WE ARE very soon going to be faced with a general election and the choices are going to be to be muddied for a whole host of people.

In Scotland it will be, once again, based on independence and Scotland being dragged out of the EU against its will. In the rest of Britain, it will be by Remain or Leave. 

The overriding thought should always be — what will benefit the working class? What party is going to bring about real change for that class?

This election, more than any in recent years, offers us either hope and change or more austerity and pain.

Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party offer us that hope and change — a very real change to shift the balance of power, from the capitalists and elite, to us.

Labour will give us a green industrial revolution, a real industrial strategy, a complete reversal of the anti-trade union laws. It will tackle tax evasion and avoidance, bring about renationalisation of transport and utilities, a massive council housebuilding programme, reinvestment in local government and abolition of universal credit.

Only Corbyn offers a manifesto that speaks to both sides of the constitutional debates that have plagued us for over five years. 

Only he can bring us together and rid us of this Tory plague once and for all — a plague of racism, anti-union and free-market excess from a party that has systematically attacked and reduced all our public services.

None of the other parties offers a change that will take and move power to our class. This upcoming election is our chance for real change. It is an opportunity for power to be moved to where it should reside, to us the majority, the working class.

What do the rest offer?

The Tories, their partners in the Brexit Party and in Ukip offer a no-deal Brexit that is to create even more opportunities for the rich and corporations to increase their wealth and to further reduce the power of our unions, to privatise all that is left of our public services, to open Britain up to the free markets and complete Thatcher’s dream of “there is no such thing as society, only the individual.” All offered up on the altar of neoliberal capitalism.

The SNP will play the independence card, with membership of the EU and the cancelling of Article 50 thrown in — thereby only seeking votes in Scotland from at best 50 per cent of the population. 

Their most ardent supporters will shout “Red Tory” to deflect from the changes within the Labour Party. 

Well Corbyn is certainly red, but he is not a Tory — a claim that some in the SNP government and membership could not make. 

They fear a Corbyn government as this will erode their support and force them to actually govern with the excuse of “it’s all their fault” removed.

The Lib Dems are also for cancelling Article 50 — and never forget who they really are. It is no surprise that Tories are joining their soulmates in the Lib Dems who turn a blind eye to what their party did when in coalition with David Cameron.

These same Tories and Lib Dems gave us endless austerity, the bedroom tax, disability benefit cuts, increased tuition fees, devastating cuts to our public services, even more privatisation, reduced workers’ wages, froze all benefit payments, introduced universal credit, stagnated our economy — all in the name of austerity, so they could bail out the City of London.

The richest got even richer and we now have record numbers of foodbanks. 

Never forget what Jo Swinson and her Lib Dem Party did to the poorest and the working class. 

They are totally against Corbyn and will jump into bed with the Tories or anyone else to try to make sure he will never be elected.

Tam Kirby is chair of Fife trades council and Fife People’s Aseembly.