Swinson- increasingly divorced from realities of living in East Dunbartonshire

I have been finding our local LibDem/ConDem/Tory MP, Jo Swinson's "e-consultations" and online presence are becoming less and less about her constituency, and more and more about her want to make an impact with the "federal party" she is part of, and building a CV for the inevitable crash of the Lib Dems.


  Lately, Swinson has replied to me via email to pronounce her support of Nuclear Weapons and "an alternative" to Trident being the imperative - 


"A non-nuclear defence is not currently a viable option and the EDM does not recognise that we continue to live in an uncertain, unpredictable world where proliferation of nuclear weapons is still a priority for some countries. We also cannot assume that current nuclear states will remain stable and pose no threat to our country and its interests. The risk may be low, but so long as a risk exists, we cannot leave ourselves vulnerable and so some minimal deterrent is needed."


I would like to know what this threat she is hinting at is - and why reacting to this threat with a nuclear deterrent is a necessary and positive response.  Would we really attack another country - killing many innocent families, children and workers - if some deranged terrorist or dictator launched an attack on us?  


If you would like a copy of her response to my request for her to sign EDM 1924 regarding the Trident Review, please email me at eastdunbartonshiressp@hotmail.co.uk 


Anyway, her latest e-consultation asks the question, 


"Do you agree that the government should invest in high speed rail between London and the north of England?"

I felt this question was not only far removed from her "localism" campaign to be elected in the past two General Elections, but also shows her as a career politician, making sure of her place in the decimated LibDem Party after the next General Election (which, the way this coalition are going, could be sooner rather than later).  Positioning herself as Vince Cables PPS will, perhaps after the election give her some sort of political position or at least a great entry in her CV.  

Remember - between her and her MP husband, their family income is over £120,000 a year - not bad for two career politicians who have never had to struggle.  The least she could do is fight for working families and poorly paid people in her own constituency.  East Dunbartonshire is a place where we are reliant on public sector jobs - teachers, nurses, doctors and other "civil servants" commute daily to Glasgow and other cities and large towns for a diminishing return thanks to the VAT increases, increase in transport costs, increase in food prices and increases in fuel prices to name a few - alongside frozen wages.  The median wage is £21,000 - far removed from her wage of over £64,700 plus allowances, including travel.  How many East Dunbartonshire working people get transport allowances into Glasgow or Edinburgh or elsewhere?  How many East Dunbartonshire people get their subscription the the Bearsden Milngavie Herald as a work expense?  Or their mobile phone bill paid?  As a teacher, I am in contact with my Head Teacher and other colleagues about work quite a lot - perhaps Jo should fight for ALL workers to have their mobile phone, travel to work and subscription to a local paper paid for through company expenses?

Swinson is increasingly being seen as the well off young person who has never had to work or struggle for her income she is.  And increasingly as someone divorced from the present day hard realities of living in East Dunbartonshire. 

This is my reply to her current anglo-centric consultation:

A fully integrated, updated public transport system is vital to our country - and indeed to East Dunbartonshire, which this question, and more and more of your "consultations" seem to forget about.

As the economy slumps and as more and more of your constituents have less and less money to help the economy grow due to the Lib Dem policy of support for the Tory plans to make the poor and working pay for the crisis of capital created by millionaires and billionaires, a free public transport system for the huge amount of commuters from East Dunbartonshire would be a policy that would not only help poor and working families financially; it would be a boost to the local economy as people would be left with more of a disposable income.  It would also help clear our streets from  the curse of the car (and ensure the predicted one hour travel time from Milngavie to Canniesburn DOES NOT happen post-Kilmardinny development).

Our policy of Free Public Transport - a policy that has been successful in other parts of the world in boosting economies and in creating a cleaner environment, can be found here along with links to articles in the Herald praising this "audacious" plan.  

http://www.scottishsocialistparty.org/transport/index.html

Neil Scott

Organiser, Campsie Socialists.


