Labour’s Traditions

All political parties in the UK are coalitions of interest, and Labour is no exception. There are several traditions, and strands of thinking: 

• its origins are as the political wing of the trade union movement, striving for better pay and conditions; 
• in alliance with the democratic Fabian socialist movement, arguing for greater popular control or ownership of important parts of the economy; 
• absorbing the Co-operative party as an affiliate, a movement with its own traditions of mutual aid and support, mostly through consumer groups. 
• There is a tradition of Christian socialism too: particularly strong in the chapels of industrial areas, but found too in the Anglican and Catholic communities, among those who believe the teachings of Christ commit them to social action. 
• There is another tradition of eco-socialism, arguing for land reform, restoration of common land, and an end to over-exploitation of the Earth as well as people.

Its influences are drawn from a wide variety of sources and thinkers, from its various nineteenth and early twentieth century origins with Sydney and Beatrice Webb; to Robert Owen; to Karl Marx and William Morris; to George Bernard Shaw, and many more. Work goes on today in defining these traditions in a contemporary context. The name of the party stems from the division of economic power between Capital, broadly the amassing of resources other than people; and Labour, the human part of the productive cycle, that turns Capital into wealth. The Party exists to redress the imbalance of power coming from the limited ownership of capital, in a range of ways.

There are challenges for the Party, and for the wider Labour movement around the world, in the 21st century. The nature of work and the workplace is changing; heavy industry has been exported to the developing world, while automation and knowledge work has expanded. Wealth has been increasingly concentrated in fewer hands, and those hands increasingly are seeking to control both the Media and the political process. Information technology has enabled a wide adoption of social media. The cultural and creative industries have grown in extent and importance; while redefining identities has been a challenge for a few, while embraced by many. Consumerism has become a big part of life, while income for most has not kept pace with either needs or desires for so many.

Belonging to a democratic socialist party is more than offering a shopping list of policies; it’s a fundamental approach to living, and sharing our community with each other. It is not about waving the right colour banner, or about following a particular orthodoxy, or about the exercise of power and authority for its own sake; but about making life better for all of us, making sure that everyone, even the poorest, have enough to live on, and are cared for, and allowed to make their contribution.