Introduction

In 1983, Labour was a socialist party, mistrustful of capitalism and of the EEC, which most on the Left thought was an obstacle to building a socialist society in Britain. Labour was also a defeated party, looking to the future with apprehension. This was the appropriate emotion, since much defeat, both electoral and industrial, lay ahead. By 2005, Labour's policies and fortunes had been transformed. As the above quotations illustrate, Labour had embraced both the market and Europe (by now the EU) with enthusiasm. Electoral triumph had accompanied the new approach, and when Blair addressed the European Parliament, Labour had just won its third successive election victory: an unprecedented achievement for a party that had only twice before managed to achieve a comfortable majority in the House of Commons, in 1945 and 1966.

In this chapter, I will seek to explain how this transformation came about and to place it within the wider argument that British affection for Europe depended upon a reasonable degree of synergy between a ‘Europe with a strong and caring social dimension’ and a Britain that was essentially social democratic. On the face of it, Labour's conversion to Europeanism was a straightforward application of this principle: the party moved Right, abandoned socialism and embraced the EU. However, at a deeper level, this was a problematic conversion. It will be suggested that Labour not only forsook socialism, but also largely turned its back on its, alternative, social democratic traditions. In attempting a ‘third way’, the party found itself with a European policy that was shallow and half-hearted. Labour did not wish to seem anti-European, because this would undermine its credentials as a newly respectable party. On the other hand, it could not wholeheartedly accept ‘Social Europe’, for that was too social democratic for its tastes.