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Parliamentary Socialism: A Study in the Politics of Labour
Reflecting on the Labor government of Harold Wilson between 1964 and 1970, this concise analysis chronicles the Labor Party from its early days up to the early 1960s, including a 1972 postscript. Demonstrating how empirical and flexible the Labor Party has been about certain issues, this reference also touches on how it is one of the most dogmatic political parties in regards to the parliamentary system. Commenting on why its leaders have always made devotion to this system their fixed point of reference, this political overview proves that this has always been the conditioning factor of their political behavior, as they consistently reject any kind of political action which has fallen outside the framework and conventions of Parliament. Stating that there is no distinction to be made between Labor’s political and industrial leaders, this study illustrates the party as it is now and has always been—one of modest social reform in a capitalist system within whose confines it is ever more firmly and by now irrevocably rooted.
384 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1964
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 29, 2021
I am thinking deeply about the history and trajectory of the Labour Party, and whether or not it is the best vehicle for building Socialism in the UK. Last year I read The State in Capitalist Society by Ralph Milliband and I was blown away, it's such a brilliant and eye opening book, so I was looking forward to reading this.
This book was written during the heyday of the Wilson government, when many people on the Left thought that the rise of Social Democracy in Western Europe had solved the problems of the class struggle, and that Centre Left parties like Labour had solved the conflict between labour and capital. Milliband was utterly contemptuous of this point of view, so he wrote this book examining the history of the Labour Party (with reference to social movements and the trade unions) to illustrate why the party can never be a vehicle for socialism, and that it always, without exception, capitulates to capital and conservatism, and fights and resists any initiative or pressure from the left. He demonstrates that Labour politicians are so captured by a commitment and loyalty to parliamentarianism, which means they cannot also be commited to socialism, because sometimes these two tendancies will come into conflict and Labour will back the former every time. This is so obviously the case in the Labour Party today that it's incredible that this book was published 57 years ago. But since learning more about Marxism it has become increasingly obvious that once you adopt a Marxist view of the world you can predict how things are going to turn out pretty accurately.
My only caveat so far from reading Milliband is that I think he is brilliant at diagnosing problems and diffficulties, but so far I haven't seen many positive suggestions from him about what we should do instead.
This book was written during the heyday of the Wilson government, when many people on the Left thought that the rise of Social Democracy in Western Europe had solved the problems of the class struggle, and that Centre Left parties like Labour had solved the conflict between labour and capital. Milliband was utterly contemptuous of this point of view, so he wrote this book examining the history of the Labour Party (with reference to social movements and the trade unions) to illustrate why the party can never be a vehicle for socialism, and that it always, without exception, capitulates to capital and conservatism, and fights and resists any initiative or pressure from the left. He demonstrates that Labour politicians are so captured by a commitment and loyalty to parliamentarianism, which means they cannot also be commited to socialism, because sometimes these two tendancies will come into conflict and Labour will back the former every time. This is so obviously the case in the Labour Party today that it's incredible that this book was published 57 years ago. But since learning more about Marxism it has become increasingly obvious that once you adopt a Marxist view of the world you can predict how things are going to turn out pretty accurately.
My only caveat so far from reading Milliband is that I think he is brilliant at diagnosing problems and diffficulties, but so far I haven't seen many positive suggestions from him about what we should do instead.
March 5, 2016
The gist of this book: the Labour Party has always been in crisis and a major disappointment, and the Labour Left who tried to change it into a vehicle for socialism were always doomed to failure. One of the ironies of course of reading it in 2016 is that the Labour Left seems to have scored a major victory with the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader.
I think a major misconception about this book is that it's an argument against an electoral road to socialism. That's not quite right. What it does show is that 1) the Labour Party used to be institutionally set up to block out the left (through the union bloc vote and the right to expel, which was used liberally); 2) the Labour Party has been incredibly hostile to social movements; and 3) that an obsession with winning 50%+1 before using state power to transition to socialism is in effect a way to block a transition to socialism.
I think a major misconception about this book is that it's an argument against an electoral road to socialism. That's not quite right. What it does show is that 1) the Labour Party used to be institutionally set up to block out the left (through the union bloc vote and the right to expel, which was used liberally); 2) the Labour Party has been incredibly hostile to social movements; and 3) that an obsession with winning 50%+1 before using state power to transition to socialism is in effect a way to block a transition to socialism.
October 18, 2019
A detailed history of Britain’s Labour Party from the start of the twentieth century through to 1960. There is a postscript covering Harold Wilson’s Labour government from 1964 to 1970.
This scholarly record is not written through rose tinted spectacles: no punches are pulled when the Labour Party make mistakes or poor judgement and descend into infighting within the party rather than holding their political opponents to account.
Written by Ralph Miliband - father of Ed and David - this book is pretty much essential reading for anyone that knows all the words to The Red Flag.
This scholarly record is not written through rose tinted spectacles: no punches are pulled when the Labour Party make mistakes or poor judgement and descend into infighting within the party rather than holding their political opponents to account.
Written by Ralph Miliband - father of Ed and David - this book is pretty much essential reading for anyone that knows all the words to The Red Flag.
June 18, 2018
Good. Just makes the same point over and over that the leaders of the Labour Party have always been ‘conservative’, cautious, disappointing, etc.
February 21, 2021
Depressing stuff.
August 25, 2025
essential reading for anyone who thinks the LP is a force for socialism.
November 4, 2015
Started during the ascendancy of Jeremy Corbyn in the latter stages of the Labour Leadership campaign; Ralph Milibands' analysis of battle for socialism within the confines of the UK Labour party seems like an increasingly relevant read for all Corbynistas.
June 16, 2023
Occasionaly makes leaps in logic to justify results on the basis of political opportunism / weakness but otherwise a very persuasive analysis of why the Labour Party is a poor imitation of a working class party and shouldn't be trusted as such into the present.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews