Tony Wright

Citizens and subjects : an essay on British politics

Book synopsis: Citizens and Subjects is an essay on the nature and condition of democracy in Britain at the end of the twentieth century. It looks at the commonly held view that Britain is a model democracy, exposing it as a dangerous myth that inhibits both radical thought and actual constitutional change. The book looks at the tradition of political and constitutional thought in Britain and at contemporary political reality, revealing a wide gulf between the two.

New Labour, Old Crosland?

Book synopsis: How much does Tony Blair owe to Anthony Crosland? The author of The Future of Socialism , who died suddenly as Foreign Secretary in 1977, remains the major philosophical inspiration and reference point for the left. To what extent is New Labour fashioned in Croslands image? What can the Blair government learn from his writings and ministerial achievements? An all-star cast of sixteen authors examine Croslands legacy in political theory and political practice and point to numerous ways in which his message remains relevant to policy-makers today. The contributors include Gordon Brown, Roy Hattersley, Michael Young, Raymond Plant, David Lipsey, Brian Brivati and Tony Wright. Susan Crosland contributes a moving postscript.

Democracy in Britain: Retrospect and Prospect

The EU referendum has raised questions about the nature of democracy, which is not just majority rule. It is wrong to claim that direct democracy has now replaced representative democracy, as Parliament is required to answer all the questions that the referendum did not. The conduct of the referendum reflected the worst aspects of Britains political culture of sterile adversarialism. Both left and right have shared assumptions about governing that have made it difficult to develop a culture of democratic citizenship. The political system still reflects its pre-democratic origins (as in the survival of a House of Lords and the obsession with titles) and the role of money in politics represents a form of corruption. Institutional reforms depend for their success on the nurturing of a democratic culture, which is a task for many hands.

Reforming the Patronage State

Patronage lubricates the machinery of British politics; it always has done (Richards, 1963). From ministers to magistrates, peers to judges, honours to quangos, government by appointment rules. It is a myth that elected government has replaced appointed government. It is more accurate to say that elected politicians have inherited the resources of the patronage state. The cruder excesses of Old Patronage may have been reined in (the civil service reforms of the nineteenth century, the sanitary checks on the sale of honours in the twentieth century), but New Patronage is alive and well. If a reminder of this was needed, quangos have supplied it in abundance.

Recalling MPs: Accountable to Whom?

The legislation on recall of MPs, introduced as a response to the parliamentary expenses scandal, was presented as filling an accountability gap. The nature of this alleged gap is examined, and it is argued that the accountability of Members of Parliament is more complicated than the recall proposal suggests. This includes issues about the regulation of parliamentary standards. Finally, the recall proposal is located within the context of discussion about the condition of representative democracy.

Liberal Socialism: Then and Now

Progressive movements need progressive ideas. Those who think that a progressive century can be secured by political fixes of various kinds (even by a fix of the electoral system) are wrong. Such devices and contrivances may be desirable, or useful, or both, but they do not go to the heart of the ‘progressive dilemma’ (Marquand 1992) that made the centre-left weaker than it should have been for much of the last century. If this next century is really to be different in this respect, the centre-left has to win the battle of ideas.