Door is opening for return of indy-supporting radical left

The spirit of the times was the D:Ream song Things Can Only Get Better. Blair himself talked of a “new dawn”. It all turned to dust but it did at the time at least speak to popular hopes and expectations.

With Sir Keir Rodney Starmer’s 174-seat majority now secured, there’s hardly anybody on the progressive left thinking “there’s nothing he can’t do”.

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Before the General Election, not only did Starmer go out of his way to dial down the expectations of a forthcoming Labour government with his “change no change” narrative but hopes in him were also low. In this, we must grudgingly conclude he very much succeeded in his mission.

We were often told “the taps won’t be turned on” and there is “no magic money tree”. Now, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has pretty much said there is no new money as the economic inheritance from the Tories is the worst it has been since 1945 – the end of the Second World War.

This all graphically shows the stark contrast we now have. Even though Blair junked the infamous Clause IV of the Labour Party constitution on its commitment to public ownership, there were still genuine hopes in him after 18 years of the Tories.

Crucially, Blair presided over an already expanding economy which grew even further during his tenure, easily and painlessly raising more tax revenues for limited increases in funding for public services.

Not only is there little hope in or positive expectations of Starmer, the economy is in a dire place compared to competitor countries. But critically, this does not mean that there is no room for manoeuvre.

Even though the 1945 Labour government inherited the highest-ever level of public debt in relation to Britain’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the big social advances in health, education and transport were still made between 1945-50. That was an era of what is often known as “Old Labour”. This means the radical left has a very important role to play in the weeks and years ahead.

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In one sense, it may be a more challenging role because it is harder to lift people’s heads when they are down and anger resulting from resignation is less palpable.

But lifting people’s heads is vital to the task of making them not only see there is something worth fighting for but that there is also a good chance of winning what is being fought for.

Initially, it is the political and ideological arguments that need to be made. But before the summer is out, these arguments will be needed to form the basis for forthcoming physical opposition and resistance.

As the socialist Scots folk singer Dick Gaughan sang nearly 30 years ago, there are No Gods And Precious Few Heroes. This means we should not and cannot rely upon others to do our bidding. Instead, the radical left must loudly proclaim that the Starmer project is one of reviving capitalism in Britain.

This is what lies behind the talk of his number one priority being wealth creation. Not only does he not believe in anything approximating to a fair sharing out of the dividends of any wealth creation, he will allow capital to set the terms for this wealth creation. At best, it will be a case of crumbs from the table of capitalism for the majority.

The truth sometimes hurts and the SNP’s perspective under Salmond, Sturgeon, Yousaf and now Swinney is not significantly different from that of Labour. The language of the Celtic Tiger may no longer be used but the SNP are definitely a pro-capitalist party with a social liberal – not social democratic – ideology only seeking to grow the economy to provide for the tax revenues to fund a minimal welfare state.

Growing the economy on conventional terms always necessarily means bowing down to the power of capital, giving it the upper hand and letting it overly influence the agenda.

But, difficult as it may be, there are opportunities for the radical left to make some headway. While the General Election did not produce any Jeremy Corbyn figures in Scotland, in the run-up to the May 2026 Scottish Parliament election the reluctant support for, and continued suspicion about, Labour as well as the loss of faith in the SNP means the space is at long last opening up for the return of a radical left that supports independence.

All is now to play for.

Professor Gregor Gall is a research associate at the University of Glasgow and editor of A New Scotland: Building An Equal, Fair And Sustainable Society (Pluto Press, 2022)