Labour Party (UK)

The Labour Party is currently the party of government in the United Kingdom, led by Gordon Brown. Historically a party of socialism formed from several groups which first fought a general election in 1895, it abandoned this ideology under the leadership of Tony Blair in 1994. Essentially a centre-left party with strong socialist roots, in policy its commitments have moved markedly rightwards since its landslide election victory of 1997. Blair won two more elections in 2001 and 2005, largely with the support of former Conservative Party voters, and stepped down in June 2007; after up to twelve years in power, the party must face the polls again by May 2010.

'New Labour'

Clause IV of the constitution of the Labour Party declared that one of the aims of the party was: To secure for the workers 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 or service. The new version reads: 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.

Tony Blair was elected as the Leader of the Labour Party in July 1994 after the sudden death of his predecessor, John Smith. In 1995, he persuaded the party to amend its constitution; the annual Conference voted to replace the controversial Clause IV (see box), which had been drafted by Sidney Webb and had been party policy since 1918. The redrafting marked a radical break with traditional policies, and marked the emergence of what Blair called "New Labour". The commitment to nationalisation, even though it was widely regarded as rhetoric without practical intent, was widely seen as a major factor in the electoral unpopularity of the Labour Party. The Conservative Party had won four successive general elections (in 1979, 1983 and 1987 under Margaret Thatcher and in 1992 under John Major), and Labour was seen by some as unelectable as long as it retained close links with the Trade Union movement and espoused the rhetoric of pre-war socialism.