The Labour Party

1. The Labour Party The Labour Party

2. The Labour Party Grammar: "In December 1942, Labour supported the recommendations of the Beveridge report and called for 'Beveridge now!'" "The Labour party lost the election in 1987" "Harold Wilson's Labour government was faced with economic problems right from the start" "Labour MPs yesterday voted ..." but NOT *"The Labours" or *"The Labour" The Labour Party

3. The Labour Party: History The Labour Representation Committee was founded at a "Conference on Labour Representation" in London's Memorial Hall in February 1900 by trade unions, socialist societies and cooperative societies who no longer believed the Liberals would represent their interests in Parliament. It had no members, only organisations affiliated to it. In the elections of 1906, the new group won 30 seats. The LRC became the Labour party. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

4. The Labour Party: History Labour's leaders worked closely with the 1906-14 Liberal Governments, and relied on their majority to agree measures to help Labour, such as the Trade Disputes Act of 1906*, and the payment of MPs in 1911. But while Labour in Parliament was "hanging from the coat-tails" of the Liberals, Labour in the country was growing fast. The number of constituency parties (CLPs) affiliated rose from 73 in 1906 to 179 by 1914. When the Liberal Party split in 1916, the Labour Party was well placed to make a challenge for power. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

5. The Labour Party: History Trade Disputes Act of 1906: The trade union movement had suffered a severe setback with the Taff Vale case in 1901. A union was found to be liable, financially, for the losses that the Taff Vale Railway Company suffered during a strike. The new Liberal government brought in the Trade Disputes Act (1906) which declared that unions could not be sued for damages incurred during a strike from various sources, including labour.org.uk and http://www.historyhome.co.uk/peel/politics/reform.htm The Labour Party

6. The Labour Party: History In 1918 a constitution was adopted, drafted mainly by Sidney Webb, a well-known Fabian*. Clause 4: definition of the party's objectives It appeared on membership cards. (*The Fabian Society was named after the Roman general Fabius, 'the delayer' who advocated a war of attrition rather than direct confrontation against Hannibal. The Fabians believed that social reform could be achieved by gradual and patient argument, 'permeating' their ideas into the circles of those with power.) from various sources, including labour.org.uk and http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/LSEHistory/fabian.htm The Labour Party

7. The Labour Party: History Clause 4: "To secure for the producers by hand or by brain the full fruits of their industry, and the most equitable distribution thereof that may be possible, upon the basis of the common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange and the best obtainable system of popular administration and control of each industry and service." from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

8. The Labour Party: History In December 1923, Stanley Baldwin's Conservatives fought a General Election on a single issue: protectionism. The Tories lost almost 90 seats, down from 345 to 258. Baldwin had failed to obtain the mandate he sought and declined to form a government, so despite winning 67 fewer seats than the Tories, Ramsay MacDonald was asked by the King to form a government. (Con 258, Lab 191, Lib 159) from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

9. The Labour Party: History Ramsay MacDonald, Labour leader 1922-1931, PM 1924 and 1929-1935 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

10. The Labour Party: History The first Labour government had modest objectives and held office for only a few months in 1924, but its achievements should not be underestimated. Even without a proper majority in the House of Commons, legislation was still passed on housing, education, unemployment and social insurance. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

11. The Labour Party: History In May 1929, Labour was back in office (Lab 288, Con 260, Lib 59, MacDonald PM). The government was dominated by the world economic crisis, precipitated by the 1929 Wall Street crash. MacDonald's government tried, though largely unsuccessfully, to resolve the problem of rising unemployment. In 1931 unemployment caused a crisis within the cabinet. Politically unable to either cut benefits or increase taxes to deal with the financial problem caused by high unemployment, the government was split. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

12. The Labour Party: History MacDonald did not resign, but instead offered to form a National Government with Liberals and Conservatives. From being one of its founding fathers, Ramsay MacDonald had turned his back on the party and was seen to have betrayed Labour. He was expelled in September 1931; but in the Oct 1931 election, MacDonald's coalition won a large majority. The Labour Party was reduced to 52 seats. It was the party's nadir. (Con 473+Nat Lab 13+Lib Nat 35, Lab 52, Lib 33) from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

13. The Labour Party: History Labour spent almost a decade recovering. A new generation, including Ernest Bevin, leader of the Transport and General Workers Union, led the campaign to renew Labour's fortunes. Clement Attlee became leader in 1935. Labour opposed the policy of "appeasement" pursued by Chamberlain's Conservatives. When Chamberlain was forced to resign in May 1940 and Winston Churchill became Prime Minister, Labour was invited to join a war-time coalition. Attlee and "Ernie" Bevin entered Churchill's cabinet. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

14. The Labour Party: History Clement Attlee, Labour leader 1935-1955, PM 1945-1951 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

