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Socialist Alliance launched its “liveable city” campaign on August 10 for the City of Sydney Council. That and housing justice are the ticket’s campaign priorities, lord mayoral candidate Rachel Evans, told the 50-strong gathering.

Evans is a disability worker and housing activist. She is also a long-time LGBTIQ activist.

Evans said Clover Moore, the current Mayor, heads one of the richest councils in the country, yet outsourcing and the privatisation of garbage collection, early educator centres, cleaning and safety work has cost people good jobs.

“Moore has presided over a housing crisis in the city that has the worst in living memory,” Evans said. “Sydney is now the second most expensive place to live in the world … As a result there are 300–400 people homeless, sleeping rough every night in the city, while 270 public housing dwellings and 3400 private dwellings lie empty every night.”

Evans said SA wants council to raise its 1% developer levy, a tax on residential and commercial developments, to 3% and use it on affordable housing. SA also wants council to push for a “rent hike tax” on any landlord who raises rent in a two-year period.

“Council must requisition empty public housing dwellings, and buy the boarding house in Selwyn Street, Paddington, where 32 elderly folk face eviction.”

Nick Riemer, University of Sydney National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) activist, said he is “proud” to support Evans and the SA team. “Another world is possible and we need activists and campaigners like them to make it happen, in the town hall and on the streets.”

Andrew Chuter, Suelin McCauley and Adam Haddad, part of the SA ticket, spoke, as did Judy Deacon, a campaigner for victims of police killings and Mark Gillespie, a longstanding activist for LGTBIQ rights and Palestine.

A message from Howard Byrne, a former member of the NSW Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union management committee, said the city council is “home to huge wealth disparity” and a socialist on council would do much to “bring justice and equity”.

Sydney University Student Representative Council president Harrison Brennan and Kai, a community organiser in the campaign to get councils to take a stand on Israel’s war, also sent support messages.

Paul Keating, secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia Sydney branch and a member of the Communist Party of Australia, message included that “Rachel and her team of anti-war, housing and environment activists would make the city a better place.

“Rachel has been a community organiser for decades and never gives up the fight. We have to win against capitalism before it destroys us all.”

Long-time environment campaigner Dr Coral Wynter, also on the SA ticket, sent a message from interstate.

“The mask of human decency has been ripped from the face of Western governments by the Palestinian genocide, the thousands of groups fighting to save our environment … Many are asking what can we do to change this dystopia?

“Socialist Alliance is saying we need to try everything, including the narrow window of elections. It’s an opportunity to talk about policies to alleviate the real life experiences of the majority of people. It’s a chance to talk about we want to see happen and get more people active in the struggle.”

[For more information and to assist with campaign, email sydcentral@socialist-alliance.org or phone 0403 517 266.]