Fightback!

This book tells the story of how the moderate right in the Labour Party, trumped by the left for a decade and weakened by defections to the SDP in 1981, fought back organisationally to regain control of the party by 1985, producing an NEC supportive of Neil Kinnock and ready to expel Militant, introduce One-Member-One-Vote and return the party to electability. It describes the Manifesto Group of Labour MPs, the Labour Solidarity campaign, Forward Labour and the all-important but secret St Ermins Group of senior trade unionists, each of which strove to ensure that the party represented Labour voters and trade union members. Written by an insider, it draws on extensive interviews with all the key players and unique access to private papers and closed archives to explain how the moderates triumphed over the hard left.

Contents:
Section 1: BACKGROUND
1.Introduction
2.The scene the right faced
Section 2: EVENTS & ISSUES
3.1981 Deputy leadership contest
4.1983 Leadership election
5.Militant
6.OMOV – One Member One Vote
Section 3: GROUPS
7.Manifesto Group of Labour MPs, 1974–1983
8.Labour First
9.St Ermins Group – the background
10.St Ermins Group
11.Labour Solidarity Campaign
12.Forward Labour Section 4
13.Reviewing 1974 to 1988
14.Epilogue – from 1988 to 2004
Index