Review
¿New Labour's Pasts is a major contribution to the history of 'new' Labour. Cronin's fine historical research and his well honed historical sensibility are deployed here to excellent effect. He provides an excellent account of the internal history of the Labour Party from the mid sixties as it struggled against the Thatcherite presence in national politics and the internecine struggles within its own ranks. He shows how it was those unhappy experiences forged the programs of 'new' Labour and steeled the determination of those like Tony Blair and Gordon Brown to bring it to political victory. This book is a must read for anyone interested in contemporary British politics.¿
Richard Price, Universityof Maryland
'lucid, illuminating and well researched....persuasive chronological analysis of Labour since 1945' The Political Quarterly
From the Back Cover
The policies and choices taken by New Labour in power demonstrate that its understanding of the party¿s past continues to inform the government¿s and party¿s identity, outlook, programme and strategy.
New Labour¿s Pasts
locates the origins and distinguishing features of New Labour in this troubled past of ¿old Labour¿. The failings of the Wilson and Callaghan governments, internal disharmony and electoral defeats in the 1980s and 1990s have created a powerful legacy of failure. Profoundly affected by this past, New Labour is resolutely determined not to repeat it.
This timely and fascinating assessment of New Labour investigates the government¿s relationship with the US, the role of New Labour in the context of the broader evolution of social democracy in Europe and the shared goals of Blair and Brown, as well as the tensions between them and other key new Labour figures.
