When Was the Labour Party Formed?

The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom that leans towards the left in its policies. As of 2010, the Party is the second largest party in the House of Commons. It has 258 seats in the House of Commons. The Labour Party also has 13 members in the European Parliament.

In the late nineteenth century, individuals in the United Kingdom felt that a new party was necessary. The urban proletariat needed representation, and none of the current parties in England were able to adequately represent him or her. The working class of the population felt that they needed a party to represent their interests in trade unions, and business regulations.

A number of parties in the United Kingdom attempted to meet these demands, and represent this class of individuals. The Liberal Party supported candidates that supported trade unions. Other parties, such as the Independent Labour Party, the Social Democratic Federation, and the Scottish Labour Party attempted similar tactics. In the 1895 election, these parties ran against each other. The Independent Labour Party supported twenty-eight candidates, and won a little over 44,000 votes.

Conference to Unite Parties

In 1899, Thomas Steels suggested that the Trade Union Congress request a conference to unite several different parties in support of candidates for Parliament. The conference occurred on February 26th and February 27th of 1900. It was held at the Memorial Hall on Farringdon Street.

The conference was successful, and 129 delegates agreed to found a Labour group for Parliament that supported the needs and requests of the working class of the United Kingdom. This 1900 conference can be seen as the official formation of the Labour Party. The conference named this party the Labour Representation Committee.

Early Years of the Labour Representation Committee

When the Labour Representation Committee was first formed, there was no individual leader of the Committee. However, the committee did have a secretary. The first secretary was Ramsay MacDonald. As a secretary, MacDonald attempted to reconcile the different interests among the group.

In the 1906 election, the Labour Representation Committee experienced some success. Since votes weren’t split between various labor parties, the Committee was able to successfully get individuals into the Parliament. In the 1906 election, the Labour Representation Committee won 29 seats in Parliament.

After the election, the party decided to change its name to something more succinct. On February 15, 1906, the party formally changed the name from the Labour Representation Committee to the Labour Party. The first leader of the Labour Party was Keir Hardie. The official name for this position in the Labour Party was the “Chairman of the Parliamentary Labour Party.”

Growth of the Labour Party

The Labour Party continued to find more and more success in upcoming elections. In 1910, the Party successfully placed 42 candidates into the House of Commons. With more representatives in Congress, this meant that the Labour Party could oppose legislation that was hurtful to the working class and to trade unions.

The first major rift in the Labour Party occurred in 1915 at the beginning of World War One. The Labour Party was split in the decision to support the war, or to oppose the war. Ramsay MacDonald in the Labour Party was extremely anti-war and was effectively the leader of the individuals who opposed the war. He resigned from his role as the leader of the party to show his disapproval of the war.

Arthur Henderson took over as leader. Under Henderson, the Party officially supported the war. Luckily the support for World War One did not divide the party significantly, and the Labour Party continued to thrive.