It may be a centrist approach, but Keir Starmer’s recent Fabian pamphlet does at least reveal the three prongs of his electoral strategy. DAVID CONNOLLY assesses a flawed and uninspiring statement....
Eric Preston: The ILP’s Optimistic Pessimist
DAVID CONNOLLY celebrates the political thinking of Eric Preston, the ILP activist and theoretician who died a year ago....
The Battle for Labour’s Soul
With auto-exclusions and proscribed organisations, Labour seems to have entered another period of acute internal tension. But the party needs its broad church and membership-based democracy more than ever, says DAVID CONNOLLY....
Fade to Mauve: Starmer’s Leadership One Year On
Easter Sunday marks 12 months since Keir Starmer was elected Labour leader on 4 April 2020. DAVID CONNOLLY assesses his first-year performance and suggests a way forward for the left....
Labour ‘Under New Management’
Keir Starmer’s Labour leadership must amount to more than just competence and Union Jacks, says DAVID CONNOLLY. It’s time for Starmerism to assume the social and economic shape promised by his own campaign pledges. ...
Eric Preston: A life ‘lived for that better day’
Our dear friend and comrade Eric Preston died on 20 September. He was a driving force in the ILP for 60 years, shaping much of its perspective and political thinking. ILP chair DAVID CONNOLLY gave the eulogy at his funeral on 8 October....
Starmer’s (Un)Balancing Act
DAVID CONNOLLY reviews the Labour leadership’s response to recent controversies at the Proms and with the Overseas Operations Bill and wonders whether Keir Starmer is trying to ride two horses at the same time....
Corbyn, the Left and Labour’s Future
Red Labour’s BEN SELLERS talks to ILPers and fellow north-east party members MARY STRATFORD and DAVID CONNOLLY about the gains and losses of the Corbyn leadership, the role of the left under Keir Starmer and how Labour can re-build in ‘red wall’ communities....
Why the Left Should be Starmer’s Critical Friends
Keir Starmer has committed to promoting pluralism within the Labour Party. DAVID CONNOLLY argues that the left should give Labour’s new leader a fair chance to prove himself....
Hard Choices: A Personal View of the Labour Leadership Contest
With voting now closed and the result imminent, DAVID CONNOLLY reflects on the Labour leadership contest and the tough decisions faced by Party members. Whatever the result on Saturday, all of us in the Party need to make this government accountable for its actions and inactions, leaders and foot soldiers alike....
Coronavirus: Stumbling into Crisis
Unprepared, indecisive and out of step with much of the world, the British government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic is a result of its flawed ideology, argues DAVID CONNOLLY. We can only hope the crisis creates new space for a radically different politics....
Fragile Times
DAVID CONNOLLY reflects on the fallout from December’s general election and the unnerving sense of a fast changing and precarious world. The core statistics of last month’s general election make grim reading…...