Fabian Society

The Fabian Society is a British socialist intellectual movement, whose purpose is to advance the socialist cause by reformist, rather than revolutionary, means. It is best known for its initial ground-breaking work beginning in the late 19th century and then up to World War I. The society laid many of the foundations of the Labour Party during this period; subsequently it affected the policies of newly independent British colonies, especially India; and is still in existence today. Similar societies exist in Australia (the Australian Fabian Society), Canada (the Douglas-Coldwell Foundation, and in past the League for Social Reconstruction), and New Zealand.

History

The society was founded on January 4, 1884 in London as an offshoot of a society founded in 1883 called The Fellowship of the New Life. Fellowship members included poets Edward Carpenter and John Davidson, sexologist Havelock Ellis, and future Fabian secretary, Edward R. Pease. They wanted to transform society by setting an example of clean simplified living for others to follow. But when some members also wanted to become politically involved to aid society's transformation, it was decided that a separate society, The Fabian Society, also be set up. All members were free to attend both societies. The Fellowship of the New Life disbanded sometime in the early 1890s but the Fabian Society grew to become the pre-eminent intellectual society in the United Kingdom in the Edwardian era.

Immediately upon its inception it began attracting many intellectuals drawn to its socialist cause, including Bernard Shaw, H. G. Wells, Sidney and Beatrice Webb, Annie Besant, Graham Wallas, Hubert Bland, Edith Nesbit, Sydney Olivier and Emmeline Pankhurst. Even Bertrand Russell later became a member. The two members John Maynard Keynes and Harry Dexter White were delegates at 1944's United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference.

At the core of the Fabian Society were the Webbs - Sidney Webb and his wife, Beatrice Potter Webb (married 1892). Together, they wrote numerous studies of industrial Britain, alternative economics applied to capital as well as land. Their later admiration of Soviet Russia stemmed partly from Stalin's "efficiency" at acquiring this rent.

The group, which favoured gradual rather than revolutionary change, was named — at the suggestion of Frank Podmore — in honour of the Roman general Quintus Fabius Maximus (nicknamed "Cunctator", meaning "the Delayer"). He advocated tactics involving harassment and attrition rather than head-on battles against the Carthaginian army under the renowned general Hannibal Barca.

Fabian socialists were critical of free trade and embraced protectionism in the interests of protecting the realm from foreign competition.

The Fabians also favored the nationalization of land, believing that rents collected by landowners were unearned, an idea which drew heavily from the work of American economist Henry George.

Many Fabians participated in the formation of the Labour Party in 1900, and the group's constitution, written by Shaw, borrowed heavily from the founding documents of the Fabian Society. At the Labour Party Foundation Conference in 1900, the Fabian Society claimed 861 members and sent one delegate.

In the period between the two World Wars, the "Second Generation" Fabians, including the writers R. H. Tawney, G. D. H. Cole and Harold Laski, continued to be a major influence on social-democratic thought.

It was at this time that many of the future leaders of the Third World were exposed to Fabian thought; most notably, India's Jawaharlal Nehru, who subsequently framed economic policy for one-fifth of humanity on Fabian social-democratic lines. It is a little known fact that the founder of Pakistan, Barrister Mahomed Ali Jinnah, later despised by some British liberals who hold him largely responsible for the Partition of India, was an avid member of the Fabian Society in the early 1930s. Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Singapore, stated in his memoirs that his initial political philosophy was strongly influenced by the Fabian Society. However, he later altered his views, believing the Fabian ideal of socialism to be too impractical.

Legacy

Through the course of the 20th century the group has always been influential in Labour Party circles, with members including Ramsay MacDonald, Clement Attlee, Anthony Crosland, Richard Crossman, Tony Benn, Harold Wilson and more recently Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The late Ben Pimlott served as its Chairman in the 1990s. (A Pimlott Prize for Political Writing was organised in his memory by the Fabian Society and The Guardian in 2005, and continues annually). The Society is affiliated to the Party as a Socialist Society. In recent years the Young Fabian group, founded in 1960, has become an important networking and discussion organisation for younger (under 31) Labour Party activists and played a role in the 1994 election of Tony Blair as Labour Leader. Following a period of inactivity, the Scottish Young Fabians were reformed in 2005.

