Socialism and rural Scotland

A beautiful view - but rural poverty is a huge issue across the Highlands and Islands A day off from campaigning today and a chance to catch up with the blog and make plans for the campaign.

One issue which is often asked of the SSP in the Highlands and Islands is why socialists are standing in a rural area - surely socialist ideas are something that belong in the Central Belt and the cities?

The SSP contests seats across Scotland as we believe our ideas are as relevant in the Highlands and Islands as they are in the tenements of Edinburgh and the housing schemes of Glasgow.

Colin Turbett lives in Arran and is the SSP's top of the list candidate for the South of Scotland region. He wrote the SSP's 'Rural Scotland and Socialism in the 21st century' pamphlet, published in 2009, which outlines key SSP policies on agriculture, fishing, the environment, housing, low pay and gypsy travellers' rights which have direct relevance to communities across rural Scotland.

Since this pamphlet was published, the Tory-Lib Dem Comprehensive Spending Review has hammered home the impact that the current recession will have on the Highlands and Islands. Public spending cuts mean the threat of school closures, the loss of vital services for vulnerable groups such as children, the elderly and disabled people, and thousands of job losses across the Highlands and Islands, which threaten the viability of communities and will force many to consider relocating in search of work, accessible education or affordable housing.

Changes to welfare benefits and tax credits mean that the poorest and most vulnerable in our community suffer while the wealthy enjoy 'business as usual'.

The SSP challenges the story told by the mainstream political parties, that we are all in this together, that there is no alternative, that difficult choice have to be made.

We say that there is an alternative to the cuts.

Scotland is a wealthy nation. We can more than afford an infrastructure and public services which would create vibrant, thriving communities in rural areas and which would allow everyone in our communities to enjoy a decent standard of living. The problem we face is the ever-widening gap between rich and poor - a chasm perhaps evident in the Highlands and Islands more than anywhere else in Scotland.

The SSP argues for a radical alternative to the cuts and misery promised by the mainstream parties. We argue for the redistribution of wealth - through a tax system which makes the rich pay their share, and through the public ownership of land and other resources, such as oil and energey production, so that these resources can be used for the benefit of all, rather than the personal gain of the priviledged few.

We may not be Scotland's largest political party - and there's no denying that we've had a difficult few years - but the SSP is back. We are standing in the Highlands and Islands regional list - the peach ballot paper on which you cast your 'second' vote, and we hope that you will choose to vote for a party of integrity and principle on May 5th.