Has the Left Been Right or Wrong? [1956]

MCKENZIE: IN THIS edition of London Forum, Bertrand Russell and Lord Hailsham are joined by Kingsley Martin, journalist and broadcaster, who has occupied the editorial chair of the weekly The New Statesman and Nation for a quarter of a century. Kingsley Martin has therefore some influence on Left-wing thought in Britain and he is admirably qualified to take part in this particular discussion. We propose to look at the question: Is there an inexorable movement toward the Left in democratic politics; is this bound to be so as the franchise is extended wider and wider, as income tax, death duties, and, in general, 10 the workings of the Welfare State, make for greater equality within the community? But before we start perhaps we might look at the question: What do we mean when we use this brief but controversial word, “Left”?