122-477: The Alliance for Workers' Liberty ( AWL ), also known as Workers' Liberty , is a Trotskyist group in Britain and Australia, which has been identified with the theorist Sean Matgamna throughout its history. It publishes the newspaper Solidarity . The AWL traces its origins to the document What we are and what we must become , written by the tendency's founder Sean Matgamna in 1966, in which he argued that
244-425: A Greater London Development Plan . The plan included in its wide-ranging remit: population changes, employment, housing, pollution, transport , roads, the central area , growth and development areas, urban open spaces and the urban landscape, public services and utilities and planning standards. The plan included the comprehensive redevelopment of Covent Garden and creating a central London motorway loop. The plan
366-458: A "signal contribution" to the discipline of international relations . They argued his theory presented "a specific understanding of capitalist development as "uneven", insofar as it systematically featured geographically divergent "advanced" and "backward" regions" across the world economy . Faith merely promises to move mountains; but technology , which takes nothing ‘on faith’, is actually able to cut down mountains and move them. Up to now this
488-630: A Leninist party model. Trotsky would also assume a central role in the 1905 revolution and serve as the Chairman of the Petersburg Soviet of Workers' Delegates in which he wrote several proclamations urging for improved economic conditions , political rights and the use of strike action against the Tsarist regime on behalf of workers. In 1917, he had proposed the election of a new Soviet presidium with other socialist parties on
610-705: A Spanish-born NKVD agent, and died the next day in a hospital. His murder is considered a political assassination. Almost all Trotskyists within the VKP(b) were executed in the Great Purges of 1937–1938, effectively removing all of Trotsky's internal influence in the USSR. Nikita Khrushchev had come to power as head of the Communist Party in Ukraine, signing lists of other Trotskyists to be executed. Trotsky and
732-478: A conscious expression of historical processes. Trotskyists are critical of Stalinism as they oppose Joseph Stalin 's theory of socialism in one country in favour of Trotsky's theory of permanent revolution . Trotskyists criticize the bureaucracy and anti-democratic current developed in the Soviet Union under Stalin . Despite their ideological disputes, Trotsky and Lenin were close personally prior to
854-600: A directly elected Mayor of London and a London Assembly . The Mayor of London elections were won by the same Ken Livingstone, who began his victory speech with the words: "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted 14 years ago ...". In February 2020, Labour's Tom Copley , supported by the Conservative's Tony Arbour , both members of the London Assembly, called for the GLC's coat of arms to be adopted by
976-777: A few years, and direct elections to it were held, but ILEA was finally also disbanded in 1990, with the Inner London boroughs assuming control over education as the outer boroughs had done on their creation in 1965. Most of the powers of the GLC were devolved to the London boroughs. Some powers, such as the fire service, were taken over by joint boards made up of councillors appointed by the boroughs – see waste authorities in Greater London for an example. In total, around 100 organisations were responsible for service delivery in Greater London. Tony Blair 's Labour government
1098-579: A former member alleged that in 2005, when he was a 16 year old member of the group, he had been sexually assaulted twice by an older, and by then also former, member. The group responded, acknowledging the allegations and initiating an investigation, but a motion was passed at the London Young Labour (LYL) conference in February 2018 to exclude members of supporters of AWL from LYL until the allegations were investigated. The AWL has supported
1220-483: A hostile capitalist world and the internal pressures of its backward economy. Trotsky argued that the revolution must quickly spread to capitalist countries, bringing about a socialist revolution that must spread worldwide. In this way, the revolution is "permanent", moving out of necessity first, from the bourgeois revolution to the workers' revolution and from there uninterruptedly to European and worldwide revolutions. An internationalist outlook of permanent revolution
1342-518: A newly established body and called for the strengthening of its formal responsibilities to support a balanced level of economic reconstruction after the Civil War. Lenin and Politburo members had also proposed he served as deputy chairman with a focus on economic matters related to the either STO , Gosplan or the Council of National Economy. Trotsky had urged economic decentralisation between
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#17327985228191464-465: A number of Old Bolsheviks who signed The Declaration of 46 raised concerns to the Poliburo concerning intra-party democracy which shared similarities with Lenin's proposed party reforms before his death. The signatories of the 46 letter expressed grievances related to the provincial conferences, party congresses and the election of committees. Separately, Trotsky would develop his views further with
1586-538: A pre-arranged meeting of the new Councillors the day after the election, the Left faction won a complete victory over the less-organised Labour right. McIntosh lost with 20 votes to 30 for Ken Livingstone. Livingstone, dubbed "Red Ken" by some newspapers, managed to gain the guarded support of the Labour deputy leader Illtyd Harrington and the party Chief Whip and set about his new administration. Livingstone's deputy leader of
1708-467: A result, the global working class would come to Russia's aid, and socialism could develop worldwide. According to political scientist Baruch Knei-Paz, Trotsky’s theory of “permanent revolution” was grossly misrepresented by Stalin as defeatist and adventurist during the succession struggle when in fact Trotsky encouraged revolutions in Europe but was not at any time proposing “reckless confrontations” with
1830-497: A result, they are linked to and rely on the feudal landowners in many ways. Thus, Trotsky argues that because a majority of the branches of industry in Russia originated under the direct influence of government measures—sometimes with the help of government subsidies—the capitalist class was again tied to the ruling elite. The capitalist class was subservient to European capital. The theory of permanent revolution further considers that
