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161-450: Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as The Viscount Stansgate , was a British Labour Party politician and political activist who served as a Cabinet minister in the 1960s and 1970s. He was the Member of Parliament for Bristol South East and Chesterfield for 47 of the 51 years between 1950 and 2001 . He later served as President of

322-624: A confidence and supply agreement with the Liberal Party . While this initially proved stable, it could not survive in the face of major industrial disputes and widespread strikes in the 1978–79 " Winter of Discontent ", as well as the defeat of the referendum on devolution for Scotland . Minor parties joined the Conservatives to pass a motion of no-confidence in Callaghan on 28 March 1979. Callaghan led Labour to defeat at

483-519: A leadership election , which he won decisively with 62% support among Labour party members. In April 2017, Prime Minister Theresa May called a snap election for June 2017. Corbyn resisted pressure from within the Labour Party to call for a referendum on the eventual Brexit deal, instead focusing on healthcare, education and ending austerity. Although Labour started the campaign as far as 20 points behind, it defied expectations by gaining 40% of

644-531: A noncontroversial expansion of new public housing . Overnight in October 1929 the world economy plunged into the Great Depression , and no party had an answer as tax revenue plunged, unemployment doubled to 2.5 million (in late 1930), prices fell, and government spending on unemployment benefits soared. Conditions became much worse in 1931 as the banks became unable to loan the government enough to cover

805-539: A pilot officer (on probation) on 10 March 1945. As a pilot officer, Benn served as a pilot in South Africa and Southern Rhodesia . In June 1944, he made his first solo flight, at RAF Guinea Fowl, an RAF Elementary Flying Training School , in Southern Rhodesia. The aircraft was a Canadian-built Fairchild Cornell . In a 1993 article recounting the experience, he said, "I always thought that I would feel

966-518: A secular state and ending the Church of England 's status as an official church of the United Kingdom. Originally considered a moderate within the party, he was identified as belonging to its left wing after leaving ministerial office. The terms Bennism and Bennite came into usage to describe the left-wing politics he espoused from the late 1970s and its adherents. He was an influence on

1127-703: A "conscience clause" allowing diversity of opinions rather than a rigid orthodoxy. Irish politics proved to be so different that the Party simply quit Ireland and worked only in England, Scotland and Wales. In 1908–1910 the Party supported the momentous and largely successful Liberal battles in favor of a welfare state and against the Unionist/Conservative Party and against the veto power of the House of Lords. Growth continued, with 42 Labour MPs elected to

1288-460: A Christian as I am myself", Benn wrote in 2005 that he was "a Christian agnostic" who believed "in Jesus the prophet, not Christ the king", specifically rejecting the label of " humanist ". Both of Benn's grandfathers were Liberal Party MPs; his paternal grandfather was John Benn , a successful politician, MP for Tower Hamlets and later Devonport , who was created a baronet in 1914 (and who founded

1449-529: A Conservative Association meeting, in opposition to Harold Wilson 's insistence on not "stirring up the Powell issue", Benn said during the 1970 general election campaign: The flag of racialism which has been hoisted in Wolverhampton is beginning to look like the one that fluttered 25 years ago over Dachau and Belsen . If we do not speak up now against the filthy and obscene racialist propaganda ...

1610-399: A ballot was needed for a strike or whether it could be deemed as a "regional matter" in the same way that the 1977 reforms had been. Benn also spoke at a Militant tendency rally held in 1984, saying: "The labour movement is not engaged in a personalised battle against individual cabinet ministers, nor do we seek to win public support by arguing that the crisis could be ended by the election of

1771-524: A bayonet, a rifle, a revolver, and if I'd seen a German officer having a meal I'd have tossed a grenade through the window. Would I have been a freedom fighter or a terrorist?" In July 1943, Benn enlisted in the Royal Air Force as an aircraftman 2nd Class. His father and elder brother Michael (who was later killed in an accident) were already serving in the RAF. He was granted an emergency commission as

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1932-487: A bike", and Labour leader Harold Wilson also told an anti-apartheid rally in London he was "glad that so many Bristolians are supporting the [boycott] campaign", adding that he "wish[ed] them every success". Benn's father was created Viscount Stansgate in 1942 when Winston Churchill increased the number of Labour peers to aid political work in the House of Lords; at this time, Benn's elder brother Michael, then serving in

2093-529: A clear independent, or even leaving one opposition party to join another. In both countries, the term carries only this meaning, not simply voting against the party line on a bill. In April 2006, then-premier of Manitoba Gary Doer of the New Democratic Party of Manitoba proposed banning crossing the floor in the Manitoba legislature in response to "the concern some voters have expressed over

2254-671: A coalition with more than one other smaller party to gain an overall majority; anything less would result in a minority government. On 10 May 2010, after talks to form a coalition with the Liberal Democrats broke down, Brown announced his intention to stand down as Leader before the Labour Party Conference but a day later resigned as both Prime Minister and party leader. Ed Miliband won the subsequent leadership election . Miliband emphasised "responsible capitalism" and greater state intervention to rebalance

2415-533: A cut in wages. The miners were totally opposed and planned a strike. The TUC coalition of unions decided it would support the miners by a nationwide general strike that would paralyze most of the national economy. A strike was postponed when the Conservative government offered a subsidy for wages, but it also prepared to deal with the threatened general strike. Meanwhile, the TUC failed to make preparations. It ignored

2576-534: A debate in the Commons just after the Falklands were recaptured, Benn's demand for "a full analysis of the costs in life, equipment and money in this tragic and unnecessary war" was rejected by Margaret Thatcher , who stated that "he would not enjoy the freedom of speech that he put to such excellent use unless people had been prepared to fight for it". For the 1983 election Benn's Bristol South East constituency

2737-497: A flood of membership applications during the leadership election, with most of the new members thought to be Corbyn supporters. Corbyn was elected leader with 60% of the vote. Membership continued to climb after his victory; one year later it had grown to more than 500,000, making it the largest political party in Western Europe. Tensions soon developed in the parliamentary party over Corbyn's leadership, particularly after

2898-480: A foreigner would upset me very much." In British politics during this period, the term "Bennism" came into use to describe the conviction politics , economic, social and political ideology of Tony Benn; and an exponent or advocate of Bennism was regarded as a "Bennite". In a keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference of 1980, shortly before the resignation of party leader James Callaghan and election of Michael Foot as successor, Benn outlined what he envisaged

3059-599: A form of syndicalism , state planning where necessary to ensure national competitiveness, greater democracy in the structures of the Labour Party and observance of Party Conference decisions. Alongside an alleged 12 Labour MPs, he spent 12 years affiliated with the Institute for Workers' Control , beginning in 1971 when he visited the Upper Clyde Shipyards , arguing in 1975 for the "labour movement to intensify its discussion about industrial democracy ". He

3220-532: A funny way ever since." Benn also met former Liberal Prime Minister David Lloyd George when he was 12, and later recalled that, while still a boy, he once shook hands with Mahatma Gandhi , in 1931, while his father was Secretary of State for India . During the Second World War , Benn joined and trained with the Home Guard from the age of 16, later recalling in a speech made in 2009: "I could use

