Labour v Conservative Flashcards
what is the debate over the Labour and Conservative parties?
the Conservative Party and Labour Party are the two biggest parties operating in the UK’s political system and are often seen as being fundamentally opposed, with the Conservatives sitting on the right side of the political spectrum and Labour sitting on the left
however, the view that there is little in common between Conservative and Labour Party policies and ideas is widely debated
arguments suggesting that there is quite a lot in common between the two parties
both parties have at times shared similar economic policies
both have demonstrated desires to help the disadvantaged in society
both have made efforts to win the support of the middle classes
arguments suggesting that there is little in common between the two parties
Labour tends to be far more interventionist in terms of economic policy than the Conservatives
Labour displays a far greater commitment to helping the disadvantaged in society
Labour has retained a strong working class base
conclusion
therefore, it can be argued that while there is some common ground between the two parties, overall there is little truly in common between Conservative and Labour Party policies and ideas
there is little in common between the Conservative and Labour Party in terms of economic policy: public spending
their economic policy often differs hugely, sometimes being in direct opposition
under Theresa May, Conservative economic policy has at times been just as austere as Thatcher’s
drastic cuts to public spending, particularly cuts to welfare, have continued under her government, with Hammond announcing a new cap on government welfare spending
Labour instead proposes to increase public spending
there is little in common between the Conservative and Labour Party in terms of economic policy: taxation
further Thatcherite measures are evident in several new tax cuts, including a promise to slash £6.7 billion from business rates and to reduce corporation tax from 20% to 17%
whereas Labour plans to re-introduce the 50p rate of tax on the highest earners (above £123,000) and take an extra £48.6 billion in tax, including over £6 billion from the top 5% and £19 billion from corporation tax
all of this appears to suggest that Conservatives are moving in the opposite direction from Labour’s view of taxing the wealthy and privileged to fund quality public services for the poorer in society
there is little in common between the Conservative and Labour Party in terms of economic policy: privatisation v nationalisation
under Corbyn, there seems to have been a notable return to more traditional Labour economic commitments, which Conservatives tend to be deeply opposed to
for instance, the party is now committed to the nationalisation of the railways, water and energy industries
their pledge to nationalise England’s 9 water companies, regain control of energy supply networks, bring the railways back into public ownership as franchises expire and reverse the privatisation of Royal Mail “at the earliest opportunity” was featured in their 2017 manifesto, which contrasts to the Conservative support of privatisation
there is some stuff in common between the Conservative and Labour Party in terms of economic policy: interventionism
at times, the two parties have actually shared some general agreement over economic policy
Theresa May’s Conservative Party seems to have shifted away from Thatcher’s determination to roll back the state and begun a renewed era of government interventionism in economic matters
this was made clear when May wrote in the Telegraph in 2017 that those “just getting by don’t need a government that will get out of the way” but rather an “active government” willing to “step up” and “fix broken markets”
this view is also taken by the Labour Party, which believes that the government should intervene to solve market failures and tackle the shortcomings of the free market
there is some stuff in common between the Conservative and Labour Party in terms of economic policy: public spending
Theresa May’s Chancellor, Phillip Hammond, stated that the government was ditching Cameron’s commitment to eliminate the budget deficit by 2020 and instead announced new public spending measures in the form of a £23 billion Productivity Investment Fund
the Labour Party is also committed to increased public spending
both parties desire to help the disadvantaged in society: Conservative Party
May has accepted same-sex marriage – a far cry from Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, which banned the “promotion” and teaching of homosexuality as “acceptable” in schools
vowed to take on the perceived impunity of the police force and demanded that issues such as police brutality, racialised use of stop and search powers and unauthorised surveillance are tackled
enquiries have been set up into the Hillsborough disaster, the illegal surveillance of the Lawrence family (whose teenage son had been killed in a racist murder which the police failed to investigate properly) as well as black deaths in police custody
May’s maiden-speech outside Downing Street spoke of the “burning injustices” faced by the poor, the black community, the working-class and women and she vowed to govern in the interests not of the “privileged few” but of all those who are “just about managing”
both parties desire to help the disadvantaged in society: Labour Party
Labour is also dedicated to achieving equality and helping those who suffer within society
pledged to gender audit all policy and legislation
continue to ensure a woman’s right to choose a safe, legal abortion while planning to work with the Assembly to extend that right to women in Northern Ireland
seeks to reform the Gender Recognition Act and the Equality Act 2010 to ensure they protect trans people
bring the law on LGBT hate crimes into line with hate crimes based on race and faith, by making them aggravated offences
there is little in common because Labour is far more committed to helping the disadvantaged
this ‘progressive’ rhetoric from the Conservative Party seems to translate into words rather than actions and firm commitments, indicating that there is actually little in common between the two parties as Labour is far more committed to equality and helping the disadvantaged
May does not seem to have kept her 2016 pledge to tackle the ‘burning injustice’ of social stagnation and improve social mobility
the latest State of the Nation Report - inequality is “now entrenched from birth to work”, with social mobility stagnating during the period “at virtually all life stages”
challenge the idea that May’s party is truly dedicated to helping the disadvantaged, indicating that there is little truly in common between Conservative and Labour Party policies and ideas.
there is little in common because Labour is far more dedicated to the working class than Conservatives are
Labour seems to be far more dedicated to representing the working class whereas the Conservative Party is traditionally linked to the middle and upper classes
Labour has always taken significant steps to benefit the working class and retain their support
New Labour - Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit, introduced a national minimum wage
Corbyn - strengthened its support for the working class, raise the minimum wage to at least £10 per hour and give more power back to the trade unions
Corbyn’s claim that “Labour is back as the political voice of the working class”
contrasts to the Conservative Party being the party of ‘middle England’ and seems to demonstrate that there is little in common between the Conservative and Labour Party
both parties appeal to middle class voters, suggests they do have things in common
Labour Party can be argued to have broken away from its traditional working class support base
it is alleged that in order to be more electorally successful, the modern Labour Party has had to widen its appeal to all classes and sections of society, thus weakening its links to the working class
the party no longer seems to see itself as the party exclusively of the working class
Blair saw the party’s future as being the party of the professional middle class: that is university-educated people rather than manual labourers
developing links to the business community – this seems to draw them closer to the Conservative Party, showing that there some common ground between Conservative and Labour Party ideas