Open Letter to Swinson HERE
Criticism of her so called feminism HERE

Free Public Transport

These stickers have been appearing mysteriously around East Dunbartonshire

MORE INFO HERE:

http://www.freepublictransport.org/

SSP Campsie Branch try to confront Firstbus...

SSP Campsie members patiently awaited the arrival of the "Firstbus Roadshow" - but were sorely disapointed as the bus had to turn and leave as East Dunbartonshire Council had forgot to book them in! Angry public transport users were left in the lurch and unable to ask questions about the dimminishing and increasingly expensive service in and around Milngavie/ Bearsden.
Local public transport user, Thomas Swann, said, "This is typical. You wait for hours on one of their routes and then it drives past you! Then you find out the bus stop has been discontinued. Firstbus need to answer local people's concerns."

Neil Scott, a local commuter said, "I am glad the SSP are looking at serious ways to combat climate change and rising fuel prices. It is a pity we have a government more concerned with their own pay increases of nearly 50% and MP's and MSP's who claim all of their own travel to work back in expenses while the rest of us spend more and more on an increasingly poor service."

More information on the SSP's innovative and crucial policy can be found here: www.freepublictransport.org/

FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT

FIND OUT MORE HERE:

FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT

FIND OUT MORE HERE:

WILLIE TELFER MAKES BIG IMPACT AT PCS CONFERENCE

Scottish Socialist Party members who are delegates to this week’s PCS national conference in Brighton have made a huge impact.
They’re speaking on issues like privatisation, and are moving a major motion to commit the union to an £8-an-hour minimum wage for all workers and trainees over 16.
Colin Fox, the Scottish Socialist Party’s national convener, was a guest speaker at the Department of Transport PCS group conference on our case for free public transport - which was then debated and agreed as policy, moved by Campsie Branch SSP member, and Twechar Housing campaigner, Willie Telfer and supported by the union’s Group Executive Committee.


Willie has also been re-elected as UK-wide Assistant Group Secretary of the union in the transport section.
Meantime longstanding socialist and SSP member John Jamieson has been elected to the PCS national executive committee, as part of an almost total clean sweep for the Democracy Alliance of socialists and democrats.
And our efforts are not restricted to the PCS. At the Fire Brigades Union national conference Scottish Socialist Party members were at the heart of a solidarity collection for the Sunvic strikers, raising £1,500 to help sustain their battle against vicious treatment by scab-hiring bosses.
And in a debate around the FBU and political links, during which a motion to re-affiliate the union to New Labour was overwhelmingly defeated, SSP member Jimmy Scott successfully moved an amendment which re-stated the FBU’s commitment to “a socialist form of society”, a longstanding FBU rule-book clause which collides with New Labour’s whole philosophy and practice.

Red Greenock, the Beach and the Workers Wage...

SSP Women Candidates...

PAMELA ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL (AND THE SHOWS!)

Tuesday 16th
Twechar Beach invasion!
As you already know we called a public meeting on housing in the village.
200 council houses are due to be demolished by the council, despite them
refusing the tenants a vote on the issue! Only 80 houses for social rent
will replace them, as well as another 40 that will be partly privatised at
more expensive rents. This is not a housing solution for the people, this is
for private profit.

The meeting was great. 60 people attended despite Man U being on the telly!
We made it clear that, in true Freire style, that we were there to listen and
offer our assitance to their campaign. It is a credit to the SSP that we
have arranged a housing surgery and another meeting for the Saturday and
Tuesday AFTER the election. We are in this for the long haul, because we are
part of these communities not parachuted in at election times.


Thursday 19th
Bearsden Churches hustings

This was the same day that the Poverty Alliance launched their manifesto and
I made it clear that our People not Profit manifesto is the only solution to
poverty and inequality. Other parties think cutting poverty by X% is
laudable, whereas we refuse to accept poverty at all in an oil rich nation!

Linda and I turned up to what was a very well attended (about 250 people)
hustings at kessington hall. It had a kinda dynasty ring to it and I was
disappointed to find that Blake and Crystal didnae appear....

