Resist the Tory and Stormont Cuts
THE PEOPLE BEFORE PROFIT ALLIANCE stands for mass protests and opposition to the attacks on working people by the Tory Government and by the Stormont Executive. In the Assembly elections on 5 May we have a chance to send a clear message to the Stormont Executive, that we reject the cuts they are planning and that we want a society that puts the needs of people before the gods of private profit. We hope that you will consider voting for Eamonn McCann, the only candidate who stands for open resistance to the cuts.
Behind all the talk of budget deficits in London and Stormont lies a very basic injustice. The recession was caused by the banks and big business. Now the banks are back making a profit and we are being asked to repay the public money that was used to bail them out.
That is what was behind the massive cuts to benefits, jobs, pensions, and public services in the Tory budget on 23 March. It means a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. And the same agenda lies behind the budget planned by the Stormont Executive.
Our wages are frozen or in decline, jobs are being lost, our pensions cut, the cost of food VAT, rent, and fuel are rising, our public services are cut to below the bone or sold off to private profiteers, university fees are going through the roof, and all the time the bankers and the rich have seen their profits soar.
The five biggest UK banks are set to make £52 billion in profit this year - that's £1 billion every week. Bankers' bonuses this year were £7 billion. Vodaphone made £3.4 billion in profit last year and paid just 1% in tax. This is the real scandal. Over £125 billion in tax is avoided by big business each year - a fraction of this would wipe out all the cuts proposed by the Tories. There is no crisis or recession for the rich and powerful. Instead, wealth is flowing into their back pockets and we are being made to carry the cost.
The arguments among the parties in Stormont are over HOW MUCH and HOW FAST to cut. Not one of them has said that there shouldn't be cuts at all. In recent weeks they have all been trying to appear to oppose cuts in their departments and hold onto their seats at the Executive table. But does anyone seriously doubt that once the Executive meets after the election they will go ahead with the budget that cuts the public sector and leads to the loss of thousands of jobs for health workers, teachers, and classroom assistants?
If elected to the Assembly, Eamonn McCann will be a voice of opposition to the Executive parties' plans and a voice encouraging people to resist through people power.
We need more protests like the mass protests by students before Xmas against fees. The Trade Union marches in London and Belfast on 26 March should be the beginning of a movement to challenge and defeat the Tory government. We need that movement everywhere, in every hospital, workplace, school, and local community that is affected by job losses and cuts.
And that's why you should vote Eamonn McCann and People Before Profit on 5 May.
Behind all the talk of budget deficits in London and Stormont lies a very basic injustice. The recession was caused by the banks and big business. Now the banks are back making a profit and we are being asked to repay the public money that was used to bail them out.
That is what was behind the massive cuts to benefits, jobs, pensions, and public services in the Tory budget on 23 March. It means a transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. And the same agenda lies behind the budget planned by the Stormont Executive.
Our wages are frozen or in decline, jobs are being lost, our pensions cut, the cost of food VAT, rent, and fuel are rising, our public services are cut to below the bone or sold off to private profiteers, university fees are going through the roof, and all the time the bankers and the rich have seen their profits soar.
The five biggest UK banks are set to make £52 billion in profit this year - that's £1 billion every week. Bankers' bonuses this year were £7 billion. Vodaphone made £3.4 billion in profit last year and paid just 1% in tax. This is the real scandal. Over £125 billion in tax is avoided by big business each year - a fraction of this would wipe out all the cuts proposed by the Tories. There is no crisis or recession for the rich and powerful. Instead, wealth is flowing into their back pockets and we are being made to carry the cost.
The arguments among the parties in Stormont are over HOW MUCH and HOW FAST to cut. Not one of them has said that there shouldn't be cuts at all. In recent weeks they have all been trying to appear to oppose cuts in their departments and hold onto their seats at the Executive table. But does anyone seriously doubt that once the Executive meets after the election they will go ahead with the budget that cuts the public sector and leads to the loss of thousands of jobs for health workers, teachers, and classroom assistants?
If elected to the Assembly, Eamonn McCann will be a voice of opposition to the Executive parties' plans and a voice encouraging people to resist through people power.
We need more protests like the mass protests by students before Xmas against fees. The Trade Union marches in London and Belfast on 26 March should be the beginning of a movement to challenge and defeat the Tory government. We need that movement everywhere, in every hospital, workplace, school, and local community that is affected by job losses and cuts.
And that's why you should vote Eamonn McCann and People Before Profit on 5 May.
