Michael Tichelar - Why London Is Labour: A History of Metropolitan Politics, 1900-2020

Combining fascinating historical analysis with refreshing sociological insights, this book fills a vital gap in political thinking. Thoroughly researched and fiercely defended, Tichelar draws on geography, race and class to answer one of politics unanswered questions.

This wide-ranging book sheds light on a vital political question: why has London become such a bastion of Labour Party support and radical politics, at the same time that it has become such a central site of global capitalism? In placing Londons profile in long term wide ranging historical perspective, Michael Tichelar offers a valuable account which will interest everyone concerned with the future of left politics in the UK.

This book answers the question why London has been a stronghold for the Labour Party for relatively long periods of the last century and continues to be so to this day to an extent that surprises contemporaries.

The book draws on evidence from history and political sociology as well as the personal experience of the author in London local government during the 1980s. It argues that while changes in the London economy, plus the ability of the party to forge cross-class alliances, can go some way to explain the success of the Labour Party in London, a range of other demographic and social factors need to be taken into account, especially after the year 2000. These include the size of Londons growing black and ethnic minority communities; higher concentrations of well-educated younger people with socially liberal values; the increasing support of the middle-classes; the impact of austerity after 2008; and the degree of poverty in London compared to non-metropolitan areas.

This book will be of key interest to readers interested in the history of the Labour Party, the politics of London, Socialist politics/history, British politics/history, government, political sociology, and urban studies.

Michael Tichelar is a Visiting Fellow in History at the University of the West of England, UK.

This series aims to promote research excellence in political science, political history and public-policy making, whilst addressing a wide array of political dynamics, contexts, histories and ideas. It will retain a particular focus on British government, British Politics and public policy, while locating those issues within a European and global context.

Understanding Labours Political Thought since 1945, second edition

19452017

A History of Metropolitan Politics, 19002020

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First published 2021

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2021 Michael Tichelar

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ISBN: 978-0-367-17523-8 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-429-05730-4 (ebk)

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On 5 May 2016, London elected

This book will seek to answer why has London been a stronghold for the Labour Party for relatively long periods of the last century and especially in the new century. Through a historical analysis of the reasons for Labours success in the capital, it will help to address the question of how far London (the paramount Is the gap so wide that it is now threatening to tear apart the way the country is governed? Is the future of Labour as a historic national Party damaged by its strength in London (and other big metropolitan cities), based on the support of a combination of its extensive precariat of exploited workers and large sections of the middle class, while it loses support of the white working class in the rest of England, Scotland and Wales?

1 East London Advertiser, 14 November 1919.

2 Greater London Authority, Poverty in London 2019.

3 Barnett, The Lure of Greatness, p. 101; Atkinson, Alpha City.

In the early twentieth century, Labours strength in the capital was as a party of local government in clearly defined working-class communities, in what the historian Eric Hobsbawn described as the red belt of inner London boroughs, similar to those working-class areas in Manchester are now strongholds for the party, in contrast to the partys traditional heartlands in the smaller towns and urban districts of the north of England (the so-called Red Wall of previous relatively safe working-class seats). It looks likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future as its young, well-educated and multi-ethnic population continues to grow, although demographically the BME population will age and its voting behaviour may change from supporting Labour to voting for other parties.

Labour is now perceived by many as a London-centric party, particularly after the election of Jeremy Corbyn as a leader in 2015. It is not clear at this stage how far the new leadership of Keir Starmer, another London-based MP, but less radical than Corbyn, will reverse this perception or indeed how far the perception is in fact an accurate forecast of how politics will evolve in the longer term. The demographic changes which have led to Labours now dominant position in the capital, namely its increasingly young, better-educated and above all multi-ethnic electorate, are not present to anywhere near the same scale in non-metropolitan areas of the country. Fifty per cent of Labours constituency in London is working class and multi-ethnic (C2DE) and has been adversely affected by austerity after the financial crash of 2008, perhaps more so than in other parts of the country. The other 50% is middle class and (to a lesser extent) multi-ethnic (ABC1). It votes Labour for reasons linked to what might be best described as a metropolitan or socially liberal outlook. As a World City, London is certainly unique in this combination of social structure. However, it is not clear if there is a specific London effect separate from the demography of the capital. If Labour continues to adopt policies opposed to austerity in the future, and is perceived by the BME electorate as the party best opposed to racial discrimination, it is likely to remain dominant in London unless such policies are expropriated (and actually implemented) by other parties. Whether it can appeal to other areas of the country in the same way remains one of the key issues facing the party today. This book will argue that the history of the Labour Party in London, from its origins during the Edwardian period, suggests that its success depends on its ability to forge cross-class alliances bringing together a variety of different interests (class, race, gender, religion, socialism), and this might help us think about where the party is going in the future.