London District of the Communist Party of Britain
Power to the people of London!
◼ Rent Controls Now!
◼ Fight for Decent Jobs to Beat the Cost of Living Crisis!
◼ Stop Arming Israel and Free Palestine!
Minisite © 2024 London District of the Communist Party of Britain
We are the London District of the Communist Party of Britain, founded by and for the working class movement in 1920. We fight for the needs and aspirations of London’s working people.
“The aim of the Communist Party is to achieve a socialist Britain in which the means of production, distribution and exchange will be socially owned and utilised in a planned way for the benefit of all.”Aims and Constitution of the Communist Party of Britain, October 2010
London in the 21st centuryThe effects of Britain's dire inequality are painfully clear in London: homes are built as investments for the rich rather than places to live, meaning that house prices and rents are unaffordable for most people; big business exploits inflation to ramp up prices and take over small firms; and London’s working class suffers because so much of our income is spent on bills, rent and basic necessities.The City of London is one of the world’s leading financial centres, the birthplace in the 16th century of not only modern capitalism, but also of the imperialism of the British Empire and the aggressive and interventionist foreign policy of the British Government today. The City is at the top of a pyramid of international tax havens, funnelling wealth from Britain and the worldwide economy.What do we want for London?◼ Good living standards and equal opportunities in life for all people in London. The best way to fight inequality is to campaign and organise within our communities and workplaces. The so-called cost of living crisis is a direct result of Government policies and big employers’ greed.◼ Returning ownership and control of public resources to local communities. We want affordable services run for the benefit of local people, not profits for multinational companies.◼ Investing in council housing and homes at genuinely affordable rents. Stop selling public land to private developers and build new homes to meet the needs of local people rather than developers’ profits. Every person has the right to somewhere safe and secure to live, but there continues to be a crisis in genuinely affordable housing all over London.◼ Investing in affordable childcare, healthcare and social care, community schools and youth services, and fighting against child poverty. Every person, young and old has the right to a happy and dignified life and equal opportunities to succeed.◼ Ensuring that the streets are safe for everyone and making the Police answerable to our communities. We demand that the Mayor take emergency action to eliminate racism and sexism within the Police and protect women, BAEM communities and schoolchildren from violence.◼ Working with the people of London to make the better and happier future that we deserve. If we want to take control of our lives, we all have to get organised. Communists are committed to working with local people, community and faith groups, and trade unions to fight to change things for the better.Who are we? What do we believe?We believe that there is an alternative to the greedy and violent monopoly capitalism that is currently impoverishing our communities and destroying London and the rest of the planet.We are ordinary Londoners, part of London’s diverse, historic and powerful working class movement. Every day we campaign with and on behalf of our people. We are community and trade union activists.We believe that the solutions to society’s problems will come from the working class taking power in our city, and defeating the domination of big business and the rich in the City of London.We believe in a productive, sustainable economy that works for everyone, which means rebalancing the economy, developing high-tech manufacturing, investing in our public services, eliminating inequality, assisting Third World development as part of an independent progressive foreign policy, and safeguarding our planet’s ecosystem.Agree with us? Then stand with us!Join the Communist Party today!
The Communist Manifesto for LondonCapitalism is broken, Socialism is the solution!Our programme to put power in the hands of the people of London.
Every Londoner knows the impact of the decline in living standards, increase in inequality between the ultra-rich and the working class, and the skyrocketing cost of living in our city. Our city has become a playground for the ultra-rich rather than a decent place for Londoners to live and work.The mainstream media and politicians would have you believe that nothing can be done about this, life just has to be that way, and that nothing can be different under the capitalist system.But we believe that if people get organised in their communities and workplaces, we can take back the power over life in our city.Fight for a better quality of life!The so-called “cost of living crisis” is really a cost of profits crisis caused by big business and politicians squeezing more profits out of working people after a rollercoaster of Tory Government cuts and lack of investment, mismanagement and economic decline made worse by the COVID pandemic.We know that many of our jobs are low paid and insecure. Many people are forced to take two or more jobs to make ends meet. The hangover of racism and sexism in our society means that Black and South Asian people and women are affected by these terrible conditions more than anyone else. Increasingly our children face bleak opportunities for future education and work.Meanwhile the costs of housing, travel and basic necessities continue to go up so that many of London’s workers can hardly make ends meet. Working with our communities, trade unions and other organisations that want to make a difference, Communists believe that local government must take radical action to defend and advance the conditions of our quality of life.
◼ Communists fight to take back control of housebuilding and lead the way towards a mass council house building programme that will meet Londoners’ needs and aspirations. We demand proper regulation and compulsory licensing of the private rented sector, rent controls and funding for enforcement and prosecution of rogue landlords and developers. We support the demands for justice from the survivors of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.◼ Communists fight for a plan for high-quality training, apprenticeships and jobs that will get young people and the unemployed into decent work, and regulate bogus self-employment and zero hours’ contracts that are being misused by big business to exploit workers.◼ Communists fight against inequality in London and violence against women and Black people, as well as anti-discrimination enforcement and prosecution of employers and access to childcare and credit for workers to be able to meet our needs and aspirations.
