Abstract
In this article I examine critically the themes raised by Lewis Minkin in his 2014 volume about Labour politics, The Blair Supremacy within the context of his earlier work concerning the party’s relationship with its affiliated trade unions. I outline his argument concerning the development of party management, especially that regarding ‘a Blair coup’. I discuss the role of norms in political explanation, the importance of formal rules in understanding Labour politics, the significance of wider changes to the party’s character, how best to conceptualise the nature of Tony Blair’s leadership, and finally the historical development of the party’s trajectory. I conclude with an overall assessment of Minkin’s corpus.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 175-188 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Political Studies Review |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 5 Jan 2016 |
Keywords
- Labour party
- trade unions
- Blair
- norms
Access to Document
- Lewis_Minkin_17_June
This is the author accepted manuscript (AAM). The final published version (version of record) is available online via SAGE at http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1478929915623294. Please refer to any applicable terms of use of the publisher.