1952-555: A revival of freedom of Soviet parties, beginning with the party of Bolsheviks, and a resurrection of the trade unions. The bringing of democracy into industry means a radical revision of plans in the interests of toilers. Trotsky, The Revolution Betrayed , 1936 In 1931, Trotsky wrote a pamphlet on the Spanish Revolution and called for the creation of worker’s juntas in emulation of elected soviets as an expression of working class organisation. Trotsky stipulated
2074-538: A revolution in a European capitalist society would lead to a socialist one. According to this position, a socialist revolution could not occur in a backward, feudal country such as early 20th-century Russia when it had such a small and almost powerless capitalist class. In 1905, Trotsky formulated his theory of permanent revolution , which later became a defining characteristic of Trotskyism. The theory of permanent revolution addressed how such feudal regimes were to be overthrown and how socialism could establish itself, given
2196-414: A revolution in peasant-based countries such as Russia ultimately prepares the ground for capitalism's development since the liberated peasants become small owners, producers, and traders. This leads to the growth of commodity markets, from which a new capitalist class emerges. Trotsky agreed that a new socialist state and economy in a country like Russia would not be able to hold out against the pressures of
2318-483: A spectrum from communism on the left to imperialist capitalism on the right. However, given that Stalinism is often labelled rightist within the communist spectrum and left communism leftist, anti-revisionists' idea of the left is very different from that of left communism. Despite being Bolshevik-Leninist comrades during the Russian Revolution and Russian Civil War , Trotsky and Stalin became enemies in
2440-568: A time when Adams was banned from entering Great Britain due to his links with the Provisional IRA . By 1983, the government argued for the abolition of the GLC, claiming that it was inefficient and unnecessary, and that its functions could be carried out more efficiently by the boroughs. The arguments for this case which were detailed in the White Paper Streamlining the cities . Critics of this position argued that
2562-453: Is found in the works of Karl Marx . The term "permanent revolution" is taken from a remark of Marx in his March 1850 Address: "it is our task", Marx said: [...] to make the revolution permanent until all the more or less propertied classes have been driven from their ruling positions, until the proletariat has conquered state power and until the association of the proletarians has progressed sufficiently far—not only in one country but in all
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#17327985228192684-405: Is lacking, yet the economy is largely in the hands of the state, are termed by orthodox Trotskyist theories as degenerated or deformed workers' states and not socialist states. Bureaucratic autocracy must give place to Soviet democracy. A restoration of the right of criticism, and a genuine freedom of elections, are necessary conditions for the further development of the country. This assumes
2806-641: The Alliance for Workers' Liberty opposed the Alternative Vote proposal, arguing that it did not offer progress on the party's main democratic demands. During the 2014 Scottish independence referendum , the AWL officially endorced the campaign to keep Scotland in the UK . The Alliance for Workers' Liberty supported Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 Labour leadership campaign . Two days after Corbyn's victory in
2928-541: The 2017 general election , and again in 2019 . Following Keir Starmer taking over as Leader of the Labour Party, In March 2022 the Labour's National Executive Committee voted to proscribe the AWL. In May 2024, the AWL endorced the Labour Party in every constituancy in the 2024 general election , rejecting any independent candidate such as Jeremy Corbyn and Andrew Feinstein as being "unaccountable". In 2018,
3050-612: The Fourth International . Trotsky described himself as an orthodox Marxist , a revolutionary Marxist , and a Bolshevik – Leninist as well as a follower of Karl Marx , Frederick Engels , Vladimir Lenin , Karl Liebknecht , and Rosa Luxemburg . His relations with Lenin have been a source of intense historical debate. However, on balance, scholarly opinion among a range of prominent historians and political scientists such as E.H. Carr , Isaac Deutscher , Moshe Lewin , Ronald Suny , Richard B. Day and W. Bruce Lincoln
3172-802: The Labour Representation Committee in 2004. In the late 1980s, it established and led a number of left opposition campaigns in the NUS, including Left Unity and the Campaign for Free Education and its supporters won seats in the structures of the NUS. Kat Fletcher , President of NUS from 2004 to 2006, was a member of the AWL and the Campaign for Free Education. It played leading roles in the NUS Women's and LGBT Campaigns, championing its policies on liberation and international solidarity within them, securing their representation within
3294-603: The London Congress of Social Democrats in 1903 and during the First World War . Lenin and Trotsky were close ideologically and personally during the Russian Revolution and its aftermath. Trotskyists and some others call Trotsky its "co-leader". This was also alluded to by Rosa Luxemburg. Lenin himself never mentioned the concept of "Trotskyism" after Trotsky became a member of the Bolshevik party. Trotsky
3416-536: The London boroughs for providing roads, housing, city planning and leisure services. It had a very limited role in direct service provision with most functions the responsibility of the London boroughs. The GLC did not take control of public transport from the London Transport Board until 1970 and lost control to London Regional Transport in 1984. Under the 1963 Act, the GLC was required to produce
3538-590: The National Union of Students . Throughout the 1980s the group had reassessed its politics and reappraised the Third Camp tradition of heterodox and dissident Trotskyists including Max Shachtman and Hal Draper . The group adopted a two-state position on Israel-Palestine, and in 1988, moved away from its original position that the Stalinist states were "deformed or degenerated workers states ". By
3660-539: The New York Intellectuals . Trotsky presented a critique of contemporary literary movements such as Futurism and emphasised a need of cultural autonomy for the development of a socialist culture. According to literary critic Terry Eagleton , Trotsky recognised "like Lenin on the need for a socialist culture to absorb the finest products of bourgeois art". Trotsky himself viewed the proletarian culture as "temporary and transitional" which would provide
