General Health

• Investment to be directed towards promoting health, preventing illness and curing disease when it does occur rather than on the profitable symptom-control medicines favoured by the private pharmaceutical companies
• The establishment of a network of community-run supermarkets specialising in healthy local produce at the cheapest possible retail prices, starting with areas of high social deprivation and poverty
• The implementation of free and healthy school meals (milk + water included) for all state school pupils
• A continued policy of no prescription charges
• Mental health treatment to be directed primarily towards rehabilitation rather than alleviation of symptoms
• A ban on the advertising of junk food
• Free access to autism specific health services which acknowledge that the condition may in some cases be a health problem that can be helped by medical intervention
• Free toothpaste and toothbrushes for all children and a dental hygiene campaign in schools

National Health Service

• A fully democratic and decentralised NHS, integrated with social services within the framework of local government
• The day to day running of the NHS to be supervised by elected health boards consisting of medical professionals, other healthcare workers and local communities
• A mean bed occupancy rate of approximately 85 per cent in general wards to ensure there is adequate capacity to cope with any surge in demand
• A mean bed occupancy rate of 75 per cent for intensive care units to ensure there are sufficient available beds to cope with any surge in demand
• Free childcare for NHS shift-workers
• Zero tolerance of violence against health workers
• The phasing out of private health care and the eventual incorporation of private medical facilities, services and resources back into the NHS
• Proper funding for physiotherapy services

Schools and Education

• Maximum class sizes of 18
• A broadening of the criteria of assessment in schools to ensure league tables are not just exam-based
• Bilingual education (eg. in Polish, Urdu, Arabic and Punjabi) to be available for children from ethnic minorities
• Promotion of Gaelic and Lowland Scots
• Free publicly funded pre-school education for all three and four year olds in place of nursery vouchers
• A continued policy of no university tuition fees
• Enhanced facilities for pupils with additional needs
• Democratic and egalitarian restructuring of schools, with plenary staff decision-making and flattened pay scales
• Uniforms to be issued free of charge
• The opening of all schools and their facilities free of charge for non-profitable learning activities outside school hours and term time
• Clean and well-supervised toilet facilities in all primary and secondary schools
• Support for the Parent Involvement Network as part of a national forum, involving parents, teachers and school students, to help shape and monitor the school curriculum and ensure its relevance to the needs of 21st century Scottish school students
• The recruitment of specialist teachers to support existing teachers in the areas of PE, art, languages, music and IT to enable class teachers to focus on core skills

Transport

• A national cycle strategy worked out with cycling organisations to develop an extensive network of safe, well-maintained and well-lit cycle tracks; and high quality cycle training for all primary 6/7 pupils
• Expansion of the provision of low-cost park-and-ride schemes to reduce congestion in towns and city centres
• The phasing in of alternative fuels (e.g. electric motors, H fuel cells) for public service vehicles
• Free bus, rail, underground and ferry travel within four years to cut carbon emissions, enhance social inclusion and save public money by reducing congestion, cutting road accidents and slashing the roads repair bill
• A shift of heavy goods from road to rail wherever feasible, facilitated by the building of new dedicated freight lines
• A review of all new road building and upgrading, with priority given to safety improvements and improved maintenance rather than on bigger and faster roads
• All money raised by government and local authorities from parking meters, and car parks to be ring-fenced for public transport

Housing

• The building of 100,000 fully accessible new homes for rent over four years, bringing public sector house building into line with the private sector
• The immediate cancellation of Scotland’s local authority housing debt with no strings attached
• Homeless organisations to be provided with the resources to end rough sleeping, including hostels as an interim measure until proper homes are available for everyone
• A new minimum housing standard in both the public and private rented sectors, with central heating, double-glazing and high standards of insulation
• The transformation of the appearance of our housing schemes, employing environmental artists, landscape gardeners and others with relevant skills
• Safe housing for women/families who have suffered domestic violence or other forms of abuse
• Legislation to give local councils the power to ban holiday homes in their area where they believe there is a local housing shortage
• The right of local authorities to impose a land value tax on land and property worth over £1 million to help enhance the building of social housing for rent
• All homes identified as ‘below tolerable standard’ in the private sector to be brought into public ownership if the landlord fails to bring them up to standard within a six month deadline