The society's 2004 annual report showed that there were 5,810 individual members (down 70 from the previous year), of whom 1,010 were Young Fabians, and 294 institutional subscribers, of which 31 were Constituency Labour Parties, co-operative societies, or trade unions, 190 were libraries, 58 corporate, and 15 other—making 6,104 members in total. The society's net assets were £86,057, its total income £486,456, and its total expenditure £475,425. There was an overall surplus for the year of £1,031.

The latest edition of the Dictionary of National Biography (a reference work listing details of famous or significant Britons throughout history) includes 174 Fabians.

Four Fabians, Beatrice and Sidney Webb, Graham Wallas, and Bernard Shaw, decided to found the London School of Economics at a breakfast party on 4 August 1894.

Current and recent activities

The Fabian Society's publications and activities continue to provide an influential forum for thinking and debate on the centre-left. Recent Fabian projects on inequality and child poverty and on Britishness have been seen by commentators as influencing the political and policy agenda of Gordon Brown, although the Society stresses its pluralist and non-factional approach.

The Fabian Society's recent work has focused strongly on the issue of Equality and 'Life Chances'. The Fabian Commission on Child Poverty and Life Chances reported in March 2006, having published its interim report in March 2005. The Commission, chaired by Lord Victor Adebowale, made recommendations to influence the government's pledge to eradicate child poverty in the UK by 2020, and halve it by 2010. Several of the recommendations - including a new top rate of income tax - are considerably more radical than the current policies of the Labour government. The report was launched by Ed Balls and David Miliband, adding to reports that its analysis was influential within government. The Commission's interim report in March 2005 focused on public attitudes towards inequality, reporting Fabian Society and MORI deliberative workshops on public attitudes. In addition to its policy recommendations, the Fabian Commission stressed the need for a public campaign to 'make poverty history at home' by drawing on the lessons of the Make Poverty History campaign. The Equality special issue of the Fabian Review published to accompany the report in April 2006 included a proposal to rewrite Clause IV of the party's constitution again, to put equality at the heart of Labour thinking.

The Fabian Society holds an annual New Year Conference each year in January or Februrary. The January 2006 event on The Future of Britishness: Who do we want to be? was led by Gordon Brown, whose speech on the future of Britishness created widespread media and public debate. The Fabians have held a series of events and publications on Britishness, putting forward a progressive idea of Britishness able to combine the values of equality and integration. The December 2005 Fabian Review, previewing the conference, was a Britishness special issue. Contributors included John Denham MP, Gordon Marsden MP on the need to change history teaching in school, Fabian General Secretary Sunder Katwala, and Deborah Mattinson of Opinion Leader Research on public attitudes to Britishness.

Recent Fabian pamphlets have included 'Raising Lazarus: the future of organised Labour' on union renewal by David Coats (December 2005), former head of research at TUC and now at the Work Foundation. The pamphlet has generated controversy within some trade unions through its challenging critique of the potential of a 'fighting back' strategy to recruit members and reverse decline.

Current Organisational Structure

Unlike most other think tanks the Fabian Society is a membership organisation. It is a socialist society affiliated to the British Labour Party.

Most members are full members of the society, and have voting rights. A full member is an individual who is either a member of, or eligible to be a member of the Labour Party.

A smaller number are Associate Members, these are those individual who do not wish to have Full membership or are ineligable for full membership of Society. They have no voting rights, but otherwise have the other membership rights. Associate Members of the society tend to be those who have been expelled from the Labour Party, or who are members of other political parties. Many associate members are members of the Liberal Democrats, inherited from the defunct Social Democratic Party (UK). Until recently members living in Northern Ireland were Associate Members due to their ineligability to join the Labour Party.

There are local Societies in many parts of Britain which are affiliated to the UK Fabian Society. Many of these Local Societies are affiliated to one or more Constituency Labour Parties. Individuals may join either the National UK Society, a Local Society, or both.

Like other membership organisations it is governed by an AGM and a National Executive Committee. The National Executive Committee is elected annually by postal ballot.

Twelve places are contested by individuals who nominate themselves for election, two of these places must be filled by Young Fabians. In addition individuals may nominate themselves for post of the Treasurer. Four places, (Local Societies Representatives) are contested by individuals nominated by their own local society, one of these places must be filled by a Young Fabian. All full members of both the local and national societies can vote in these elections.