3782-673: The Revolutionary Socialist League – by then effectively the Militant tendency – was too inward-looking, and needed to become more activist in its orientation. The RSL refused to circulate the document; hence, with a handful of supporters, he left to form the Workers' Fight group. Espousing left unity, they accepted an offer in 1968 to form a faction within the International Socialists (IS) as
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3904-554: The Soviet bureaucracy as primary evidence that Lenin sought to remove Stalin from the position of General Secretary . Various historians have also cited Lenin's proposal to appoint Trotsky Vice-Chairman of the Soviet Union as further evidence that he intended Trotsky to be his successor as head of government . In 1927, Trotsky was purged from the Communist Party and Soviet politics. In October, by order of Stalin, Trotsky
4026-677: The Trotskyist Tendency . The Trotskyist Tendency clashed with the leadership of the International Socialists over many issues; for example, UK membership of the European Communities , on which the IS leadership itself was divided, and the use of the "Troops Out" slogan regarding Northern Ireland . In December 1971, the leadership of the International Socialists called a special conference to "defuse"
4148-465: The manifesto . The May 1981 election was presented as a clash of ideologies by the Conservatives – Thatcherism against a "tax high, spend high" Marxist Labour group, claiming that Andrew McIntosh would be deposed by Ken Livingstone after the election. McIntosh and Labour Party leader Michael Foot insisted this was untrue, and Labour won a very narrow victory with a majority of six. At
4270-494: The peasantry as a whole cannot take on the task of carrying through the revolution because it is dispersed in small holdings throughout the country and forms a heterogeneous grouping, including the rich peasants who employ rural workers and aspire to landlordism as well as the poor peasants who aspire to own more land. Trotsky argues: "All historical experience [...] shows that the peasantry are absolutely incapable of taking up an independent political role". Trotskyists differ on
4392-477: The political spectrum of Marxism , Trotskyists are usually considered to be on the left. In the 1920s, they called themselves the Left Opposition , although today's left communism is distinct and usually non-Bolshevik. The terminological disagreement can be confusing because different versions of a left-right political spectrum are used. Anti-revisionists consider themselves the ultimate leftists on
4514-605: The war with Poland in 1920, proposed armistice with the Entente and temperance with staging anti-British revolts in the Middle East. Historian Robert Vincent Daniels believed that the practical differences, in the domain of international policy , between the Left Opposition and other factions had been exaggerated and he contended that Trotsky was no more prepared than other Bolshevik figures to risk war or for
4636-630: The 1920s and, after that, opposed the legitimacy of each other's forms of Leninism. Trotsky was highly critical of the Stalinist USSR for suppressing democracy and the lack of adequate economic planning. Overall, Trotsky and the Left-United Opposition factions advocated for rapid industrialization , voluntary collectivisation of agriculture, and the expansion of a worker's democracy . Until 1905, some revolutionaries claimed that Marx's theory of history posited that only
4758-569: The 1990s the majority of organisation had adopted a bureaucratic collectivist analysis, with a minority holding a state capitalist position. The newspaper Socialist Organiser was proscribed by the Labour Party conference in 1990. In response to the ban, the Socialist Organiser Alliance dissolved. In 1992, supporters of Socialist Organiser launched a new organisation known as the Alliance for Workers' Liberty . The AWL
4880-581: The AWL's own brand of libertarian-tinged Trotskyism), and Antonio Gramsci: Working-class revolutionary (a short appraisal of the life and thought of the Italian Marxist agitator, organiser, and educator Antonio Gramsci ). The AWL helped to set up and was active in campaigns such as No Sweat , Feminist Fightback , Workers' Climate Action, the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts , and local community campaigns such as
5002-519: The Conservatives. The Liberals won two seats. The GLC's hopes under the Labour administration of Reg Goodwin were badly affected by the oil crisis of 1974. Massive inflation, combined with the GLC's £1.6 billion debt, led to heavy rate increases (200% in total before the next election in 1977) and unpopular budget cuts. Some months before the 1977 elections the Labour Group began to split. A left group, including Ken Livingstone , denounced
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5124-492: The Free Shahrokh Zamani and Reza Shahabi campaign, a solidarity campaign demanding the release of jailed Iranian trade unionists. Trotskyism Historical Historical Trotskyism ( Russian : Троцкизм , Trotskizm ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and
5246-597: The GLA but this has not materialised. Since the abolition of the GLC in 1986 the London Fire Brigade has continued to use the GLC coat of arms. The archives of the Greater London Council are held at London Metropolitan Archives . Ken Livingstone resigned on 2 August 1984, triggering the 1984 Paddington by-election . He was re-elected on 20 September 1984. During this time Ken Livingstone
5368-407: The GLC although important in themselves, do not add up to an argument for a large authority of this type. The GLC is a strategic planning authority, taken in the widest sense, or it is nothing. Each of the six GLC elections was won by the leading national opposition party, with the party in government nationally coming second in the GLC elections. The first GLC election was on 9 April 1964. Each of
5490-562: The GLC from 1985 to 1986 was John McDonnell , future Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer under Jeremy Corbyn . Livingstone's Technology Director was Mike Cooley who established The Greater London Enterprise Board (GLEB). The first election was held on 9 April 1964, a year before the creation of the council. Subsequent elections were held every three years for a three-year term in 1967, 1970 and 1973. The first three elections were for 100 councillors from 32 multi-member constituencies. This
5612-618: The GLC into direct conflict with Margaret Thatcher ’s Conservative government. Livingstone soon became a thorn in the side of the sitting Conservative government. He antagonised Thatcher through a series of actions: these included posting a billboard of London's rising unemployment figures on the side of County Hall (directly opposite Parliament ), as well as the Fares Fair policy of reducing Tube and bus fares using government subsidies, and meeting Sinn Féin MP Gerry Adams at
5734-633: The GLC was the construction of the Thames Barrier that took place between 1974 and 1982 at a cost of £534 million. Some saw it as a GLC vanity project but over time people's opinions have changed: the barrier was used 35 times in the 1990s and was raised 75 times in the first decade of the 21st century, due to rising sea-levels. In 1969, the GLC announced its plans for the London Ringways which were three motorways that were proposed to solve London's traffic problem once and for all. However,
5856-485: The GLC's abolition (as with that of the metropolitan county councils ) was politically motivated, claiming that it had become a powerful vehicle for opposition to Margaret Thatcher's government. Livingstone and three other Labour councillors resigned in protest, and won back their seats easily in the September 1984 by-elections because the Conservatives refused to stand. The Local Government Act 1985 , which abolished
5978-761: The GLC, faced considerable opposition from many quarters but was narrowly passed in Parliament, setting the end of the council for 31 March 1986. It also cancelled the scheduled May 1985 elections. GLC assets were assigned to the London Residuary Body for disposal, including County Hall, which was sold to a Japanese entertainment company and now houses the London Aquarium and the London Dungeon , amongst other things. The Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) continued in existence for
6100-475: The I-CL was the only force involved in what was now its central publication. Both Workers' Action and International-Communist were by 1979 discontinued, reflecting the group's entryism into the Labour Party. In 1981, the I-CL fused with Alan Thornett 's Workers Socialist League which had now also entered the Labour Party. The new organisation, also called the Workers' Socialist League , mostly worked through
6222-456: The Iraq war, the group was critical of calls for the immediate withdrawal of US and UK forces, arguing that the likely consequence of a precipitate withdrawal would be increased sectarian violence that would snuff out the fledgling independent labour movement. A large minority within the organisation, while agreeing with the emphasis on solidarity with Iraqi workers, argued that the group should raise
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#17327985228196344-516: The LCC be replaced by a weaker strategic authority, with responsibility for public transport, road schemes, housing development and regeneration. The Greater London Group , a research centre of academics within the London School of Economics , also had a significant effort on the commission's report and the eventual creation of the GLC. Most of the commission's recommendations were accepted, but
6466-588: The London boroughs and other entities. A new administrative body, known as the Greater London Authority (GLA), was established in 2000. In 1957 a Royal Commission on Local Government in Greater London had been set up under Sir Edwin Herbert to consider the local government arrangements in the London area. It reported in 1960, recommending the creation of 52 new London boroughs as the basis for local government. It further recommended that
6588-641: The NUS and working with groups such as OutRage! and Al-Fatiha . AWL was central to the Education Not for Sale network, and in 2010 helped found the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts . AWL has been more critical of political Islam than some other groups on the far left. In 2006, it reproduced the Muhammad cartoons that were originally published in Jyllands-Posten on its website, describing it as an issue of free speech. While it opposed
6710-701: The Russian Revolution with the Great French Revolution, the former can never be transformed into a repetition of the latter." In the French Revolution of 1789 , France experienced what Marxists called a " bourgeois-democratic revolution "—a regime was established wherein the bourgeoisie overthrew the existing French feudalistic system. The bourgeoisie then moved towards establishing a regime of democratic parliamentary institutions. However, while democratic rights were extended to
6832-467: The Russian revolution. Soviet scholar Robert Bird considered his work as the "first systematic treatment of art by a Communist leader" and a catalyst for later, Marxist cultural and critical theories. He had also defended intellectual autonomy in relation to the Russian literary movements and scientific theories such as Freudian psychoanalytic theory along with Einstein ’s theory of relativity during
6954-884: The Save Lewisham Hospital campaign and the One Choice, One Dream alliance in Southampton. In trade union work, AWL members focus on developing workplace and industrial bulletins, and rank-and-file networks such as the Education Solidarity Network in the National Education Union . It produces workplace and industrial bulletins including Tubeworker (for London Underground workers) and Off The Rails (for mainline railway workers). The group has international links with Workers' Liberty Australia and Solidarity in
7076-454: The Socialist Campaign for a Labour Victory. This campaign proved relatively popular and initially involved a range of figures on the left of the Labour Party who wrote for and supported its newspaper, Socialist Organiser . After a dispute over whether local government rates should be increased to offset cuts made by the Thatcher government, most of the Labour left figures - including Ken Livingstone - withdrew from Socialist Organiser until
7198-457: The Socialist Organiser Alliance. It also produced a theoretical journal, Workers' Socialist Review . In 1984, the groups split apart. The key issue was the Falklands War : most of the former I-CL argued for the defeat of both sides; most of the former WSL supported a victory for Argentina. The tensions had also been strained over questions of internal democracy and differences over the national question. The Socialist Organiser Alliance grew from
7320-448: The TT. The TT described the "defusion" as an "expulsion" given that they did not wish to leave. Outside the IS, increased in size, the group resumed publication of Workers' Fight , now as a printed paper, not as was previously the case as a duplicated journal, began publication of a theoretical journal entitled Permanent Revolution and made efforts to publish a small number of workplace-oriented publications in specific industries. At
