by Renie Anjeh
Various theories are doing the rounds at the moment about why Labour is not performing as well as it should. On the left of the party, they bemoan the fact that Labour is not nearly as leftwing as they think it should be. On the right of the party, there is much concern about the party’s lack of credibility on the economy. The left-wing Labour Representation Committee would argue that nationalising everything from the energy companies to children’s Christmas presents will deliver a crucial victory in 2015. Progress would think otherwise (and rightly so). But I still think that we have not asked a very important question. Are we really standing up for all working class and middle class people?
During the Mayoral election in 2012, I canvassed a middle aged couple in Ilford who were less than pleased when they saw my ‘vote Labour’ sticker. They worked hard all their lives and played by the rules but they didn’t think that we were on their side. They felt that the odds were stacked against them and that we had no answers. To them, we were completely out of touch with their aspirations and their concerns.
Unfortunately, people like the couple in Ilford have become objects of incomprehension at best, or derision at worst, for too many in our movement. The idea that we should give them as much focus to as we give to the bedroom tax, is an anathema to some on the Left.
Part of the reason why Labour lost power is that we were seen to be a party exclusively for special interest groups such as public sector workers, single parents, immigrants and benefit claimants not a party for the generality of working class and middle class people.
