Author: Allistair Lomax

We are dismayed to hear of Kier Starmer’s proposals to increase the UK’s defence spending by £15 Billion. This will inevitably lead to cuts in public services when our country is already reeling from decades of austerity.

Moreover, the earthquake disaster in Venezuela demands a positive and immediate response from the UK government, with the UN predicting that 10,000 people will die as a consequence.

We demand that the British Government re-examines it’s priorities and directs the money that would be spent on weapons of war to humanitarian aid for the people of Venezuela.

People are more important than weapons.

Arthur Scargill, Jim McDaid, Chris Butler, John Tyrell, Kathrine Jones and Allistair Lomax
Socialist Labour Party

By Arthur Scargill

I hope Andy Burnham will cut the Government Spending on arms in both the United Kingdom and sales to other countries, in particular the total waste of money pledged to the fascist government in Ukraine. A regime which seized power in a coup d’etat in 2014, which forced a president to flee for his life and whose army has units bearing the name of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) that fought alongside the Nazis in WWII.

I note also Poland has stripped Volodymyr Zelensky of their Order of the White Eagle because of his decision to name an Ukraine Army unit after the aforementioned Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).

Arthur Scargill 29th of June, 2026

Starmer is determined not to leave office quietly. He has been making offers to his chief adversary, Andy Burnham, of a high position in his administration if he doesn’t challenge his leadership.

Whether it is coincidental today, Moscow has suffered serious drone attacks. The person sabre rattling is not Starmer but Zelensky still acting as the legitimate holder of power in the Ukraine. The forcible removal of the democratically elected leader in 2014 led by Biden’s U.S. presidency is still widely supported, not least by the U.K. government. As with Trump using his position of U.S. President, Keir Starmer continues to support Zelensky’s leadership while western governments have poured in huge sums for modern armaments. It has been clear to all that the use of them will depend on technical knowledge and skills possessed by NATO personnel. Starmer makes no secret of the fact that he supports provocation of Russia and is said to be the leading advocate among NATO allies. The attacks are effectively declarations of war against Russia. It is quite legitimate for them to retaliate.

Starmer makes no secret of the fact that he supports provocation of Russia and is said to be the leading advocate among NATO allies….

As with Trump, Starmer appears to regard himself as free to make personal decisions without reference to Parliament or to the views of the British people. They want to see money spent on welfare. They want peace not war with health and education properly funded.

Instead under Starmer’s leadership we see many protestors, young and old, criminalised and jailed with substantial sentences, labelled as ‘terrorists’.

People are very angry.

Clearly Starmer is keen to hang on. We know he was given support from discredited individuals such as Peter Mandelson so there are people at high level who have reason to keep him in place. His very strong support for the genocidal government of Israel and fascist set up in Ukraine indicated he is still needed. His front bench, including all major office holders are all friends of Israel reportedly having accepted payment.

There is continuing talk of conscription. If that goes ahead we could find our young people compelled to fight on behalf of corrupt and illegitimate governments.

Starmer can’t go quickly enough it seems.

John Tyrrell
President of the Socialist Labour Party

28th of May, 2026

The Socialist Labour Party UK wishes to express its support for, and solidarity with the people and government of the Republic of Cuba during this time.

We are alarmed at the increasing escalation of threats against the people and government of Cuba emanating from the United States, via the Trump administration.

We are particularly concerned to hear of the United States intention to indict former president Raúl Castro, and other members of the Cuban Government, and hear reports of the possibility that the United States will carry out the same kidnapping techniques as it deployed against the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro.

We condemn without reserve any attempts by the United States to interfere in the affairs of another sovereign state.

For 67 years, the United States has repeatedly tried to frustrate and destroy the socialist revolution instigated by the people of Cuba, through economic warfare, political aggression and destabilisation, which has caused untold suffering to the people of Cuba.
This is against the backdrop of Cuba’s contribution to the world through its initiatives in health care and biotechnology.

We urge socialists, elected representatives, people and governments everywhere to join in condemnation of the aggressive imperialism of the United States and join together in calling for de-escalation and the cessation in interference in the affairs of the Republic of Cuba.

Declaración del Partido Laborista Socialista (Reino Unido)
28 de mayo de 2026

El Partido Laborista Socialista (Reino Unido) desea expresar su apoyo y solidaridad con el pueblo y el gobierno de la República de Cuba en estos momentos.

Estamos alarmados por la creciente escalada de amenazas contra el pueblo y el gobierno de Cuba por parte de Estados Unidos, a través de la administración Trump.

Nos preocupa especialmente conocer la intención de Estados Unidos de acusar a Raúl Castro, expresidente de Cuba, y otros miembros del gobierno de Cuba, así como escuchar la posibilidad de que Estados Unidos lleve a cabo las mismas técnicas de secuestro que utilizó contra el presidente de Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro.

Condenamos completamente cualquier intento por parte de Estados Unidos de interferir en los asuntos de otro Estado soberano.

Durante 67 años, Estados Unidos ha intentado repetidamente frustrar y destruir la revolución socialista impulsada por el pueblo de Cuba mediante la guerra económica, el bloqueo, la agresión política y la desestabilización.

Esto ocurre en el contexto de la contribución de Cuba al mundo a través de sus iniciativas en el cuidado de la salud y la biotecnología.

Instamos a los socialistas, a los representantes electos, a los pueblos y a los gobiernos de todas partes a unirse en la condena del imperialismo agresivo de Estados Unidos y a exigir la desescalada y el cese de la injerencia en los asuntos de la República de Cuba.