7442-425: The United States. It has worked with groups on the left of the former Ligue Communiste Revolutionnaire (now part of the New Anticapitalist Party ), and collaborated with Iraqi and Iranian groups from the Worker-Communist tradition. It also has links with L'Étincelle, a former fraction of Lutte ouvrière , the Iranian Revolutionary Marxist Tendency, and Turkish group Marksist Tutum. AWL members were also prominent in
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#17327985228197564-428: The West and controversies around party schisms. In the Transitional Program , which was drafted in 1938 during the founding congress of the Fourth International , Trotsky reiterated the need for the legalization of the Soviet parties and worker's control of production . The concept of uneven and combined development derived from the political theories of Trotsky. This concept was developed in combination with
7686-456: The area recommended by the Herbert Commission, fearing increased local taxation, fought successfully not to come under the new Greater London Council, notably the urban districts of Chigwell in Essex; and Sunbury-on-Thames , Staines and Potters Bar in Middlesex. Other areas recommended for inclusion that were never part of Greater London included Epsom and Ewell , Caterham and Warlingham , Esher , and Weybridge . The first election for
7808-412: The autocracy there stood a capitalist bourgeoisie, very small in numbers, isolated from the "people", half-foreign, without historical traditions, and inspired only by the greed for gain. For instance, the Putilov Factory numbered 12,000 workers in 1900 and, according to Trotsky, 36,000 in July 1917. Although only a tiny minority in Russian society, the proletariat would lead a revolution to emancipate
7930-438: The basis of proportional representation . On the other hand, he had accepted the ban on rival parties in Moscow during the Russian Civil War due to their opposition to the October Revolution . Yet, he also opposed the extension of the ban to the Mensheviks in Soviet Georgia . In 1922, Lenin allied with Leon Trotsky against the party's growing bureaucratisation and the influence of Joseph Stalin . In 1923, Trotsky and
8052-429: The bourgeoisie, they were not generally extended to a universal franchise. The freedom for workers to organize unions or to strike was not achieved without considerable struggle. Trotsky argues that countries like Russia had no "enlightened, active" revolutionary bourgeoisie which could play the same role, and the working class constituted a tiny minority. By the time of the European revolutions of 1848, "the bourgeoisie
8174-467: The broad-left Socialist Campaign for a Labour Victory. By 1983 the paper had become identified with Matgamna's supporters, leading to a split with Labour left politicians (such as Ken Livingstone) over the GLC 's policy of increasing rates to offset cuts in central government grants to local councils. The group organised its student work through the National Organisation of Labour Students (NOLS), forming Socialist Students in NOLS (SSiN) to campaign within
8296-400: The call for the withdrawal of troops. These and other positions, including its support for a two-state settlement in Israel/Palestine, have led to other far-left groups characterising the AWL as " imperialist ". In 2009, AWL members were inovlved in supporting the sit-down strike of Vestas wind turbine factory workers on the Isle of Wight . In the 2011 2011 Alternative Vote referendum ,
8418-413: The capitalist world. Revolutions in Britain in the 17th century and in France in 1789 abolished feudalism and established the essential requisites for the development of capitalism. Trotsky argued that these revolutions would not be repeated in Russia. In Results and Prospects , written in 1906, Trotsky outlines his theory in detail, arguing: "History does not repeat itself. However much one may compare
8540-478: The contest, the AWL applied to the Electoral Commission to be de-registered as a political party so as to allow its supporters to join the Labour Party . It campaigned against Brexit in the 2016 UK EU membership referendum . in 2016, the then Deputy Leader of Labour Tom Watson challanged Jeremy Corbyn to proscribe groups such as the AWL and Momentum , describing the groups as " hard left " and " entryist ". called on activists to campaign for Labour in
8662-413: The councillors, there were aldermen elected by the council at the ratio of one alderman to every six councillors. Initially there were 100 councillors and sixteen aldermen elected by the council. The eight aldermen elected with the fewest votes in 1964 were for a three year term and other eight had a six year term. Eight aldermen were elected for a six year term in 1967 and 1970. In 1973, to coincide with
8784-476: The election manifesto of the party. The Conservatives regained control in May 1977, winning 64 seats under their new Thatcherite leader Horace Cutler against a Labour total of just 28. Cutler headed a resolutely right-wing administration, cutting spending, selling council housing and deprioritising London Transport. In opposition the Labour Party continued to fractionalise: Goodwin resigned suddenly in 1980 and in
8906-749: The end of 1975, it fused with the smaller Workers Power group, formerly the Left Faction within the IS, to form the International-Communist League . A small group of members in Bolton and Wigan opposed to the merger formed the Marxist Worker group, which later fused with the International Marxist Group . Workers' Fight was renamed Workers' Action and went over to a weekly publication schedule and
9028-412: The essentially feudal landlords and, ultimately, the existing Czarist Russian state forces. This was to protect their ownership of their property—factories, banks, etc.—from expropriation by the revolutionary working class. Therefore, according to the theory of permanent revolution, the capitalist classes of economically backward countries are weak and incapable of carrying through revolutionary change. As
9150-416: The extent to which this is true today. However, even the most orthodox tend to recognise in the late twentieth century a new development in the revolts of the rural poor: the self-organising struggles of the landless, along with many other struggles that in some ways reflect the militant united, organised struggles of the working class, which to various degrees do not bear the marks of class divisions typical of
9272-435: The factories and workplaces; and that the collective consciousness it achieves as a result is an essential ingredient of the socialist reconstruction of society. Trotsky himself argued that only the proletariat or working class were capable of achieving the tasks of that bourgeois revolution. In 1905, the working class in Russia, a generation brought together in vast factories from the relative isolation of peasant life, saw
9394-408: The first Conservative leader of London-wide government in 33 years. The Conservatives retained control in 1970 with a reduced majority. In 1972 the electoral system was reformed to introduce single-member constituencies for the election after the 1973 contest, and extend the term of office to four years. Labour fought the 1973 election on a strongly socialist platform and won with 57 seats to 33 for
9516-401: The following leadership contest the little-regarded left-winger Ken Livingstone was only just beaten in an intensely tactical campaign by the moderate Andrew McIntosh . However, the Labour left were strong at constituency level and as the 1981 election approached they worked to ensure that their members were selected to stand and that their democratic socialist anti-austerity convictions shaped
9638-552: The form of thematic collections issued as inserts within Solidarity . AWL also publishes occasional books and pamphlets, including The Fate of the Russian Revolution (a collection of "critical Marxist" and Third Camp Trotskyist writings on Soviet Russia , mainly from the Workers' Party and Independent Socialist League tradition), Working-class politics and anarchism (exploring the commonalities and differences between class-struggle anarchist and syndicalist traditions and
9760-400: The foundations for a culture above classes. He also argued that the pre-conditions for artistic creativity were economic well-being and emancipation from material constraints. Political scientist, Baruch Knei-Paz, characterised his view on the role of the party as transmitters of culture to the masses and raising the standards of education, as well as entry into the cultural sphere, but that
9882-559: The group's quarterly magazine was now entitled International-Communist . It joined with other groups that considered themselves to the left of the USFI in the Necessary International Initiative. In 1976, two-thirds of the ex-Workers Power group's members left in a dispute over Labour Party work and resumed a separate existence. The I-CL increased its activity within the Labour Party, and in 1978 helped set up
10004-415: The heroic peasant struggles of previous epochs. However, orthodox Trotskyists today still argue that the town- and city-based working-class struggle is central to the task of a successful socialist revolution linked to these struggles of the rural poor. They argue that the working class learns of the necessity to conduct a collective struggle, for instance, in trade unions, arising from its social conditions in
10126-463: The implementation of the First five-year plan . He noted that several engineers and economists who had created the plan were themselves later put on trial as " conscious wreckers who had acted on the instructions of a foreign power". Polish historian and biographer, Isaac Deutscher , viewed his inner-party reforms in 1923–24 as arguably the first act in the restoration of free Soviet institutions which
10248-412: The lack of economic prerequisites. Trotsky argued that only the working class could overthrow feudalism and win the peasantry 's support in Russia. Furthermore, he argued that the Russian working class would not stop there. They would win their revolution against the weak capitalist class, establish a workers' state in Russia and appeal to the working class in the advanced capitalist countries worldwide. As
10370-404: The leading countries of the world—that competition between the proletarians of these countries ceases and at least the decisive forces of production are concentrated in the hands of the workers. His biographer, Isaac Deutscher, has explicitly contrasted his support for proletarian internationalism against his opposition to revolution by military conquest as seen with his documented opposition to
10492-484: The loss of trade opportunities despite his support for world revolution . Prior to the October Revolution, Trotsky had been part of an old radical democracy which included both Left Mensheviks and Left Bolsheviks . His work, Our Political Tasks , published in 1904 reviewed issues related to party organisation, mass participation and the potential dangers of substitutionism which he foresaw in
10614-423: The need for shared participation of the communist factions, anarcho-syndicalists and socialists . In 1936, Trotsky argued in his work, The Revolution Betrayed , for the restoration of the right of criticism in areas such as economic matters , the revitalization of trade unions and free elections of the Soviet parties . Trotsky also argued that the excessive authoritarianism under Stalin had undermined
10736-403: The new Greater London administrative area the council replaced Essex County Council , Hertfordshire County Council , Kent County Council , London County Council , Middlesex County Council and the councils of the county boroughs of Croydon , East Ham and West Ham . GLC councillors elected for Inner London electoral divisions (the former County of London) became ex officio members of
10858-542: The new Inner London Education Authority , which took over the LCC responsibility for education. By contrast in Outer London, which was the rest of Greater London, the 20 London borough councils each became a local education authority, akin to a county council or county borough in the rest of England. The GLC was responsible for running strategic services such as the fire service , emergency planning, waste disposal and flood prevention. The GLC shared responsibility with
10980-514: The new Greater London Council took place on 9 April 1964, and the old London County Council was abolished the following year. The GLC was established on 1 April 1965 by the London Government Act 1963 , which sought to create a new body covering more of London rather than just the inner part of the conurbation , additionally including and empowering newly created London boroughs within the overall administrative structure. Within
11102-437: The new boroughs elected a number of representatives under the bloc vote system. Despite Conservative hopes, the first GLC consisted of 64 Labour and 36 Conservative councillors and Labour Group leader Bill Fiske became the first Leader of the council. At the next election in 1967 the unpopularity of the national Labour government produced a massive Conservative victory with 82 seats, to Labour's 18. Desmond Plummer became
