Does Ireland Need a New Left Party?

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Does Ireland Need a New Left Party? Does Ireland need a new left party? Yes. Why? We are involved in a colossal class struggle and we are not winning. We need to confront the very system that is demanding ever more drastic redistribution of wealth from below to above, accelerated accumulation by dispossession, continuing dismantling of the public sphere in favour of private property and commodified culture. It is not enough to go issue to issue, to oppose cuts, to denounce austerity. We need to win consent to a counter-narrative to the dominant view of the crisis. We need to break the grip of the belief that there is no alternative. We need to fashion a force that will challenge for power that will make the long march through all the institutions of society: schools, universities, media, trade unions, local councils, national and international parliaments, production, distribution and exchange. We need the best possible left. We need to maximise our efforts. We need to build on electoral gains by the left in elections of 2011 and 2014. The last general election saw the greatest overturning in Dail Eireann in its history and the next will outdo it, we have every reason to believe. The last elections and recent polls indicate a huge shift, primarily to the left, in Irish politics. We need to aim to form a left government in the next decade or so. For this, we need a new left party. A party of a new type. By which I don’t mean a Marxist-Leninist vanguard party. Traditionally parties of the left have been communist, Trotskyist or social democratic parties. This would be different. We have a multiplicity of left parties of the traditional types, quite a few of them M-L vanguard parties. All of these have maxed out their potential in their present form. Some are still vital, while others have been in decline for some time. In the first category are the Socialist Workers Party and Socialist Party, each of which have formed broader fronts, the People Before Profit Alliance and Anti-Austerity Alliance. In the second category are the Communist Party of Ireland and Workers Party. The two Trotskyist parties and their broader fronts have been especially active on the streets and in electoral politics and they have achieved considerable success. They also built and broke the United Left Alliance. None of these formations, in and of themselves, form the basis for the sort of new left party we need. They will be important in the future of any new left formation, but a new left party cannot be ULA 2.0. We also have two bigger parties of the left, although some may contest whether they are left: the Labour Party and Sinn Fein. They are left, but not as left as what we need. This is primarily because they do not engage in systemic analysis and therefore they do not move in the direction of systemic transformation. There is a big empty space where a big party to the left of LP and SF should be. We need a new left party to fill this space. What kind of new left party should this be? We need a party that engages in a critique of capitalism, that convinces of the need for socialism, that projects a convincing strategy of how to get from here to there. I think we should stop dreaming of a revolutionary insurrection, but orient ourselves to a more incremental, but radical, transformation. The long march through all the institutions of society. We need a broad left party, a Syriza type party. Alexis Tsipras, President of SYRIZA, at the International Conference: Challenging the Rule of Troika, Transforming Europe, in DCU on the March 10th 2014. It should draw from the older traditions of the left, from the communist, Trotskyist, social democratic and anarchist traditions, but bring them to bear in charting a new path. Everyone need not agree on everything. All members wouldn’t agree on the nature of the USSR, although this could and should be a matter for constructive debate in the right time and place. This party should not define itself as Marxist, let alone committed to any particular interpretation of Marxism, although I would like to see a strong Marxist presence and influence in such a party. Such a party should draw from both old and new left traditions, particularly from recent risings of profound discontent as have been expressed in the indignados and occupy movements. Notwithstanding the negative and unhealthy elements that have manifested themselves in these movements, they have been expressed progressive or potentially progressive striving. Such parties and alliances of parties have been forming in Europe: Syriza in Greece, Die Linke in Germany, Front de Gauche in France, United Left in Spain, Left Bloc in Portugal. Ireland is one of the few countries in Europe without a party belonging to the Party of the European Left. I would like to see such a party formed here. There is an empty space on our political spectrum where such a party should be. Overlapping this is GUE/NGL, the united left group in the European Parliament. Ireland has 5 MEPs in this: 4 SF and 1 Ming. Podemos is a new and interesting addition to this group. There is, of course, the question: Why a party at all? We have seen a rising level of protest in Ireland, despite the caricature that Irish people don’t protest. Many of these elements, here and abroad, are hostile to parties. There is a belief that movements, not parties, are the way to go. We do need to have movements that spring up in response to developments and are more fluid than parties can ever be. However, they are lacking in the