History, Philosophy, and Social Sciences

Article published in the Western Mail 09/10/15 as part of Welsh History Month

Abstract:

When asked to name a notable Welsh
politician who has had significant
impact beyond Wales, most will turn to
the two great orators, David Lloyd George and
Aneurin Bevan; Lloyd George’s place secured
by his wartime premiership and role in laying
the early foundations of the welfare state and
Bevan for creating its longest-lasting achievement,
the NHS. Roy Jenkins is unlikely to be
the first name that comes to mind.

Labour (dis)united. Disputed legitimacies within the British labour movement

Britain From the late 1950s, mass immigration had a major impact on British, predominantly urban, society. This caused problems for the Labour Party. Whilst the party had stated its opposition against racial discrimination in 1958, it claimed to represent a white working-class that often felt threatened and angered by immigration. Transport workers in Bristol, for example, went on strike in protest at having to work with immigrants. Several traditional working-class institutions, such as social clubs, introduced a colour-bar. This caused a number of problems for Labour in how to develop a policy that was amenable to two disparate wings of the party. The Labour Party of the 1960s and 1970s relied on different policy-making structures to those available to the leaders of today's party. Societal structure, as well as the size, clout and dynamism of the labour movement meant that the trade unions often dominated the Party's sovereign body – the Conference. How did the party legimate policy and develop it effectively? This paper will seek to explore how the party's structure, composition and committee management impacted on the development of an immigration policy. To explain and analyse the historic development of Labour's immigration policy, this paper argues that Lewis Minkin's thesis of 'agenda politics' should be applied much more broadly. It will analyse the role of the party institutions such as the NEC, the Research Department and, in particular, ad hoc study groups played in developing a policy of immigration that both quelled the radicalism of its activists, yet gave sufficient room for manoeuvre to the party's parliamentary leadership to maintain unity and address serious economic and social concerns.

Delivered 22 July 2016 at the NAASWCH Conference (Harvard University)

Between 1964 and 1979, every Labour Home Secretary either sat for a Welsh Seat, or was Welsh by birth. Several more Welsh MPs also served in junior capacities at the Home Office. Whilst it would be simplistic to suggest that this coincidence had an effect on the management and culture of a predominantly Oxbridge-educated, London based institution, one could argue that policy initiatives pursued by a Welsh-born minister could have been influenced by their background. When asked to name a famous Welsh politician, most would turn to one of the two great orators, David Lloyd George or Aneurin Bevan. Yet Roy Jenkins, a native of Pontypool and son of Monmouthshire miners leader Arthur Jenkins, was Home Secretary twice, between 1965-67 and 1974-76, as well as
serving as a popular Chancellor between 1967 and 1970. His term in this office is still lauded as an era of effective and progressive reform. Jenkins famously oversaw the passing of legislation on liberalising the
states attitude to abortion, theatre censorship and homosexuality. However, what is often forgotten is the important role he played in making the Race Relations (Amendment) Act, 1968 a reality.

In his lecture about Jenkins in Parliament, Andrew Adonis has argued that his tenure was exemplar of the ‘transformational minister’. This claim, however, is based on Jenkins’ support for wider, equally
progressive legislation to create a ‘civilised’ society, and does not pay attention to his attempts at reforming Race Relations apparatus. Before his intervention, the Race Relations Act (1965) had been passed as a mere palliative, doing little to alleviate racial discrimination that had permeated some sections of British society. It was Jenkins who had the defining impact on the development of this liberalising legislation. His parliamentary and public intervention, promoting the improving race relations legislation in the mid-1960s did more for the cause than the myriad of metropolitan liberal campaign groups active in the field. Jenkins was a trailblazer in the development of post-war integration.

In a speech widely described as his best, Jenkins argued that integration relied on equal opportunity, cultural diversity and mutual tolerance. He was critical of attempts to disparage the purity of an existing little Englander mentality, arguing ‘If it were to happen to the rest of us, to the Welsh (like myself), to the Scots, to the Irish, to the Jews, to the mid-European, and to still more recent arrivals, it would be little
short of a national disaster’. Jenkins rarely spoke of his Welshness within the political arena, so his summoning of this oft suppressed identity over the issues of integration, multiculturalism and identity is
deserving of greater attention. Within the wider debates over Wales as a tolerant nation, the extent to which this supposed tradition of religious and cultural tolerance influenced Jenkins in his thinking during
this period is important. This impact on race relations is undoubtedly a forgotten aspect of a full and impactful career.

• Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. 16. Apr. 2022 A 'fertile ground for poisonous doctrines'? 1 Understanding far-right electoral appeal in the south Pennine textile belt, c.1967-1979 Historical far-right organisations have long proved pervasive, but are rarely interpreted as competitive political parties. While these minority parties and movements never secured significant representation, they influenced municipal and constituency political activity. Focusing on the 'textile belt' of Eastern Lancashire and West Yorkshire, this article seeks to understand how far-right organisations engaged in local electoral politics. It considers the influence of regional economic changes, caused by industrial realignment, and how opponents, primarily local Labour parties, interpreted postwar fascism and the concerns it engendered. The article then examines the growing influence of Labour's anti-fascist campaigns, the popular appeal of far-right politics, and the composition of such group's memberships. As far-right institutional archives are limited, the article uses material produced by predominant local Labour parties. Alongside providing new perspectives, it encourages scholars to interpret far-right organisations as electoral actors, rather than mere cultural and political pariahs.

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While national energy infrastructure projects possess significant reach and scale in supply terms, they are focused on a smaller number of power generation sites and have a significant impact on those specific localities. Britain's post war nuclear power programme was no different. Emblematic of government confidence and optimism in technological progress, nuclear sites also shaped community identities, languages, and attitudes to modernity, and affected the lives, routines, and prospects of residents. This article outlines available historical sources linked to nuclear power station construction and its wider effect on north Wales, demonstrating the economic, social, cultural, and political impact of the industry on a variety of local groupings and communities.

This article disseminates the initial findings of a project examining political change and party politics in postwar Liverpool. Based on a scoping study funded by a HSLC Research Grant, it explores the exceptionalism of the postwar revival of Liberal party support in Liverpool following 1945, Liverpool, before outlining the initial evidence gleaned from a survey of extant party records in regional and institutional repositories. Finally, it advances an initial conclusion of the project, suggesting an alternative interpretation building on scholarship associated with so-called 'new political history'. This encourages a more pluralist understanding of Merseyside political history, avoiding assumptions of a pre-1945 Conservative bastion or a postwar Labour city. By 1973, the City of Liverpool had reached a crossroads. A global process of economic change had damaged the competitiveness and effectiveness of local industry, and catalysed factory and dockland closure. 1 In turn, this led to mass unemployment, which affected the life experiences of ordinary Liverpudlians, creating the conditions and setting for the 'gizza job' realities captured by local playwright Alan Bleasdale. 2 Issues of deprivation, with poor housing stock and insecure employment, alongside religion, had long-shaped political allegiances. 3 Many of Liverpool's particular problems were caused by social and cultural changes to local employment patterns, alongside slum clearances and postwar reconstruction. 4 Yet, despite attempts to change the city's urban fabric, in 1972, one-third of residents still lived in slum conditions, and central government attempts to arrest the impact of economic change proved ineffective. 5 The extent to which these changes influenced local politics has underpinned historical interpretations. Throughout the 1970s and 80s, much was made about Labour and Conservative organisational failure and ideological tiredness. 6 It was assumed that neither enjoyed political dominance due to the pervasive 1 A.

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