The Communist Party of Britain (CPB) has lashed out at the council and its policies on women’s rights and opportunities in their by-election campaigns.
They pose the questions ‘What is a feminist vote?’ and ‘How do council policies affect women and girls?’
They have condemned The City of Edinburgh Council for opposing the updated Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) Code of Practice on single-sex spaces, and for failing to implement the code.
The party is standing candidates Richard Shillcock (Southside/Newington ward) and Peter Olech (Portobello/Craigmillar ward). They say they are offering distinct feminist policies within a socialist alternative to the policies adopted by mainstream parties.
Their assertion is that the lives of girls and women in Scotland are under attack from the widening gap between rich and poor, from cuts and underfunding, and from an epidemic of male violence.
The party’s policies follow three strands:
“Women’s lives. We need to rebuild women’s ‘social wage’ by investing in public services that lift the load from women in childcare and social care, and by increasing bargaining power and raising wages for the women who work in them.
“Women’s rights. We need to urgently implement the Supreme Court ruling on the definition of sex in the Equality Act 2010. Edinburgh City Council must fully uphold women’s rights and protections under the Act, including the right to single-sex services. The Scottish Government should require all public bodies to fully implement the Act.
“Violence against women. We need to strengthen domestic abuse and sexual assault services for women and children, with secure long term investment in prevention. We need to support women to exit prostitution, with zero tolerance towards the sexual exploitation of women by men.
Campaign Information
The Communist Party urges voters in Southside/Newington and Portobello/ Craigmillar to use their first vote and their numbered preference votes to opt for the policies they believe in – ones which they assert will defend and extend the rights and the quality of life of working people.
Richard Shillcock is standing as the Communist Party of Britain candidate for the Southside/Newington ward in the City of Edinburgh Council by-election on 3 September 2026.
Peter Olech is standing as the Communist Party of Britain candidate for the Portobello/Craigmillar ward in the City of Edinburgh Council by-election on 3 September 2026.
The list of candidates in the two by-elections is as follows:
Southside/Newington Ward
- Elliott, Ruth – Scottish Labour Party
- Emms, Derrick – Edinburgh & East Lothian People
- Gastel Alejandre, Isabella – Scottish Greens
- Keirdashian, Roisin – Independent
- Khovanov, Artie – Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Layden, Nick – Scottish Conservative and Unionist
- Lucas, Richard Crewe – Scottish Family Party – Christian Values
- Mackenzie, Sam Alexander – Scottish National Party (SNP)
- Moffat, Sean McGregor – Alliance for Democracy and Freedom
- Neill, Gary – Reform UK
- Rowbotham, Markham – Edinburgh & East Lothian People
- Shillcock, Richard – Communist Party of Britain
- Wilkinson, Marc – Edinburgh & East Lothian People
Portobello/Craigmillar Ward
- Ballantine, David Craig – Alliance for Democracy and Freedom
- Deepnarain, Niel – Scottish Family Party – Christian Values
- Gregson, Pete – Workers Party of Britain
- Martinico, Lorenzo – Scottish Greens
- McGilvray, Silas – Scottish National Party (SNP)
- McLaughlin, Andrew – Reform UK
- Olech, Peter – Communist Party of Britain
- Owen, Liss – Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Wyke, Jim Patrick – Scottish Labour Party
- Young, Haris – Scottish Conservative and Unionist