organisation, continuity and discipline necessary to engage in true transformation. They are better at undermining what is than building an alternative to it. They are better at breaking down than building up. We need to harness the most constructive energies of these movements into a more cohesive force that will challenge for power and construct counter-power. Look at Greece. So many protests, occupations, general strikes. Such powerful and inspiring resistance. Yet what has changed? What it will take to reverse all the reversals and to move the society along an alternative path is the election of a left government. This is why Syriza, which has pulled together disparate energies of the left into a party that can form a government, is crucial. Who can build this party? How could it be done? There should be a coming together of left activists of various sorts, both those currently affiliated with existing left parties and those not affiliated but active in various projects and formations. It should not be negotiated behind closed doors by existing parties of the left. Left Forum, the organisation I’ve been involved in building for the past 18 months, could facilitate this, if others felt it would be constructive. We have created it as a gathering place for various sections of the left to discuss the state of play of the left and to explore how we might move forward. We did invite the various sections of the left to a debate to address precisely the question of whether Ireland needed to form a new left party. It involved speakers from SP, SWP, CPI, UL, ex-LP, LF. Speakers from SF and WP were invited and accepted, but didn’t come on the day. The discussion was constructive, but inconclusive. Since then there has been a flurry of activity around elections. Now is the time to reflect on what we have achieved in these elections as well as in all our other campaigns, protests and political education programmes and to strategise about how we can move forward. Much done, much more to do. There are many obstacles to overcome in order to build the new left party that we need. There are political differences, which are serious, between the various sections of the left. Reform v revolution is perhaps overstressed, but fresh thought needs to be given to finding a new and sustainable path from capitalism to socialism. The EU: is it a site of struggle or imperialist in its essence? Is another point of divergence. The SP and SWP are quite close in ideology and strategy, but there are seething grievances, especially those surrounding the European elections in Dublin and about how the ULA ended. I think that these difficulties could be overcome. These are serious activists who do want to move the situation forward. My biggest worry is whether there are enough people who would give enough of themselves to make a new party happen. One of the things that I have found most striking about my own experience of Ireland in this crisis is how easy is in everyday conversations to win consent to the idea that that the system is rotten and something drastic needs to be done about it. There is so much anger and alienation. However, I don’t find enough determination to do something about it. People rant and rail and then do nothing. Some process needs to galvanise them into action. Some process needs to gather those with left ideas but no left activity, those with left activity but no party, those with left party but not one that big enough and effective enough, to create something new. It needs to happen. I’m not sure that it will happen, but I hope that it does happen. Helena Sheehan is professor emeritus at Dublin City University and chair of Left Forum.
Recommended publications
  • New Perspectives on Socialism I the Socialist Party Revisited
    Downloaded from https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537781400000402 New Perspectives on Socialism I The Socialist Party Revisited https://www.cambridge.org/core Richard Schneirov Indiana State University The essays contained in this and the October 2003 special issues of the Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era were originally delivered at a conference sponsored by Indiana State University, the . IP address: repository of the Debs papers and site of his house, now a national landmark. Intended to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of 170.106.35.234 Debs' first run for the presidency, the conference themes of socialism and dissent attracted a diverse group of scholars, intellectuals, and activists. Their contributions help us gauge the state of the field. They , on also suggest new departures in the study of socialism. 25 Sep 2021 at 20:00:10 Socialism - in popular definition the political movement to replace private ownership of productive property and the profit motive with democratic and collective control of the modern economy - dated in the United States to the early nineteenth century. Prior to the Civil War, most socialists, inspired by such thinkers as Robert Owen and , subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at Charles Fourier, sought to withdraw from the existing market society and establish alternative communities. "Scientific" or working class- based socialism came to America with German-speaking immigrants. Initially divided between followers of Ferdinand Lassalle and Karl Marx, these socialists believed that the evolution of capitalist society itself created the basis for socialism by replacing household-based production with social production and by creating a large wage-labor class with no interest in the preservation of private property.