3381-511: A gross misunderstanding of the role of Jesus. He believed that it was a "great mistake" to assume that the teachings of Christianity are outdated in modern Britain, and Higgins wrote in The Benn Inheritance that Benn was "a socialist whose political commitment owes much more to the teaching of Jesus than the writing of Marx". (Indeed, he did not read The Communist Manifesto until he was in his 50s.) "The driving force of his life

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3542-561: A loan from the International Monetary Fund . Underlining a wish to counter international market forces which seemed to penalise a larger welfare state , Benn publicly circulated the divided Cabinet minutes in which a narrow majority of the Labour Cabinet under Ramsay MacDonald supported a cut in unemployment benefits in order to obtain a loan from American bankers. As he highlighted, these minutes resulted in

3703-677: A low 2% interest rate, and the gift of $ 2.694 billion in Marshall Plan funds. Canada also provided gifts and $ 1.25 billion in loans. The government began the process of dismantling the British Empire , starting with independence to India and Pakistan in 1947, followed by Burma (Myanmar) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka) the following year. It relinquished its control over Palestine to the United Nations in 1948. Elsewhere independence movements were much weaker and London's policy

3864-484: A new and more humane team of ministers who are better qualified to administer capitalism. We are working for a majority labour government, elected on a socialist programme, as decided by conference." In June 1985, three months after the miners admitted defeat and ended their strike, Benn introduced the Miners' Amnesty (General Pardon) Bill into the Commons, which would have extended an amnesty to all miners imprisoned during

4025-510: A park bench in the city. Later, he bought the bench from Oxford City Council and installed it in the garden of their home in Holland Park . Tony and Caroline had four children— Stephen , Hilary , Melissa , a feminist writer, and Joshua—and 10 grandchildren. Caroline Benn died of cancer on 22 November 2000, aged 74, after a career as an educationalist. Two of Benn's children have been active in Labour Party politics. His eldest son Stephen

4186-512: A passionate supporter of it. Having been brought up on the Bible I liked the idea of swords into ploughshares. I advocated nuclear power as Minister of Technology. I was told, and believed, that nuclear power was cheap, safe and peaceful. Having been in charge of nuclear power I discovered it wasn't cheap, wasn't safe and when I left office I was told that during my period as Secretary of State for Energy, plutonium from our nuclear power stations went to

4347-467: A period of intense internal division which ended in the defeat of its left wing by the mid-1980s. After electoral defeats to the Conservatives in 1987 and 1992, Tony Blair took the party to the political centre as part of his New Labour project, which governed under Blair and then Gordon Brown from 1997 to 2010. After further electoral defeats in the 2010s, Keir Starmer again took Labour to

4508-546: A political levy to the party. In September 2014, Labour outlined plans to cut the government's current account deficit and balance the budget by 2020, excluding investment. The party carried these plans into the 2015 general election , which Labour lost. Its representation fell to 232 seats in the House of Commons. The party lost 40 of its 41 seats in Scotland to the Scottish National Party . After

4669-403: A publishing company, Benn Brothers ), and his maternal grandfather was Daniel Holmes , MP for Glasgow Govan . Benn's contact with leading politicians of the day dates back to his earliest years. He met Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald when he was five years old, and described him as: "A kindly old gentleman [who] leaned over me and offered me a chocolate biscuit. I've looked at Labour leaders in

4830-530: A reduced majority of 66 and popular vote of only 35.2%. Blair announced in September 2006 that he would step down as leader within the year, though he had been under pressure to quit earlier than May 2007 in order to get a new leader in place before the May elections which were expected to be disastrous for Labour. In the event, the party did lose power in Scotland to a minority Scottish National Party government at

4991-632: A schoolteacher who transformed China, released it from civil war and foreign attack and constructed a new society there" in his diaries, adding that "he certainly towers above any twentieth-century figure I can think of in his philosophical contribution and military genius". On his trip to the Chinese embassy after Mao's death, Benn recorded in an earlier volume of his diaries that he was "a great admirer of Mao", while also admitting that "he made mistakes, because everybody does". During Benn's time as energy minister from 1975 to 1979 he supported nuclear power in

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5152-532: A second government with Liberal help. Once again with Liberal help, MacDonald became prime minister following the successful 1929 election . There were some promising achievements in foreign policy, notably the Young Plan that seemed to resolve the issue of German reparations, and the London Naval Treaty of 1930 that limited submarine construction. Some minor legislation was passed, notably

5313-647: A sense of panic when I saw the ground coming up at me on my first solo, but strangely enough I didn't feel anything but exhilaration ...". He relinquished his commission with effect from 10 August 1945, three months after the Second World War ended in Europe on 8 May, and just days before the war with Japan ended on 2 September. After attending Eaton House day school near Sloane Square, Benn entered Westminster School , and studied at New College, Oxford , where he read Philosophy, politics and economics and

5474-602: A small majority. During his second term as prime minister, Wilson oversaw the referendum that confirmed the UK's membership of the European Communities . When Wilson suddenly announced his retirement in March 1976, Callaghan defeated five other candidates to be elected Leader of the Labour Party; he was appointed prime minister on 5 April 1976. By now Labour had lost its narrow majority. To stay in power Callaghan made

5635-466: A smashing victory and national elation, guaranteeing Conservatives a massive landslide victory in the 1983 general election . Thatcher's successful attacks on labour unions in 1984-1985 further weakened the Labour base. It took a decade for Labour to recover. Labour's inward turn flared into a civil war between left and right. The party came under the control of young middle-class left-wing activists in

5796-500: Is Winston Churchill , who crossed the floor from the Conservatives to the Liberals in 1904, later crossing back in 1924. The term has passed into general use in other Westminster parliamentary democracies even if many of these countries have semicircular or horseshoe-shaped debating chambers. The Australia meaning on the other hand arises from the way divisions—roll call votes—are conducted. In Australian chambers, members move to

5957-516: Is credited to "Tony Benn". Despite this name change, social historian Alwyn W. Turner writes: "Just as those with an agenda to pursue still call Muhammed Ali by his original name ... so most newspapers continued to refer to Tony Benn as Wedgwood Benn, or Wedgie in the case of the tabloids, for years to come." Benn met Caroline Middleton DeCamp (born 13 October 1926, Cincinnati , Ohio, United States) over tea at Worcester College, Oxford , in 1949; just nine days after meeting her, he proposed to her on

6118-656: Is the governing party of the United Kingdom , having won the 2024 general election , and is currently the largest political party by number of votes cast and number of seats in the House of Commons , followed in seat share by the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats . There have been seven Labour prime ministers and fourteen Labour ministries . The party traditionally holds the annual Labour Party Conference during party conference season , at which senior Labour figures promote party policy. The Labour Party

6279-522: The New Statesman , Benn "decided to do without the paraphernalia and doctrine of organised religion but not without the teachings of Jesus". Although Benn became more agnostic as he became older, he was intrigued by the interconnections between Christianity, radicalism and socialism. Wilby also wrote in The Guardian that although former Chancellor Stafford Cripps described Benn as "as keen

6440-439: The 1979 election and was replaced by Conservative Margaret Thatcher . The 1979 defeat marked the beginning of 18 years in opposition for the Labour Party, the longest in its history. According to historian Kenneth O. Morgan , the fall of Callaghan meant the passing of an old obsolete system, as well as the end of corporatism , Keynesian spending programmes , subsidised welfare payments, and labour union power. Following 1979

6601-422: The 1997 general election in a landslide victory with a parliamentary majority of 179; it was the largest ever Labour majority, and at the time the largest swing to a political party achieved since 1945 . Over the next decade, a wide range of progressive social reforms were enacted, with millions lifted out of poverty during Labour's time in office largely as a result of various tax and benefit reforms. Among

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6762-472: The 2007 elections and, shortly after this, Blair resigned as Prime Minister and was replaced by the Chancellor , Gordon Brown . Brown coordinated the UK's response to the 2007–2008 financial crisis . Membership of the party also reached a low falling to 156,205 by the end of 2009: over 40 per cent of the 405,000 peak reached in 1997 and thought to be the lowest total since the party was founded. In

6923-411: The 2010 general election on 6 May that year, Labour with 29.0% of the vote won the second largest number of seats (258). The Conservatives with 36.5% of the vote won the largest number of seats (307), but no party had an overall majority , meaning that Labour could still remain in power if they managed to form a coalition with at least one smaller party. However, the Labour Party would have had to form

7084-649: The 2016 Brexit referendum . Many in the party were angered that Corbyn did not campaign strongly against Brexit; he had been only a "lukewarm" supporter of remaining in the European Union and refused to join David Cameron in campaigning for the Remain side . 21 members of the Shadow Cabinet resigned after the referendum. Corbyn lost a no-confidence vote among Labour MPs by 172–40, triggering

7245-466: The 2019 general election Corbyn announced that he would stand down as leader. Crossed the floor Voting against party lines may lead to consequences such as losing a position (e.g., as minister or a portfolio critic) or being ejected from the party caucus. While these practices are legally permissible in most countries, crossing the floor can lead to controversy and media attention. Some countries like Malaysia , Pakistan , India , Indonesia ,

7406-516: The 2019 general election , Labour campaigned on a manifesto widely considered the most radical in decades, more closely resembling Labour's politics of the 1970s than subsequent decades. These included plans to nationalise the country's biggest energy firms, the National Grid, the water industry, Royal Mail, the railways and the broadband arm of BT . The election saw Labour win its lowest number of seats since 1935. Following Labour's defeat in

7567-566: The Bank of England , coal mining, the steel industry, electricity, gas and inland transport (including railways, road haulage and canals). It developed and implemented the "cradle to grave" welfare state . It created the National Health Service (NHS), which gave publicly funded medical treatment for all. Nationalisation primarily affected weak and poorly managed industries, opening the hope that centralized planning would reverse

7728-546: The February 1974 general election , forming a minority government with the support of the Ulster Unionists . In a bid to gain a majority, Prime Minister Wilson soon called an election for October 1974 . Labour won a slim majority of three, gaining 18 seats taking its total to 319. In March 1974 Wilson was appointed prime minister for a second time ; he called a snap election in October 1974, which gave Labour

7889-459: The House of Commons . The Speaker of the Commons, Sir Harry Hylton-Foster , did not allow him to deliver a speech from the bar of the House of Commons in April 1961 when the by-election was being called. Continuing to maintain his right to abandon his peerage, Benn fought to retain his seat in a by-election caused by his succession on 4 May 1961. Although he was disqualified from taking his seat, he

8050-549: The London County Council for the first time ever. In the 1935 election , Labour recovered to 8.0 million votes (38 percent), and Clement Attlee became Minority Leader. The Party now had 154 seats but had minimal influence in Parliament. At the local level union leaders, led by Ernest Bevin , successfully defeated Communist infiltration. In foreign policy a strong pacifist element made it slow to support

8211-610: The Maldives and Bangladesh have laws that remove a member from parliament due to floor-crossing. The term originates from the British House of Commons , which is configured with the Government and Opposition facing each other on rows of benches. In consequence, MPs who switch from the governing party to one in opposition (or vice versa) also change which side of the chamber on which they sit. A notable example of this

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8372-618: The Marine Broadcasting Offences Bill when it came before Parliament at the end of July 1966 for its first reading. Earlier in the month, Benn was promoted to Minister of Technology , which included responsibility for the development of Concorde and the formation of International Computers Ltd. (ICL). The period also saw government involvement in industrial rationalisation, and the merger of several car companies to form British Leyland . Following Conservative MP Enoch Powell 's 1968 "Rivers of Blood" speech to

8533-481: The Open University created for adults. Wilson's first period as Prime Minister coincided with a period of relatively low unemployment and economic prosperity, it was however hindered by significant problems with a large trade deficit which it had inherited from the previous government. The first three years of the government were spent in an ultimately doomed attempt to stave off the continued devaluation of

8694-420: The Second World War , Labour served in the wartime coalition , after which it won a majority in the 1945 election. Clement Attlee's government enacted extensive nationalisation and established the modern welfare state and National Health Service before losing power in 1951. Under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan , Labour again governed from 1964 to 1970 and from 1974 to 1979 . The party then entered

8855-616: The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) in Northern Ireland, while still organising there. As of March 2024 , Labour has 366,604 registered members. The origins of what became the Labour Party emerged in the late 19th century. It represented the interests of the labour unions and more generally the growing urban working class. Hundreds of thousands of workers had recently gained voting rights by laws passed in 1867 and 1884 . Many different trade unions flourished in

9016-598: The Stop the War Coalition from 2001 to 2014. The son of a Liberal and later Labour Party politician, Benn was born in Westminster and privately educated at Westminster School . He was elected for Bristol South East at the 1950 general election but inherited his father's peerage on his death, which prevented him from continuing to serve as an MP. He fought to remain in the House of Commons and campaigned for

9177-585: The Thames flood in January 1928 their house was uninhabitable so the Benn family moved to Scotland for over 12 months. Their father, William Benn , was a Liberal Member of Parliament from 1906 who crossed the floor to the Labour Party in 1928 and was appointed Secretary of State for India by Ramsay MacDonald in 1929, a position he held until the Labour Party's landslide electoral defeat in 1931 . William Benn

9338-495: The established church , one of whom was his ancestor William Benn ). "I've never thought we can understand the world we lived in unless we understood the history of the church", Benn said to the Catholic Herald . "All political freedoms were won, first of all, through religious freedom. Some of the arguments about the control of the media today, which are very big arguments, are the arguments that would have been fought in

9499-714: The "Gang of Four") launched the Council for Social Democracy, which became the Social Democratic Party in March. The "Gang of Four" left the Labour Party because of what they perceived to be the influence of the Militant tendency and the Bennite " hard left " within the party. Benn was highly critical of the SDP, saying that "Britain has had SDP governments for the past 25 years." Benn stood against Denis Healey ,

9660-664: The 1931 split of the Labour Party in which MacDonald and his allies formed a National Government with Conservatives and Liberals. Callaghan allowed Benn to put forward the Alternative Economic Strategy , which consisted of a self-sufficient economy less dependent on low-rate fresh borrowing, but the AES, which according to opponents would have led to a "siege economy", was rejected by the Cabinet. In response, Benn later recalled that: "I retorted that their policy

