THE mythology of New Labour is being exposed by the public support for striking public services workers running at over two-to-one, according to an ICM poll in The Guardian (Tuesday, July 30, 2002).
The myth is that without the intervention of New Labour reforms in the 1990s, the Labour Party would have remained unelectable.
The reality is that the British people voted for a Labour government in 1997 expecting precisely that.
The failure of all that the Tories had stood for was consigned to the dustbin of history, and remains so.
New Labour has shown itself to be a Trojan horse for the Americanisation of the Labour Party and by it, of Britain and Europe.
The party's internal democracy is extinct and has been replaced by a dictatorship of faceless policy makers led by careerists hand-picked by Tony Blair.
It is anything but a social democratic government, never mind a socialist one, pressing on with discredited Tory policies and bringing in just about the minimum you could reasonably expect from a Labour government.
New Labour is wedded to the culture of business, shareholder value and US foreign policy. That is not what the Labour Party exists for. And it's only possible while party members continue to inflict a self-discipline on themselves that is rapidly developing into fatalistic apathy that will destroy democratic politics for a generation.
PETER NIELSEN,
Worcester.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article