Corbyn and Labour: What’s Left of The Left?

After months of anticipation, we have a labour leader voted in by a clear majority; Mr Jeremy Corbyn has seemingly won back the hearts and minds of his left demographic and pulled a political victory out of the hat. Loyal socialists came together and ticked the Corbyn box to move Owen Smith out of the frame. One would hope that this collective choice has put an end to Labour’s internal civil war. However, this would be a naïve view. Many still view the party as unelectable in its present state. This naturally begs the question, what does the leader of the opposition have to do to put his political party into a new light and raise its credibility?

Corbyn has created a self-image of a true, grass-roots socialist who champions greater social justice, redistributive wealth and a welfare state that aims towards poverty reduction, increased affordable housing and above all, a society that spends more on raising social mobility. This seems to be, on the surface at least, a great vision for Britain’s future as a fairer nation inspiring hope and prosperity for all; Corbyn’s aims are, on a normative level, very commendable. However, how his top down socialism and reduced austerity measures would actually work in practice is yet to be determined; indeed, one can be justifiably sceptical as to how a government under this Labour leader would successfully manage the UK’s budget in a strategic, sensible manner.

Much scepticism towards Corbyn has emerged as a corollary of his passionate opposition to austerity measures, cuts and rolling back of the state. Again, these policies would be perfectly acceptable in theory. However, with the current debt the UK is faced with, substantial increases in state spending may not be the wisest set of ideas to promote. Furthermore, much of the doubt concerning Corbyn’s manifestos stems from his proposals on nuclear disarmament and his position on arms generally; in the context of growing concerns surrounding national security due to tensions with the Middle East, he may have to shift his standpoint and make a compromise on this front. Of course, this is not to say that we shouldn’t be aiming towards a policy of non-intervention and eventual disarmament, however, the current climate of conflict requires a headstrong, strategic administration with regards to the country’s defence and security.

To be in with a serious chance of running the country, Corbyn must steer his red ship away from the past failures of the party. Winning the race as leader of the opposition against Owen Smith is just one small step in a number of large strides he will have to make in order to make Labour electable once again…