Abstract
This major text is the result of an assessment of England's directly-elected mayors and the councillors that serve in those authorities. The work draws on Colin Copus's extensive experience of the politics of local government and a substantial academic literature about local government reform both in relation to the UK and overseas.
The book explores how directly-elected mayors and mayoral authorities are functioning and how the office could evolve. Mayors are viewed in the ‘context of the long-term debate about the role of local government in the political representation of local communities and in the provision of important public services’ (p. viii). There is a pronounced focus on the potential contribution of the directly-elected mayoral model to reconnecting local government and politics with the electorate. Copus addresses two key questions: the distinctive contribution that elected mayors can make and whether mayors have ‘sufficient powers and responsibilities to govern and lead the English localities’ (p. ix). Although the text gives a robust defence of direct election and shows enthusiasm for this innovation, Copus also possesses the intelligence and subtlety to ask whether directly-elected mayors are a radical departure from past political dynamics or whether they merely represent a novel route to political power.
In conclusion, the book argues that to make ‘a real difference … the English mayor must be so much more than a directly elected council leader, which is the result of the current arrangements’ (p. 214). Copus comments that directly-elected mayors require a different legislative framework, new institutional and political arrangements and more power ‘if the quality and effectiveness of local political leadership and governance are to be enhanced’ (p. 214).
This book is a landmark text. It is the first significant publication to evaluate the impact on local governance of the new office, which dates from legislation enacted in 1999 and 2000, and, therefore, fills a notable gap in the literature of British local government. Directly-elected mayors are placed in the context of the wider local government agenda in Britain and experience with directly-elected mayors in other countries. There is also an impressive chapter on the role(s) of councillors in mayoral authorities. This is a publication of first-rank importance; it should be ordered by relevant scholars and librarians immediately, hopefully in large enough numbers to justify a paperback edition and widen the readership of this superb book. This text is useful for anyone with an interest in British local government.
Michael Col
(University of Plymouth)
This small pamphlet by J. H. Grainger, an Australian political scientist, attempts to add a new and interesting interpretation to discussion of Tony Blair by drawing on the idea of Max Weber's hypothetical ‘ideal-type’ politician, an excellent example of which Grainger argues is to be found in the current British prime minister.
Grainger goes on to present Blair as this ‘ideal-type’: the outsider to the traditions of British politics and the Labour party with no particular political background, lacking in ideology, vacuous and chameleon-like, a politician who thrives in the modern politics of charisma and spin. Grainger tears into how Blair's personality and approach to campaigning emphasise familiarity with the voting public, taking precedence over policies and concrete ideas. When ideas are put forward they often embrace agendas that can range from liberal to conservative, Marxist to Thatcherite, and, not forgetting, neo-conservative. That such a political creature could reach the highest elected political office in the kingdom is thanks to the break Thatcher wrought with the traditions of British politics. Indeed, it is a well-worn avenue of exploration that Blair has no set agenda, no set convictions, no political soul of ideological substance; many have searched his speeches and ideas for some holy grail of a common thread uniting them all and all have inevitably failed. Grainger's analysis offers an overarching theory to explain this.
Grainger's analysis is a powerful one bringing together discussion of British history, society and ideology along with global and European trends, offering in turn some profound comments on the type of individual Blair is and what his premiership says about the directions in which British politics is headed. He does however overestimate the power of the office of prime minister, and at times his approach is too cynical. The single biggest problem I and indeed many readers will face with this pamphlet is the verbose verging on bombastic style in which the pamphlet is written. This turgid and hard-going pamphlet therefore offers some good insights, but much clearer and equally insightful analyses of Blair are easily available elsewhere.
Tim Olive
(London School of Economics and Political Science)
Sarah Hale has written an interesting and thought-provoking book on the political thought of New Labour and as such contributes to an expanding literature on these issues which can be contrasted with other works which stress the pragmatic nature of New Labour.
Her argument, made clear on the first page, is that New Labour in general, and Blair in particular, are not communitarian. She then proceeds to discuss a range of communitarian philosophers to show the differences as she sees them between New Labour's approach to ‘community’ and the view of community adopted by the theorists. Most useful here is the discussion of Etzioni given that he was claimed as an influence on New Labour and the ideas of the Third Way. Hale goes on to say that New Labour are actually much more authoritarian and contractarian than com-munitarians would allow. This can be seen in a range of policies such as welfare reform.
One should not be surprised however about many of these conclusions. The concept of community is perhaps the vaguest notion within the social democratic tradition (democracy, liberty and equality are also contestable but perhaps less so than community since there are clearer positions which can be delineated). Moreover, one should not be surprised to learn that the ideas which underpin a governing approach are less coherent or consistent than those of academic philosophers, especially if they operate largely outside of the UK. Also, the evidence that New Labour draws from specific communitarian theorists is actually rather small. In contrast, New Labour's conception of community is a much less precise one. And they can claim to be communitarian because they hold to some, albeit vague, conception of community.
It might have been more interesting to learn of the author's views on claims made that New Labour has borrowed heavily from the tougher notion of community developed by Charles Murray and also the claim made by New Labourites that they have ‘rediscovered’ the idea of community from earlier, pre-war social democrats ‘lost’ by post-war social democrats. It is unlikely that both notions are correct but one or the other may be and the book missed an opportunity to discuss these claims.
