Why the Left Loses: The Decline of the Centre-Left in Comparative Perspective

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Paul Kennedy, Rob Manwaring
Policy Press, 2018 - Political Science - 240 pages

Social Democracy is on the back-foot, and increasingly centre-left political parties are struggling to win office. Bringing together a range of leading academics and experts on social democratic politics and policy, Why the left loses offers an international, comparative view of the changing political landscape, examining the degree to which the centre-left project is exhausted and is able to renew its message in a neo-liberal age.

Using case studies from the UK, Germany, Spain, France, Australia and New Zealand contributors argue that despite different local and specific contexts, the mainstream centre-left is beset by a range of common challenges. Analysis focuses on institutional and structural factors, the role of key individuals, especially party leaders, and the atrophy of progressive ideas in explaining why the centre-left is currently in retreat. Why the Left Loses is aimed at stimulating wider debate about the fortunes of the centre-left.

 

Contents

Tables
7
back to the wilderness
25
1
40
four The soft target of Labour in New Zealand
53
capitalist constraints and the
69
the case of Australian state Labor
85
1
86
little hope in times of crisis
103
eight The Swedish Social Democrats and the new Swedish
123
the PSOE
137
from office to crisis
151
eleven The end of revisionism?
169
twelve Social democracy and the populist challenge
185
thirteen The dilemmas of social democracy
203
1
207
Index
219

3
115

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About the author (2018)

Born at the very end of World War II in Northeast England, Paul Kennedy was the first in his family to go to a university college. After receiving his Ph.D. in philosophy at Oxford University, Kennedy came to the United States to work in Washington in the National Archives. A J. Richardson Professor of History at Yale University since 1983, Kennedy is also the author of numerous important books. The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers has enjoyed wide acclaim and great success as a best-seller, and Preparing for the Twenty-First Century covers the themes of lectures that Kennedy took part in at Yale University since the mid-1980s. Kennedy's teaching and research are influenced by his knowledge of global trends. Recognizing Kennedy's activity in community service and his wisdom and expertise, the Secretary General of the United Nations invited him to co-direct a working group on the future of the United Nations for the 50th anniversary of the UN General Assembly.

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