9821-488: The 1970 election to Edward Heath 's Conservatives and upon Heath's application to join the European Economic Community , a surge in left-wing Euroscepticism emerged. Benn "was stridently against membership", and campaigned in favour of a referendum on the UK's membership. The Shadow Cabinet voted to support a referendum on 29 March 1972, and as a result Roy Jenkins resigned as Deputy Leader of

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9982-494: The 2015 general election, Miliband resigned as party leader and Harriet Harman again became interim leader. Labour held a leadership election in which Jeremy Corbyn , then a member of the Socialist Campaign Group , was considered a fringe candidate when the contest began, receiving nominations from just 36 MPs, one more than the minimum required to stand, and the support of just 16 MPs. The Labour Party saw

10143-503: The Army. The party returned to power in May 1940, with about a third of the seats in the wartime coalition government under Churchill. Attlee was given a new position as Deputy Prime Minister . He was in charge of the cabinet when Churchill was absent, and handled domestic affairs, working closely with Bevin as Minister of Labour . The war set in motion profound demands for reform. This mood

10304-420: The British labour movement and the British Labour Party, and have strengthened our understanding and enriched our thinking. It would be as unthinkable to try to construct the Labour Party without Marx as it would be to establish university faculties of astronomy, anthropology or psychology without permitting the study of Copernicus, Darwin or Freud, and still expect such faculties to be taken seriously. Labour lost

10465-472: The Commons after winning a by-election on 20 August 1963. Benn was a supporter of abolishing the House of Lords. In the 1964 Government led by Harold Wilson , Benn was Postmaster General , where he oversaw the opening of the Post Office Tower , then the UK's tallest building , and the creations of the Post Bus service and Girobank . He proposed issuing stamps without the monarch 's head, but this met with private opposition from Elizabeth II . Instead,

10626-413: The Commons, and of his long-standing friend, the National Union of Mineworkers leader Arthur Scargill . However, some miners considered Benn's 1977 industry reforms to have caused problems during the strike; firstly, that they led to huge wage differences and distrust between miners of different regions; and secondly that the controversy over balloting miners for these reforms made it unclear as to whether

10787-423: The Conservative argument that traditional Labour was holding ambitious people back with higher tax policies. To present a fresh face and new policies to the electorate, New Labour needed more than fresh leaders; it had to jettison outdated policies, argued the modernisers. Calling on the slogan, " One Member, One Vote " Blair defeated the union element and ended block voting by leaders of labour unions. Blair and

10948-416: The Conservatives return to power, benefiting from the Zinoviev letter and the continuing collapse of the Liberal vote. The Labour share of the popular vote went up, but it lost seats. Above all the moderation of the Macdonald government put to rest the lingering fears that a Labour victory would produce a violent class war. In 1925–26, coal sales fell and the mining companies demanded an increase in hours and

11109-405: The House of Commons in the December 1910 general election. During World War I, the party experienced internal divisions over support for the war effort, but also saw one of its top leaders Arthur Henderson , serve in the powerful war cabinet. After the war, the party focused on building a strong constituency-based support network and adopted a comprehensive statement of policies titled "Labour and

11270-414: The House of Commons with 287 seats, but fell short of a majority, forming another minority government. In 1931, in response to the Great Depression , MacDonald formed a new government with Conservative and Liberal support, which led to his expulsion from the party. Labour was soundly defeated by his coalition in the 1931 election, winning only 52 seats, but began to recover in 1935, with 154 seats. During

11431-431: The Labour Party . In the Labour Government of 1974 , Benn was Secretary of State for Industry and as such increased nationalised industry pay, provided better terms and conditions for workers such as the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was involved in setting up worker cooperatives in firms which were struggling, the best known being at Meriden , outside Coventry , producing Triumph Motorcycles. In 1975, he

11592-453: The Labour Party Conference in 1978 found that by large margins they supported Benn for the leadership, as well as many Bennite policies. He publicly supported Sinn Féin and the unification of Ireland , although in 2005 he suggested to Sinn Féin leaders that it abandon its long-standing policy of not taking seats at Westminster ( abstentionism ). Sinn Féin in turn argued that to do so would recognise Britain's claim over Northern Ireland , and

11753-487: The Labour Party Constitution, with its commitment to nationalisation. Gaitskell led Labour to a third consecutive defeat at the 1959 general election despite the party appearing more united than it had been for some time. Gaitskell responded by attempting to remove Clause IV (the nationalisation clause) from the party constitution, but this was unsuccessful. Gaitskell died suddenly in 1963, and cleared

11914-638: The Labour Party found itself overwhelmed by the Conservative government led by a highly aggressive Margaret Thatcher . From the right she largely rejected the Post-war consensus on economic and social policies that had bipartisan support since the 1950s. At first Thatcher's economic reforms were doing poorly. Argentina's invasion of a British possession in the Falklands War in Spring 1982 transformed British politics. Thatcher's aggressive reaction produced

12075-416: The Labour Party in and out of Parliament and in turn party leaders opposed a national strike. The 1926 general strike failed after 9 days as the government plan devised by Winston Churchill proved highly effective in keeping the economy open while minimizing violence. In the long run, however, the episode tended to strengthen working class support for Labour, and it gained in the 1929 general election, forming

12236-483: The Labour Party was seen by the electorate as the party most likely to follow it through. With victory in Europe the coalition broke up in May 1945. The 1945 general election gave Labour a landslide victory, as they won 12 million votes (50% of the total) and 393 seats. The Labour government proved the most radical in British history. It presided over a policy of nationalising major industries and utilities including

12397-610: The National Executive Committee from 1971 to 1972 while in Opposition . In the Labour government of 1974–1979 , he returned to the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Industry and subsequently served as Secretary of State for Energy . He retained that post when James Callaghan succeeded Wilson as Prime Minister . When the Labour Party was in opposition through the 1980s, he emerged as a prominent figure on

12558-614: The New Social Order". In 1918, Clause IV was added to Labour's constitution, committing the party to work towards common ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange. Socialism was vaguely promised, but there was no effort made to draw up detailed plans on what that would mean or how it could be accomplished. The Representation of the People Act 1918 greatly expanded the electorate, enfranchising all men and most women. The party concentrated its appeal on

12719-567: The Pentagon to make nuclear weapons. So every nuclear power station in Britain is a bomb factory for America. I was utterly shaken by that. Nothing in the world would now induce me to support nuclear power. It was a mistake." By the end of the 1970s, Benn's views had shifted to the left wing of the Labour Party. He attributed this political shift to his experience as a Cabinet Minister in the 1964–1970 Labour Government . Benn ascribed his move to

12880-421: The RAF, was intending to enter the priesthood and had no objections to inheriting a peerage . However, Michael was later killed in an accident while on active service in the Second World War, and this left Benn as the heir-apparent to the peerage. He made several unsuccessful attempts to renounce the succession. In November 1960, Lord Stansgate died. Benn automatically became a peer, preventing him from sitting in

13041-550: The Sinn Féin constitution prevented its elected members from taking their seats in any British-created institution. A supporter of the Scottish Parliament and political devolution , Benn however opposed the Scottish National Party and Scottish independence , saying: "I think nationalism is a mistake. And I am half Scots and feel it would divide me in half with a knife. The thought that my mother would suddenly be

13202-633: The UK have been occupied by Germany, and they have this mixed feeling of hatred and subservience towards the Germans". Harold Wilson resigned as Leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister in March 1976. Benn later attributed the collapse of the Wilson government to cuts enforced on the UK by global capital , in particular the International Monetary Fund. In the resulting leadership contest Benn finished in fourth place out of

13363-430: The United Kingdom . Later in his life he became an opponent of nuclear power , attributing his time as running it as a minister to persuading him it was not cheap, safe or peaceful. When asked in an interview in January 2009 on what he had changed his mind on over the course of his life he expanded on this issue by saying: "Nuclear power, for example. In 1955 when Eisenhower said he was going for 'Atoms for Peace' I became

13524-651: The ability to renounce the title, a campaign which eventually succeeded with the Peerage Act 1963 . He was an active member of the Fabian Society and served as chairman from 1964 to 1965. He served in Harold Wilson 's Labour government , first as Postmaster General , where he oversaw the opening of the Post Office Tower , and later as Minister of Technology . Benn served as Chairman of

13685-849: The bill. An extraordinary example occurred in Alberta, Canada, in December 2014 by Danielle Smith , the Leader of the Official Opposition. She and eight of her MLAs, all of the Wildrose Party , crossed the floor together to join the governing Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta . In 2019, eleven British MPs defected from the Conservative and Labour parties to form the Change UK party. In September 2019,

13846-538: The cabinet most Labour members were vehemently opposed—they demanded new taxes on the rich instead. MacDonald gave up and on 23 August went to King George V and resigned the government. Unexpectedly the monarch insisted that the only patriotic solution was for MacDonald to stay and form an all-party "national government" with the Conservatives, which he did the next day. The Labour Party felt betrayed and expelled MacDonald and Snowden. The new National Government, 1931–1935 kept Macdonald and Snowden and two others, replacing

14007-422: The carpet" or "carpet crossing" is used. In India, a similar expression is " Aaya Ram Gaya Ram ", referring to political floor-crossing. In the United Kingdom and Canada, crossing the floor means leaving one's party entirely and joining another caucus. For example, leaving an opposition party to support the government (or vice versa), leaving or being expelled from the party one ran with at election and sitting as

14168-731: The centre and has governed since 2024. Labour is the largest party in the Senedd (Welsh Parliament), being the only party in the current Welsh government . The party won most Scottish seats in the 2024 general election. Labour is a member of the Party of European Socialists and the Progressive Alliance , and holds observer status in the Socialist International . The party includes semi-autonomous London , Scottish , Welsh and Northern Irish branches ; it supports

14329-540: The continuing popularity of Blair, Labour went on to win the 2001 election with a similar majority, dubbed the "quiet landslide" by the media. In 2003 Labour introduced tax credits , government top-ups to the pay of low-wage workers. A perceived turning point was when Blair controversially allied himself with US President George W. Bush in supporting the Iraq War , which caused him to lose much of his political support. The UN Secretary-General , among many, considered

14490-410: The decline. Iron and steel, however, were already well-run and nationalization was denounced and later reversed by the Conservatives. The economy was precarious during the age of austerity, as wartime restrictions and rationing continued, and the wartime bombing damage was slowly being rebuilt at great cost. The Treasury depended heavily on American money, especially the 1946 loan of $ 3.75 billion at

14651-518: The early acts of Blair's government were the establishment of the national minimum wage , the devolution of power to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland , major changes to the regulation of the banking system and the re-creation of a citywide government body for London, the Greater London Authority , with its own elected- Mayor . Combined with a Conservative opposition that had yet to organise effectively under William Hague , and

14812-434: The economy away from financial services . He advocated for more regulation of banks and energy companies and often addressed the need to challenge vested interests and increase inclusivity in British society. He adopted the " One Nation Labour " branding in 2012. The Parliamentary Labour Party voted to abolish Shadow Cabinet elections in 2011, ratified by the National Executive Committee and Party Conference. Henceforth

14973-447: The first time in over 30 years there was serious doubt among the public and the media as to whether Labour could ever return to government. Kinnock resigned as leader and was succeeded by John Smith . The damage to the economy on Black Wednesday in September 1992 undermined the Conservative reputation for superior economic competence. By December, Labour had a comfortable lead in the opinion polls. The recession ended in early 1993 and

15134-590: The forces of hatred will mark up their first success and mobilise their first offensive...Enoch Powell has emerged as the real leader of the Conservative Party. He is a far stronger character than Mr. Heath. He speaks his mind; Heath does not. The final proof of Powell's power is that Heath dare not attack him publicly, even when he says things that disgust decent Conservatives. The mainstream press attacked Benn for using language deemed as intemperate as Powell's language in his "Rivers of Blood" speech (which

15295-500: The formation of the first Labour government. The Conservatives called for high tariffs. Labour and Liberals both wanted free trade. Labour leader Ramsay MacDonald formed a minority government with Liberal support that lasted 10 months. The only domestic achievement was the Wheatley Housing Act , which expanded the large-scale public housing program that started in 1919 with support from all three major parties. MacDonald

15456-434: The governing Conservative party lost its working majority when Phillip Lee MP defected to the Liberal Democrats during the first speech of new prime minister Boris Johnson . On 19 January 2022, Christian Wakeford , Conservative MP for Bury South , crossed the floor to the Labour benches. In some countries, the phrase "crossing the floor" describes members of a government party or parties who defect by voting with

15617-414: The government benches (on the presiding officer's right) to vote in favor of a motion, and the opposition benches (on the presiding officer's left) to vote against a motion. Therefore, an MP who crosses the floor is on the opposite side of the chamber from the rest of their party, and on government motions frequently on the opposite side of the chamber than they normally sit. In Nigeria , the term "crossing

15778-426: The government's rearmament program. As the threat from Nazi Germany escalated, the Party gradually abandoned its pacifist stance and came to support re-armament, largely due to the efforts of Bevin and Hugh Dalton . By 1937 they had persuaded the Party to oppose Neville Chamberlain 's policy of appeasement of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy . However, as late as April 1939 the Party strongly opposed conscription for

15939-523: The growing deficit. In an era before Keynesian economics , the strong consensus among experts was for the government to balance its budget. Spending was cut again and again but MacDonald and his Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Snowden argued that the only way to get an emergency loan from New York banks was to cut unemployment benefits by 10%. They pointed out that cost of food was down 15% and overall prices were down 10%. But in

16100-502: The high-profile defections of three federal MPs from their parties in just over two years". The resulting legislation, which amended the provincial Legislative Assembly Act , mandated that members of the legislature who quit (or are expelled from) their political party had to serve out the remainder of their term as independents. However, in 2018, the Progressive Conservative government of Brian Pallister repealed

16261-403: The highly unpopular poll tax , combined with the fact that the economy was sliding into recession . Major replaced the poll tax but Kinnock energized Labour with the theme "It's Time for a Change", after more than a decade of unbroken Conservative rule. The 1992 general election gave Conservatives a victory with a much-reduced majority of 21. It was a deeply disappointing result for Labour. For