Kevin Hickso
(University of Liverpool)
Haworth's book focuses on the careers of the original 29 Labour MPs elected in the 1906 general election. These include Keir Hardie, Ramsay MacDonald and Arthur Henderson. It was published to celebrate the centenary of the Labour party in 2006 and appears to have not only had the full support of the party but also the backing of many of its members, some of whom have contributed to this edited collection.
The authors have produced an obituary for each of the 29 MPs, focusing on their career highs and lows. These obituaries are written in all but one case by their twenty-first-century successor or closest equivalent. The one exception is the obituary of David Shackleton written by Alan Haworth, former Secretary of the PLP. The list of authors reads rather like a who's who of the modern Labour party including such notable names as Jack Straw, Charles Clarke, Hilary Benn, Sir Gerald Kaufman, the late Tony Banks and even a foreword by Tony Blair himself.
As each obituary is written by a different author, the contributions are rather varied in quality and content. The mini-biographies themselves tend to be about six pages long, giving the reader more of a sketch of the individual rather than a detailed portrait. However, the main issues and preoccupations of the lives of these 29 are covered and the general standard is high. In order to ensure that the reader is fully versed on the issues these individuals faced, there are some rather interesting bridging chapters, focusing on the wider issues that the party had to deal with. These are very useful as they place the individuals in context and provide the reader with more than a catalogue of work and activity.
This book is very useful in filling in some of the gaps left by more general texts on the early Labour party. Biographies can shed light on previously neglected areas of study and while these short obituaries do not claim to tell the life stories of these individuals, they do highlight some of the key points of their careers, both inside and outside the party. For this reason alone, this book would make a useful addition to the bookshelves of many academics, although not necessarily a book for the student of Labour party history. The book is really more of an interesting but worthwhile read than an academic exercise.
Victoria Honeyma
(University of Leeds)
Claire Mitchell's book sets out to explore in a theoretical and empirical context the somewhat tortuous relationship between religion, identity and politics in Northern Ireland. In doing so it attempts to place the whole aspect of religion in this instance within the context of communal and political socialisation and equate it, also within this perspective, with both the substance of modernity and fluidity, rather than the common assumption that, in Northern Ireland, religion per se is a backward and passive force. For example, one of the key arguments of the book is that the relationship between religion and politics is two-way and as such religion is particularly responsive to everyday social and political happenings. Also Mitchell argues that religion, in the Northern Ireland context, is more important than just the bare structures and rituals; she contends that it enhances community cohesion and identity and as such permeates the structures of political culture.
Within the book's eight chapters Mitchell lays out her thesis comprehensively and methodically. In the introduction she examines, questions and criticises other literature and studies of the subject in hand, while laying out her own theoretical framework. Chapter 2 concerns the author's analysis of recent survey findings in Northern Ireland on the relationship between politics and religion there. In chapters 3 to 7 Mitchell's key argument that religion is an important facet of identity and community is expanded and developed with the aid of primary source interviews and analysis of data from relevant secondary sources. In each of these six chapters the author details a differing characteristic of the significance of religion in Northern Ireland. Here Mitchell also offers the core thesis of the book, that in examining religion and its relationship with community identity and politics in Northern Ireland one cannot reduce religion to any one of the aspects presented in these chapters; her argument is that religion in this context must be looked at from a variety of different dimensions.
Overall this study is a valuable addition to discussion on the subject. It is a complex analysis of a difficult and controversial topic, more so as the author states it intends to challenge previous attitudes to the subject and she treads that particular path well. The depth of this study may dictate it being better suited to postgraduate and academic/research readership rather than undergraduate.
James Condre
(University of Ulster)
At a time when the writing on British foreign policy is dominated by the relationship with the USA and the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, it is reassuring to find that the debate over Britain's membership of the European Union is alive and well. As indicated by the title of the book, Peter Morgan argues that the EU has negatively impacted on British democracy and that the EU needs to be reinvented for it to offer a tolerable means of cooperation among European member states. In this sense, the book is somewhat different from other ‘sceptical’ studies which propose that British withdrawal from the EU is the only solution, albeit with Morgan noting that Britain could be considerably better off by being outside of the EU. In taking this stance, Morgan draws on his first-hand experience of eight years spent as a member of the Economic and Social Commit-tee and five years as Director General of the Institute of Directors. In setting out these views the book is divided into two parts, of which the first has ten chapters focusing on the theme of ‘misconceived union?’ and the second has six chapters focusing on the theme of ‘misconceived destiny?’. The book is additionally supported by a number of maps and tables as well as helpful appendices. Such a structure helps to support an underlying theme which is to question the value of British membership of the EU, and as such moves away from the structure and approach that dominate the textbook market. While this means that Morgan's book might not find itself a mandatory purchase on reading lists, the points that he makes could greatly aid seminar teaching. He is, for instance, correct to highlight Britain's broader global role in terms of foreign domestic investment within the European context. The approach is therefore to provoke debate rather than to provide an exhaustive academic study that is, for instance, served by an extensive bibliography.
Alasdair Blai
(Coventry University)
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