One Nation Labour refers to the theme and branding of the

British Labour Party The Labour Party, often referred to as Labour, is a List of political parties in the United Kingdom, political party in the United Kingdom that sits on the Centre-left politics, centre-left of the political spectrum. The party has been describe ...

adopted by the party in 2012 under the leadership of

Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...

.Roy Hattersley, Kevin Hickson. The Socialist Way: Social Democracy in Contemporary Britain. I.B.Tauris, Jul 30, 2013. P213. Miliband described the "One Nation" term as being related to British Conservative Prime Minister

Benjamin Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman, Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician and writer who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a ...

's idea of One Nation conservatism. Disraeli claimed a need for government to reduce economic inequality, which he believed was splitting Britain into two nations of rich and poor people.Roy Hattersley, Kevin Hickson. The Socialist Way: Social Democracy in Contemporary Britain. I.B.Tauris, Jul 30, 2013. P4. Miliband stated that the theme of One Nation was shared by Labour Prime Minister

Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. At ...

. Miliband has declared inspiration from Disraeli's and Attlee's One Nation theme, in that it challenges social barriers of class and promotes the unity of Britain. One Nation Labour had been described by its proponents as the successor to

New Labour New Labour is the political philosophy that dominated the history of the British Labour Party from the mid-late 1990s to 2010 under the leadership of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The term originated in a conference slogan first used by the ...

. Miliband both commended and criticized elements of New Labour. He commended New Labour for challenging Old Labour's appeal to sectional interests by widening the party's appeal, but also criticized New Labour, saying that "although New Labour often started with the right intentions, over time it did not do enough to change the balance of power in this country", "New Labour was right to talk about rights and responsibilities but was too timid in enforcing them, especially at the top of society", and that "we have to move on from New Labour".

Political philosophy

Economy

One Nation Labour supported an economy that rebalances society by rebalancing Britain's economy to: secure northern Britain's interests, help low- and middle-income earners, initiate long-term investment, and promote manufacturing. It emphasised the need for promoting

technical education A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary education#List of tech ed skills, secondary or post-secondar ...

for what is called "the forgotten 50 percent". Miliband claimed that long-term economic sustainability requires this, saying that university graduates should care just as much as those of the 50 percent because the country's economic future depends on those with mid-level skills.

Social justice

One Nation Labour declared the need to equalize life chances and for people to be able to lead valuable lives even in a financially unequal society. Miliband said One Nation society cannot be one where CEO salaries boom while others' pay is stagnant, where corporations owned and operated in Britain do not pay taxes in Britain, and where those at the top of elite institutions believe that the rules do not apply to them. As such, Miliband said that while responsibility should apply to those using

social security Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...

, that responsibility also matters at the top of society.

Culture and migration

One Nation Labour supported openness and tolerance to be a core of British identity and heritage while also declaring that immigration policy must be designed around the economic interests of the British people - and especially those at the bottom of the labour market. Miliband addressed the issue of

emigration Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

affecting Britain, with British people leaving Britain to search for opportunities elsewhere. Miliband said "I am proud to celebrate the multi-ethnic, diverse nature of Britain", while also saying that the previous Labour government did not do enough to address the issue of migration saying that "high levels of migration were having huge effects on the lives of people in our country".

Devolution

One Nation Labour supported devolution of powers to a local government representing

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

like that done with

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

under the previous Labour government. Miliband has said "If devolution to Scotland and Wales is right, so it must be right that the next Labour government devolves power to local government in England."

Differences and similarities with New Labour

Ideological

One Nation Labour challenged some of the

Third Way The Third Way is a predominantly centrist political position that attempts to reconcile centre-right and centre-left politics by advocating a varying synthesis of Right-wing economics, right-wing economic and Left-wing politics, left-wing so ...

policy developments created by New Labour while accepting and modifying others.Duncan Watts. British Government and Politics: A Comparative Guide. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2012. New Labour under Prime Minister

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

sought to distance the Labour Party from the conventional definition of

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

. Blair said "My kind of socialism is a set of values based around notions of

social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...

... Socialism as a rigid form of economic determinism has ended, and rightly". Blair referred to it as "social-ism" that involves politics that recognized individuals as socially interdependent, and advocated social justice, social cohesion, equal worth of each citizen, and equal opportunity. Third Way social democratic theorist and Labour Party member

Anthony Giddens Anthony Giddens, Baron Giddens (born 18 January 1938) is an English sociologist who is known for his theory of structuration and his holistic view of modern societies. He is considered to be one of the most prominent modern sociologists and is ...

has said that the Third Way rejects the traditional conception of socialism, and instead accepts the conception of socialism as conceived of by

Anthony Crosland Charles Anthony Raven Crosland (29 August 191819 February 1977) was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician and author. A social democrat on the right wing of the Labour Party, he was a prominent socialist intellectual. His influe ...

as an ethical doctrine that views social democratic governments as having achieved a viable ethical socialism by removing the unjust elements of

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

by providing social welfare and other policies, and that contemporary socialism has outgrown the Marxian claim for the need of the abolition of capitalism.Anthony Giddens. ''Beyond Left and Right: The Future of Radical Politics''. 1998 edition. Cambridge, England, UK: Polity Press, 1994, 1998. Pp. 71-72. New Labour in practice however sought to avoid regular public use of the word "socialism" even in the Third Way definition, out of concerns that the word would remind the British electorate of the strongly left-wing political strategy of the Labour Party in the early 1980s. Like New Labour, One Nation Labour endorsed Third Way capitalism and advocated a non-conventional definition of socialism, with Miliband declaring support for a form of "capitalism that works for the people" while declaring support for a "form of socialism, which is a fairer, more just, more equal society". Unlike New Labour, One Nation Labour used the term "socialism" more publicly.

References

{{UK Labour Party Ed Miliband Labour Party (UK) Labour Party (UK) factions Political terminology in the United Kingdom Social democracy