Democratic Labour Party (UK, 1972)

Following Taverne's dispute with his CLP, he resigned from Labour on 6 October 1972, forming the Lincoln Democratic Labour Association, which his supporters in the CLP joined. His initial intention was to eventually rejoin the Labour Party, but some others{{who|date=May 2024}} attempted to persuade him to try to establish a new party of the political centre.{{cn|date=May 2024}}

Taverne resigned from parliament at the same time that he resigned from the Labour Party in order to force the issue into the open and establish a credible third party between Labour and the Conservatives.{{Cite news |last=Times |first=Richard Eder Special to The New York |date=1973-02-24 |title=A Third Candidate Makes English By-Election Special |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/02/24/archives/a-third-candidate-makes-english-byelection-special-his-solution-for.html |access-date=2025-03-03 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} He won the ensuing Lincoln by-election, held in March 1973.{{Cite web |date=2023-03-01 |title='Return Taverne': 50 years on from the Lincoln by-election |url=https://www.qmul.ac.uk/mei/news-and-opinion/items/return-taverne-50-years-on-from-the-lincoln-by-election.html |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=www.qmul.ac.uk |language=en}}

His victory was aided by the controversial adoption of Jonathan Guinness by the Conservatives, and by the lack of a Liberal Party candidate, for the Liberal Party decided to support Taverne's candidacy.{{cn|date=May 2024}} Taverne was also covertly aided by some figures on the moderate flank of the Labour party, though most prominent moderates, including those who would later go on to form the Social Democratic Party, thought he was going too far.{{Cite news |date=2002-09-18 |title=The first Social Democrat? |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/2236025.stm |access-date=2025-03-03 |language=en-GB}}{{Cite web |last=Maguire |first=Patrick |date=2019-02-18 |title=Dick Taverne: "Some of the Labour Party people have absolutely nowhere to go" |url=https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2019/02/dick-taverne-some-of-the-labour-party-people-have-absolutely-nowhere-to-go |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=New Statesman |language=en-US}} Taverne did try to convince Roy Jenkins to join him in defecting, but was unsuccessful;{{Cite web |last=Adonis |first=Andrew |date=2019-02-26 |title=What if Roy Jenkins had become Prime Minister? Mr Speaker's Lecture 25th Feb 2019 |url=https://www.andrewadonis.org/single-post/2019/02/26/what-if-roy-jenkins-had-become-prime-minister-speakers-house-lecture-25th-feb-2019 |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=andrewadonis |language=en}} however, Jenkins later in 1979 said not supporting Taverne in 1973 was a 'big mistake'.Roy Jenkins, European Diary, 1977–1981 (London: Collins, 1989), p. 387.

Shortly after his by-election victory, Taverne formed the Campaign for Social Democracy as a national body. He was re-elected in the February 1974 general election, and continued to serve until the October 1974 general election when he was defeated, Harold Wilson having demanded the Labour Party "throw the kitchen sink" at Lincoln in its efforts to displace him. Taverne did not stand in the seat again, but Democratic Labour continued to organise politically, to the extent that Democratic Labour controlled Lincoln City Council from 1973 until 1979 and across England during the 1973 local elections Democratic Labour candidates achieved some success.How the Main Counties voted: "All over the country freelance candidates appeared wearing the Democratic Labour ticket... and several did well",

The Economist, 21 April 1973

At the 1979 general election, Democratic Labour contested two constituencies: Lincoln, and Brigg and Scunthorpe. Taverne advised against nominating any candidates, but campaigned for them anyway. Both were unsuccessful in their attempts to gain seats in the House of Commons, losing their deposits (at that time 12.5% of the vote was required in order to retain deposits; this was reduced to 5% after the 1983 general election). However, both seats were narrowly gained from the incumbent Labour MPs by the Conservative Party's candidates, with the Conservative majority over Labour being less than the Democratic Labour vote.{{cite book |title=The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1979 |date=1979 |publisher=Times Books Ltd |location=London |isbn=0-7230-0225-8 |pages=64 & 157}} In an analysis of the voting in the election, Ivor Crewe, Director of the British Election Study, stated that the Democratic Labour candidates "splintered enough of the Labour vote ... to allow the Conservatives to gain both seats".{{cite book |author1=Ivor Crewe |author1-link=Ivor Crewe |title=The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1979 |date=1979 |publisher=Times Books Ltd |location=London |isbn=0-7230-0225-8 |page=252 |chapter=The Voting Surveyed}}

In the 1973 City of Lincoln council election, Democratic Labour got 20 seats, a majority.{{cite web|url=http://www.electionscentre.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Lincoln-1973-2012.pdf|title=City of Lincoln Council Election Results 1973-2012|publisher=Elections Centre|access-date=29 October 2019}} The party held power until the 1979 election, and it lost its last councillor in 1980.{{Cite web |date=2019-03-09 |title=The Independent Group needs a national base in order to survive – Yorkshire Post letters |url=https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/opinion/columnists/the-independent-group-needs-a-national-base-in-order-to-survive-yorkshire-post-letters-84643 |access-date=2025-03-04 |website=Yorkshire Post |language=en}}

In 1980, Democratic Labour merged with the Social Democratic Alliance."Boost for Labour right", The Guardian, 15 February 1980 A social club that the groups had established ran until 1987.

In many ways, Democratic Labour can be seen as a forerunner of the Social Democratic Party, which broke away from Labour in the early 1980s, putting forward many of the same viewpoints as Taverne. He twice stood as a SDP candidate but failed to be elected.{{cn|date=May 2024}}

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Category:Defunct social democratic parties in the United Kingdom

Category:Defunct political parties in England

Category:Political parties established in 1972

Category:1972 establishments in the United Kingdom

Category:Political parties disestablished in 1980

Category:1980 disestablishments in the United Kingdom

Category:Labour Party (UK) breakaway groups

Category:Politics of Lincoln, England

Category:Labour parties in the United Kingdom