Election 2024: This is a time for bold, radical policies. We must demand them
By: Nick Dearden
Date: 24 May 2024
Campaigns: General
In November 2019, we warned that the election of a Conservative government under Boris Johnson would be a gigantic step backwards for everything we believe in. It was unprecedented for us to issue to such a strong statement about one party during an election campaign, but that reflected the scale of danger we faced.
Today, as feared, we are looking back on four and a half years of a government based on imperial fantasy. A government which put corporate profits ahead of saving lives in the worst pandemic in a century. A government which signed away food standards in bad trade deals hurried through for headlines. A government which bolstered the slowly dying fossil fuel industry by authorising new oil exploration – and a new coal mine. A government which has slashed the aid budget, and then handed a large chunk of what was left to rich businesses.
And all the while, it was a government which blamed migrants and protestors for the distrust which these policies bred in our politics, enacting some of the most authoritarian, anti-social policies in modern British history.
It’s a shocking record. And while we’ve done our best to challenge this agenda – and even enjoyed some real victories along the way – it’s not been easy. The sooner we can put an end to this period, the better.
During the election we’re going to push all politicians on the most pressing global issues:
- A radical green transition which phases out the fossil fuel industry in a just and equitable manner
- An end to British complicity in Israel’s war crimes
- A new approach to the global south, repairing the damage done by vaccine apartheid and hijacked aid spending
- A humane way of supporting refugees, recognising that so many people are fleeing situations which British foreign policy has exacerbated.
After the election we will continue pushing for these policies with all of our power. And that power will be greater with you. Together, we will have new opportunities to shift things.
The next government has an enormous task ahead. It must heal divisions, not only in our own society but also around the world, where there is a chasm of mistrust between the global south and global north.
This will require the sort of bold, radical policies which we haven’t seen for more than a generation. It isn’t a time for cautiousness. But to date, we have not seen the policies we so desperately require put forward by most party leaders.
We know that these political leaders will not deliver the agenda we need on their own. It is up to us to campaign, challenge and mobilise.
That’s why organisations like Global Justice Now are going to be so vital. Big changes have only ever come about by ordinary people demanding them. Grassroots activism is our lifeblood. That means our strength is in our numbers.
We rely on the support of passionate individuals like you to hold the powerful to account.
For the next six weeks – and in the coming years – let’s make our voices heard together.
Get involved
- Join Global Justice Now as a member >>
- Tell the party leaders to support the global exit plan from fossil fuels >>
- Join our national gathering next Saturday >>
Photo: Shutterstock
