ILP & PLP

Why try to create a party?

After the employer lockouts, idea that strikes aren’t effective anymore: now fight on another arena to obtain concessions in parliament + Lib-Lab union disappointing so only solution = creating a party for workers

Who championed idea of creating a Labour Party?

K. Hardie, a Scottish miner: in 1888 he decided to stand as an independent candidate for the labourers

First election of labour candidates

1892: in a general election 3 independent labour candidate elected. 2 of the elected labour candidates immediately back to the liberal party, K. Hardie the only one who remained associated to the labour party, believed in social dialogue and compromise.

New Reform Act

1884, right to vote granted to a larger proportion of men, so general election of 1885 around 1 man out of 2 could vote (still not all workers and not the poorest bc had to pay taxes and own property)

Creation of the ILP (independent labour party)

1893 in Bradford founded by K. Hardie. Program of the ILP about social reform BUT it does not call itself socialist, despite Hardie being one and socialists helping in its formation (SL, Fabians).

Just a parliamentary group at the time

TU reactions to creation of the ILP

most of them at first did not support the ILP, esp the NMU (conservative) bc still hoped the liberal party would be the best partners, did not want to form a rival party. Cf miners’ union = close link with the link

BUT in 1899

TUC votes for the first time in favour of a motion making a step towards independent labour representation in the parliament (in vague terms)

formation of the Labour Representation Committee (LRC)

1900: goal to finance electoral campaigns in the coming elections to support labour candidates.

LRC disappears after 1906 elections bc of the PLP

Taff Vale case

1901: a turning point in rise of labour party, a judgment that forced a TU of railway men to reimburse an employer for the financial losses caused by a strike —> a death sentence for that union. All TU in danger

1906 elections

Following Taff Vale, every big union in the country gave money to the LRC: led to dozens of candidates being present under LRC in 1906 elections, this time it was 29 labour MPs elected (a breakthrough). After being elected, the MPs chose to call themselves the Labour Party (at first the Parliamentary Labour Party, PLP

1909

the miners MPs with the liberal label ditched the latter and adopted the labour label, now 42 MPs thanks to this addition of liberal miner MPs.

secret agreement between LRC and the liberals

1903: had agreed not to stand against each other in the elections, libs led by Ramsay MacDonald. so if a conservative candidate, no lib should stand in the way of labour and reverse. Supporters of the labour party did not know about it.

—> a disappointment

1906-1910

a liberal gov in power, but the labour party completely subordinated to the libs, who introduced some social measures (bc of past labour mvmts) but labour MPs were not really independent (mostly followed libs).

—> other disappointment

1910-1914

Great Labour Unrest/La Grande Fièvre Ouvrière

Brit society underwent its biggest strike wave ever, direct action on the largest scale ever. Shift away from electoral arena and back to direct strike action in the workplace bc MPs more or less useless —> strike waves + rebirth of new unions

Rise of syndicalism doctrine

= revolutionary trade unionism, it plays a part in the radicalism of that period brit syndicalists borrowed their ideas from French CGT: direct action, general strike, one big unions instead of several based on trade.