16422-507: The industrial districts. Their leaders used the Methodist revival tradition to find ways to rally the membership. Several small socialist organizations formed and wanted power based on the working class ; the most influential was the Fabian Society , which was made up of middle class reformers. Keir Hardie worked for cooperation among the unions and left-wing groups such as his small Independent Labour Party (ILP). The Labour Party

16583-514: The larger share of the popular vote. Its 13.9 million vote total was the highest ever. Most of its innovation were accepted by the Conservatives and Liberals and became part of the " post-war consensus " that lasted until the Thatcher era of the 1980s. Labour spent 13 years in opposition. It suffered an ideological split, between the left-wing followers of Aneurin Bevan (known as Bevanites ) and

16744-497: The law. The Peerage Act 1963 , allowing lifetime disclaimer of peerages, became law shortly after 6 pm on 31 July 1963. Benn was the first peer to renounce his title, doing so at 6.22 pm that day. St Clair, fulfilling a promise he had made at the time of his election, then accepted the office of Steward of the Manor of Northstead , disqualifying himself from the House ( outright resignation not being possible ). Benn returned to

16905-448: The leader of the modernisers, warned that the long-term weaknesses had to be reversed. He argued that the party was too locked into a base that was shrinking, since it was based on the working-class, on trade unions and on residents of subsidised council housing. Blair said that the rapidly growing middle class was largely ignored, as well as more ambitious working-class families. He argued that they aspired to become middle-class and accepted

17066-413: The leader of the party chose the Shadow Cabinet members. In March 2014, the party reformed internal election procedures, including replacing the electoral college system with " one member, one vote ". Mass membership was encouraged by creating a class of "registered supporters" as an alternative to full membership. Trade union members would also have to explicitly opt in rather than opt out of paying

17227-409: The leadership of Home Secretary Roy Jenkins such as the abolition of the death penalty ; the legalisation of abortion ; loosening restrictions on homosexuality , the abolition of theatre censorship , and legislation to outlaw racial discrimination The government put heavy emphasis on expanding opportunities through education: Comprehensive education was expanded at the secondary level and

17388-427: The left to four lessons: As regards the power of industrialists and bankers, Benn remarked: Compared to this, the pressure brought to bear in industrial disputes by the unions is minuscule. This power was revealed even more clearly in 1976 when the International Monetary Fund secured cuts in our public expenditure. ... These [four] lessons led me to the conclusion that the UK is only superficially governed by MPs and

17549-454: The left wing of the party and unsuccessfully challenged Neil Kinnock for the Labour leadership in 1988. After leaving Parliament at the 2001 general election, Benn was President of the Stop the War Coalition until his death in 2014. Benn was widely seen as a key proponent of democratic socialism and Christian socialism , though in regards to the latter he supported the United Kingdom becoming

17710-523: The left wing, reversed the highly controversial Manifesto proposals, expelled extremist factions like the Trotskyist Militant tendency , and began a process of modernization and acceptance of many Thatcherite innovations. In November 1990, Thatcher resigned and was succeeded by the less confrontational Thatcherite John Major . Opinion polls had shown Labour comfortably ahead of the Conservatives largely because of Thatcher's introduction of

17871-502: The local constituencies. The left was led by Michael Foot and Tony Benn . They were keen on radical proposals as presented in the 1983 manifesto entitled "The New Hope for Britain". It called for extensive nationalisation of industry, with heavily centralized economic planning, and many additional controls on business. It demanded unilateral nuclear disarmament and withdrawal from the European Community. Labour's manifesto

18032-410: The modernisers called for radical adjustment of Party goals by repealing "Clause IV", the historic commitment to nationalisation of industry. This was achieved in 1995. Blair continued to move the party further to the centre, abandoning the largely symbolic Clause Four at the 1995 mini-conference in a strategy to increase the party's appeal to " middle England ". The political philosophy of New Labour

18193-474: The new electorate with considerable success among working men, but far less success among women. As the Liberal Party collapsed, Labour became the official opposition to the Conservative government. Its support for the war effort demonstrated that the Labour Party was a patriotic and moderate force that solved problems and did not threaten class warfare. The 1923 election was a pivotal achievement with

18354-500: The next Labour Government would do. "Within days", a Labour Government would gain powers to nationalise industries, control capital and implement industrial democracy; "within weeks", all powers from Brussels would be returned to Westminster, and the House of Lords would be abolished by creating one thousand new peers and then abolishing the peerage. Benn received tumultuous applause. On 25 January 1981, Roy Jenkins , David Owen , Shirley Williams and Bill Rodgers (known collectively as

18515-464: The next Labour seat to fall vacant, after Eric Varley had left the Commons to head Coalite . On the day of the by-election , 1 March 1984, The Sun newspaper ran a hostile feature article, "Benn on the Couch", which purported to be the opinions of an American psychiatrist. Newly elected to a mining seat, Benn was a supporter of the 1984–85 UK miners' strike , which was beginning when he returned to

18676-550: The opposition against some piece of government-sponsored legislation. Political parties commonly allow their members a free vote on some matters of personal conscience. In Australia, one of the major parties, the Australian Labor Party requires its members to pledge their support for the collective decisions of the caucus, which theoretically prohibits them from "crossing the floor" in this sense; however, in practice, some Labor members disregard this pledge, despite

18837-630: The party or were suspended over antisemitism-related incidents. In 2018, internal divisions emerged over adopting the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism , with 68 rabbis criticising the leadership. The issue was cited by a number of MPs who left the party to set up Change UK . An investigation by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission found the party responsible for three Equality Act breaches, including harassment political interference in antisemitism complaints. During

18998-511: The party's incumbent deputy leader , triggering the 1981 deputy leadership election , disregarding an appeal from Michael Foot to either stand for the leadership or abstain from inflaming the party's divisions. Benn defended his decision insisting that it was "not about personalities, but about policies". The result was announced on 27 September 1981; Healey retained his position by a margin of barely one per cent. The decision of several soft left MPs, including Neil Kinnock , to abstain triggered

19159-583: The political views of Jeremy Corbyn , who was elected Leader of the Labour Party a year after Benn's death, and John McDonnell , who served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer under Corbyn. Benn was born in Westminster, London, on 3 April 1925. He had two brothers, Michael (1921–1944), who was killed in the Second World War, and David (1928–2017), a specialist in Russia and Eastern Europe. Following

19320-428: The portrait was reduced to a small profile in silhouette, a format that is still used on commemorative stamps. Benn also led the government's opposition to the "pirate" radio stations broadcasting from international waters, which he was aware would be an unpopular measure. He claimed that some of these stations were causing interference to emergency radio used by shipping, although he was not responsible for introducing

19481-412: The pound. Labour went on to unexpectedly lose the 1970 general election to the Conservatives under Edward Heath . Labour in opposition kept Wilson as Leader. The 1970s proved a difficult time to be in government for both the Conservatives and Labour due to the 1973 oil crisis , which caused high inflation and a global recession. The Labour Party was returned to power again under Wilson a few days after

19642-477: The publishers confirmed that Benn had sent back the draft entry with everything else struck through. In the 1977 edition, Benn's entry disappeared entirely, and when he returned to Who's Who in 1983, he was listed as "Tony Benn" and all references to his education or service record were removed. In 1972, Benn said in his diaries that "Today I had the idea that I would resign my Privy Councillorship, my MA and all my honorary doctorates in order to strip myself of what

19803-405: The religious wars. You have the satellites coming in now—well, it is the multinational church all over again. That's why Mrs Thatcher pulled Britain out of UNESCO : she was not prepared, any more than Ronald Reagan was, to be part of an organisation that talked about a New World Information Order , people speaking to each other without the help of Murdoch or Maxwell ." According to Wilby in

19964-458: The rest of the Laborites with Conservatives. The 1931 election took place on 27 October. Labour had 6.3 million votes (31 percent), down from 8.0 million and 37 percent in 1929. Nevertheless, it was reduced to a helpless minority of only 52 members, chiefly from coal mining districts. The old leadership was gone. One bright note came in 1934 when Herbert Morrison led Labour to take control of

20125-410: The rest of their lives. Benn cited the decision of his son Hilary to become vegetarian as an important factor in his own decision to adopt a vegetarian diet. Following the Second World War, Benn worked briefly as a BBC Radio producer. On 1 November 1950, he was selected to succeed Stafford Cripps as the Labour candidate for Bristol South East , after Cripps stood down because of ill-health. He won

20286-451: The right-wing following Hugh Gaitskell (known as Gaitskellites ). The economy recovered as Conservatives hung together and chanted, "You Never Had It So Good.". The ageing Attlee contested the general election in 1955 , which saw Labour lose ground; he retired and was replaced by Gaitskell. Internal squabbling now focused on the issues of nuclear disarmament , Britain's entry into the European Economic Community (EEC), and Clause IV of

20447-642: The role of leader of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP). The Labour Party's first national conference in Belfast in 1907 helped shape many of its key policies. Never fully resolved was the puzzle of where the final decisions ought to lie—in the annual conference? the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP)? The local chapters? The Trade Union Congress (which brought together the heads of most unions)? The conference created

20608-450: The seat in a by-election on 30 November 1950 . Anthony Crosland helped him get the seat as he was the MP for nearby South Gloucestershire at the time. Upon taking the oath on 4 December 1950 Benn became " Baby of the House ", the youngest MP, for one day, being succeeded by Thomas Teevan , who was two years younger but took his oath a day later. He became the "Baby" again in 1951, when Teevan

20769-506: The six cabinet ministers who stood—he withdrew as 11.8 per cent of colleagues voted for him in the first ballot. Benn withdrew from the second ballot and endorsed Michael Foot ; James Callaghan eventually won. Despite not receiving his support in the second and third rounds of the vote, Callaghan kept Benn on as Energy Secretary. In 1976, there was a sterling crisis, and Chancellor of the Exchequer Denis Healey sought

20930-610: The split of the Socialist Campaign Group from the left of the Tribune Group . After Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands in April 1982, Benn argued that the dispute should be settled by the United Nations and that the British Government should not send a task force to recapture the islands. The task force was sent, and following the Falklands War , they were back in British control by mid-June. In

21091-669: The stories in the Bible were mostly about the struggle between the prophets and the kings and that he ought in his life to support the prophets over the kings, who had power, as the prophets taught righteousness . Benn was for over 30 years a committed Christian. He said that the teachings of Jesus Christ had a "radical political importance" on his life, and made a distinction between the historical Jesus as "a carpenter of Nazareth" who advocated social justice and egalitarianism and "the way in which he's presented by some religious authorities; by popes, archbishops and bishops who present Jesus as justification for their power", believing this to be

21252-569: The strike. This would have included two men convicted of murder (later reduced to manslaughter) for the killing of David Wilkie , a taxi driver driving a non-striking miner to work in South Wales during the strike. Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom that sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum. In a broader sense, the party has been described as an alliance of social democrats , democratic socialists and trade unionists . It

21413-569: The third generation of his family to have been a member of the Cabinet , a rare distinction for a modern political family in Britain. Benn's granddaughter Emily Benn was the Labour Party's youngest-ever candidate when she failed to win East Worthing and Shoreham in 2010 . Benn was a first cousin once removed of the actress Margaret Rutherford . Benn and his wife Caroline became vegetarian in 1970, for ethical reasons, and remained so for

21574-575: The vote, its greatest share since 2001 and the biggest increase in vote share in a single general election since 1945 . The party gained a net 30 seats with the Conservatives losing their overall majority. From 2016, the Labour Party faced criticism for failing to deal with antisemitism . Criticism was also levelled at Corbyn. The Chakrabarti Inquiry cleared the party of widespread antisemitism but identified an "occasionally toxic atmosphere". High-profile party members, including Ken Livingstone , Peter Willsman < and Chris Williamson , left

21735-499: The voters who elect them. Parliamentary democracy is, in truth, little more than a means of securing a periodical change in the management team, which is then allowed to preside over a system that remains in essence intact. If the British people were ever to ask themselves what power they truly enjoyed under our political system they would be amazed to discover how little it is, and some new Chartist agitation might be born and might quickly gather momentum. Benn's philosophy consisted of

21896-583: The war illegal and a violation of the UN Charter . The Iraq War was deeply unpopular in most western countries, with Western governments divided in their support and under pressure from worldwide popular protests . The decisions that led up to the Iraq war and its subsequent conduct were the subject of the Iraq Inquiry . In the 2005 general election , Labour was re-elected for a third term, but with

22057-446: The way for Harold Wilson to lead the party. A downturn in the economy and a series of scandals in the early 1960s had engulfed the Conservative government by 1963. The Labour Party returned to government with a 4-seat majority under Wilson in the 1964 general election but a landslide increased its majority to 96 in the 1966 general election . Labour was responsible for a number of sweeping social and cultural reforms mostly under

22218-557: The world had to offer". While he acknowledged that he "might be ridiculed" for doing so, Benn said that " 'Wedgie Benn' and 'the Rt Honourable Anthony Wedgwood Benn' and all that stuff is impossible. I have been Tony Benn in Bristol for a long time." In October 1973, he announced on BBC Radio that he wished to be known as Mr. Tony Benn rather than Anthony Wedgwood Benn, and his book Speeches from 1974

22379-571: Was Christian socialism ," according to Peter Wilby , linking Benn to the "high-minded" founding roots of Labour. Later in his life, Benn emphasised issues regarding morality and righteousness, as well as various ethical principles of Nonconformism . On Desert Island Discs he said that he had been powerfully influenced by "what I would call the Dissenting tradition" (that is, the English Dissenters who left or were ejected from

22540-450: Was a continuation of the trend that had begun under the leadership of Neil Kinnock . New Labour as a name has no official status, but remains in common use to distinguish modernisers from those holding to more traditional positions, normally referred to as "Old Labour". New Labour is a party of ideas and ideals but not of outdated ideology. What counts is what works. The objectives are radical. The means will be modern. The Labour Party won

22701-410: Was a repudiation of the Post-war consensus from the left. It alienated so many moderates, skilled workers and the general public that it was ridiculed as the " longest suicide note in history ." Some top leaders quit the Labour Party and formed a new Social Democratic Party , but it could not survive. After Labour's massive defeat in the 1983 General Election , Neil Kinnock replaced Foot. He defeated

