It focuses on the relationship between the Liberal and then Liberal Democrats and the Labour parties, and seeks to provide an understanding of the factors which have created the potential for the realignment of the centre left of the political spectrum and the forces which have historically impeded its attainment.

Introduction The Formation and Development of the Liberal and Labour Parties The Liberal Party, Progressive Politics and Liberal-Labour Relationships, 1906-1929 Liberal-Labour Party Relationships, 1929-1939 Labour's Pursuit of the Liberal Vote, 1945-1959 Liberal and Labour Relationships 1959-1966: Revisionism and the Realignment of the Left The Failure to Secure Realignment Liberal Politics 1967-1979 The Emergence of the Social Democratic Party The Relationship Between the Liberal and Social Democratic Parties, 1981-1988 and the Formative Years of the Liberal Democrats Modernisation and Renewal in the Labour Party and the Potential for Labour-Liberal Democrat Cooperation in the 1990s Conclusion: Liberal Democrat - Labour Cooperation After 1997 Bibliography Index