It's well to remember, as the British Labour Party refights the ideological battles of its past – "Bennism rebooted" v "Blairism rebooted", as the protagonists would have it – that the idea of extending the vote in leadership contests beyond constituency officials and MPs to all members was very much a Blair project. Ordinary members were less likely, it was argued, to share the "extreme" views of activists, and were more likely to resemble the electorate to which the party wanted to appeal. Moderation and Blairism would thrive . . .
And they did, for a while. Now, however, the Blairites are being hoist on their own petard as left-winger Jeremy Corbyn hoovers up support from the thousands who joined the party or signed up as supporters following its general election defeat. Some of them, admittedly, may be Telegraph readers and Trotskyists whose interest in Corbyn's victory have more to do with seeing Labour defeated. But most are undoubtedly ordinary voters appalled at the prospect of years of untrammelled Tory rule, and for whom Labour stands for something different.
As it happens, their attitudes actually reflect wider public support for what are seen by the Tories and the commentariat as rather radical ideas – according to polling company YouGov three “far left” policies enjoy similar levels of majorities in the public, all with net support above +40 points: requiring top companies to have employee representatives on their boards, a £10 minimum wage, and the nationalisation of railways and other utilities.
That reality jars with the predominant media narrative that says Labour lost because it was too left wing and out of touch with Middle England. Corbyn’s candidacy has touched a nerve and its message, the “vision thing”, will be ignored at the party’s peril. What Labour must learn is that the preoccupations of its right-wing leaders with overcoming voter perceptions of its previous financial irresponsibility and incompetence, are not, as they appear to believe, incompatible with the more radical vision for Britain.