C.P. Snow wrote that political memory lasts about a fortnight. Wrong. Some phrases live on in political life. Anthony Crosland’s special adviser from 1972 to 1977, David Lipsey, is the self-proclaimed originator of three: ‘the party’s over’ (1975), ‘the winter of discontent’ (1978–79), and ‘New Labour’ (1992).

In his autobiography, In the Corridors of Power, David wrote about an idea for a book he had in the 1980s: ‘I should perhaps at some point have settled down to write a new Future of Socialism. But I had to earn a living and, besides, I had no confidence that I was up to it.’

I know how he felt.

Which is why I am grateful to Roger Berry, Richard Corbett, John Denham, Arnie Graf, Charles Grant, Richard Grayson, Geoff Hodgson, Madeleine Jennings, Andre Karihaloo, Fiona Millar, Greg Power, Nick Tott, Marcus Roberts, Dorothy Smith, Jack Stanley, David Taylor, Derek Vaughan and Matt Ward for their input and assistance; and to Elizabeth Haywood for her incisive comments, corrections and unswerving love. My thanks, too, to Alison Shaw and Sonny Leon for so enthusiastically publishing the book.

I am grateful also to my South Wales Neath constituents who have given me such steadfast loyalty over a quarter of a century – especially my close friend and first agent, Howard Davies, and his successors, Lyn Harper and Cari Morgans. Part of the thinking behind this book has sprung from my life and grassroots involvement in the towns and valley villages of the Neath constituency.

But this book could not have been written without my good friend Phil Wyatt, who has a rare ability: he is an economist who can write readable prose. Since retiring as Research Director at the GMB Union, for some years now he has fed me drafts for articles and speeches – with the same self-effacing modesty he has insisted upon for this book. I am both fortunate and very grateful to him, and so I decided to honour his father in the following way:

On 20 December 1940 the London Gazette listed some 3,600 members of Britain’s armed services whose names had been ‘brought to notice in recognition of distinguished services in connection with operations in the field, March–June 1940’. Heading the list was Vice Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay who had led Operation Dynamo, the rescue of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk.