Leveson - a very small step...

by Ron Mackay

The 30s was a time of depression,strikes hunger marches etc. Then came the Spanish civil war and Alex Donaldson went off to join the International Brigade. 

Then came WW2. 

I spent 4 yrs. In the Royal Navy. The returning servicemen, having witnessed the senseless slaughter of millions of human beings – Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Dresden,Hamburg, London, Coventry, Clydebank etc. wanted a change. The Labour party responded to the mood and produced a program that seemed to promise a road to Socialism. The major industries were nationalised including transport and energy. The national health service was set up and the welfare state was established.

The Labour Party swept the polls. 

Willie Gallacher and Phil Piratin got into parliament as Communist MPs . In Clydebank 5 Communist councillors were elected. 

Prefabs were brought in to help with housing as left-wing councils set about rebuilding and restoring our damaged towns and cities. It seemed the advance to socialism had begun. 

 Alas one vital service was neglected – the media - was left in the hands of the Tories. The press barons, Lords Beverbrook, Kemsley, Rothermere and Astor controlled the media. The Labour Party, never a Socialist Party, made a mess of nationalisation. The old capitalist bosses were left to run the industries, ignoring the trade unions as usual and blaming every set back on nationalisation which the media exploited to the full and called for the restoration of private ownership. The role of the media played a very significant part in the return of the Tories. 

 As Goebbels said at the Nurenburg trials whoever controls the media controls the policies of countries whether democracy or dictatorship.

Leveson had nothing to say about the ownership and control of the media.

NEW SSP FILM!

PAMELA'S DIARY - With a week to go, the hardest working candidate in the West of Scotland is still going strong! Is their no end to her energy?

Wednesday 18th
Kirkintilloch Rotary hustings.
I invited myself along to this event and was the only list candidate on the
platform. It was well attended with about 50-60 people there. The majority
of questions were from small business people in the audience who were
complaining about the threat to local shops in the area due to transport
issues and the fact that the two big supermarkets in the area have sucked
the lifeblood out of the town.

As the only person on the platform to live in the main street I was only too
well aware of how many boarded up shops we have in Kirky and our policies
against big out of town developments went down surprisingly well as did our
free public transport policy. The Tory candidate did say at one point that
everyone on the panel would agree that we had to cut corporation tax though
- to which I had to put her right!

People Not profit! Community shops and farmers markets with good transport
links was the order of the day. They did lay on good cakes right enough!

Thursday 19th
Chamber of Commerce hustings in Dumbarton.
Pam kindly drove me to this event as it would have been impossible to get
there for 6 after work otherwise. Roll on a fully integrated Free Public
Transport system!

It wasn't as well attended as the previous night (about 25
folk) with a couple of other list candidates also invited onto the platform.
Again I put forward our People Not Profit agenda. Questions of note were again transport links, Dumbarton high street losing shops. There was a question about the Vale of Leven hospital and I was able to counter Jackie Ballie's argument that new labour have pumped millions into the NHS with the fact this money has been siphoned off by PFI extortionists, which went down well. I was also well received when I was able to be critical of West Dumbarton council and the whole issue of quangos and lack of transparency/ unaccountability in local decision making.

Pamela and I had an apparation the other night - a strange statue, almost religious in look, appeared to us just outside Faifley, on the back road to Bearsden! We went past last night and she is still there, guiding weary motorists. She isn't as good as sat nav though, she took us to Milngavie which was the wrong way altogether. Though she did seem to be saying something...



We also saw a statue which appears to be Gengis Khan's head on a plinth, at the other end of Clydebank near McGonagle's prize winning floating chippy (floating chippy of the year 1994).

It's just typical that all of these photo opportunities occur when you leave the camera at home. We will be back, although I'm not sure Genghis sends out the right message.

We then went to Neil's to drop off placards in Bearsden.

Saturday 21st
Campsie Branch party
The comrades had been out placarding which really put a spring in my step
before the party. It was great to see so many friends and comrades and we
had a great night. Thanks to everyone who made the effort to give us a wee
boost before the election and a chance to relax from all the hard work we've
been putting in.

SEE THE PHOTOS OF THE DO BELOW!

Click on "March" on the right hand side of your screen to read about the council candidates in East Dunbartonshire - scroll down to read about Pamela Page, your SSP list candidate for the West of Scotland!

Hampden, Proclaimers, Clydebank, Chilli and Chips!

Monday 9th
Spent writing for the Clydebank Post/ reading manifesto and getting photies
taken to highlight local campaigns.

Tuesday 10th
SSP People Not Profit Manifesto Launch at the national stadium Hampden. What
a venue!
We walked into the press conference to the tune of one of our latest supporters, the Proclaimers'500 miles', then Colin and Alan introduced our
flagship policies, before we went down trackside for photo opportunities
with the Saltire behind us in glorious technicolour.

I was so proud of everyone and every word in the manifesto because we are
the only party not pandering to big business/ careerism in this election.
Our MSPs take the average skilled workers wage and donate the rest to the fight for socialism and a fairer society because we are committed to
representing real people and not the 5% in Scotland who earn an MSP's salary
of £53,000. 'People Not Profit' - We do what we say and we say what we mean.

Wednesday 11th

Was texted at 7.30am by a pal to say he'd seen the broadcast and thought it was
superb and that he'd seen our photie in the metro.

We spent the day campaigning in Clydebank with Frances, Pam, Ann Lynch and
Alex Cunningham who is one of our council candidates. We decided to split
campaigning for a stall on free school meals in the morning then on the
council tax in the afternoon. Both issues really strike a chord with the
Bankies angry at the West Dumbartonshire labour party council scandal which
has been preceded by years of them ignoring locals on many issues.

We then decided to discuss free public transport with the huge bus queues
and train commuters nearby. We got a terriffic response on this issue. With
many people saying that they had enjoyed our broadcast (see below) the previous night.
Only a few folk were sceptical (I was maybe pushing it giving a leaflet to
the ticket inspector) which is a huge leap from when we first campaigned on
this issue and testament to how the party have shifted the agenda in
political terms on issues with our campaigning within the parliament and on
the streets. Though I almost got lost from the rest at one point because I
was helping a woman on to the train when her message bag burst and was so
caught up in conversation I nearly ended up on my way to Dalmuir without my
money which i'd left at the stall. Roll on Free public transport ! I also
ran faster than I have since I was in primary school we were trying to catch
Ann's bus and get a copy of the metro to see our picture at Hampden!


We had our lunch, at the co-op cafe naturally, Chilli and chips proved an
excellent choice and we planned the next weeks activity.

To round things off we leafleted the carpark.

In the evening I went to our own meeting at Campsie branch where we were
finalising our "wee do" - ALL WELCOME!! a week on Saturday the 21st in Kirkintilloch miners welfare. As well as local campaigning for council candidates. Not to mention
organising our public meeting/ beach party in Twechar! Cannae wait for that
one!!


Thursday 12th
I joined the Clydebank branch for a public meeting to launch our People Not
Profit manifesto. We had an excellent discussion of our policies and local
issues with the council candidates; Dawn and Cammy Fyfe and Alex
Cuunningham. The Clydebank Post came to cover the event.