Dominant Ideas

Question 1

A dominant idea is…

Answer 1

One which governs all actions are thoughts of an individual

Question 2

One of the party’s mentioned is the SNP and their dominant ideas of…

Answer 2

Independence
Socially progressive
And anti-Brexit

Question 3

The other party focused on is the Conservatives and their dominant ideas of…

Answer 3

Pro-union
Individualist
And pro-Brexit

Question 4

This essay argues…

Answer 4

Whether these parties’ dominant ideas had a positive impact on there electoral performance to a certain extent.

Question 5

Independence means…

Answer 5

This means the SNO want Scotland to have full power and control over its destiny

Question 6

Independence example

Answer 6

In 2014, 45% voted for independence and in the 2015 General Election ran with the strap line “Stronger for Scotland” and won 56/59 seats in Scotland

Question 7

Independence analysis

Answer 7

This dominant idea had a positive impact on the SNP’S electoral performance as more people wanted independence as shown by their landslide victory

Question 8

Pro-union means…

Answer 8

The Conservative and unionist party want to keep the family of nations together and are therefore against independence

Question 9

Pro-union example

Answer 9

For example in the 2015 General Election, conservatives promised to devolve more powers to the Scottish Parliament but only held onto one seat since 2010

Question 10

Pro-union analysis

Answer 10

This suggests due to more Scot’s voting SNP rather than Conservative that the suggestion of more powers wasn’t enough to appeal to the electorate, therefore the dominant idea of pro-union didn’t have a positive impact on their electoral performance

Question 11

Overall for Independence and Pro-Union

Answer 11

Overall the SNP’s dominant idea of independence had a positive impact in comparison to the dominant idea of pro-union as shown by the result of the 2024 Independence Referendum for SNP which carried onto the 2105 General Election

Question 12

Socially progressive means…

Answer 12

The SNP want more redistribution of wealth, power and assets.

Question 13

Socially progressive example

Answer 13

For example in April 2011, Scottish prescription charges were abolished and in the 2015 General Election, SNP won the Glasgow North-East seat, previously a “safe” seat for labour

Question 14

Socially progressive analysis

Answer 14

This dominant idea had a positive impact as more voters moved from Labour to SNP after preferring their socially progressive policies

Question 15

Individualist means…

Answer 15

Conservatives favour individual freedom over state control for the principle of helping individuals become more independent and self-reliant

Question 16

Individualist example

Answer 16

For example in the 2015 Manifesto, Conservatives reduced the benefit cap from £26,000 to £23,000 and only keep 1 seat in the Borders in the 2015 General Election

Question 17

Individualist analysis

Answer 17

This dominant idea had a negative impact on their electoral performance as shown by SNP winning the most seats as Scots predominantly prefer their socially progressive policies

Question 18

Overall for Socially Progressive and Individualist

Answer 18

Overall the dominant idea of individualist had a negative impact on their electoral performance likely due to Scots not liking individualist policies which means the SNP’s dominant idea of socially progressive had a positive impact on their electoral performance as the Scottish public have become more reliant on the services that the SNP provide

Question 19

Anti-Brexit means…

Answer 19

This means the SNP want Scotland to remain in the EU as the majority of Scot’s voted to remain

Question 20

Anti-Brexit example

Answer 20

SNP argued for Scotland to remain apart of the singles market and customs union and tried to discuss a bespoke deal for Scotland and in the 2019 General election won 45% of the vote and 48 seats.

Question 21

Anti-Brexit analysis

Answer 21

This has a positive impact on their electoral performance as many Scot’s believed that the SNP focused on what’s best for Scotland which meant they gained support from those who didn’t want Brexit

Question 22

Pro-Brexit means…

Answer 22

This means the Conservatives want to leave the EU to particularly target immigration levels in the UK

Question 23

Pro-Brexit example

Answer 23

For example in the 2019 Scottish general election, Conservatives won 25.1% of the vote, winning 6seats, losing 7 a dun the 2019 UK General election, won 365 seats

Question 24

Pro-Brexit analysis

Answer 24

This dominant idea had a positive impact on their electoral performance across the UK as the public wanted Brexit dealt with quickly and believed the conservatives had the best plan to do so.

Question 25

Overall Anti-Brexit and Pro-Brexit

Answer 25

Overall, the dominant idea of Pro-Brexit had a positive impact across the UK as a whole but wasn’t as popular in Scotland which means the dominant idea of Anti-Brexit has a positive impact on their electoral performance as many voters beleived that the SNP had Scotland’s best interests at heart which attracted non-Brexit supporters to vote SNP

Question 26

Conclusion of Independence and Pro-Union

Answer 26

In conclusion the SNP’s dominant idea of independence had a a positive impact on their electoral performance as shown in the 2015 General election after their result in the 2014 independence referendum in comparison to the conservative dominant idea of pro-union as shown by the 1 seat the hold in Scotland

Question 27

Conclusion of Socially Progressive and Individualist

Answer 27

The SNP’s dominant idea of socially progressive had a positive impact on their electoral performance likely due to Scots appreciating and becoming accustom to the free services that the SNP provide which helped them win another seat however the Conservatives dominant idea of individualist had a negative impact on their electoral performance as Scots predominantly do not support individualist policies

Question 28

Conclusion of Anti-Brexit and Pro-Brexit

Answer 28

Finally, the SNP‘s dominant idea of anti-Brexit had a positive impact on their electoral performance as the SNP won the most seats in Scotland in 2019 likely due to the support of anti-Brexit supporters however the dominant idea of pro Brexit also had a positive impact on the Conservatives electoral performance across the UK as they were believed that be the best party to get Brexit done the quickest, leading to them winning the most seats in the 2019 UK General Election.

Question 29

Overall conclusion

Answer 29

Overall, the SNP’s dominant ideas had a more positive impact on their electoral performance than the Conservatives to a large extent