New Labour and the Unions: The Death of Tigmoo?

Abstract

‘For over 80 years’, Minkin wrote in his definitive study, the trade union– Labour Party link ‘has shaped the structure and, in various ways, the character of the British Left’ (Minkin, 1991: xii). Although, as Minkin demonstrated in abundant detail, the link was frequently punctuated by disputes, some of them serious, ‘the legitimacy, centrality and naturalness of the relationship were rarely brought into question. It was taken for granted that the unions and the party were organically connected’ (Ludlam, Bodah and Coates, 2002: 224). This is no longer the case. Predictions that the organic interlock between Labour and the affiliated unions would disintegrate have proved wide of the mark. Instead, it has persisted and remains a central structural characteristic of the Labour Party, even under the ‘New Labour’ regime. However, this chapter will suggest, the nature of the link is undergoing some fundamental alterations.