PS failing in opposition role

Ligue communiste révolutionnaire leader says Socialists should scrutinise the Right – not his new party.

The leader of the Ligue communiste révolutionnaire Olivier Besancenot said the Socialist Party should scrutinise the government, not his new party.

Mr Besancenot was speaking at the last meeting of the LCR, ahead of its transformation into the Nouveau parti anticapitaliste.

He told 1,300 party members present: “This time, the crisis in capitalism is serious, deep and grave.”

“There is trouble on the horizon because capitalism and French capitalists are cracking. What they need is a good old-fashioned revolution.”

The Nouveau parti anticapitaliste will be officially launched at the end of January and will field candidates at the European elections, he said.

He said the centre-left Socialist Party was failing in its job of opposition.

“For those who say we simply play the games of the right-wing, I say this ‘left’ is not doing its job in opposition.

“This left has found a million excuses not to do its work. They would do a lot better keeping an eye on the Right, than creating commissions to watch the LCR.”

He added: “We will not wait until 2012 to resist, fight and seek to stop the politics of Nicolas Sarkozy.”

Photo: Guillaume Paumier