IN THE dispiriting aftermath of the election, many may feel that there is a tragic irony in the subtitle to this collection of essays on the life and work of Labour Party founder Keir Hardie.

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In the introduction, MP Richard Burgon observes that it is only in recent years that the significance of Hardie’s politics have re-emerged on the left. Their relevance will become even more important in the upcoming struggle for the future of the party.

Described in the Times obituary as probably the most abused politician of his time, like Corbyn Hardie also faced not only the unremitting hostility of the Establishment but also the lack of support of fellow MPs, who found him an embarrassment in supporting women’s suffrage and opposing the first world war.

In the contributions covering Hardie’s youth, political development, journalism and commitment to internationalism — along with specific essays on his involvement with women’s equality, trade unionism, Ireland and imperialism — his ideas are shown to be as relevant today if not more so, as deregulation, privatisation and international corporate greed have temporarily won the moment.

For many, history began yesterday and apart from the media’s selected few, major figures whose message from the past speaks to the present, are airbrushed out.

As some Labour parliamentarians and others on the right of the party launch their attempts to move the party towards the “centre,” this book is thus a timely reminder of Keir Hardy’s achievements in creating a Labour Party that must continue to represent the true interests of the working class.

Keir Hardie and the 21st-century Socialist Revival, edited by Pauline Bryan, is published by Luath Press, £9.99.