The Unfinished Revolution: How the Modernisers Saved the Labour Party - Hardcover

Gould, Philip

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0316644781 ISBN 13: 9780316644785

Publisher: Little, Brown & Company, 1998

Synopsis

On 1 May 1997, an event regarded by many as a sea-change occurred in British politics. Not only had the Conservatives been ejected from office after 18 years in power, but the Labour party which replaced them had itself changed irrevocably. Tony Blair's majority of 179 was the culmination of a long, hard struggle to modernize the politics of his country. Philip Gould, a political strategist and polling adviser, has worked with the Labour leadership for 11 years, and has been a key adviser to Bill Clinton in addition to his involvement with the creation of "New Labour". Using this vantage point, he describes the rise of New Labour since 1983 and explains how the transformation was achieved. In the process, he explores the new political climate in Britain and how the real modernization is in the old labels of "Left" and "Right" being transcended.

About this title

Review

Your reaction to the words "focus group" will determine your attitude to this book. If you think they are useful tool for gauging shifts in public opinion, read on and enjoy their ultimate application. If you think they are a Machiavellian tool to provide bogus popular support for a specific agenda, read on and weep.

Philip Gould, Labour's most prominent pollster of the last 10 years, is the master of the focus group and one of the key architects of the transformation of the Labour Party. When Tony Blair announced on the steps of 10 Downing Street that "we fought as New Labour and we will govern as New Labour", it was a vindication of Gould's efforts behind the scenes. His account of the wilderness years under Foot and Kinnock are as convincingly depressing as is the vibrant exhilaration of launching the new project under Blair. 1997 was a victory for Gould's brand of, and approach to, politics. But he knows that the battle is far from over. In a call to arms for the next century--"the progressive century"--Gould claims: "It is time to heal the rift between the Liberal and Labourist traditions in British politics". Expect a new rash of focus groups to agree with him.

Review

'I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand the guts of this government' -- ANDREW MARR in the OBSERVER

'The most important guide to New Labour that has yet appeared' -- BRUCE ANDERSON in the SPECTATOR

Edition details

• Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0316644781
• ISBN 13: 9780316644785
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256