Journalists struggling to understand the inner workings of Labour politics during party conferences would have found a mentor in Lewis Minkin, who had a profound knowledge of the complex decision-making within each major trade union and its influence on the casting of its bloc vote.
Lewis Minkin, who has died aged 84, was able to comprehend and present the hidden world of socialist politics in all its complex ambiguity. His assessments were neither stereotypical nor simplistic. In a tribute following his death, doctoral student at the London School of Economics, Neil Warner, tweeted that Minkin was probably – “the deepest and most serious analyst of the internal politics of the British Labour movement”.
This, to a great extent, encapsulates Minkin’s long and dedicated following of Labour politics, not least his close involvement with the trade unions. From his regular attendances at annual party conferences he developed an understanding of the scheming that went on between both party managers and critics of the leadership.
Lewis Minkin was born in Leeds to parents in the tailoring trade. His father, Bob (Barnet) Minkin’s family had migrated from Russia in 1890 to escape the pogroms, while the family of his mother, Annie (Esther Anne) had moved to Yorkshire from Staffordshire to work in the mines. The working-class background of both parents was a considerable influence on Minkin himself.
At primary school, he experienced a great deal of antisemitism but then won a scholarship to Roundhay School where there were very few working-class pupils. He left at the age of 15, with no qualifications and took various clerical jobs. His military service in Cyprus took place during the EOKA campaign, a drive to end British rule by a Greek Cypriot nationalist paramilitary organisation.
From his mother he had inherited a fine voice and had an ambition to be a comedian within the Northern working men’s club circuit. He managed to evoke Jewish traditions of humour with perfect timing and including smatterings of Yiddish. He was also committed to rugby league, to which he was introduced by his father.
In 1963, during his time as a mature student at Leeds University, Minkin made a favourable impression on the historian Peter Nettl, who was best known for his biography of Rosa Luxemburg, the Polish-German Marxist philosopher, economist and revolutionary socialist.
He also contributed significantly to Nettl’s next book, The Soviet Achievement. He graduated with a first-class degree in politics and was later awarded a doctorate at the University of York. He worked for 20 years in the department of government at Manchester University and in later years became honorary professor at Leeds University.
Minkin’s first book, The Labour Party Conference (1978), was a ground-breaking analysis of the internal workings of the party. His next, The Contentious Alliance (1991), was based on his passionate support for the link between the party and the trade unions and discussed the complexities of the relationship from a more optimistic viewpoint.
In 2014, The Blair Supremacy analysed the changes in party management under New Labour, something he, himself, could not endorse, despite recognising the persuasive electoral reasons that made it appealing to many. Altogether, the three volumes of over 2,000 pages provide a most compelling and pragmatic study of power within a British political party.
His favourite book, Exits and Entrances, in which he examined his own complex methods of working, expressed his commitment to a more egalitarian and democratic society, while laying equal emphasis on his concern for practicality.
He was married twice, first to Lillie Pews, with whom he had a son, Daniel. The marriage ended in divorce and in 1988 he married Liz St David Smith. He is survived by Daniel, Liz, her son Tom, and four grandchildren.
EMMA KLEIN
Lewis Minkin: born 25 June, 1936. Died 9 March, 2021