    [Show full text]
  • TRANSNATIONAL PARTY ACTIVITY and PORTUGAL's RELATIONS with the EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
    TRANSNATIONAL PARTY ACTIVITY and PORTUGAL'S RELATIONS WITH THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY Juliet Antunes Sablosky Georgetown University Paper Prepared for Delivery at the Fourth Biennial International Conference of The European Community Studies Association May 11-14, 1995 Charleston, South Carolina This paper analyzes the interaction of the domestic and international systems during Portugal's transition to democracy in the 1970's. It focuses on the role which the European Community played in the process of democratization there, using transnational party activity as a prism through which to study the complex set of domestic and international variables at work in that process. The paper responds to the growing interest in the role of the European Community as a political actor, particularly in its efforts to support democratization in aspiring member states. The Portuguese case, one of the first in which the EC played such a role, offers new insights into how EC related party activity can affect policy-making at national and international levels. The case study centers on the Portuguese Socialist Party (PS) and its relationship with the socialist parties1 in EC member states, with the Confederation of the Socialist Parties of the European Community and the Socialist Group in the European Parliament. Its central thesis is that transnational party activity affected not only EC policy making in regard to Portugal, but had demonstrable effects on the domestic political system as well. Using both interdependence and linkages theory as its base, the paper builds on earlier work by Geoffrey Pridham (1990, 1991), Laurence Whitehead (1986, 1991) and others, on the EC's role in democratization in Southern Europe.
    [Show full text]
  • The Struggle for a Left Praxis in Northern Ireland
    SIT Graduate Institute/SIT Study Abroad SIT Digital Collections Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection SIT Study Abroad Spring 2011 Sandino Socialists, Flagwaving Comrades, Red Rabblerousers: The trS uggle for a Left rP axis in Northern Ireland Benny Witkovsky SIT Study Abroad Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection Part of the Civic and Community Engagement Commons, Inequality and Stratification Commons, Peace and Conflict Studies Commons, Political Science Commons, and the Politics and Social Change Commons Recommended Citation Witkovsky, Benny, "Sandino Socialists, Flagwaving Comrades, Red Rabblerousers: The trS uggle for a Left rP axis in Northern Ireland" (2011). Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection. 1095. https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection/1095 This Unpublished Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the SIT Study Abroad at SIT Digital Collections. It has been accepted for inclusion in Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection by an authorized administrator of SIT Digital Collections. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Witkovsky 1 SANDINO SOCIALISTS, FLAG­WAVING COMRADES, RED RABBLE­ROUSERS: THE STRUGGLE FOR A LEFT PRAXIS IN NORTHERN IRELAND By Benny Witkovsky SIT: Transformation of Social and Political Conflict Academic Director: Aeveen Kerrisk Project Advisor: Bill Rolston, University of Ulster School of Sociology and Applied Social Studies, Transitional Justice Institute Spring 2011 Witkovsky 2 ABSTRACT This paper is the outcome of three weeks of research on Left politics in Northern Ireland. Taking the 2011 Assembly Elections as my focal point, I conducted a number of interviews with candidates and supporters, attended meetings and rallies, and participated in neighborhood canvasses.
