July 26th 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the 1945 General Election result. The election itself was conducted three weeks earlier. While commentators across the globe predicted a landslide for Churchill, Labour hammered home their plans for social reform. Here is a day by day account of the final week of campaigning in what would … Continue reading 1945 at 75: The Week That Made Modern Britain
1945 Labour Government
VE Day at 75: ‘This is Your Victory’
8th May 1945. Victory in Europe Day. Britain rejoices after ‘the people have fought and endured five years, eight months and four days of the bloodiest war in history’ How 'the people' and Mr Churchill, Attlee and Bevin celebrated their VE Day Crowds – of about 10,000 - began to assemble in Trafalgar Square on … Continue reading VE Day at 75: ‘This is Your Victory’
Death of Ernest Bevin: ‘Labour’s Great Englishman’
The death of Ernest Bevin of April 1951 caused reflection and tributes across the globe. Prime Minister Clement Attlee leads the tributes: ‘The country has lost in him a great statesman and the Labour movement a leader of whom it was proud’ How the world – from Churchill to Truman - responded to the death … Continue reading Death of Ernest Bevin: ‘Labour’s Great Englishman’
Lower Than Vermin: The Story Of Bevan’s Quote That Lives On
It's 70 years since Nye Bevan claimed the Tories were 'lower than vermin'. The speech took on a life of its own; to some it cost Labour two million votes at a general election, blighted his career and ruined the growing political consensus. But to the current Labour activists his words resonate more than ever. … Continue reading Lower Than Vermin: The Story Of Bevan’s Quote That Lives On
100 Years of Suffrage: The Labour Women That Made History
Since its formation, the Labour Party has been a platform for radical female MPs that have smashed the political consensus. On the centenary of the introduction of suffrage for some women, its time to look back and celebrate their triumphs and struggles The origins of the Labour Party go back to 1900, when the TUC passed a resolution … Continue reading 100 Years of Suffrage: The Labour Women That Made History
Let’s Build The Houses Quick! How Labour tackled previous housing crises
Part One: Homes Fit For Heroes The Wheatley Housing Act of 1924 allowed central government to provide subsidies for social housing. The aim was to create employment in a shattered construction industry and provide quality homes at affordable rents. Ten years later, over half a million council homes had been built in the UK. It … Continue reading Let’s Build The Houses Quick! How Labour tackled previous housing crises
Now Britain is a Socialist Country: How Labour shocked the world and won the 1945 election
There were only 79 days between the end of the Second World War and Attlee’s arrival in 10 Downing Street. Labour shocked the world by ousting Churchill, and had a mandate to radically alter every aspect of the British working life. For the first time in the party’s history, they had a majority to do … Continue reading Now Britain is a Socialist Country: How Labour shocked the world and won the 1945 election
“Why should the people wait any longer?” – How Labour built the NHS
The essence of a satisfactory health service is that the rich and the poor are treated alike, that poverty is not a disability, and wealth is not an advantage Society becomes more wholesome, more serene, and spiritually healthier, if it knows that its citizens have at the back of their consciousness the knowledge that not … Continue reading “Why should the people wait any longer?” – How Labour built the NHS
Tides of History 