ABSTRACT
Just as the disappointments of the 1964-70 Wilson governments had led to a left-wing shift in the early 1970s, experience of the collapse of the WilsonCallaghan administration under the pressure of public spending cuts and pay restraint left a bitter taste in the mouths of many Labour supporters. Yet, whereas left activists in the earlier period had turned their attention to questions of industrial democracy and participation in growing social and political struggles, they now turned towards constitutional battles to change internal party procedures to allow for more grass-roots involvement and democracy at all levels of the party. Activists set their targets on achieving compulsory reselection of MPs, a more democratic way of selecting the party leader and forcing the leadership to include conference policies in the party manifesto.
