Despised

The typical contemporary Labour MP is almost certain to be a university-educated Europhile who is more comfortable in the leafy enclaves of north London than the party’s historic heartlands. As a result, Labour has become radically out of step with the culture and values of working-class Britain. Drawing on his background as a firefighter and trade unionist from Dagenham, Paul Embery argues that this disconnect has been inevitable since the Left political establishment swallowed a poisonous brew of economic and social liberalism. They have come to despise traditional working-class values of patriotism, family and faith and instead embraced globalisation, rapid demographic change and a toxic, divisive brand of identity politics. Embery contends that the Left can only revive if it speaks once again to the priorities of working-class people by combining socialist economics with the cultural politics of belonging, place and community. No one who wants to really understand why our politics has become so dysfunctional and what the Left can do to fix it can afford to miss this authentic, insightful and passionate book.

Acknowledgements Introduction Notes 1 The Gathering Storm The rise of the cultural revolutionaries Nowhere else to go? The Brexit revolt Liberals versus the masses Notes 2 We Need to Talk About Immigration A community fragments The far-right takes advantage Pressure on wages: time for an honest discussion Going backwards on productivity The myth of a prejudiced Britain It’s not just the economy, stupid Notes 3 A New National Religion: Liberal Wokedom The dead end of identity politics Whiteness as original sin Competing priorities Why multiculturalism has failed The gender identity madness Free speech imperilled The tyranny of the woke slacktivists Debasing our language The tightening grip of the law Politicians run for cover The presumption of guilt The intolerance of the ‘tolerant’ Notes 4 The Case for the Nation State Democracy devalued Globalisation meets resistance Turning the tide: challenging the power of global capitalism Understanding the patriotism of the working classes A meaningful citizenship England forgotten: a tale of national dispossession Notes 5 What is to Be Done? Looking and sounding like Labour again A radical economic policy The importance of vocation Promoting social stability and solidarity Climbing the mountain Notes Index