Chapter 12-Political parties

Question 1

What are the roles of political parties?

Answer 1

Providing representation 
Encouraging political engagement and facilitating political participation
Engaging in political recruitment 
Formulating policy
Providing stable government

Question 2

How does political party perform representation role?

Answer 2

Traditionally said to represent the views of their members 
However partisan and class realignment accompanied by the rise of centrist ‘catch all’ parties can be said to have undermined this primary role

Question 3

How does political parties perform their engagement and participation?

Answer 3

Parties perform an education function that by its very nature encourages political engagement

Question 4

How do political parties perform their political recruitment role?

Answer 4

Parties assess the qualities of those seeking election to public office casting aside those who are for whatever reason considered unsirabke

Question 5

How do political parties perform their policy formulation role?

Answer 5

Parties discussed and develop policy proposals before presenting them to voters in a single coherent programme (their manifesto)

Question 6

How do political parties perform their stable government role?

Answer 6

Without parties argued the House of Commins would simply be a gathering of individuals

Question 7

What types of political parties are there?

Answer 7

Mainstream parties

Minority or niche parties - nationalist parties or single issue parties

Question 8

What types of political parties are there?

Answer 8

Mainstream parties

Minority or niche parties - nationalist parties or single issue parties

Question 9

What is the dominant party system?

Answer 9

Where a number of parties exist but only one holds government power

Question 10

What is a multiparty system

Answer 10

Where many parties compete for power and the government consists of a series of coalitions formed by different combinations of parties

Question 11

What is a single party system

Answer 11

Where one party dominates, band other parties and exercise total control over candidacy at elections

Question 12

What is a two party system?

Answer 12

Where two fairly equally matched parties compete for power at elections and other have little realistic chance of breaking their duopoly

Question 13

What is a political spectrum?

Answer 13

A device by which different political stand points can be mapped across one axis or more as a way of demonstrating their ideological position in relation to one another

Question 14

What is conservatism?

Answer 14

A loose ideology favouring a pragmatic approach to dealing with problems, while seeking to preserve the status quo

Question 15

What are the proponents of this form of conservatism?

Answer 15

• slow gradual change- ‘evolution’ not ‘revolution’
• a Keynesian mixed economy
• support for a universal welfare state
• internationalism and increasing European integration

Question 16

What policies did Thatcherism offer in its radical agenda?

Answer 16

• deregulation in the field of business
• privatisation of publicly owned industries
• statutory limits on the power of trade unions
• a smaller state and more limited state intervention
• greater emphasis on national sovereignty
• more limited state welfare provision

Question 17

What three processes are considered when assessing how internally democratic a party is?

Answer 17

• The way in which leaders is chosen
• the ways in which candidates for parliamentary election are selected
• the way party policy is formulated

Question 18

How is the leader of the conservative party chosen?

Answer 18

Conservative MPs vote in a series of ballots designed to narrow the field of leadership to two
-party members vote on a one member one vote basis to decide which of these two members becomes party leader

Question 19

How is the leader of the labour party chosen?

Answer 19

• candidates must secure the nomination of 15% of the parliamentary labour party to qualify for the ballot
• party members and registered support vote on a one member one vote basis under alternative vote system

Question 20

How is the leader of the liberal democrats chosen?

Answer 20

• candidates must secure the nomination of 20 local parties or 200 party members to qualify for a ballot
• party members vote on a one member one vote under the alternative vote system

Question 21

What is the three-stage process all three parties have normally employed to select parliamentary candidates?

Answer 21

• first hopefuls must get their names on to a centrally vetted, approved list of candidates
• the local party draws up a shortlist from those approved candidates
• constituency party members vote for their preferred candidates

Question 22

what did the political parties, elections and referendum act 2000 do?

Answer 22

imposed an overall limit on party spending in general election campaigns (£30,000 per constituency)
required parties to declare all donations over £5,000 to the electoral commission

Question 23

What did the Political parties and election act do 2009?

Answer 23

Imposed tighter regulations on spending by candidates in the run-up to an election
allowing the electoral commission to investigate cases and impose fines, restricting donations from non-uk residents