The lawless immoral cesspit of a government in the USA fresh from just murdering 150 young girls and boys and their teachers and thousands of innocent civilians in Iran have indicted former Cuban leader Raul Castro, not content with the inhumanity they have inflicted upon the people of Cuba since the triumph of the revolution they now indict a 94 year old man who’s resisted the terrorism sponsored by the USA against his country for almost seven decades.

Raul’s crime, resisting and defeating the imperialism that had turned his country into a bordello, a Mafia infested refuge, a playground to be used and abused by wealthy yanks, a indictment issued by a rogue nation responsible for the mass murder of millions of people across the planet, from Latin America to South East Asia, to the Middle East and Africa, thank god your empire is dying.

Viva Raul !

Raul Es Raul !

Denis Doody

In the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and throughout the 21st Century 2000- 2026 Arthur Scargill has made it clear that the UK could produce clean coal with no carbon emissions.

He not only told miners but also told Government Select Committees. At the time,he was described as talking nonsense.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences at Shenzhen University have produced coal which converts – coal- into electricity without any carbon emissions. (See link below).

Scargill was supported by Tony Benn in two public inquiries at Sizewell and Hinckley Point Nuclear Power Stations.

The SLP’s policy is to eradicate fuel poverty by taking all forms of energy production and energy supply into public ownership. The cost of providing heat and power should be subsidised so that people have one standard affordable supply of energy which is not designed to make profits for shareholders or pay millions in salaries and bonus to people who control energy industries.

The situation has become worse during the past 10 years, particularly because of the slaughter of Britain’s deep mine coal industry, the most efficient and economic deep coal industry in the world.

We were told that the closure of Britain’s 170 coal mines with the loss of 170,000 jobs and the destruction of mining communities should improve our environment by reducing CO2 emissions. It is therefore surprising – to some – that in 2015 the level of pollution, in particular the level of CO2, in cities like London, Birmingham, Glasgow and Cardiff saw an increase in CO2 levels.

However, all this technology has been abandoned. As a result, the UK is now dependent on imported coal (4 million tonnes per year), imported gas including LPG gas, imported oil and imported electricity from French nuclear power stations, a policy which is costing UK taxpayers a fortune.

Having taken the decision to destroy our valuable indigenous deep mine coal reserves we now see 80% of CO2 emissions directly related to the use of oil and gas – while the Government desperately continues to pursue a nuclear power programme, apparently oblivious of the nuclear disasters at Windscale (now called Sellafield in 1957); Three Mile Island (1979), Chernobyl, (1986) and Fukushima (2011); disasters which resulted in Germany, Italy, Japan, and many other nations abandoning nuclear power.

The price for deadly nuclear power is astronomic. It is more expensive than coal produced with carbon capture, and more expensive than gas. For years Britain subsidised its nuclear power industry to the tune of £1.3 billion a year and is now subsidising the development of a new nuclear power station at Sizewell with others mooted. This is despite further serious nuclear incidents in Ukraine and particularly in France in a nuclear power station which is the same type as the Sizewell project.

While developing properly our renewable energy sources – in particular, solar power – Britain needs a long-term integrated energy policy based on a deep mine coal industry, publicly owned and controlled, fitted with carbon capture technology which would produce the cheapest electricity from reserves that would last a thousand years.

https://interestingengineering.com/energy/chinas-converts-coal-into-electricity

Socialist Labour Party

Bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis has announced the closure of its Falkirk factory, with 115 job losses. Its nearby Larbert plant will be converted to a chassis manufacturing site, safeguarding around 200 roles that were previously at risk. This comes despite receiving £4.1 million from the Scottish government in September 2025 to protect jobs, after the firm threatened to shift production to Yorkshire, putting up to 400 roles at risk. First Minister John Swinney visited the Larbert factory to announce the bailout. Months later, the axe has fallen anyway. This is a scene oft repeated. A company/bank/post office announces closure, the SNP and the rest fulminate and demand a reversal of the decision – then closure happens and off go the parliamentarians on to the next bandwagon.

Nearby Grangemouth has also faced closure. Scotland’s last oil refinery ceased production in April 2025, with more than 400 direct job losses, destabilising a supply chain of nearly 3,000 workers.

At the same time, Scottish public sector contracts are being sent abroad. The publicly owned CALMAC is having ferries built in Poland (seven new electric ferries) and Turkey (four vessels), while the nationalised Ferguson Marine shipyard misses out. And the bus contracts? Under the Scottish government’s Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund (ScotZEB2), 523 electric buses were funded. Fewer than a third (31%) were built in Scotland. More than half—287 buses, 55% of the total—were built in China. That’s nearly four times as many orders to Chinese manufacturers as to Scottish industry.

The series of ineptocratic governments we have seen over decades now need to go.  The economy is upside down where something like 20% manufacturing industry is supposed to support 80% services. It is unsustainable.

The Socialist Labour Party has long argued that this needs to be reversed; as manufacturing bleeds jobs and capacity, the economy remains stagnant with manufacturing output in Scotland falling 4.3% in the first half of 2025 yet government plods on into oblivion continuing failed neoliberal policies that enrich an elite that many are now understandably referring to as the “Epstein” class but lead to the impoverishment of working class communities and decrepit, crumbling infrastructure. The SLP manifesto points out how this can be reversed.

You can begin that process by voting Socialist Labour Party on May 7th.

James McDaid
Lead Candidate, West Scotland Region