Poverty and Wealth

• An expansion of locally-based money advice centres and credit unions to financially assist communities
• A change in debt legislation to remove the threat of eviction and house repossession
• Public ownership of North Sea oil with the profits used for the benefit of the people rather the profiteers
• A new corporate tax regime which forces Scotland’s most profitable companies to pay their fair share of taxation, at least to Scandinavian levels
• The increase of all benefits by £30 a week with subsequent annual increases in line with inflation
• The restoration of 'lone parent' benefits
• Restoration of benefits to 16 and 17 year olds

Jobs and Worker's Rights

• A national minimum wage of £9 an hour for all public sector workers – two thirds of median male earnings
• A 35 hour week for all public sector workers without any loss of earnings
• Confiscation of the assets, including factories, offices and equipment, of multinational companies which shift largescale production from Scotland to low wage economies elsewhere
• Full support for trade unionists forced to take strike action in defence of their living standards and working conditions
• Workers’ control of health and safety at work through elected health and safety stewards
• Promotion of International Workers’ Memorial Day
• Opposition to deregulation of Health and Safety legislation and cutbacks to H&S enforcement agencies

Privatisation and Social Ownership

• An end to private catering and cleaning contracts in the NHS and education services
• Defiance of European Union laws over tendering where these laws threaten the livelihoods of Scottish workers
• Mandatory ethical and workers rights provisions to be included in all public sector procurement agreements
• The creation of ten regional, publicly-owned bus companies, accountable to local councils
• The reversal of the part-privatisation of water and sewerage; and for Scotland’s water supply to be municipalised and run by groups of local authorities, along the lines of the police and fire boards
• The establishment of a democratically run Scottish National Oil Corporation to take over the North Sea oilfields, with the profits used for public investment, including in renewable forms energy, such as wind and wave

Sports, Culture and Entertainment

• A national project aiming to transform the drab appearance of towns and housing schemes through murals, ornamental gardens, sculpture, fountains, monuments, mazes, performance areas and architectural restoration
• No cuts in Scotland’s overall arts budget
• Support for the Gaelic Digital Service, and for the necessary infrastructure and coverage to make the service available on all media platforms including the internet
• The languages of Gaelic, Lowland Scots and British Sign Language to be given equal status with English
• Free access to all publicly-owned cultural and recreational centres including art galleries, museums, sports centres, gymnasiums and town halls
• An end to the sell-off of football pitches and other sports facilities to property developers
• Senior football clubs to distribute a portion of their seats, free of charge, to pensioners and benefit claimants via local community councils
• Free football coaching schools in local communities open to girls and boys

Energy, Pollution and the Environment

• Recycling bins in every public building and workplace
• Environmental education to be incorporated into the curriculum of primary, secondary, further and higher education systems across the country
• All rented forms of public housing to have compulsory insulation and double-glazing fitted
• Legislation making it illegal to own, as well as to import, illegally logged timber + other woods
• All suppliers of goods to the public sector to be legally required to use biodegradable and recyclable packaging
• Increased taxation on aviation fuel, with revenue used to improve high speed rail and ferry links between Scotland and continental Europe and Scandinavia
• The promotion of herbivorous diets in schools and the workplace to reduce the country's total carbon footprint
• Immediate withdrawal from the EU Common Fisheries Policy with a 25 mile offshore limit within which only Scottish fishermen and women can trawl for fish

Land and Rural Regeneration

• Increased funding to the Rural Transport Community Initiative to allow people living in remote and isolated areas access to social, leisure, shopping, health and other services
• The shop in single shop villages to be exempted from staunch business rates, lowering the threat of closure
• Government grants to enable small farmers to establish farming co-operatives, where they can agree prices for produce and thus resist the power of capitalistic supermarkets to drive down prices
• Local management of sea fisheries, based on the Finnish model, where environmental sustainability is a key priority alongside community sustainability
• Full trade union rights and protection for farm workers
• The replacement of overhead pylons with underground cables where environmentally beneficial
• Elected and accountable River Boards to remove fishing rights in rivers and lochs from the control of private landowners and bring them under public control, thus allowing the relevant authorities to keep control of fish stocks
• The expansion of the number of allotments in Scotland and the protection of existing allotments from the infringement of developers in recognition of their important environmental, health and recreational role in our communities
• Grants and assistance to help farmers convert to organic farming