There was the constituency candidates, including my first brush with the
Christian party as well as ourselves and the greens from the list.

Linda felt that I was well received on most issues. Questions ranged from
the state of the NHS, including the junior doctors' contract fiasco, to
which I responded by saying that it is indicative of what happens when we
allow Pirate Privateers who know the cost of everything but the value of
nothing to run our services.

I also trumpeted our free public transport policy in response to a question
on climate change but was surprised to find the green candidate rubbishing
our policy. From what I can gather their alternative is to install solar
panels on their four by fours!! Less than half of carbon emissions are
caused by individuals and it is a falacy to think that capitalism can have a
caring side that will save our environment. They talk the talk but don't
walk the walk. It seems they are sacred of offending business interests.
Everyone knows Radical Action is needed. I want to live in a Scotland that
has the guts to stand against the corporate greed that is destroying the
planet and take positive action to save it, not rely on the goodwill of
giant multinationals. But hey ho that's why I'm in the SSP not the Green
party.

Least said about our Christian candidate the better suffice to say he thinks
that the crisis in the NHS is due to moral decline, abortion rates and
teachers handing out condoms willy nilly. He was given short shrift by the
audience. It takes aw sorts right enough.

One man directly asked the New Labour candidate about the illegal war in Iraq.
To which he waffled that it wasn't illegal but said he knew it was 'a bit of
a mess'. I asked to be able to respond and got great applause when I said
that the 600,000 dead Iraqis and the over 100 British soldiers wouldn't
think it was a bit of a mess! And that it was sheer hypocrisy to have a
pre-emptive strike on a country under the guise of them having weapons of
mass destruction when our very own weapons of mass destruction are lurking
on the Clyde.

The night didn't finish till well after ten and I was feeling a bit jiggered
with working this week but managed to rouse myself to make a few points in
my closing remarks. Namely that I was delighted to see the other parties
falling over themselves during the election to support the SSP's demand for
the scrapping of the hated council tax but wondered why when they had the
opportunity to get rid of it in the Parley they refused. It's just another
example of how the SSP have been the conscience of the parliament, shaping
the agenda on free prescriptions, free nutritious school meals and asylum to
mention a few issues that we have campaigned for week in week out. Not just
in the few weeks in the run up to an election.

I ended by saying that if elected I wouldn't disappear into the cosy parley
atmosphere. I would follow Frances before me on the streets, picket lines,
taking direct action at Faslane and wherever else, fighting injustice,
shoulder to shoulder with working class people in our communities. Refusing
to take the 53,000 salary that Msps and 5% of the population earn.

Vote Pamela Page on a worker's wage!

At the end of the hustings a young man came up to the platform to shake my
hand and say hello. I got a tremendous boost when he said that he was
thinking of voting for Sheridan but had changed his mind during the hustings
and was voting for us! Integrity Indeed.


Saturday 28th

Greenock

Pam, Davy and I campaigned in Greenock today, which has become the Petrograd
of the West in recent weeks. We did a stall on the council tax and were well
received. I was delighted that three people asked about joining. One woman
asked who we were and said " Brilliant I was asked earlier on by another
'socialist' party and said No I want to join the SSP!' Welcome comrade!

We made a wee trip to the shows by the shore... long story photeez to
follow... but needless to say our national secretary is certainly a risk
taker. Don't know if Al Green would have went on some of those rides. I
stuck to the tame waltser type extravaganza but think i'm a land lubber to
be honest.

Greenock is the business though, my nana is from there and Davy Landels is
no bad either! the Mighty Morton have won the league too so lots to
celebrate!

Our Campsie comrades were out campaigning locally. Busy week ahead but i've
taken a weeks unpaid leave so dying to get stuck in!

Pamela's Diary! Part 1

99's in Saltcoats, Benny Hill and the Red Flag in Milngavie...

it is a holiday, isn't it...?

Follow Pamela the length and breadth of the West of Scotland...

