Labour policy-making needs to be more open and democratic, argues HUGO RADICE. And party members need to be fully involved. Could an online College of Labour provide the answer?...
Articles
Shadow Foreign Secretary to Give Hopper Memorial Lecture
Two of Labour’s leading women shadow ministers will take centre stage at the second Dave Hopper Memorial Lecture on the eve of the Durham Miners’ Gala in what will be a fitting climax to Education 4 Action’s week-long fringe programme called ‘Politics, Pits and Protest’....
People, Pits and Politics
Durham is set to host a two-day ‘political festival’ called ‘People, Pits and Politics’ in the run-up to the north east city’s annual Miners’ Gala this July....
Debating the Future of Public Ownership
“Public ownership used to be out in the wilderness; now it’s all the rage,” claims the publicity for an event organised by the Independent Working Class Education Network to debate the future shape of the public sector....
A Manifesto for Democracy
It is the contention of this brief paper that British democracy is not working, either philosophically or practically. Philosophically speaking, there is no effective representation; practically speaking, no political party is proposing radical reform to break the sclerosis currently evident in the system....
Between the Wars
The period between the two world wars was one of the most turbulent in political history. The events of that time had a profound impact on the ILP and the development of British left-wing politics, as Ian Bullock describes in his important new book, Under Siege, reviewed here by HARRY BARNES. After setting the scene...
‘Forgotten Pankhurst’ to be Honoured in Hackney
Two events to honour the remarkable work of socialist suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst, the so-called ‘forgotten’ daughter of Emmeline and sister of Christabelle, are being held in Hackney, east London, this month....
Mary Barbour Statue Unveiled on International Women’s Day
A statue honouring pioneering ILPer Mary Barbour, who led the Glasgow rent strikes, was unveiled in Govan Cross in front of hundreds of people on International Women’s Day (8 March), after a long-running fundraising campaign by the Remember Mary Barbour Association....
Striking for a Higher Purpose
The lecturers’ strike, affecting more than 60 Universities and more than one million students, has thrown up new challenges to an increasingly dysfunctional university system. HAZEL HEAD reports. As the lecturers’ strike by the University and College Union enters its third week, pressure is mounting on the well-heeled leaders of higher education to give ground....
Ways Forward Through Co-operative Solidarity
DAVID CONNOLLY reports from last week’s Co-operative Solidarity conference in Manchester. “Co-ops are at the heart of Labour’s economic programme.” That was the key message from Shadow Business Minister Rebecca Long-Bailey at the Co-operative Solidarity conference. Drawing attention to the ‘right to own’ commitment in Labour’s election manifesto last year, she said that a Labour...
Voting Behaviour
Behind the leadership of Emmeline Pankhurst were many lesser-known figures in the Votes for Women campaign in the north of England, some of them members of the ILP. ANTONIA CHARLESWORTH remembers their contribution to the fight for women’s suffrage and profiles one Lancashire ILPer who played her part. Manchester’s place in the history of...
Corbyn Promises Public Ownership with Democratic Control
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has promised to put “21st century public ownership” at the heart of a radically new economy if his party wins power at the next general election....