Independent Labour Publications (ILP) was founded in 1893 as the Independent Labour Party. It was a co-founder of the Labour Party itself. Today's ILP is an educational trust, publishing house and pressure group committed to democratic socialism and to the success of a democratic socialist Labour Party. It seems to me to be exactly the type of body that is needed, given the present conditions which Labour Party socialists find themselves in. We need some sensible long term thinking, rather then efforts at politicking.
Through its Independent Labour Publications Friends' Network it runs "a loose organisation of democratic socialists who wish to discuss ideas and learn from each other as a means of creating a living political community". The summer edition of the Network's bulletin "Democratic Socialist" has just been published. I am a member of the Network and the current issue contains two of my articles. Versions of these have appeared on this blog. Here and here.
Included in the current bulletin is an article by Jonathan Timbers giving details of the ILP's annual weekend of discussions which were held in Scarborough recently. These discussions centred around ideas to extend and refine the ILP's current political perspective which it adopted in 1996 under the title "A Socialism For Our Times".
I was unable to attend the weekend, so I submitted them a document of my own entitled "Towards A Socialist Perspective".It appears on this blog also, see Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
I can't speak for the ILP or its Network, but those with sympathy for the general political line I take could do worse than to check out its web-site.
2 comments:
Jonathan is in my LP Branch......
I have not met Jonathan yet. Since retiring, most of my links with ILP activists has been via e-mails. But I intend to get to some of their future activities. My main involvement with them was from 1975 until I went to the Commons in 1987.
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