PBP calls for transfer pact with Sinn Féin, Social Democrats, left independents

People Before Profit have reached out to Sinn Féin, the Social Democrats and left-wing independent candidates to take part in a transfer pact in June’s local elections.

A similar pact, known as #VoteLeftTransferLeft was used in the 2020 general election.

Party TD Paul Murphy has written to Mary Lou McDonald and Holly Cairns, as well as various left-wing independent councillors and candidates, to take part in the pact for June.

Labour and the Greens, as well as some independents, were specifically left out of the pact after “propping up austerity budgets” in the past.

Murphy said that June is a chance to “serve an eviction notice on the government and elect Councils which will use their power to ensure social and genuinely affordable homes are built on public land and to invest in our communities.”

He also stated that he would be interested in entering into further discussions for a pact in the next general election which must take place before next March.

The Dublin South-West TD said the pact is “all the more important as a concerted effort is being made by sections of the establishment to turn the anger of Irish society onto migrants and foster racist sentiment.”

“By presenting a coordinated left alternative we can help to ward off this threat. People Before Profit believes that we should start with the local elections and then enter further discussions for a pact for a general election.”

He pointed to a “widespread disillusionment with parties that say one thing before an election and another afterwards. We therefore believe that a Vote Left-Transfer pact should carry with it a commitment not to enter into ruling Council groups after the local elections that involve FF or FG, support their austerity budgets, or partake in council junkets. Instead of propping them up, like Labour, the Greens and some independents have in the past, we should fight for a left alternative.”

“We think that the best way to achieve this is a pact among left-wing parties and independents, calling for Vote Left -Transfer Left. This is all the more important as a concerted effort is being made by sections of the establishment to turn the anger of Irish society onto migrants and foster racist sentiment.”

“By presenting a coordinated left alternative – whatever our own differences in approach – we can help to ward off this threat. People Before Profit believes that we should start with the local elections but enter further discussions on a general election.”

Murphy said he was fully aware that there would be different perspectives and, but People Before Profit “sees this as just the start of a process to form a left alternative.”

“We hope that this will start a conversation that can lead to an agreement that will help to get Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael out and pave the way for transformational change”.