Socialist Campaign Group sets out demands for next Labour leader

The left-wing Socialist Campaign Group has set out the key policies it wants to see enacted by whoever becomes the next Labour leader and Prime Minister.

The group, founded in 1982 and made up of 24 members of the Parliamentary Labour Party, has outlined nine “deep structural changes” it is calling for the next leader to adopt, from introducing a wealth tax on those with assets worth more than £10 million to expanding nationalisation to the energy and water sectors and further strengthening workers’ rights.

In a statement, the Socialist Campaign Group said: “Just two years after the general election, Labour has squandered much of the hope people invested in us to deliver real change. Too many people who once voted Labour no longer feel the party stands for them or reflects their values.

“Unless Labour changes course quickly, not only is the very survival of the party at stake, but we also risk paving the way for a Trump-style far-right government, with all the harm that would follow.

“A change of Labour leadership will happen soon, but that alone will not be enough. Labour needs a fundamental change of direction.

“Labour’s renewal must begin with a recognition that Britain faces a deep crisis caused by a rigged economic model that has transferred vast amounts of wealth and power to the super-rich while leaving millions struggling. Polls show that a bold economic programme is the best way of winning back voters from across the spectrum, including those who back the Greens and other progressive parties as well as some who have moved to Reform.

“The deep structural changes needed to reverse over forty years of neoliberalism cannot be achieved overnight but Labour, under a new leader, must show it understands the scale of the challenge and take immediate bold steps to win back support.”

SCG’s policy demands for next Labour leader

Tax and fiscal justice

• Equalising capital gains tax
• Introduce a two percent levy on assets worth more than £10 million
• Windfall taxes on sectors making unearned “super-profits”, including banking sector
• Clampdown on corporate tax loopholes and other tax privileges

Public ownership

• Extending nationalisation to water and energy
• Scrap plans for PFI-style schemes to fund new NHS health centres
• Get Palantir out of the NHS
• Implement plans for a National Care Service
• Honour commitment to the biggest wave of insourcing in a generation

Emergency cost-of-living action

• Emergency package to protect living standards, including genuine freeze on energy bills, universal free school meals and expansion of affordable public transport with free bus travel for those under 22

Strengthening workers’ rights

• All measures in Employment Rights Act should be implemented in full
• ‘Employment Rights Act 2.0’ to ensure complete delivery of ‘New Deal for Working People’, including restoration of collective bargaining

Tackling the housing crisis

• Large-scale council house building programme to meet urgent social need, as well as boost jobs and growth
• Introduce rent controls to protect tenants from soaring rents
• Tackle the scandal of leasehold

Rejecting Reform’s politics of division

• Champion humane asylum and immigration system, including safe and legal routes for refugees
• Scrap plans to double the time migrant workers already in Britain need to secure settlement status
• Prove Labour is a party that respects equality, civil liberties and human rights for all, including the LGBTQ+ community
• Deliver the long-promised Hillsborough Law

Action on climate emergency

• Oppose new oil and gas licenses and invest in transition to renewable energy

Ethical foreign policy

• Champion foreign policy approach based on international law, human rights and peace
• Implement sanctions on Israel, including total ban on goods produced in illegal settlements

Restore Labour democracy

• Overturn “anti-democratic changes introduced under Keir Starmer”, including changes to thresholds for leadership elections

Become a friend of LabourList and join our community. Our friends support our vital non-factional work and get access to exclusive content and events. 

Subscribe here to our daily newsletter roundup of Labour news, analysis and comment– and follow us on TikTok, Bluesky, WhatsApp, X and Facebook. You can also write to our editor to share your thoughts on our stories and share your own. The best letters are published every Sunday.

• • SHARE: If you have anything to share that we should be looking into or publishing about this story – or any other topic involving Labour– contact us (strictly anonymously if you wish) at [email protected].
  • SUBSCRIBE: Sign up to LabourList’s morning email here for the best briefing on everything Labour, every weekday morning.
  • BECOME A FRIEND: If you enjoyed this, why not consider becoming a Friend of LabourList? Help sustain our journalism, and of course Friends do get benefits…
  • PARTNER: If you or your organisation might be interested in partnering with us on sponsored events or projects, email [email protected].
  • ADVERTISE: If your organisation would like to advertise or run sponsored pieces on LabourList‘s daily newsletter or website, contact our exclusive ad partners Total Politics at [email protected].