'Respect' and George Galloway

SA Executive signs up with Galloway

The Socialist Alliance Executive, meeting on 22 November, authorised Alliance chair Nick Wrack (who is close to the SWP) to sign any "declaration" for a new "unity coalition" he considers fit. According to Nick Wrack, an "organising committee" will be set up. It will include George Galloway (the "key figure", as Wrack put it), Salma Yaqoob, George Monbiot, Ken Loach, Bob Crow, Mark Serwotka, and some Alliance people. It will convene a "convention of the left" in January next year. It should formulate a political platform in "four or five paragraphs". The Alliance, said Wrack, will "push for it...

Galloway movement launches website

The "Unity Coalition" initiated by George Galloway has launched a website, announced a six-point political platform, opened a bank account, and issued membership application forms. It is not clear who, other than Galloway himself, has decided all this. The Socialist Alliance, which has provided the main footsoldiers for the Galloway meetings so far, has been neither consulted nor even informed. Emails announcing the new website have been sent out to many addresses over the last couple of weeks. Read on: As you will no doubt be aware I have been expelled from the Labour party for my views on...

The left and the Guardian

The Guardian's coverage of the expulsion of George Galloway from the Labour Party on 22 October was not only pro-Galloway, but notably uncritical. It took Galloway as he chose to present himself - as a left-wing martyr to the anti-war cause. It only serves to underline one of the great and continuing mysteries in British politics right now: why does the left, in the broadest sense, including liberals like those who produce the Guardian, give almost uncritical support to Galloway? On the platform with Galloway at the rally at Friends Meeting House, London, on 29 October, to launch a new...

Galloway/ Morning Star meetings

Advertised in the Morning Star. 'Morning Star' public meetings under the banner, "Unite to defeat New Labour - unite the labour movement with the left alternative strategy". Brighton 4/11 Sandra Lusk CPB (Chair); George Galloway and John Haylett, ed Morning Star. Leceister 11/11 Ann Green CPB (Chair); George Galloway; John Haylett and Avtar Sadiq IWA. Manchester 24/11 Andrew Murray STWC. Newcastle 24/11 George Galloway. Colchester 27/11 Emily Mann CPB (Chair); George Galloway; John Haylett. London 3/12 Anita Halpin CPB (Chair); George Galloway. Pontypridd 4/12 Andrew Murray; John Haylett...

Peace, justice and Saudi gold?

There was lots of applause and high talk on Wednesday 29 October, when almost a thousand people were drawn by the Socialist Workers' Party to Friends' Meeting House, London, to hear George Galloway MP speak. The premise of the enterprise - presented as a broad forum, not just an SWP event - was that the whole spectrum of political opinion in Britain to the left of New Labour and the Lib Dems can be corralled into a "popular unity" movement simply by putting up George Galloway for them to rally round. Who is this hero, this champion? On his own account, George Galloway is not particularly left...

Galloway to "unite socialists, liberals and conservatives"?

George Galloway MP spoke at Friends Meeting House, London, on 29 October 2003, to announce that he would stand as a "popular unity" candidate in June 2004's Euro-elections. According to a version of Galloway's speech on 29 October published by Al Jazeera - significantly different from what he actually said, but presumably supplied to Al Jazeera by Galloway himself - he described the basis on which he wants to stand as follows: "A mass unifying movement of grassroots radicals... unite Muslims, Christians and Jews, socialists, liberals and conservatives, men, women and the disadvantaged of all...

Galloway to stand in every Euro-seat?

According to The Scotsman of 30 October 2003 , George Galloway plans to stand on his "popular unity" ticket in June 2004's Euro-elections in every Euro-seat in England and Wales.

Socialist Alliance to back Galloway for Europoll?

According to the Glasgow Sunday Herald George Galloway "is planning to top a slate of candidates being put forward [in London] by the Stop the War coalition during next year's European parliament elections". It seems unlikely that the Stop The War Coalition as such - which includes Labour Party and Green Party people - would back a Galloway slate, but all too likely that the SWP , the main organising force in the Stop The War Coalition, will try to drag the Socialist Alliance into backing its scheme for "Peace and Justice" slates which come as near as they can to translating the anti-war...

Debate & Discussion: When is it a workers' party?

Martin Thomas To "campaign for a workers' party" means three things: 1. Setting out and grouping people round basic working-class political objectives-independent working-class political representation, a workers' government, a working-class "Third Camp" in international politics. 2. Arguing for working-class socialist unity, in the form of a new Socialist Alliance-a new regroupment of the left which rejects the SWP's hijack of the present Alliance and continues what that Alliance started out to do. 3. Developing a consistent policy in the unions to mobilise them against the New Labour...

Writing on the wall

Things can only get wetter Greenpeace protesters dumped sacks of coal outside Downing Street on Monday morning to protest against the British government’s lack of action against climate change. Tony Blair has promised to make global warming and Africa Britain’s two priorities for chairing the G8 group of the world’s richest nations. However, Blair has also said that “the blunt truth about the politics of climate change is that no country will want to sacrifice its economy in order to meet this challenge”, supporting similar statements by George Bush. For “economy”, of course, read “the oil...

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