Brownism

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

In

social democratic political ideology of the former Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party Gordon Brown
and those that follow him. Proponents of Brownism are referred to as Brownites.

Ideology

Brownism is understood by

social democratic ideology, characterised by its distinction from the ideology of New Labour under Blair, with Brownism generally understood as tolerating less enthusiasm about market driven reforms such as tuition fees and foundation hospitals, more keen on the role of the state,[1] and less critical of Labour's links to the unions.[2] Compared to Blairism, Brownism places more emphasis on constitutional reform, advancing ideas of a "new constitutional settlement", alongside a "robust concern for redistributive politics" with commitments to reducing poverty and expanding the welfare state;[3][4] Will Hutton opined: "Like Tony Blair [Gordon Brown] is a believer in a pluralist and fair society, social mobility, and marrying economic efficiency with social justice".[5]

Brownism retains much of the economic pragmatism of

Lloyds TSB and Northern Rock - with both conservative and left-leaning governments worldwide following this approach.[4] Brown described "the values of fairness, stewardship and cooperation" as underpinning this approach to markets, and has criticised the "weaknesses of unbridled free markets".[6]

On foreign policy, Brownism is characterised by "complexity, inter-connectedness, and cooperation", with focuses on improving globally under-developed regions, improving human rights, and global

US foreign policy, while retaining commitments to Atlanticism.[7]

Brownism has been described as lacking an "ideological narrative", something that has been said to have damaged

Relationship to prior administrations

Gordon Brown succeeded Blair as Prime Minister after Brown's long tenure as the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Although viewed in the media as somewhat personally close, Blair later wrote in his autobiography A Journey that a "maddening" Brown effectively blackmailed him while he was in 10 Downing Street. Blair accused Brown of orchestrating the investigation into the Cash-for-Honours scandal and stated that the personal animosity was so strong that it led him to frequent drinking, a big change for Blair. Blair also has told journalist Andrew Marr that as their years working together went on, co-operation became "hard going on impossible".[9]

Tony Blair criticised the departure from much of

2010 UK General Election
:

Why did Labour lose the 2010 election? The answer to that, I’m afraid is obvious. Labour won when it was New Labour. It lost because it stopped being New Labour...Had he [Brown] pursued New Labour policy, the personal issue would still have made victory tough, but it wouldn’t have been impossible. Departing from New Labour made it so. Just as the 2005 election was one we were never going to lose, 2010 was one we were never going to win – once the fatal strategic decision was taken to abandon the New Labour position.[3]

Brownites

Other than Brown himself, the following prominent Labour politicians are often considered Brownites, but may not identify themselves as such:

Ed Balls
Harriet Harman
Ed Miliband
Anas Sarwar

See also

References

  1. ^ "The rise and fall of New Labour". New Statesman. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  2. ^ Jones, Nicholas (7 September 2006). "UK | UK Politics | Brownites v Blairites – the full story". BBC News. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  3. ^ .
  4. ^ .
  5. ^ Hutton, Will (21 June 2006). "How to beat Blair: become a Blairite | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 23 July 2010.
  6. ^ "Gordon Brown: Economy can emerge stronger". The Telegraph. 18 October 2008. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
  7. ^ .
  8. .
  9. ^ "Tony Blair: Gordon Brown tried to blackmail me". The Daily Telegraph. 1 September 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  10. ^ "Profile: Douglas Alexander". The Guardian. 28 June 2007. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  11. ^ "Brownites ready to back leader from safe seats". The Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  12. ^ a b Millie, Andrew, Moral politics, moral decline and anti-social behaviour, People, Place & Policy Online (2010): 4/1, p 7.
  13. ^ a b c : Life at the Heart of New Labour – Peter Mandelson
  14. ^ a b news.yahoo.com/14/20100825 – cruddas-backs-david-miliband
  15. ^ "Labour Insiders Say Prioritising Talent Over Loyalty On His Front Bench Could Be Keir Starmer's Undoing". Politics Home. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  16. ^ "Business View: Blair necessities put Brownite in the limelight". The Independent. 6 May 2006. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  17. ^ "Labour leader calls on Brown's bruisers". The Herald. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  18. ^ White, Michael (6 January 2010). "Ballot call over Gordon Brown's leadership – what next?". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
  19. ISSN 0261-3077
    . Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  20. ^ Mark Oliver and agencies (11 May 2007). "Who are the Brownites? | Politics". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  21. ^ "Amid the expenses fury, Aida Edemariam shadows her MP, Emily Thornberry". The Guardian. 18 May 2009. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  22. ^ "Is Charlie Whelan to leave Unite the Union?". Financial Times.
  23. ^ "Series of political knocks took toll on loyal Brownite, Tom Watson". The Guardian. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  24. ^ https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/06/24/stewart-wood_n_3490390.html