The growth of the urban working class in the late 19th century in England, thanks also to its first possibility of voting guaranteed by the Representation of the People Act of 1884, registered a growing demand for political representation in a context in which only two main political forces up to at that moment, Conservatives and Liberals, had run in the elections.
Different political boosts, generally identifiable with the Socialist and Labor center-left, finally met on February 27, 1900, giving birth to the Labor Representation Committee (LRC), ancestor of today's English Labor Party. The first to lead the party was MP Jamie Keir Hardie, the party's founder and motivated leader in bringing representatives to parliament who could promote laws in favor of the working class. The Scottish and ILP member Ramsay MacDonald was elected party secretary.
Despite the LRC only getting two seats in the October elections of the same year, growth was exponential from that moment on. In a typical bipartisan system like the English one, in the 1922 elections the Labours were able to replace the Liberals in the race against the Conservatives quickly, thus becoming the main opposition party.
From that moment until today, the several British governments that have succeeded each other since the early 1920s have seen a continuous political alternation of Labor and Conservatives.
Until the 1980s the party historically positioned itself in support of the ideas of the economist Keynes, siding with a political intervention in the economy, for taxation as a tool for redistributing wealth, for greater rights for workers and a well-functioning public health system. In the early 1990s, the party slowly opened up to more liberal ideas, thus supporting a market economy.
In January 2020, despite the sensational defeat of the Brexit-centered elections of December 2019, the Labor party registered the highest number of members than any other party in Europe.
The symbolic color of the party is red, historically associated with socialism, just as "the red flag" represents its official anthem.
Giulia Geneletti
Laureata con lode in Scienze Politiche presso l'Università degli Studi di Milano, curiosa, intraprendente e sempre motivata da nuove avventure ed esperienze. Ha svolto diverse esperienze lavorative, formative e di volontariato in Italia e all'estero. Si interessa di politiche pubbliche, relazioni internazionali, comunicazione politica, affari europei e di consulenza.
Giulia è entrata nella community di Mondo Internazionale nel Giugno 2019 ed ha da allora ricoperto diversi ruoli sia di redazione che di direzione. Ad oggi è Direttore di Mondo Internazionale HUB, all'interno del quale ha dato vita al progetto di MIPP, l'Incubatore di Politiche Pubbliche di Mondo Internazionale.
Graduated with honors in Political Science from the University of Milan, curious, proactive and always motivated by new adventures and experiences. She has had several work, training and volunteer experiences in Italy and abroad. She is interested in public policy, international relations, political communication, European affairs and consultancy.
Giulia joined the Mondo Internazionale community in June 2019 and has since held various editorial and management roles. To date she is Director of Mondo Internazionale HUB, within which she gave life to the project of MIPP, the Public Policy Incubator of Mondo Internazionale.