15. The Labour Party: History After the war in Europe ended in May 1945, a general election was held in July. Labour’s manifesto, Let Us Face the Future, captured the public mood. It argued that Britain must not return to the poverty and unemployment of the 1930s. Labour pledged to destroy the five 'evil giants' of want, squalor, disease, ignorance and idleness (unemployment) (Beveridge report, 1942). The result was a landslide to Labour, who won 393 seats (Con 213, Lib 13, Comm 2). For the first time, Labour had an overall majority and could implement its programme of reform. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

16. The Labour Party: History from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

17. The Labour Party: History 1945-1951 Nationalisation: railways, coal mines, gas and electricity, air transport, road haulage (goods vehicles), ... Welfare state: implementation of the recommendations of the Beveridge report, especially NHS (National Health Service), "free at the point of contact", "from the cradle to the grave". Housing etc Decolonisation: Independence India and Pakistan (1947), Ceylon, Burma from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

18. The Labour Party: History By 1950 the Labour government had achieved most of its pledges in Let Us Face the Future. Indeed the party appeared to have run out of steam. The election of that year saw Labour's majority cut to only five, and the new government could not remain in office for long. Attlee dissolved Parliament again in October 1951 and by a quirk of the British electoral system, Labour gained its highest ever share of the vote (48.8 per cent) but won fewer seats than the Tories (Con 321, Lab 295, Lib 6). from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

19. The Labour Party: History Labour lost elections in 1955 and 1959. The party had split into two opposing factions: on the "right" of the party (i.e. centre-left) the "Gaitskellites", led by the party leader Hugh Gaitskell, and further to the left the "Bevanites" under the leadership of Aneurin ("Nye") Bevan. The Bevanites wanted more nationalisation and unilateral disarmament. "Thirteen wasted years". "Wilderness years" from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

20. The Labour Party: History Hugh Gaitskell, Labour leader 1955-1963 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

21. The Labour Party: History Meanwhile the Conservatives were able to reap the benefits of growing prosperity. Harold Macmillan famously said in 1957 "You have never had it so good". But there were weaknesses in the economy and Britain gradually entered a period of "stop-go" economic cycles. The pound, an international reserve currency, became increasingly vulnerable. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

22. "Supermac" (Harold Macmillan, Conservative PM 1957-1963) First published in Evening Standard on 06 Nov 1958http://library.kent.ac.uk/ The Labour Party

23. The Labour Party: History Labour was returned to office on a platform of modernisation and reform. The party's manifesto, The New Britain, focused on the need for economic and social transformation. In many ways, this is what Wilson's administration achieved. The period was one of openness and social liberalism, with the legalisation of many taboo practices such as divorce, homosexuality and abortion, and the ending of capital punishment. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

24. The Labour Party: History Harold Wilson, Labour leader 1963-1976, PM 1964-1970 and 1974-1976 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

25. The Labour Party: History However, the failure of the government to devalue the pound until 1967 is believed to have restricted the level of economic growth. Nonetheless, the party's majority was increased to 97 in 1966, when Wilson went to the country asking for a mandate to finish the job. He was able to implement reforms on a range of issues including steel nationalisation and the development of comprehensive education. Wilson's 1964-70 governments achieved much of what they set out to do. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

26. The Labour Party: History Wilson wanted to remain close to the United States but gave only muted support for the American action in Vietnam. He criticised the Americans for bombing cities in the North, and refused to send any British forces. He was criticised by the British left for supporting the US and by the US for not giving enough support. Labour had to reduce Britain's military commitments, most notably announcing that Britain would withdraw from bases "East of Suez". This was accelerated following devaluation in December 1967. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

27. The Labour Party: History Wilson attempted to regulate relations between the unions, employers and the government. However he was forced to abandon the plans, embodied in a white paper entitled In Place of Strife, in 1969. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

28. The Labour Party: History Labour unexpectedly lost the General Election in 1970. After the miners' strike of 1973-4 Heath called a General Election in February 1974. The result was uncertain: Con 297, Lab 301, Lib 14 Heath tried to form a coalition with the Liberals but they refused and so he resigned. Wilson formed a minority administration and called another election in October, with slightly better results: Lab 319, Con 277, Lib 13. In 1976 he unexpectedly resigned. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

29. The Labour Party: History James Callaghan became leader of the party and Prime Minister. Labour's policy of cooperation with the TUC to keep wages down and so tackle the very high levels of inflation worked for a while, but by 1978 the rank and file were becoming restless. A series of high profile strikes in the public sector over the winter became known as the "Winter of Discontent". Labour's majority gradually eroded and in 1979 the government lost a vote of confidence and a general election was called for 3 May. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

30. The Labour Party: History Labour was heavily defeated in the 1979 election, and the party began a new period of soul-searching. Internal debates about the party constitution dominated, and led eventually to the forming of a breakaway group, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), in 1981. Labour became increasingly hostile to the EEC. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

31. The Labour Party: History Michael Foot, a veteran left-winger, was elected leader but he was unable to reverse Labour's decline. With Labour moving further to the left, the 1983 election resulted in a crushing defeat. Labour gained 27.6 per cent, its lowest showing since 1918 and not much above the Liberal/SDP Alliance. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