Animal Welfare

• Full support for the ban on foxhunting and resistance to any future moves to water down the legislation
• A ban on the abuse of animals in entertainment and sport
• Stringent new legislation for zoos to ensure that animals held in captivity do not suffer ill-treatment
  • Similar legislation to prevent cruelty to animals at market and at slaughter
• Animal welfare to be incorporated into the curriculum of primary and secondary schools, as part of personal and social education (PSE)
• Promotion of herbivorous and meat free diets
• An absolute ban on animal testing for cosmetics, household products and military research
• The replacement of the (I'd say) largely ineffective Dangerous Dogs Act with new non-breed based legislation which recognises the responsibility of owners for aggressive behaviour by their dogs

Women's Rights

• The closure of saunas and massage parlours which operate unlawfully as legalised brothels and sex dens
• The decriminalisation of women involved in prostitution, recognition of men who buy sex as abusers, and increased police resources to enforce a strict and notorious clamp down on kerb-crawlers in red light districts
• A minimum of 56 weeks (or 13 months) maternity leave on full pay for all public sector workers, with the right to return to their occupation part time available
• Equal representation for women at all levels of government
• An end to cuts to, and full funding for Women’s Aid and other agencies which provide refuges, helplines and drop in centres for women who have experienced violence, abuse, rape and child sexual abuse at present or past
• Equal access for all women to abortion services regardless of where they live in Scotland
• Designate International Women's Day as a national holiday
• Free sanitary protection for all women

Youth Rights

• The abolition of student fees, the graduate endowment, and recognition of free education as a universal right
• The funding of 5000 new apprenticeships
• The right to vote and stand for office at 16
• Funding to set up local youth facilities in every community, run democratically and effectively by young people

Disabled People's Rights

• British Sign Language to be taught in all schools, with free courses in BSL at all levels for any adult or child who wishes to develop their skills in the language
• The guaranteed right of disabled people to autonomy, including the right to choose where to live and to plan their own packages of personal assistance and/or care through local authorities and councils
• Comprehensive and enforced stan­dards of accessibility on all forms of public transport
• Increased support for those who care for or assist family or friends with disabilities, including education, respite and counselling services
• Existing public buildings to be converted to ensure access for disabled people is feasible and not challenging
• Increased funding to allow local authorities to meet the demand for Direct Payments, which allow disabled people to receive the assistance necessary to allow them to live fulfilling independent lives in the community

Elderly People's Rights

• The basic state pension to be increased to £160 a week
• Retirement to be genuinely voluntary, with the right of workers to continue whether part-time or full-time beyond retirement age being wholeheartedly available
• Free heating, phone rental and television licenses for all persons over the age of 70
• Forums which bring together elderly and younger people to exchange experiences and break down age barriers
• Free access for pensioners to sports, leisure and educational facilities designed specifically for pensioners

LGBT Rights

• Educational projects in schools and colleges aimed at eradicating homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying and isolation in breaktimes and the workplace
• The strengthening of civil partnership legislation to full equality with marriage, including religious ceremonies
• Full recognition of homophobic persecution as a legitimate reason to seek asylum
• Guaranteed long term funding for community projects supporting LGBT people, under direct democratic control of service users, with full transparency and accountability
• Updated legislation allowing homosexuals to donate blood, tissue and organs without facing deferrals

Racism and Sectarianism

• Work with football clubs, in particular the Old Firm, to eradicate sectarianism from Scottish society and culture
• Full recognition of Scottish Gypsy Travelers as a distinct ethnic minority with full legal protection, followed by an official letter of apology from the Scottish Parliament for the years of discrimination and genocidal policies the group has faced under previous governments and public bodies
• All public information to be provided in the main languages of Scotland’s ethnic minority communities
• A ban on Islamophobic demonstrations hosted by the Scottish Defence League, for they instigate a sense of alienation, detachment and intimidation throughout Muslim communities and cause unnecessary disruption
• Support for organisations which challenge racism and religious bigotry, such as Nil By Mouth, Show Racism the Red Card and the Scottish Anti-Fascist Alliance.
• New legislation allowing Glasgow-based councils to prohibit Orange Order parades when they see suitable
• Tougher penalties for employers and businesses who discriminate against staff from ethnic diasporas.
• For Dungavel Detention Centre for asylum seekers to be turned into a museum of anti-racism and multiculturalism
• A warm welcome to any asylum seekers who come to Scotland in the future, and the offer of Scottish citizenship to those who want it

