James Purnell MP, Director, the Open Left Project at Demos
David Held, Graham Wallas Professor of Political Science, the London School of Economics

The credit crunch was followed by a consensus on the centre-Left that
the world was entering a "progressive moment", and that the financial
crisis represented a failure of the ideas  of the New Right.  Yet, in
Europe at least, social democracy has struggled to articulate what the
progressive response to the crisis, and has struggled electorally as a
consequence. To resolve this paradox, the Left needs to recognise
that the financial crisis challenges its received ideology too, and
that if it wants to survive electorally, it will need to renew itself
intellectually.  

The lecture will argue that such a renewal can come
from re-examining Labour's traditions, and from having the courage to
be bolder about goals and methods.

The lecture is open to the public and free to attend. Seats will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information please contact the LSE Conference and Event Office on 0207 852 3623.