Democracy under threat

Labour certainly seems to have changed its demographics. Same over here with our Labor party. A shame because now you don’t know what you are getting or exactly who they stand for. I guess I was a ‘rusted on’ voter but certainly not anymore. I change all the time now, even been known to vote for the greenies ( only once !)

nanna8

Labour certainly seems to have changed its demographics. Same over here with our Labor party. A shame because now you don’t know what you are getting or exactly who they stand for. I guess I was a ‘rusted on’ voter but certainly not anymore. I change all the time now, even been known to vote for the greenies ( only once !)

It was a combination, there are always floating voters, Reform took a lot of Tory votes away, a lot voted LD where there was a prospect of a win. Other small parties didn’t do well, uniting to get Tories out was the priority and it went rather over the top

Wyllow3* The statistics are against you.

If you scroll down through this link www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-political-science/article/new-dilemma-of-social-democracy-the-british-labour-party-the-white-working-class-and-ethnic-minority-representation/626714D1D61DB6BE58311C2B781FC00C until you reach the first bar chart, it shows that in 1987 while the white working class accounted for 38% of the electorate, it formed 52% of the Labour vote. By 2019 these figures had fallen to 24% and 18%.

Meanwhile the proportion of votes that Labour gets from white university graduates has risen from 10% to 38%. The other growth group has been among ethnic minorities where Labour now gets 20%. A significant proportion of these will also have degrees, so Labour now gets about half its votes from university graduates, while the white working class accounts for less than 20%.

The Labour party is the party of the ducated middle classes and this is echoed in its MPs. None of which have a working class background. Look at this link researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7483/CBP-7483.pdf. It shows that 75% of Labour MPs were already inthe politics profession before they became MPs; party officials, working for think tanks, union officials. Almost without exception all Labour MPs come from white collar careers.

I’m left thinking so what M0nica. What percentage of people now obtain a degree compared with the 1980s, surely that has a bearing on the change in voter profiles? Was 2019 typical of the Labour voting profile? I’d say no, because of the Corbyn effect. Many people who voted Labour because of him didn’t vote Labour in 2024, but others did. The YouGov voter profile for 2024 by educational attainment is here.
yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49978-how-britain-voted-in-the-2024-general-election
It’s quite possible that local branches of the Labour Party have very mixed membership as Wyllow3 indicates.

Oh yes, as in most things there will be variation from place to place, but it doesn't hide the main picture that Labour is now the party of the educated middle classes.

Those sociodemographic and income groups that Labour could almost guarantee to vote for them in the past - Social groups D2DE and those on low incomes, are the people now most likely to be moving to support Reform. yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49978-how-britain-voted-in-the-2024-general-election

M0nica

Oh yes, as in most things there will be variation from place to place, but it doesn't hide the main picture that Labour is now the party of the educated middle classes.

Those sociodemographic and income groups that Labour could almost guarantee to vote for them in the past - Social groups D2DE and those on low incomes, are the people now most likely to be moving to support Reform. yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49978-how-britain-voted-in-the-2024-general-election

I was surprised when the budget did not tax the high earning middle class more, it appears that a large proportion of them are Labour voters these days and practically all of their MPs are not working class despite their claim to “roots”.

Are you implying some sort of preferential treatment for Labour voters there, David?. The message before the budget was that working people wouldn't be taxed (implication being no rise in income tax). Middle class 'high earners' are still 'working people'. I know it was a silly and nebulous phrase, but that 'promise' was kept.

What was surprising/disappointing was that there were a number of ways the acquisition of more undue wealth could have been taxed but wasn't, and also excessive corporate profits (e.g. the energy companies) weren't touched.

I tend to think that on the whole most voters care less about the demographics of the party than they do about what they think the party will do for them. What about all the 'working classes' who have continually voted tory?

The working class Tory was the subject of many Sociology exam questions when I took an A level in it in the 70s. Alf Garnett is a good example, for those who remember him. Deferential, prepared to believe that 'toffs' know better than he and his family do, and not prepared to shift his position at all.

As for the Labour middle class vote - much of that depends on definition of class. The industrial working class no longer exists, but there is a whole group of people whose working conditions are no better, and who may see themselves as middle class as they work in offices, shops or call centres and get paid monthly, but their 'relation to the means of production' is no greater than their parents or grandparents who worked in mines, mills and factories. These people tend to be floating voters in 'Red Wall' constituencies.

Because of (largely Labour) policies, the position of many workers has changed, however, so of course their voting base has changed with it. Not everyone votes purely out of self-interest, and a lot of people who realise that their situation is as it is because of progressive policies and want to see others get the same advantage. They are more likely to be LP members I think.

MaizieD

Are you implying some sort of preferential treatment for Labour voters there, David?. The message before the budget was that working people wouldn't be taxed (implication being no rise in income tax). Middle class 'high earners' are still 'working people'. I know it was a silly and nebulous phrase, but that 'promise' was kept.

What was surprising/disappointing was that there were a number of ways the acquisition of more undue wealth could have been taxed but wasn't, and also excessive corporate profits (e.g. the energy companies) weren't touched.

I tend to think that on the whole most voters care less about the demographics of the party than they do about what they think the party will do for them. What about all the 'working classes' who have continually voted tory?

All polititians favour their own voters, Reeves took money off Pensioners, Private School parents, Business owners and Farmers, all less likely to vote Labour.

There are many ways that high earners could be taxed other than income tax.

I didnt realize that the Labour vote had changed so much