In addition one Convenor each for Wales and Scotland are elected by full members in each Country.

The Young Fabian Executive Committee elects one member, (by convention the Chair of the Young Fabians).

The paid staff of the Society also elect one member.

There are a small number of non-elected members. A small number are co-opted annually and two Vice Presidents are appointed by the Executive Committee.

The Chair - currently Seema Malhotra - is elected annually by the National Executive Committee ^*

The Society staff are based in Dartmouth Street in Westminster and headed by the General Secretary, Sunder Katwala. The staff number around a dozen and include Research Director Tim Horton, Editorial Director Tom Hampson, Events Director Jessica Studdert, Events Managers Jamie Hodge and Lorriann Robinson, Membership and Marketing Assistant Hannah Jameson, Office Manager Claire Willgress, Finance Officer Margaret McGillen, and Membership Secretary Giles Wright.

Young Fabians

Members aged under 31 Years of age are also members of the Young Fabians.

The Scottish Young Fabians are the Scottish wing of the Fabian Society under-31s. The group reformed in 2005 and is planning a series of events in 2006 ahead of the Scottish parliamentary and local elections in 2007.

Recommendations for reform of the British monarchy

The following are some recommended reforms of the British monarchy that the Society has devised. The Fabian Commission on the future of the Monarchy reported in 2003, making a series of recommendations for reform, arguing that 'The monarchy needs to continue its long process of historical evolution if it is to ensure its relevance in the new Britain it serves'. The following were among the constitutional provisions recommended:

Succession

The line of succession should in the future pass to the eldest child, regardless of gender.
The bar on Catholics – both to succession and to marriage – in the Act of Settlement of 1701 should be repealed, along with the requirement for the monarch to defend the Anglican faith. There should be no requirement for the British head of state to hold any particular form of religious faith, or any faith at all.
The Royal Marriages Act of 1772, which forbids members of the royal family in line of succession from marrying without the consent of the monarch, should be repealed.
Changes to the Accession Oath should be made to allow for the voluntary retirement of the monarch if he or she should so wish.

Powers

Royal assent to legislation should no longer include the possibility of discretionary action on the part of the head of state. If not already given, the monarch’s assent should be deemed to have been given after seven days.
All of the prerogative powers currently exercised by the executive should be put on a statutory basis, with Parliament deciding, in passing the legislation, how those powers should be distributed and exercised. To reflect this, the term ‘royal prerogative powers’ should be abolished and replaced by the terms ‘parliamentary’ and ‘executive’ powers, depending on where they come to be located.
The State Opening of Parliament should take place only at the start of a new Parliament, not annually. The Queen’s Speech should be an address by the head of state relevant to the occasion of the opening of a new democratic Parliament, with the legislative programme of the government presented by the Prime Minister at a separate parliamentary session and debated normally.
The convention of the Humble Address, which requires Parliament to ask the monarch’s permission before it can debate issues relating directly to him or her, should be removed, with a formal assertion of the right of Parliament to debate any issue.

Famous Fabians

Fabians in parliament today

Since Labour's 1997 election victory there have been about 200 Labour MPs who are members of the Fabian society. Prominent Fabians in parliament include:

Tony Blair
David Blunkett
Gordon Brown
Clare Short
Jack Straw
Margaret Beckett
David Miliband
Ed Balls (current Fabian Executive member)
John Denham (current Fabian Executive member)
Douglas Alexander (current Fabian Executive member)
Charles Clarke
Tessa Jowell
John Reid
Ruth Kelly
Hazel Blears
Patricia Hewitt
John Hutton
Hilary Benn
Ed Miliband
Harriet Harman
Angela Eagle

Texts which are related to the Fabian Society

Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and Major Barbara
P.L. Travers's Mary Poppins

Quotations relating to the Fabian Society

"What do we want?" "Gradual change!" "When do we want it?" "In due course!" (Kate Fox, Watching the English 2004) - Parody of Fabian advocacy of slow reform over revolutionary tactics - although this satirical slogan has been used prior to 2004, and has been related to the reformist Left in general.

External links

Official website
Brief overview and key members
The History of the Fabian Society by Edward R. Pease, its secretary for 25 years; from Project Gutenberg
Young Fabians
Cambridge Students' Fabian Society

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