John Smith

The death of John Smith on 12th May 1994 was one of those events which sticks in the memory. He was cut down at the moment that it looked as if he was set to become the next Prime Minister after a long political career and after successive electoral defeats for his party. This book, published to mark the thirtieth anniversary of his death, offers a comprehensive assessment of his leadership of the Labour Party, with chapters written by academic experts, on their chosen fields, and by those who knew him as advisers, MPs and journalists. There are two themes running through the book. The first seeks to examine the extent to which there was a John Smith 'effect' in terms of politics and policy and assess whether he succeeded in establishing his own agenda or simply followed that of his predecessor. The second examines the extent to which Smith was a representative of 'Old' Labour or 'New' Labour.

Dr Kevin Hickson is senior lecturer in British politics at the University of Liverpool, where he has worked since 2003. He has published extensively on British politics, particularly in the areas of political leadership, ideology and political economy. He is the author/ editor of books including James Callaghan An Underrated Prime Minister? (Biteback, 2020), Harold Wilson: The Unprincipled Prime Minister? Reappraising Harold Wilson (Biteback, 2016) and John Major: An Unsuccessful Prime Minister? Reappraising John Major (Biteback, 2017). He lives in Liverpool.