Labour's Transformation: Searching for the Point of Origin — The European Dynamic

Adam Lent's article in Politics Volume 17 presents a cogent set of explanations pointing to the rebirth of Labour starting well before 1987, however he has not considered the role of the European issue in explaining the location of the origins of Labour's transformation. Europe as will be shown, created a clear dynamic for party renewal as it married together a range of key factors that the Kinnock-Hattersley leadership had to constantly balance in their efforts to rebuild the Party. Namely, party unity, the retention of union support, the creation and sustaining of a new economic policy, and a rapidly changing international economic environment. These factors shaped the paradigm that has to be used if Labour's renewal is to be fully understood in the time frame identified.