We must show solidarity with the people of Greece

The result of second general election this year in Greece shows that its people have rejected the old politics which led the country to financial ruin. Syriza will once again lead a coalition government with the right-wing nationalist party ANEL as its partner. Whilst politically these two parties are polls apart, what unites them is that both have emerged and grown as a result of the mess that Greece’s political class created and the abject rejection of the old ways of doing things by a majority of its population. PASOK who for decades was the standard bearer of left politics within Greece has been reduced to a rump which may well eventually lead to its complete demise.

There is no doubt that Tsipras faces many challenges as he seeks to clean up Greek politics once and for all. However, the biggest threat facing the Greek people and its new government is the country’s growing and unsustainable debt burden. Whatever level of austerity is forced upon Greece, it’s going to be almost impossible to turn things around. Since the first bailout, the Greek economy and ordinary people’s living standards have nose-dived. The situation is desperate for around one third of the population.

A sad fact exemplifying the depth of the human tragedy which austerity has created is the a growing number of new-born babies who aren’t being immunised as their parents can no longer afford the vaccinations – millions now have no access to healthcare. This should not be happening anywhere on our planet, never mind in a so-called first world country that is one of our European partners.

Let’s be clear, it is not a matter of if, but when, a significant amount of Greece’s debt will need to be cancelled. The IMF – not renowned for its left-wing bias – agrees with this. So do many prominent economists such as Joseph Stiglitz and Paul Krugman. What is holding this back is domestic politics in other EU states, rather than any sound economics.

We in the Labour Party have a responsibility to show solidarity with the people of Greece. We must support calls for the cancellation of the country’s unsustainable debt burden. That’s why we are launching Labour Greek Solidarity during our Party’s conference. We will be holding a meeting from 7.30 – 9pm on Monday 28th September in the Alexandria Room in the Grand Hotel. We are extremely pleased that Zoe Konstantopoulou the outgoing speaker of the Greek parliament will be addressing our event. She led the Greek Debt Truth Commission and will no doubt be able to separate myth from reality. We will also have other speakers including Labour MPs, an MEP and the Director of the Jubilee Debt Campaign. Please come along to show your solidarity with the people of Greece!

General Secretary of TSSA. Come to “Greece, austerity, Syriza and Europe – Where next for the Greek people?” at Labour party conference: 7.30-9pm on Monday 28th September Alexandria Room, Brighton Grand Hotel.