Langside rally date for election-bound coalition

A coalition of socialist parties and groups which is preparing to contest the forthcoming general election is to hold an inaugural rally in Langside Halls.
The Scottish Trade Unionist & Socialist Coalition (STUSC) will announce its slate of candidates at the meeting on March 31 at 7.30pm. The UK-wide organisation includes Bob Crow, General Secretary of railworkers’ union RMT, Jane Godrich, National Secretary of the PCS civil servants’ union, Solidarity, International Socialists and Socialist Workers Party (SWP).
The coalition has a number of candidates in place for the general election. Veteran campaigner and co-convenor of Solidarity, Tommy Sheridan, is standing in Glasgow South-West. Angela McCormack of the SWP will be vying for Glasgow North, while Solidarity’s Graham Campbell will stand for Glasgow North-East on the STUSC ticket.
Brian Smith, Branch Secretary of Glasgow Unison, is standing in Glasgow South.
STUSC says British people face a ‘ruling class offensive’ and offers a ‘clear left-wing alternative to policies of public sector cuts, privatisation, militarism and environmental degradation’.
Philip Stott, STUSC spokesman, said the coalition is standing in 50 seats across the UK, 10 of them in Scotland, to ‘ensure voters have an alternative to the business parties’.
Voters would look at those mainstream parties with a ‘strong mood of lesser evilism in mind’, said Philip, adding that he hoped that not only would STUSC have an impact in May 2010, but ‘would look to deepen its support base and aim for the Scottish parliamentary elections’ in 2011.