11224-417: The newspaper Solidarity since 1995, and published it since 1999. Members of the AWL also publish a quarterly socialist feminist magazine, Women's Fightback . The group also published Workers' Liberty as a roughly quarterly magazine between 1985 and 2001. In 2001 and 2002, a second series of the magazine was published in a journal format. A third series of Workers' Liberty started in February 2006, taking
11346-516: The number of new boroughs was reduced to 32. Greater London covered the whole County of London and most of Middlesex , plus parts of Essex , Kent , and Surrey , a small part of Hertfordshire and the County Boroughs of Croydon (Surrey) and East and West Ham (both in Essex), all of which had been independent of county council control since 1889. Some areas on the boundaries of
11468-423: The part of the population and for suppressing workers' self-management and democratic participation in the management of the economy. Because these authoritarian political measures were inconsistent with the organizational precepts of socialism, Trotsky characterized the Soviet Union as a deformed workers' state that would not be able to effectively transition to socialism. Ostensibly socialist states where democracy
11590-401: The party had sought to establish in 1917 and the return of worker's democracy which would correspond with a gradual dismantlement of the single-party system . At the same time, Deutscher noted that Trotsky's attitude towards democracy could be characterised as inconsistent and hesitant by opponents but this stemmed from a range of reasons such as the ill timing after the failed revolutions in
11712-647: The party of Trotskyists were still recognized as enemies of the USSR during Khrushchev's rule of the USSR after 1956. Trotsky's Fourth International was established in the French Third Republic in 1938 when Trotskyists argued that the Comintern or Third International had become irretrievably "lost to Stalinism" and thus incapable of leading the international working class to political power. According to Trotsky, his programme could be distinguished from other Marxist theories by five key elements: On
11834-408: The peasantry and thus "secure the support of the peasantry" as part of that revolution, on whose support it will rely. However, to improve their conditions, the working class must create a revolution of their own, which would accomplish the bourgeois revolution and establish a workers' state. Only fully developed capitalist conditions prepare the basis for socialism. According to classical Marxism ,
11956-417: The process of artistic creation in terms of language and presentation should be the domain of the practitioner. Knei-Paz also noted key distinctions between Trotsky's approach on cultural matters and Stalin's policy in the 1930s . Trotsky was an early proponent of economic planning since 1923 and favored an accelerated pace of industrialization. In 1921, he had also been a prominent supporter of Gosplan as
12078-649: The publication of the New Course in 1924. In 1927, Trotsky and the United Opposition had argued for the expansion of industrial democracy with their joint platform which demanded majority representation of workers in trade union congresses including the All-Union Congress and an increase of non-party workers to one-third of representation in these elected organs. They also supported legal protection for worker's right to criticise such as
12200-407: The reduction in the number of councillors to 92, the number of aldermen was reduced to fifteen and seven aldermen were elected by the council that year. In 1976 the post of alderman was abolished, taking effect from the 1977 election. Aldermen elected in 1970 had their term extended to seven years and those elected 1973 had their term shortened to four years. The most notable and successful scheme of
12322-445: The related theory of permanent revolution to explain the historical context of Russia. He would later elaborate on this theory to explain the specific laws of uneven development in 1930 and the conditions for a possible revolutionary scenario. According to biographer Ian Thatcher, this theory would be later generalised to "the entire history of mankind". Political scientists Emanuele Saccarelli and Latha Varadarajan valued his theory as
12444-434: The result of its labour as a vast collective effort, also seeing the only means of struggling against its oppression in terms of a collective effort, forming workers councils ( soviets ) in the course of the revolution of that year. In 1906, Trotsky argued: The factory system brings the proletariat to the foreground [...] The proletariat immediately found itself concentrated in tremendous masses, while between these masses and
12566-505: The right to make independent proposals. According to historian Vadim Rogovin , these proposals would have developed democracy in the sphere of production and facilitated the establishment of worker's control over economic management. Following Stalin's consolidation of power in the Soviet Union and static centralization of political power, Trotsky condemned the Soviet government's policies for lacking widespread democratic participation on
12688-422: The scheme met with heavy opposition as it would have included the demolition of 30,000 homes. The Westway road scheme was opened in 1970 and hailed as a vision of the future. A review into the planned Ringways took place between 1970 and 1972. It concluded that construction should begin on the controversial Ringway One to relieve congestion in central London, but that the others needed a re-think. The Outer Ringway
12810-480: The state, oblast regions and factories to counter structural inefficiency and the problem of bureaucracy. He had proposed the principles underlying the N.E.P. in 1920 to the Politburo to mitigate urgent economic matters arising from war communism. He would later reproach Lenin privately about the delayed government response in 1921-1922. However, his position also differed from the majority of Soviet leaders at
12932-483: The succession period. However, these theories were increasingly marginalised during the Stalin era. Trotsky would later co-author the 1938 Manifesto for an Independent Revolutionary Art with the endorsement of prominent artists Andre Breton and Diego Rivera . Trotsky's writings on literature such as his 1923 survey which advocated tolerance, limited censorship and respect for literary tradition had strong appeal to
13054-549: The tactic of a united front against far-right parties, cultural autonomy for artistic movements, voluntary collectivisation , a transitional program and socialist internationalism . He supported founding a vanguard party of the proletariat , and a dictatorship of the proletariat (as opposed to the " dictatorship of the bourgeoisie ", which Marxists argue is a major component of capitalism ) based on working-class self-emancipation and council democracy . Trotsky also adhered to scientific socialism and viewed this as
