Why are you standing in the local elections?
We want to continue the no cuts and anti-austerity work that we started when Old Swan Against the Cuts was formed two years ago. And last year I stood as the OSAC candidate our result was just over 8.5 per cent of the vote and we came 3rd out of eight candidates beaten only by the Labour party and UKIP.
This time OSAC is in a better position because we were an important part of the save our libraries campaign that forced the Labour council to back down over their plan to close 11 libraries. And also because we were a leading part of those who organised the No Austerity conference on 14 February.
At that conference I was presented as the OSAC and the conference passed a programme that OSAC has adopted as its election programme.
Both the libraries campaign and the No Austerity conference create stronger ties with the community (and the unions), and OSAC can improve its performance.
What are your policies to fight the cuts?
We are fighting all cuts and austerity. The government talk of a growing economy but millions of people are suffering. We stand with all the oppressed and exploited who are still paying for the crisis the banks created after 2007.
Our programme for the elections is based on what was agreed at the No Austerity conference in Liverpool that was attended by over 100 people. We are based on that and the collective discussion and agreement made in one of the fortnightly OSAC meetings.
We support all those who are fighting such as the fire-fighters, the museum staff, and all those in the community against the cut backs made by the government and by the Labour council in Liverpool. Our recent fights for public services have been over the libraries, against sanctions, zero-hour contracts (which is now engulfing many workers).
But there is no group powerful enough that can win by themselves. We have to take action together against austerity and we must not allow the employers or the main parties to divide us. That is our first policy.
We are fighting for policies that can unite the class in struggle, because what we can win we will win on the streets by combining unions (especially the rank and file) and communities in common actions against capitalism and all its supporters such as the Labour council, UKIP and the Lib Dems.
We urgently need to build the alternative, which can only be a working class alternative. Some who say they are against austerity oppose mobilising the working class or in reality accept some part of the government’s cuts plans.
We cannot do that. So, while the NHS, education, social care and benefit cuts are vital issues on which we are fighting. Unless we all take action together we will not build the workers alternative.
We always need to pose actions that come out of our democratic discussions. That is why we call for mobilisation on 25 April for the No Austerity demonstration in Liverpool; we support the local and national actions against sanctions.
How can a small group like OSAC influence change?
We need to push our OSAC election leaflets and stickers; we need to go to the streets as we have done every week for the last two years both during and after the elections.
The best example of what a small group can do is over the libraries. In 2014 anti- cuts campaigning became dominated by the decision of Mayor Joe Anderson and LCC to close 11 of the cities libraries. We along with Friends of Sefton Park library, and some from Liverpool Against the Cuts led a campaign to save ALL the libraries. The victorious campaign succeeded in saving the 11 libraries. It was a diverse and creative campaign – collected 20,000 signatures, mobilised 2 city centre demonstrations, sent Love Letters from the schools, demanded a referendum, and gained support from 500 artists, writers and musicians. All this led to Mayor Anderson to reverse his decision in November.
We will continue to support the campaigns that are now seeking to ensure there is no undermining of or reduction of the current service.
The campaign frightened Joe Anderson because of the possibility that the 100s who mobilised could turn to 1000s if they continued to insist on closing libraries. Since then they have been too scared to make a full public report.
Will OSAC be here after the elections?
The solution of cutting public expenditure, cutting jobs and services and privatising will only bring more crisis and greater pain for men, women, youth and children of the working class. To make these attacks they have take away our rights to strike and to fight. They have to try to divide the class by skin colour, by gender, by nationality, by whether you are working or not and many other ways.
Unless we are to live with this austerity plan for the rest of our lives the working class has to fight as it is doing in many countries where large vibrant struggles have emerged in Europe.
We will of course be here after the elections. We take inspiration from the Greek working class and we support them.
OSAC has a tradition now of supporting workers’ struggle in Britain and internationally. It has members who are Brazilian, Italian and Greek. It has also supported the fight against deportation and is against all oppression including women’s and Black people.
We think democratic struggle groups like this should exist across the UK. Therefore we have no intention of going away.
