THE ESSENTIAL NAIVETY OF NEW LABOUR

A few years ago I purchased a new edition of Peter Mandelson's memoir "The Third Man" for the princely sum of £1. Sub-titled  "Life at the heart of New Labour", I thought the book very well written and a good Summer read. However, although Lord Mandelson held a number of senior UK government positions and was later Britain's European Union trade representative, "The Third Man" is really a book about political party management, as it seems was "life at the heart of New Labour". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Third_Man:_Life_at_the_Heart_of_New_Labour

It is hardly surprising, therefore, that most people now regard New Labour's years in office as a period of weak governance, whether in relation to the UK government's decision to participate in the invasion of Iraq, or poor regulation of the banking system. Party politics aside, the so-called New Labour Project was primarily an exercise in brand management and this has probably been its greatest success and most enduring legacy, with Conservative prime minister David Cameron later becoming the self-styled "Heir to Blair". http://www.conservativehome.com/thetorydiary/2015/05/who-won-the-election-was-it-cameron-heir-to-blair-cameron-voice-of-lynton-or-was-it.html

Now is seems that an increasing number of Labour Party supporters are fed-up with politics as brand management and want something more ideological, possibly even a return to socialism. The veteran MP Jeremy Corbyn has become the surprise leader of this movement, and - perhaps even more surprising -  the wider electorate seem to relate to Mr Corbyn's brand of politics too. Not only is he now the apparent front runner in the Labour Party leadership contest, but also apparently the most popular candidate amongst voters from all parties http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/14/jeremy-corbyn-labour-leadership-most-popular-candidate-voters-all-parties?CMP=share_btn_gp

Needless to say, New Labour's old political spin machine has led a ferocious assault on Mr Corbyn, who has in turn suggested that former prime minister Blair could face a possible war crimes trial over the illegal Iraq invasion.  http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-tony-blair-could-face-war-crimes-trial-over-illegal-iraq-invasion-10439020.html  However, the role of New Labour in this debacle is more likely to be remembered in these famous words: "It was worse than a crime; it was a blunder." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Antoine,_Duke_of_Enghien

In short, the invasion of Iraq points to the essential naivety not just at the heart of the New Labour Project but in the type of political management that it has come to represent and which has since been espoused by the Conservative Party. This can be seen at every level of government, whether in the incompetent patronage of some organisations linked to David Cameron's "Big Society" campaign https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Society or continuing incompetence in the management of Britain's economy -  http://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2015/05/06/the-naivety-of-the-uk-economic-debate/

It seems rather rich, therefore, that the Financial Times should today publish a somewhat hysterical leader article on the prospect of Mr Corbyn's election as the new leader of the Labour Party - http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/311c4e18-426e-11e5-b98b-87c7270955cf.html Had Britain enjoyed a period of robust and prudent governance in the 21st century, alarm bells at the prospect of a socialist interloper might be justified. As it is, most people beyond the well-heeled Westminster elite probably welcome a return to ideological politics in the hope that these might just lead to better government.