32. The Labour Party: History Neil Kinnock replaced Foot as leader in 1983. He first set out to sideline the extreme left within the party, such as the group Militant, and then to restore Labour's image with the general public. much of this is adapted from labour.org.uk The Labour Party

33. The Labour Party: History A visible sign of the changes was the replacement of the party's emblem - the red flag - by a red rose at the 1986 conference. Labour still lost the 1987 election heavily. The party began a process of "Policy Review". The outcome, Meet the Challenge, Make the Change, ended Labour's commitment to unilateral nuclear disarmament, high taxation and old-style nationalisation. much of this is adapted from labour.org.uk The Labour Party

34. The Labour Party: History Labour began to look more favourably on Europe, especially under Jacques Delors, who was given a standing ovation when he came to address the Trades Union Congress Annual Conference in 1987: "Frère Jacques". much of this is adapted from labour.org.uk The Labour Party

35. The Labour Party: History Neil Kinnock, Labour leader 1983-1992 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

36. The Labour Party: History Labour's fourth successive election defeat was a major shock to the party. Kinnock's successor, Scottish lawyer John Smith, promised to continue the process of reform, including tackling the trade union block. At the 1993 Party Conference Smith won the vote on One Member One Vote (OMOV), removing direct union representation in parliamentary selections, by the smallest of margins. In May 1994 John Smith suffered a massive heart attack. much of this is adapted from labour.org.uk The Labour Party

37. The Labour Party: History John Smith, Labour leader 1992-1994 from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

38. The Labour Party: History The ensuing leadership contest saw the election of Tony Blair, the youngest-ever leader of the Labour Party. Blair was a moderniser and he stressed that Labour must be reformed radically if it was to win office again. Blair called for the updating of Clause IV of the party's constitution. While opposed by some traditionalists, the proposed change won overwhelming support at a special conference in April 1995. much of this is adapted from labour.org.uk The Labour Party

39. The Labour Party: History Tony Blair, Labour leader 1994-    , PM 1997-        from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

40. The Labour Party: History This was followed in 1996 by the publication of New Labour, New Life for Britain, the draft manifesto that was discussed and voted upon by party members across the country. Labour's agenda centred on five pledges: education; crime; health; jobs and economic stability. Blair also wanted Britain to play a much more positive role in Europe. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

41. The Labour Party: History Blair famously promised to be "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime". Blair espoused the ideas of the "Third Way", turning away from traditional socialism (in favour of "social-ism", he once said). The election campaign in 1997 was very successful. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

42. The Labour Party: the "new" Clause 4 ‘The Labour Party is a democratic socialist party. It believes that by the strength of our common endeavour we achieve more than we achieve alone, so as to create for each of us the means to realise our true potential and for all of us a community in which power, wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many, not the few. Where the rights we enjoy reflect the duties we owe. And where we live together, freely, in a spirit of solidarity, tolerance and respect.’ Clause 4 of the Labour Party constitution The Labour Party

43. The Labour Party: History The 1997 election campaign saw the Conservatives in decline - especially over "sleaze" and division. Labour won a landslide victory, with 418 Labour MPs, including a record 101 Labour women, and a majority of 179. "As a Labour Prime Minister, Tony Blair has given new direction to the country and begun to build a better Britain with the introduction of a National Minimum Wage, one million more jobs, smaller class sizes in primary schools, and the biggest ever sustained investment in the NHS." from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

44. The Labour Party: History Critics say his policies are not very different from Margaret Thatcher's. They say there is "more spin than substance", i.e. too much concentration on projecting a popular public image, and not enough genuinely Labour policies. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

45. The Labour Party: History On 7 June 2001 Tony Blair led Labour to a second successive victory in a General Election, winning by another landslide. Labour won a majority of 167. from various sources, including labour.org.uk The Labour Party

46. The Labour Party: History Tony Blair and the Labour government have in recent times been increasingly criticised for joining the Americans in the war against Saddam Hussein's Iraq. This criticism has been exacerbated by the fact that the information given to the public to justify the decision seems to have been misleading. Last year the government failed to introduce new measures to counter terrorism which many felt represented an unacceptable breach of individual freedom. The House of Lords played a major role in opposing the measures. The Labour Party

47. The Labour Party: History Labour won the 2005 general election, though with a smaller majority than in 1997 and 2001. Tony Blair has lost a great deal of public confidence and support as a result of the war against Iraq. It has long been widely believed that Blair and Gordon Brown, the current Chancellor of the Exchequer, had made a pact at some stage before the 1997 general election, and that Tony Blair would at some appropriate point stand down in favour of his Chancellor. There has been speculation that this could happen soon ... The Labour Party

48. The Labour Party: Organisation Labour policy is officially defined by the Labour party's annual conference which is attended by MPs, union delegates and delegates from the Constituency Labour parties. The conference also elects members of the National Executive Committee and "shadow cabinet". Labour governments usually say that they accept the power of the conference to propose policies but have the right to decide when to implement thems ... The Labour Party