“All across Europe, the pattern is the same. The social democratic parties in government embraced the agenda of big business. They deregulated the finance industry, cut taxes on corporations and the rich, and privatized state assets. As government revenues fell, they imposed ‘reforms’ to social programs which fell heaviest on the poor and the working-class.” This brief article summarizes the recent record of parties like the NDP in government and the NDP in Saskatchewan — it’s an important reminder at a time when the federal NDP leadership race is taking place.