    [Show full text]
  • Radicalism Or Reformism? Socialist Parties Before World War I
    Radicalism or Reformism? Socialist Parties before World War I Gary Marks Heather A. D. Mbaye University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill University of West Georgia VU Amsterdam Hyung Min Kim Inha University This article builds on social movement theory to explain ideological variation among socialist, social democratic, and labor parties across 18 countries in the early twentieth century. We propose a causal argument connecting (1) the political emergence of the bourgeoisie and its middle-class allies to (2) the political space for labor unions and working-class parties, which (3) provided a setting for internal pressures and external opportunities that shaped socialist party ideology. Combining quantitative analysis and case studies, we find that the timing of civil liberties and the strength of socialist links with labor unions were decisive for reformism or radicalism. Refining Lipset’s prior analysis, we qualify his claim that male suffrage provides a key to socialist orientation. hanges in class and political relations in all industrial societies. Unlike the “Cwithin industrially developedDelivered societies, by Ingentacenter/periphery to : and religious cleavages arising much like the shifts in left-wing politicsUniversity in the of North Carolina Tue, 18 Aug 2009from 20:55:06 nation-state formation and the United States and Europe, may be analyzed Reformation, the class cleavage characterizes all within the framework of an ‘apolitical’ industrial societies. In this article, we ask why Marxism—that is, by accepting the proposition that conflict varied so decisively prior to World that technological advances and the distribu- War I: Why were some socialist parties radical tion of economic classes determine the politi- and others reformist? cal and cultural superstructures, but without Socialist, social democratic, and labor parties assuming that socialism will succeed capital- formed across Europe, North America, and ism” (Lipset 2001:77).
    [Show full text]
  • Freedom in the World Report, Belgium
    6/5/2020 Belgium | Freedom House FREEDOM IN THE WORLD 2020 Belgium 96 FREE /100 Political Rights 39 /40 Civil Liberties 57 /60 LAST YEAR'S SCORE & STATUS 96 /100 Free Global freedom statuses are calculated on a weighted scale. See the methodology. https://freedomhouse.org/country/belgium/freedom-world/2020 1/13 6/5/2020 Belgium | Freedom House Overview Belgium is a stable electoral democracy with a long record of peaceful transfers of power. Political rights and civil liberties are legally guaranteed and largely respected. Major concerns in recent years have included the threat of terrorism, and corruption scandals that have unsettled the country’s complex institutional setting and political landscape. Key Developments in 2019 The federal and regional elections in May shifted the established balance of power in Belgian politics: parties on the far-left and far-right of the political spectrum gained seats, while establishment parties saw their support dwindle. No governing coalition had been formed by the end of the year. In October, police rescued 12 migrants in the back of a refrigerated truck in a highway parking area in the north of the country. Authorities were investigating the existence of a human trafficking ring; two days before this, British officials had found 39 people dead in the back of a truck entering the United Kingdom from Belgium. Political Rights A. Electoral Process A1 0-4 pts Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4 The Belgian monarchy is largely ceremonial, although the king retains constitutional authority to mediate the process of government formation.
    [Show full text]
  • 3. the Emergence of Socialist Parties, 1848-1914
    Section XVI: Developments in Socialism, Contemporary Civilization (Ideas and Institutions 1848-1914 of Western Man) 1958 3. The meE rgence of Socialist Parties, 1848-1914 Robert L. Bloom Gettysburg College Basil L. Crapster Gettysburg College Harold L. Dunkelberger Gettysburg College See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/contemporary_sec16 Part of the Models and Methods Commons, and the Political History Commons Share feedback about the accessibility of this item. Bloom, Robert L. et al. "3. The meE rgence of Socialist Parties, 1848-1914. Pt. XVI: Developments in Socialism, (1848-1914)." Ideas and Institutions of Western Man (Gettysburg College, 1958), 30-48. This is the publisher's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution. Cupola permanent link: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/ contemporary_sec16/4 This open access book chapter is brought to you by The uC pola: Scholarship at Gettysburg College. It has been accepted for inclusion by an authorized administrator of The uC pola. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 3. The meE rgence of Socialist Parties, 1848-1914 Abstract The mee rgence of socialist parties frequently is treated by Marxians and non-Marxians alike, as an inevitable development. From this viewpoint, the Industrial Revolution completed the breakdown of an essentially land- based social structure, economy, and political system. New classes were creates; new interests required political expression. Working people, united by the often miserable conditions under which they lived and labored, ultimately turned to socialism.
