Blair's Fight
Tony Blair had in 1993, before becoming Leader of the Labour Party, written a pamphlet for the Fabian Society which criticised the wording of Clause IV for confusing ends with means. Blair put forward a case for defining socialism in terms of a set of values which were constant, while the policies needed to achieve them would have to change ("modernise") to account for changing society. After becoming Leader he announced at the conclusion of his 1994 conference speech that the Labour Party needed a new statement of aims and values and that he would draw one up and present it to the party. The new version was adopted at a Special Conference at Easter 1995 after a debate.
The present version reads:
The Labour Party is a democratic socialist party. It believes that by the strength of our common endeavour we achieve more than we achieve alone, so as to create for each of us the means to realise our true potential and for all of us a community in which power, wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many, not the few, where the rights we enjoy reflect the duties we owe, and where we live together, freely, in a spirit of solidarity, tolerance and respect.Presentationally, the abandonment of the nationalising principles of the original Clause IV represented a break with Labour's past and, specifically, a break with its 1983 Manifesto ("The longest suicide note in history", as it was described by one of the party's own MP's) in which greater state ownership was proposed. However, the new clause did, for the first time, declare Labour to be a "socialist" party.
Read more about this topic: Clause IV
Famous quotes containing the words blair and/or fight:
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