Safer Communities

• A new drugs policy which will allow free heroin on prescription to registered addicts, under controlled conditions, to reduce petty crime and to undermine the lucrative criminal empires which have been built on the illegal supply of heroin
• The extension of legal aid to cover workplace and consumer disputes
• Roll out of multi-agency risk assessment conferences throughout Scotland with fully funded advocacy services for adult victims and their dependents
• An end to the waste of the police and legal resources devoted to arresting and prosecuting people for the possession of cannabis for personal use
• The establishment of special secure units providing intensive rehabilitation for sex offenders who are judged to pose a continuing risk to the public
• Education, prevention and treatment to tackle bullying
• Increased use of public information films, such as this

Relationship with UK & Ireland

• Support for the United Kingdom's continuing membership of the European Union, under renegotiated terms
• Extend the Common Travel Area to Scotland, granting British and Irish citizens free travel without requiring passports and other forms of documentation
• No border controls between Scotland and England
• For British and Irish citizens to be accorded with equivalent reciprocal rights and entitlements, with a number of exceptions - eg. presidential elections
• Support for inter-isles cooperation projects
• Support for the principle of increased devolution of powers to Wales, Northern Ireland and England
• Support for a peaceful reunification of Ireland into a Republic, with support for such a measure indicated through a referendum rather than through force

Democracy

• The introduction of participatory democracy at community level by establishing local assemblies with the power to make and veto decisions that affect their community
• An increase in the maximum number of councillors per ward from 4 to 6, to allow greater proportionality and more representative local government
• The abolition of the monarchy and all its structural and ideological supports, including the offensive ceremony whereby elected MSPs are forced to swear an oath of allegiance to an unelected monarch
• No unelected second chamber
• All elections to be conducted under a genuinely proportional system, and the scrapping of the anti-democratic first-past-the-post system
• Greater use of referenda to allow ordinary people a say in controversial decisions
• Support for the open source software movement and for all public bodies to use open source software where available and appropriate
• The right of prisoners and homeless people to vote in elections - local, general and European - in line with recent legal rulings

War and Peace

• A declaration by the Scottish Parliament calling for the immediate withdrawal of UK troops from Afghanistan
• A declaration by the Scottish Parliament opposing any UK involvement in US or NATO led military action against Iran, North Korea or anywhere else
• The transportation of nuclear warheads on Scotland’s roads, railways and waterways to be prohibited
• The removal of all nuclear weapons from Scotland
• Scotland’s overall military budget to brought into line per capita with that of the Republic of Ireland with the savings diverted to vital public services
• Guaranteed employment and/or retraining with no loss of pay for workers who would no longer be employed in the defence industry and special funding earmarked for local communities currently dependent on defense spending
• Close armaments factories and research facilities, and subsidise their conversion to peaceful purposes
• Condemnation of allied drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and the Horn of Africa

International

• Solidarity with those forces in the Arab world struggling for democracy, social progress, freedom of religion and equality in spite of the murderous tactics committed by pro-Western dictatorships and sanctioned forces
• Solidarity with all those resisting globalisation and neo-liberalism world­wide, including trade unionists, anti-poverty campaigners, liberation movements, environmentalists, and small farmers/peasants movements
• Ethical procurement policies by all public bodies, and opposition to the award of contracts to companies who fail to observe basic ethical standards on child labour, poverty pay and environmental degradation
• Support for the stance of those socialist governments resisting globalisation and imperialism, such as in Cuba and Venezuela
• Support for Palestine in their just fight for an independent homeland; and for Israeli dissidents and peace campaigners
• Support for all other peoples struggling for national self-determination, including the Basque Country, Catalonia, West Papua and the Faroe Islands
• Agricultural and industrial subsidies and grants distributed in Scotland to be vetted to ensure they do not contribute to increased impoverishment or environmental degradation in other regions of the world
• Fair trade country status for Scotland
• The funding of schemes to encourage young Scots to teach and work on overseas development projects
• A campaign for the immediate and total cancellation of debt from the poor countries of the Third World to the rich countries of the First World
• Support for Argentina in their territorial claim to the Falkland Islands and South Georgia.
• International pressure to abolish the United Nations’ Security Council and to democratise the General Assembly, the sovereign body of the UN
• Requesting of Scottish membership to the Nordic Council and other Scandinavian institutions
• The withdrawal of Scotland from NATO and the initiation of an international campaign for its abolition
• Scotland to be an international force for peace not war, for social justice not corporate profit
• The implementation of an independent Scottish currency
• A truly internationalist Scotland that welcomes refugees and supports all those struggling worldwide against political, economic and national oppression
• A socialist Scotland based on the principles of equality, democracy, liberty, generosity and solidarity

Viva la socialism!