More Southern Discomfort

In 1992, the Fabian Society published "Southern Discomfort", revealing the attitudes of key swing voters in the South of England whose support Labour must gain if it is to win again.

This pamphlet is based on new research carried out for the Fabian Society by Opinion Leader Research, which returns to the same five marginal constituencies and the same types of "floating voters" to see what, if any, progress Labour has made in the last year.

This year's research probes in detail these voters' attitudes to taxes, benefits, public expenditure and the economy.

The pamphlet reveals that there is a mood of great insecurity.

But although the Tories are no longer trusted, Labour is unable to benefit, being tarred just as much as the Conservatives by a new disdain for politicians as a "race apart".

For the first time, there is now active hostility to politicians as a class. Radice and Pollard conclude that Labour must: consider with an open mind policies such as hypothecated taxes that will once more show that Labour believes in giving individuals control over their own lives; prove that it is no longer a trade-union-dominated party by giving individual members more say; demonstrate that it understands the modern world by rewriting Clause IV.