22862-454: Was a siege economy, only they had the bankers inside the castle with all our supporters left outside, whereas my policy would have our supporters in the castle with the bankers outside." Benn blamed the Winter of Discontent on these cuts to socialist policies. Upon the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, Benn described Mao as "one of the greatest—if not the greatest—figures of the twentieth century:

23023-786: Was a theologian, feminist and the founder President of the Congregational Federation . She was a member of the League of the Church Militant , which was the predecessor of the Movement for the Ordination of Women ; in 1925, she was rebuked by Randall Davidson , the Archbishop of Canterbury , for advocating the ordination of women . His mother's theology had a profound influence on Benn, as she taught him that

23184-553: Was abolished by boundary changes, and he lost to Michael Cocks in the selection of a candidate to stand in the new winnable seat of Bristol South . Rejecting offers from the new seat of Livingston in Scotland, Benn contested Bristol East , losing to the Conservative 's Jonathan Sayeed in June 1983. Foot resigned as leader following the defeat which reduced Labour to only 209 MPs, while Healey also decided to step down as deputy leader. However Benn's absence from parliament meant that he

23345-541: Was an elected Member of the Inner London Education Authority from 1986 to 1990. His second son Hilary was a councillor in London, stood for Parliament in 1983 and 1987 , and became Labour MP for Leeds Central in 1999. He was Secretary of State for International Development from 2003 to 2007, and then Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs until 2010, later serving as Shadow Foreign Secretary (2015–16). This makes him

23506-532: Was appointed Secretary of State for Energy , immediately following his unsuccessful campaign for a "No" vote in the referendum on the UK's continued membership of the European Community (Common Market) . Later in his diary, (25 October 1977) Benn wrote that he "loathed" the EEC; he claimed it was "bureaucratic and centralised" and "of course it is really dominated by Germany. All the Common Market countries except

23667-481: Was elected President of the Oxford Union in 1947. In later life, Benn removed public references to his private education from Who's Who . In 1970 all references to Westminster School were removed, and in the 1975 edition his entry stated: "Education—still in progress". In the 1976 edition, almost all details were omitted except his name, jobs as a Member of Parliament and as a Government Minister, and address;

23828-499: Was elevated to the House of Lords and Tony Benn was subsequently titled with the honorific prefix, The Honourable. William Benn was given the title of Viscount Stansgate in 1942: the new wartime coalition government was short of working Labour peers in the upper house. In 1945–46, William Benn was the Secretary of State for Air in the first majority Labour Government . Benn's mother, Margaret Benn ( née Holmes, 1897–1991),

23989-520: Was epitomised in the Beveridge Report of 1942, by the Liberal economist William Beveridge . The Report assumed that the maintenance of full employment would be the aim of post-war governments, and that this would provide the basis for the welfare state . Immediately upon its release, it sold hundreds of thousands of copies. All major parties committed themselves to fulfilling this aim, but

24150-403: Was followed by a sharp fall in unemployment, together with sustained economic growth. Nevertheless, the Labour lead in the polls remained strong. Smith died suddenly in May 1994, and Tony Blair became leader. Once again the battle resumed between the old guard on the left and the younger "modernisers". The old guard argued that they were regaining strength under Smith's strong leadership. Blair,

24311-634: Was formed by unions and left-wing groups to create a distinct political voice for the working class in Britain. In 1900 the Trades Union Congress (TUC), an umbrella body for most unions, sponsored a national conference to unite into a single party that would sponsor candidates for the House of Commons. The conference created the Labour Representation Committee (LRC), as a coalition of separate groups with Ramsay MacDonald as secretary. The fearsome issue for labour

24472-479: Was founded in 1900, having emerged from the trade union movement and socialist parties of the 19th century . It was electorally weak before the First World War , but in the early 1920s overtook the Liberal Party to become the main opposition to the Conservative Party , and briefly formed a minority government under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924. In 1929, Labour for the first time became the largest party in

24633-428: Was influenced by the party's development of Anthony Giddens ' Third Way which attempted to provide a synthesis between capitalism and socialism . New Labour was first termed as an alternative branding for the Labour Party, dating from a conference slogan first used by the Labour Party in 1994, which was later seen in a draft manifesto published by the party in 1996, called New Labour, New Life For Britain . It

24794-572: Was much more successful in foreign policy. He helped end the impasse over German payment of reparations by enlisting Washington to launch the Dawes Plan. Much more controversial was his decision to recognize the Soviet Union. That ignited an anti-Communist backlash that exploded four days before the 1924 election in the fake Zinoviev Letter in which Kremlin supposedly called for revolutionary uprising by British workers. The 1924 election saw

24955-488: Was not re-elected. In the 1950s, Benn held middle-of-the-road or soft left views, and was not associated with the young left wing group around Aneurin Bevan . As MP for Bristol South East, Benn helped organise the 1963 Bristol Bus Boycott against the colour bar of the Bristol Omnibus Company against employing black and Asian drivers. Benn said that he would "stay off the buses, even if I have to find

25116-596: Was re-elected. An election court found that the voters were fully aware that Benn was disqualified, and declared the seat won by the Conservative runner-up, Malcolm St Clair , who was at the time also the heir presumptive to a peerage. Benn continued his campaign outside Parliament. Within two years, though, the Conservative Government of the time, which had members in the same or similar situation to Benn's (i.e., who were going to receive title, or who had already applied for writs of summons), changed

25277-486: Was the 1901 Taff Vale legal decision which made most strikes illegal; the urgent goal was to get Parliament to reverse it. The LRC cut a secret deal with the Liberal Party : they would not compete against each other in the 1906 general election . Voters gave the Liberals a landslide with 397 seats out of 664; the new LRC won 29 seats. The LRC renamed itself "The Labour Party", with veteran MP Keir Hardie narrowly winning

25438-673: Was to keep the Empire in business. Under Ernest Bevin 's leadership, London pushed Washington into an anti-Communist coalition that launched the Cold War in 1947 and established the NATO military alliance against the USSR in 1949. Furthermore, independent of Washington London committed large sums to developing a secret nuclear weapons programme . In the 1951 general election , Labour narrowly lost to Churchill's Conservatives, despite receiving

25599-405: Was unable to stand in the resulting leadership contest as only MPs were eligible to be candidates. Benn's absence from the contest was reported by The Glasgow Herald to leave Neil Kinnock as "the favourite Left-wing candidate". Ultimately Kinnock won the contest, formally replacing Foot as party leader in October of that year. In a by-election, Benn was elected as the MP for Chesterfield ,

25760-401: Was vilified by most of the press while his opponents implied and stated that a Benn-led Labour Government would implement a type of Eastern European state socialism, with Edward Heath referring to Benn as " Commissar Benn" and others referring to Benn as a " Bollinger Bolshevik ". Despite this, Benn was overwhelmingly popular with Labour activists in the constituencies: a survey of delegates at

25921-484: Was widely regarded as racist), and Benn noted in his diary that "letters began pouring in on the Powell speech: 2:1 against me but some very sympathetic ones saying that my speech was overdue". Harold Wilson later reprimanded Benn for this speech, accusing him of losing Labour seats in the 1970 general election. During the 1970s Benn publicly defended Marxism, saying: The Communist Manifesto , and many other works of Marxist philosophy, have always profoundly influenced

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