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Wreckers or Builders? A History of Labour Members of the European Parliament 1979-99
by Anita Pollack
Published October 2009. Place orders with Turpin Distribution Services (+44 (0) 1767 604 951) or custserv@turpin-distribution.com for free delivery to anywhere in Europe. Book costs 27 euro (£20 in UK) when ordered from Turpin. Quote ISBN 978-0-9556202-9-4
Brussels: Bookshops in European Parliament (Spinelli) and European Commission (Berlaymont), Librairie 1992 (Rue Froissart, by Rondpoint Schuman)
From the Foreword by NEIL KINNOCK:
"At last we have a history of Labour MEPs in the first twenty years of the directly elected Parliament... a well-researched record – warts and all – of the period when Labour in the European Parliament grew from 17 to 62 Members and Labour’s policy on the EU changed from withdrawal to committed support for membership and reforms...
From the leadership of Barbara Castle to the Labour Government of Tony Blair, fascinating stories emerge of a Labour group which mixed members who were hell-bent on fundamentalist anti-Europeanism with mainstream European social democrats; of a long Labour march from the devastating defeat of 1979, through the advances of the 80s and early 90s, to the landslide victory of 1997; and of a growing Labour contribution to the joint efforts of the Socialist group to promote progressive policies..."
The author: Anita Pollack was witness to and participant in the events she describes - she was political assistant to Barbara Castle, the leader of the Labour Group, from 1980 and then was an elected MEP herself from 1989-99. She has the unusual distinction of being the only Australian national ever to have been an MEP.
The book comprises four main parts providing a chronological account of each of the parliaments in this twenty-year period. Other features include a "where are they now?" section, a selection of photographs including every Labour MEP who sat in this period, a bibliography and a comprehensive index. Extent 340 pages + xx
"Pollack paints a rich and detailed portrait... an authoritative reference work covering an important period in the Labour Party's history." Journal of Legislative Studies
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