Saturday 24th March

Giffnock Question and Answer session with West of Scotland community councillors.

This was attended by about 60 community councillors from all over the region. The parties represented were Tory, SNP, Labour and ourselves.

Questions were wide ranging and local in focus, however the thread was obvious and that was people's concerns with how their communities are being privatised. Whether it be schools, hospital services, losing public land to developers protected by confidentiality agreements and the lack of democratic accountability/ transparency in decision making. There was real anger directed at the labour MSP in attendance.

The first question asked was what we thought was the most important issue facing humanity today. The poor wee disorientated Tory thought it was political correctness?! Perhaps more people than I had thought are worried about the repeats of Benny Hill on telly...

I said Climate change and explained how the SSP's radical Free Public transport policy would help tackle poverty and global warming. This was very well received and the man who asked the question spoke to me at the end to say that he had been given our leaflet by activists in Milngavie (hotbed of radical socialism, let me tell you!) on this issue and was very impressed with the policy.

Sunday 25th

Allan, Wullie and I leafleted Twechar with West of Scotland Bulletins. Much to the delight of my students the next day at school!


Monday 26th

I was interviewed by Strathclyde University's paper 'Strathclyde Telegraph'.

They were particularly interested in the SSP's policies on Education, namely scrapping tuition fees, reintroducing the student grant and truly making higher/ further education accessible. We also discussed wealth redistribution in terms of our Scottish service tax policy and national minimum wage of eight pounds an hour. Housing is a major issue for students and we discussed our policy commitment to providing quality social housing as a solution to the housing crisis. I was really impressed by their questioning and thought their questioning was much better than some of the mainstream press I have been in contact with recently.

Saturday 31st

Sunny Saltcoats for a stall on 'Axing the Tax'. People were very supportive and it wasn't lost on them that we have been consistent on this issue of sharing out the wealth. Other parties had the chance to vote for our proposal of a progressive scottish service tax in parliament but refused to do so whatever they may claim now. But hey - I guess they are going to copy innovative,progressive ideas when they huvnae a scooby themselves.

We had a 99 and managed to avoid the puggy machines in “Nonsuch…”

Monday 2nd

Clydebank to campaign on free school meals. the support we got from the bankies was brilliant. We were very warmly received both on the stall and when we were bulletening in the afternoon.

The lack of support we received at the Parliament for this was appalling. I sometimes wonder do the other parties think by supporting our policy on feeding we'ans does it mean we are one step further to the gulag or something? Or are things ok to go ahead only when the billionaires have said so (when they are sure their accountant has made sure they don't have to pay any tax....)?

It's time that lot of self serving bananas were shook up and stopped handing our money to the billionaires and the money was used for the good of Scotland's people.

The free school meals campaign was wholeheartedly supported by parents with children off on school holidays as well as a dinner lady who agreed that nutritious free school meals would have a huge positive impact on our children's health. There might not have been enough support in the parliament for this bill to be passed but it'll be back because people overwhelmingly support it.

Tuesday 3rd

In Greenock we were swamped by locals angry at the council for a multitude of reasons. People were literally queuing up to sign our axe the tax petition. We had a lot of positive feedback.

Wednesday 4th

We took our campaign to Paisley High Street where we did a stall on the council tax and getting sunburnt in the process! Who needs Benidorm?

Later I attended a European hustings with Frances at the Caledonian university. Frances was well received and it was obvious that we are the only party campaigning on People Not Profit.

Thursday 5th

Home Territory! We campaigned in Kirkintilloch on free School meals and took advantage of our resident photographer Moira to get some photies taken at various locations with the Free public transport ticket.

In the late afternoon we set off to leaflet the village of Campsie.


Saturday 7th


We set off to join the Renfrewshire branch on their stall on free school meals. We were very well received with Frances and Iain Hogg (our council candidate) on the P.A. and selling out of papers very quickly.


Sunday 8th


We bulletined in Balloch and leafleted hundreds of car windscreens on free public transport.