    [Show full text]
  • The Left Wing Movement in the Socialist Party of America
    NeVIJ Yo f" 1< CSt ate) L e~I's re>.i~ V"e I J ill l~i ... c..cY'YIWlitiee iVlyerlr <a.t,~d se.d,'i'·bU-5a .a.c.t;,,:tl~S, REVOLUTIONARY RADICALISM ITS HISTORY, PURPOSE AND TACTICS WITH AN EXPOSITION AND DISCUSSION OF THE STEPS BEING TAKEN AND REQUIRED TO CURB IT ..t BEING THE REPORT OF THE JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE INVESTIGATING SEDITIOUS ACTIVITIES, FILED APRIL 24, 1920, IN THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK PART I REVOLUTIONARY AND SUBVERSIVE MOVEMENTS ABROAD AND AT HOME VOLUME I "'\''of, ,' ',. '" \ ; \',.~' ., EVERY STRIKE IS A SMALL REVOLUTION AND A DRESS REHEARSAL FOR THE BIG ONE -The Labor Defender. (I. W. W.) Dec. 15. 1918_ ALBANY J. B. LYON COMPANY. PRINTERS 1920 THE LEFT WING MOVEMENT IN AMERICA 677 Russian Socialist Federated Soviet Republic, was connected with the paper after his arrival here in 1916. Many members of this CHAPTER IV federation had returned to Russia and taken part in the N ovem­ bel' revolution, or had gone to Russia after its success to partici­ The Left Wing Movement in the Socialist Party of America. pate in Soviet affairs. Evidence of a marked divergence of opinion in the ranks of When Santeri N uorteva accepted the appointment to represent tho Socialist Party began to be manifest after the declaration of the Finnish Socialist Republic in this country in 1918 and later war on Germany by the United States. These differences were undertook to represent the interests of the Russian Soviet regime greatly aggravated by the success of the Russian proletarian revo­ before the appointment of Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • PASOK's Modernization Paradigm and New Social Democracy
    PASOK’s modernization paradigm and new social democracy FIRST DRAFT – PLEASE DO NOT QUOTE WITHOUT THE AUTHOR’S PERMISSION Dr. Dimitris Tsarouhas, Bilkent University Department of International Relations, Bilkent University 06800 Bilkent-Ankara, Turkey [email protected] ABSTRACT The 2009 Greek elections have led to the return of the Pan-Hellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) in office. After assuming the party leadership in 2004, the new Prime Minister George Papandreou called for a new relationship between the party and party members/citizens based on transparency, democratic decision-making and horizontal forms of participation. PASOK’s victory notwithstanding, European social democracy continues to suffer from a deep crisis of identity and political purpose. The paper advances two sets of interrelated arguments. First, I argue that the completion of the convergence processes between social democracies ‘North’ and ‘South’ has left the latter in an advantageous position, at least in countries like Greece, on account of their late transition to democracy, the correspondingly small effect of social movements on party politics and the big parties’ ability to absorb divergent social groups inside their coalition. This despite the fact that in countries such as Greece and Portugal cohesive and solidified parties to the left of social democracy remain influential. Secondly, I argue that with the party reforms introduced over the last five years or so, PASOK’s full conversion into a mainstream social democratic party is complete. This process had been ideologically completed a while back; Papandreou’s reforms signal organizational convergence too. However, whilst on the one hand PASOK can now claim to be on the organizational forefront of progressive parties, its leadership-dominated heritage remains visible and conditions its passage to organizational modernity.
    [Show full text]
  • Britain's Labour Party and the EEC Decision
    W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1990 Britain's Labour Party and the EEC Decision Marcia Marie Lewandowski College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the Eastern European Studies Commons, International Relations Commons, and the Public Administration Commons Recommended Citation Lewandowski, Marcia Marie, "Britain's Labour Party and the EEC Decision" (1990). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539625615. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-4w70-3c60 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BRITAIN'S LABOUR PARTY AND THE EEC DECISION A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Government The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Marcia Lewandowski 1990 APPROVAL SHEET This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Marcia Marie Lewandowski Approved, May 1990 Alan J. Ward Donald J. B Clayton M. Clemens TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................. .............. iv ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Will Belgium Re-Elect the Swedish Coalition in Office?