13176-543: The time who fully supported the New Economic policy . Greater London Council The Greater London Council ( GLC ) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 1986 by the Local Government Act 1985 and its powers were devolved to
13298-427: The war and some housing that remained standing was often squalid and overcrowded. The GLC, with new housing powers, sought to resolve this but the results were mixed: efforts to relocate Londoners from the dilapidated inner-city areas to the suburbs or satellite towns were met with resistance from the residents of those areas. Notable successful housing developments that were built by the GLC include Balfron Tower which
13420-428: The working class into fighting for its revolutionary aspirations against their exploitation by capitalism. In Russia, the working class, although a small minority in a predominantly peasant-based society, was organised in vast factories owned by the capitalist class and into large working-class districts. During the Russian Revolution of 1905, the capitalist class found it necessary to ally with reactionary elements such as
13542-434: Was already unable to play a comparable role. It did not want and was not able to undertake the revolutionary liquidation of the social system that stood in its path to power." The theory of permanent revolution considers that in many countries that are thought under Trotskyism to have not yet completed a bourgeois-democratic revolution, the capitalist class opposes the creation of any revolutionary situation. They fear stirring
13664-762: Was completed in 1967 in Tower Hamlets and Trellick Tower which was completed in 1972 in North Kensington . Both of these buildings are now Grade II* listed . In addition to the Thames Barrier, other notable successful GLC transport schemes which changed London included the opening of the Blackwall Tunnel second bore and the improvements to the Woolwich Ferry service. Ken Livingstone 's high-spend socialist policies put
13786-500: Was developed by Lucas Aerospace workers in the 1970s. In 1980–1981, the workers' combine built a prototype out of a second-hand Bristol bus. The enthusiasm arose from the opportunity to cut costs on rail vehicle production by partially integrating bus parts. Two challenges had to be solved—collision consequences with much heavier rail vehicles and supervision of the transition from road to rail. After World War II large areas of homes in London remained derelict after being bombed in
13908-464: Was done for industrial purposes (mines) or for railways (tunnels); in the future this will be done on an immeasurably larger scale, according to a general industrial and artistic plan. Man will occupy himself with re-registering mountains and rivers, and will earnestly and repeatedly make improvements in nature . —Trotsky, Literature and Revolution , 1924 In Literature and Revolution , Trotsky examined aesthetic issues in relation to class and
14030-408: Was elected in 1997 , and was committed to bringing back London-wide government. In 1998 a referendum was held on the establishment of a new London authority and elected mayor, which was approved by a two to one margin. The new Greater London Authority (GLA) was established in 2000 and was effectively a scaled down version of the GLC. The GLA has a very different structure to the GLC, consisting of
14152-526: Was given the go-ahead in 1973 and opened in 1986 as the M25 motorway . The remainder of the GLC's Ringway plans were finally killed off in the 1980s due to public opposition. This meant that the capital was left on a much more human scale than it might have been, but also meant that London was left with an eternally unsolved traffic problem. In 1983, GLC considered investing £230,000 into Lucas rail-bus , which could run on roads and rail tracks. The original concept
14274-536: Was involved in left unity initiatives such as the Socialist Alliance, Socialist Alliance Democracy Platform and Socialist Green Unity Coalition , and stood a parliamentary candidate in Camberwell and Peckham , while campaigning for Labour elsewhere. It also maintained a focus on pushing affiliated trade unions to assert themselves against the Labour leadership, and was involved in the establishment of
14396-740: Was removed from power and, in November, expelled from the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) (aka: VKP(b)). He was exiled to Alma-Ata (now Almaty) in January 1928 and then expelled from the USSR in February 1929. As the head of the Fourth International , Trotsky continued in exile to oppose what he termed the degenerated workers' state in the USSR. On 20 August 1940, Trotsky was attacked in Mexico City by Ramón Mercader ,
14518-454: Was revised to 92 councillors from single-member constituencies from the 1973 election. The electoral cycle was switched to four-yearly in 1976 and those elected in 1973 had their term extended by another year. Elections were held for a four-year term in 1977 and 1981. In 1984 the elections that were due to happen in 1985 were cancelled and those elected in 1981 had their term extended by another year. The results were as follows: In addition to
14640-424: Was subject to an Inquiry which lasted from July 1970 until May 1972. The campaign to save Covent Garden along with various opposition on other matters largely derailed the plan. According to one observer: Looked at from the angle of the GLC... it is useful to consider planning, highways, and traffic together, not only because of the links between them but also because, apart from housing, most other functions of
14762-400: Was that Lenin’s desired “heir” would have been a collective responsibility in which Trotsky was placed in "an important role and within which Stalin would be dramatically demoted (if not removed)". Trotsky advocated for a decentralized form of economic planning , worker's control of production , elected representation of Soviet socialist parties , mass soviet democratization ,
14884-896: Was the Red Army 's paramount leader in the Revolutionary period's direct aftermath. Trotsky initially opposed some aspects of Leninism but eventually concluded that unity between the Mensheviks and Bolsheviks was impossible and joined the Bolsheviks. Trotsky played a leading role with Lenin in the October Revolution . Lenin and Trotsky were also both honorary presidents of the Third International . Trotskyists have traditionally drawn upon Lenin's testament and his alliance with Trotsky in 1922–23 against
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