With the increasing prominence of housing problems in recent years, Louis Welvaert looks at the achievements of past governments in this area. One significant period remaining unanalysed in terms of the contribution it can make to our current debate on housing is the Attlee Government. Today often only mentioned for the supposed restrictive effect of … Continue reading Let’s Build the Houses: How Attlee and Bevan tackled the Housing Crisis in 1945

‘One colleague recalled a conversation Johnson had with Geoffery Cox, the attorney general, during the 2019 Brexit wars in Parliament. The lawyer said to him at one stage “Prime Minister, you just can’t do that”. Johnson replied, ‘Geoffrey, all my life people have been telling me “you can’t do that'' - and I’ve always proven … Continue reading Book Review: The Fall of Boris Johnson

Starmer could do worse than take pointers from the Wilsonian example in the 1960s By Yann Griffiths It was the era of Terence Stamp and Jean Shrimpton, Bobby Moore lifting the World Cup, the wit and charm of ‘That Was The Week That Was’, The Beatles and Coronation Street - this was, of course, the … Continue reading “But the bloody man plays golf!” – The Enduring Appeal of Harold Wilson

Labour once had a realistic and ambitious policy designed to secure an adequate standard of living for all pensioners: National Superannuation. Much has been made in recent years of Labour’s inability to reach older and retired voters. This is due to a lack of attention to their issues. Recently, Labour has not been brimming with … Continue reading Winning the Pensioners: Labour and Superannuation

One hundred years ago Britain went to the polls amid strikes, a post-pandemic slump, and war. By Paul Richards One hundred years ago this November, the country went to the polls to elect a new Government. Not everyone in the country, of course: the 1918 Representation of the People Act had enfranchised all adult men … Continue reading 100 years on: 1922 election and the death of the Liberal Party

Jay Jackson looks at Northerners which tells the story of the North of England through the people and events that have shaped it Before we start, a disclaimer… I am a Northerner. It’s probably fair to assume that fellow northerners make up the vast majority readers of this book, because, in the same way I … Continue reading Book Review: Northerners from the Ice Age to Now

Labour Leaders and the Monarchy: A History  (Part One) Scott Cresswell begins a new series looking at the relationship between Labour leaders and the monarchy “From his childhood onward this boy will be surrounded by sycophants and flatterers by the score and will be taught to believe himself as of a superior creation. A line … Continue reading Labour and the Monarch: Ramsay MacDonald and King George V