    FEDERAL AND REGIONAL ELECTIONS IN BELGIUM 26th May 2019 European Will Belgium re-elect the Elections monitor Swedish coalition in office? Corinne Deloy In Belgium the government has been managing current affairs since the end of 2018. On 8th December last the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) left the coalition in office in protest against the government’s signature of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, a text adopted in December in Marrakesh. The following day Prime Minister Charles Michel (Reform Movement, MR) formed a minority government, which resigned on 18th December Analysis under the threat of a motion of no-confidence supported by the Socialist Party (PS), the Flemish Socialist Party (SP.A) and Ecolo. On 21st December King Philippe asked Charles Michel to manage current affairs until the next parliamentary elections that will take place on the same day as the European and regional elections, i.e. 26th May next. These elections are especially important since the Belgians and the Flemish Liberals and Democrats and yellow for will not be consulted again for the next four years. “We the New Flemish Alliance, with the Flemish Christian shall enter a four-year period in which no elections will Democratic Party being represented by a cross. take place. We have not had a period without elections in peace time as long as this since 1830,” indicates Also called the “kamikaze coalition” due to the presence of Jean Faniel, General Director of the Research and Social only one French-speaking party (the Reform Movement) Political Information Centre (CRISP).
    [Show full text]
  • Bulgarian Parliamentary Elections: a Final Look at the Parties and the Polls
    Bulgarian parliamentary elections: a final look at the parties and the polls blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2014/10/03/bulgarian-parliamentary-elections-a-final-look-at-the-parties-and-the- polls/ 03/10/2014 Bulgaria will hold parliamentary elections on 5 October, following the resignation of the country’s government in July. Ahead of the vote, Stuart Brown gives an overview of the background to the elections, each of the main parties and some of the opinion polling on the likely results. On Sunday, Bulgaria will hold parliamentary elections for the second time in less than 18 months. The elections were called after the Bulgarian government, led by Plamen Oresharski, resigned in July, with a caretaker administration fronted by Georgi Bliznashki taking over in the interim. Oresharski’s government had only entered office in May 2013, but had suffered a series of problems in its short time in power. This was the second time the Bulgarian government had resigned in the last two years, following the collapse of Boyko Borisov’s government in February 2013. Background to the 2014 elections The current period of political instability in Bulgaria can be traced back to a series of mass protests against Borisov’s government in 2013, chiefly over the issue of high electricity prices. Borisov, the leader of the largest centre-right party in Bulgaria, GERB, is a controversial figure, who has faced a number of allegations of corruption since winning power in 2009. As a result of the scale of the protests, he opted to stand down as Prime Minister, with new elections being called for May 2013.
    [Show full text]
  • The French Party System Forms a Benchmark Study of the State of Party Politics in France
    evans cover 5/2/03 2:37 PM Page 1 THE FRENCH PARTY SYSTEM THE FRENCHPARTY This book provides a complete overview of political parties in France. The social and ideological profiles of all the major parties are analysed chapter by chapter, highlighting their principal functions and dynamics within the system. This examination is THE complemented by analyses of bloc and system features, including the pluralist left, Europe, and the ideological space in which the parties operate. In particular, the book addresses the impressive FRENCH capacity of French parties and their leaders to adapt themselves to the changing concerns of their electorates and to a shifting PARTY institutional context. Contrary to the apparently fragmentary system and increasingly hostile clashes between political personalities, the continuities in the French political system seem SYSTEM destined to persist. Drawing on the expertise of its French and British contributors, The French party system forms a benchmark study of the state of party politics in France. It will be an essential text for all students of Edited by French politics and parties, and of interest to students of European Evans Jocelyn Evans politics more generally. ed. Jocelyn Evans is Lecturer in Politics at the University of Salford The French party system The French party system edited by Jocelyn A. J. Evans Manchester University Press Manchester and New York distributed exclusively in the USA by Palgrave Copyright © Manchester University Press 2003 While copyright in the volume as a whole is vested in Manchester University Press, copyright in individual chapters belongs to their respective authors. This electronic version has been made freely available under a Creative Commons (CC-BY-NC-ND) licence, which permits non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction provided the author(s) and Manchester University Press are fully cited and no modifications or adaptations are made.
    [Show full text]