Save our public services!We know that our hospitals, schools and social care are an essential lifeline for Londoners. But every one of our services is on the brink of disaster due to lack of adequate funding for staff, facilities, and special needs and disabilities in our communities.Privatisation and the desire to make profit from these services (or cut them back), rather than meet the people’s needs, mean that we are letting down the most vulnerable in our society. Local Authorities are facing huge shortfalls in funds this year and potential bankruptcy due to the Tory Government’s cuts.London has one of the most expensive public transportation systems in Europe, which alongside how much we pay for rent is bleeding Londoners dry. Communists believe that local government should take radical action to save our public services and invest in them and their staff properly.
◼ Communists demand that the GLA act to protect public and social services from cuts and mismanagement, and prevent councils from passing the costs of the cuts on to the public and public sector employees. We demand emergency funding and planning to help resolve the mental health and care crises among London’s children and working people, and services for the elderly and disabled people.◼ Communists fight for an end to the privatisation nightmare that has only benefited big business and for public services such as the buses to be brought back into public ownership, with the profits from these services reinvested into our communities and green transformation. We demand a complete freeze on increases to TfL fares and congestion charges and believe that a coherent plan that is affordable for London’s workers should be put into place to reduce car use and pollution instead. We commit to keeping the Freedom Pass, free travel for children and other concessions and introduce more concessions based on income.◼ Communists fight to extend Free School Meals to all primary and secondary schools, funding for the provision of subsidised childcare, and adequate funding for youth services and culture, such as an entitlement for all Londoners to access cultural sites free of charge. We fight to save the arts and culture in our communities, without which we will have a lost generation of innovators and artists.
Defend our communities and democracy!While London’s workers are fed the crumbs off the table, big business in the City of London make super-profits from selling bombs to countries like Israel, the United States and Saudi Arabia, supporting conflict and human rights abuses all around the world. We do not forget or forgive the corruption, needless deaths and mismanagement that went with the COVID pandemic – billions spent on an unfit track and trace system to name just one example.Climate change is becoming more and more of a threat to our city, increasingly disrupting transport and business and negatively affecting public health and the most vulnerable. London’s infrastructure and buildings need to be updated to protect people from extreme weather and more people-powered solutions found to the climate emergency that is already impacting Londoners.The cuts and lack of investment in our essential institutions, low-paid economy and lack of opportunities, the ugly growth of racism and anti-immigrant ideas, scandal after scandal in the Metropolitan Police, health crises and explosion in drug misuse, are all leading to a perfect storm that is putting the heart and soul of our city in danger for generations to come. Communists believe that local government should take radical action to defend our communities, democratic institutions and way of life from the outright decline and anti-democratic shift under the Tory Government.
◼ Communists fight for more power to local government and funding for community organisations, as well as the development of local People’s Plans that involve communities, trade unions and small businesses in achieving a regeneration of London based on the needs and aspirations of the people, not big business and politicians. We support a Green Plan for London, adapting to climate change and greening London’s buildings and open spaces, reducing pollution, improving energy efficiency and funding sustainable community projects.◼ Communists demand an investigation into big business in the City, its links to financial crime, war and human rights abuses today and the slave trade in the past. We demand that big business in the City be held to account for criminal activities and misconduct as well as pay reparations for slavery and that the GLA take action in support of peace, Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel, for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and against the UK arms manufacturers whose weapons are the cause of misery and death in Palestine and elsewhere.◼ Communists demand that the GLA carry out an immediate investigation and action aimed at fundamentally changing the racist, sexist and homophobic culture in the Metropolitan Police and holding the police to account for any misconduct and crimes against the public.
Do you want to fight for a better quality of life?Do you want to save our public services?Do you want to defend our communities and democracy?Then join our campaigns! Join the Communist Party! Make a change and take action in your community, workplace or college today!
We are active in the struggle to build a United Front of the working class throughout London, building people power and challenging the attacks of big business and the Government.We fight for a better future and for Socialism, and an end to the destruction of our living standards and our city in the shameless pursuit of profit.
BranchesLondon's Communists are currently organised within 7 geographical branches.◼ Croydon
◼ Greater London East
This branch covers the London boroughs of Barking & Dagenham, Havering, Newham, Redbridge and Waltham Forest.
◼ Greenwich and Bexley
◼ Hackney and Tower Hamlets
This branch also covers the City of London.
◼ Lewisham, Southwark and Bromley
◼ North London
This branch also covers Northwest London.
◼ Southwest LondonCampaignsLondon's Communists are active on a wide variety of fronts, fighting for the needs and interests of working people. We aim to build democratic, well organised, united action directed from our communities and workplaces that can win the demands of London's workers for a better life and a dignified future.◼ Black and ethnic minority groups
◼ Community organisations
◼ Cultural organisations
◼ International solidarity organisations that defend the rights of workers abroad and the Socialist countries
◼ LGBT+ movements
◼ The Marx Memorial Library and Workers' School
◼ Peace and anti-war organisations
◼ Refugee and migrant solidarity organisations
◼ Tenants unions
◼ Trade unions and trades councils
◼ Women's movements
◼ The Young Communist League, the autonomous youth wing of the Communist Party of BritainMany of our members are leading community and trade union activists. We pride ourselves on the wide variety of experience, knowledge and skills of our members.We also participate in local and national elections. In the most recent GLA elections in May 2024, the Communist Party of Britain received 12,915 votes on the London-wide list for the London Assembly.Our strategic approach and aims are outlined in our political programme, Britain's Road to Socialism.Want to make a difference?Join the Communist Party today!