MATTHEW BROWN reviews two recent books on the early Labour movement – a hefty historical novel focused on the ILP; and a slim pamphlet on the 1924 government. There can’t be many novels that open on the morning of the ILP’s founding conference, let alone a contemporary one. But Bill Broady’s latest opus, The Night-Soil...
CHRIS WILSON reviews a new collection of essays that aims to put Christianity at the heart of left politics, but fails to offer a coherent vision of a democratic socialist future....
The election of a new Labour government raises hopes that the scales between labour and capital will begin to be re-balanced. JOHN CUNNISON assesses the evidence so far....
The new Labour government has already made some progress in reforming the health system but there is much more to do, says KEITH VENABLES....
The government’s Bill to remove hereditary peers from the House of Lords is a welcome start on constitutional change, says CHRIS WILSON. But much more is needed for the UK to be a truly modern democracy....
Pioneering south Wales ILPer Minnie Pallister was one of the most important feminists, pacifists, socialists and journalists of the 20th century. But her life and legacy have been largely forgotten in recent decades. Author ALUN BURGE aims to put that right....
‘Anger is a power,’ The Clash’s Joe Strummer once sang. In politics, however, it needs to be channelled through courteous, comradely and informed debate. CHRIS WILSON calls for a new political culture based on an old Labour tradition....
Labour’s landslide victory is cause for celebration but serious challenges lie ahead for the party, the government and UK politics, says WILL BROWN....
If opinion polls are to be believed, Labour is on course for a significant election victory. But what should the left make of its policy offer and its prospects for government? WILL BROWN casts his eye over the party’s pledges....
Appalled by the continuing violence in Gaza, CHRIS WILSON surveys the progressive forces in Israel and Palestine seeking hope for future progress and reconciliation....
Colm Murphy’s engaging new book on recent Labour history is an invaluable companion as the party contemplates another return to power, says GARY KENT. ...
The left needs an economic re-set, a more radical aspiration of empowerment, says CHRIS WILSON. Can co-operatives help put the ‘social’ back into socialism?...