounds that "When
asked about the woman's right to choose, he
appropriately posed the question: 'what about the
child's right to choose?".

This issue has sparked reaction from womens groups and
Socialists alike, as socialists have always been in
favour of a womans right to choose, but interestingly
enough, the Socialist Workers Party, the Communist
Party of Great Britian (not the morning star alligned
Communist Party of Britain) and Socialist Resistance
(Trotskyist fourth international) have all joined Mr.
Galloway, along with MAB in RESPECT.

Also, Mr. Galloway has also been met with resistance
to his policy from progressive womens groups and men
alike.

Mr. Galloway is going to be in Liverpool on Friday for
a meeting hosted by Liverpool Friends of Palestine,
where he will be joined by a Fellow officer of
RESPECT.

Abbot wasn't just a pro-privatisation New Labour councillor. She was actually in charge of the biggest privatisation project in Preston's history. Even her former New Labour colleagues commend her for the wonderful work she did in attacking council housing provision.

RESPECT are now trumpeting the fact that they have managed to recruit this horrible specimen as some kind of victory. I'm left wondering if there are any political opinions or actions that the RESPECT leadership view as being beyond the pale? It seems that you can be a RESPECT candidate if you are in favour of gender segregation. You can be a RESPECT candidate if you are an anti-woman's right to have an abortion bigot. You can be a RESPECT councillor if you are an arch-privatiser of public assets.

What exactly would rule you out from representing this "progressive" coalition? What other principles do the SWP (who are providing the organisational backbone for Galloway's vehicle) now regard as expendable? How about an anti-semitic candidate? Or a gay-basher? Or a scab?

Here:  http://www.respectcoalition.org/

Or the article about this Labour member's defection is here:  http://www.respectcoalition.org/?ite=149

Elaine, a member of the Labour Party for 18 years and a councillor for 12, has resigned because she feels the party is not the one she originally joined. She said:

"the Labour Party no longer shares the values which I support and hold. I am totally opposed to the occupation of Iraq. I support the cause of the Palestinians. I am opposed to top-up fees at universities, I abhor creeping back-door privatisation and I am very worried about the state of the NHS.

I have decided to join Respect because it reflects the 'old Labour values' I hold dear."

Good on her.

Note how the anonymous SWP member above avoids the issue. Abbot was in charge of the privatisation of all of Preston's council homes. That's her chief contribution to politics.

Now, facing deselection and casting around for an alternative home, she has joined RESPECT. And RESPECT are only too glad to recruit a large scale privatiser.

I just followed the link and guess what? RESPECT is actually boasting about her role as Housing privatisation kingpin for New Labour in Preston! The cheek of them!

I quote:

"Respect in the North west are delighted to announce that Elaine Abbot, a Labour Cabinet member with the Housing Portfolio in Preston City Council, has today announced her resignation from Labour to join Respect.

Elaine, a member of the Labour Party for 18 years and a councillor for 12, has resigned because she feels the party is not the one she originally joined..."

i have been invloved in the defend council housing campaign. DCHC have had several victories noteable in birmingham and recently in camden.

i hate the fact that council homes are being privatised and therefore so pleased with the victories.

if it is true that Elaine Abbott is a pro-privatiser of council homes and moreover assisted bliars policy in preston then i would demand that RESPECT reconsiders her membership application.(respect should not be that desperate)

does anybody have hard facts and proof of the above allegation. or is this just some toss pot trying to undermine the RESPECT campaign.

i must admit that its seems a bit odd that an old labour type(as she claims) with old lab values would embrace blairs neo-liberal policy especially given the strong opposition against council transferes.

please provide the evidence

Go to the Respect website* and read their policies for yourself. They explicitly support council housing, and their policy of supporting individual choices around sexuality can only mean gay rights and reproductive (contraception + abortion) rights.

So if someone chooses to sign up to Respect who may be personally anti-abortion or pro-privatisation, in effect they're choosing not to act/campaign on those beliefs, but to prioritise their views on other issues, most likely anti-war.

Many people have contradictory ideas, some progressive and some reactionary. Rather than demand they achieve ideological purity before we will work with them, isn't it more effective to encourage them to act on their progressive beliefs (only) and work on winning them over on the rest in time?


* no link given for fear of censorship! ;-)

So poor Elaine Abbott thinks Labour is no longer the party she originally joined 18 years ago? Would that be the one that had just scabbed on the miners' strike, and in not too distant memory had introduced the first batch of the current draconian and racist immigration laws, and sent the troops into the north of Ireland?

This is from the Preston Council website

Green Light for Gateway
19/12/2003

Major investment in Preston’s 7,000 council homes has moved a step closer following the Council’s decision yesterday to apply to the Government for a stock transfer under the Community Gateway initiative.

Through Community Gateway, tenants would get more say in the running of their homes, the new landlord for which would also be able to borrow the millions of pounds needed to bring homes up to modern day standards.

Councillor Elaine Abbot – Executive Member for Housing welcomed this decision and said:

“Today’s full council decision is the starting point to what is potentially the single most important programme to the future of Preston and the people who live here. Preston is the first council in the country to actively pursue the Community Gateway method of managing housing. As pioneers, we are firmly committed to the belief that the people who know most about Preston’s council dwellings are the people who live in them. Tenants will continue to be involved at every stage of the Community Gateway programme helping to determine local priorities and build a future for their homes and their neighbourhoods.

We now face a period of intense activity during which the council will work hand-in-hand with tenants and partners to investigate the best possible way forward for the city’s social housing. Our aim must be that every single tenant not only fully understands the proposals but also feels a sense of ownership in the future.”

i quote elaine abbot .in my opinion hardly a neo-liberialist. could not find website brian was referring to but this is what she said this week.

"my views have not changed over the years but the labour party no longer represent the socialist values which i support"

also

"this was a very differicult decision as i have been a member of the labour party for 15 years, and a councillor for riversway ward for the past ten years. However,i have been very unhappy with both the labour govt and the local labour council for some time and decided that i must follow my conscience and resign".

this hardly sounds like a new labour shit head selling out, to class herself as a socialist and resign from labour on principle she must either be very naive to have supported housing stock transfere , or a bit dimm to say the least or she has been miss quoted by others.

i think her opinions regarding transfere can and will be change by RESPECT or if she continues to be mis guided/ stupid/ arsehole to be booted out of the coalition.

it seems to me her heart is in the right place

See previous comment. Labour has changed - true. But it was never a socialist party and always supported attacks on the working class both here and abroad. Show me when it was anything else and I might have a bit of time for the nostalgia trip.

I think you'll find if you dig a little further that Elaine Abbot wasn't involved in privatisation.

The stock transfer scheme that Preston Council are investigating - Community Gateway - is sponsored by the Cooperative Union and the Confederation of Cooperative Housing organisations. My understanding is that it would replace council ownership with a cooperative form of organisation in which tenant control and participation was guaranteed.

Now personally I would always prefer Municipal/State ownership over co-operatives, but there are many on the left who would disagree and see co-ops as a better and more radical alternatives to council ownership that involves the tenants very little.

On the left we should be able to debate the issues sensibly, but it is rabid sectarianism of the worst kind to denounce looking at it locally. Especially when it is clear that the status quo will result in crappy housing conditions so long as the present parties are in government. The key issue is that the tenants of Preston will have the final say on whether they want to move into a co-operative organisation or stay as council tenants. In any case, inevitably, the New Labour government are dragging their feet on this alternative and it may be some time before it gets off the ground.

Certainly Elaine Abbot is well known in Preston for sticking up for the side of the tenant and opposing any kind of privatisation. So let's consider both sides of the argument.