Political parties

Question 1

How have conservative ideas developed?

Answer 1

1. Thatcherism moved the UK sharply to the right when she became PM in 1979
   E.g. she lowered taxes and passed many laws limiting the power of trade unions
2. Thatcher adopted a confident foreign policy
   E.g. she protected one of the UK’s oversees territories in the 1982 Falklands War, played a leading role alongside Reagan in Cold War diplomacy
3. David Cameron modernised the Conservative party
   E.g. He adopted ‘Compassionate conservatism’, which combined Thatcherite free-market economic polices with more liberal social policies, such as gay marriage.
4. Theresa May signalled that she wished to followed one-nation Conservative policies, but her manifesto pledges suggested a move away from Cameron’s modern conservatism
   (shifting to the right)
   E.g. her 2017 manifesto supporter grammar schools, fox hunting and the removal of universal free school lunches for 4-7 year olds

Question 2

How have Labour ideas developed?

Answer 2

1. Old Labour’s socialist ideas
   E.g. Clause IV is part of the 1918 constitution, it committed Labour to the ‘common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange’
2. The third way, Labour moved to the political centre when Blair became leader in 1994
   E.g. he moved Labour to the centre right economically by rewriting Clause IV, removing references to socialist economic policy.
   (reassured middle class voters)
   E.g. he moved Labour to the social left, e.g. he was not anti-abortion like many of his predecessors
3. Corbynism, Corbyn made a shift back to Old Labour
   E.g. he advocated the renationalisation of the railways and utilities, reversing austerity and increasing taxes on business to pay for the welfare state
   E.g. in Corbyn’s 2017 manifesto he promised to build 150k council and social homes, raise minimum wage to £10.

Question 3

Lib Dem ideas?

Answer 3

1. ‘Orange Book’ liberalism
   E.g. accepting the free market and not significantly challenging Thatcherite economic policies
2. Electoral reform
   E.g. the Alliance famously won 26% of the vote in 1983 but only 23 seats in the House of Commons
   (party argues for proportional representation)
3. Social liberalism, a focus on a liberal form of social democracy
   E.g. social liberals are keen to dismantle Thatcher’s economic policies and to redistribute wealth via high taxation on the wealthy
4. Social democracy, a democratic version of socialism
   E.g. socialist win power in a democratic system, and introduce changes such as nationalisation, high taxation and a welfare state.

Question 4

What are the functions of political parties?

Answer 4

1. Representation, parties represent the ideology and views of their members
   E.g. Labour have traditionally adopted left wing ideologies to represent the working class, whereas the Conservatives have traditionally adopted right wing ideologies to represent the middle and upper classes.
2. Participation, parties provide opportunities for people to participate in politics
   E.g. people can become members of political parties, make donations, campaign in elections by handing out leaflets
3. Policy, parties develop policies and offer them to the electorate in their manifestos
   E.g. in Boris Johnson’s 2019 election campaign he promised to ‘get Brexit done’

Question 5

How are party leaders appointed?

Answer 5

1. • In the Conservative party, MPs vote on leadership candidates, the top two candidates are presented to the party
   • All party members then vote on the remaining 2 candidates, it is a one member one, one vote system (OMOV), so every vote is equal
   • Theresa May was not voted for by the party membership because her rival withdrew from the contest, leaving May unopposed
2. • In the Labour party, the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) makes nominations first, candidates need to be nominated by at least 10% of the PLP
   • Candidates must then win support of 5% of trade union affiliate members
   • All members and registered supporters than vote on candidates using OMOV and AV system

3.

• In the Lib Dem party, a candidate must be an MP with support of at least 10% of Lib Dem MP’s, 20 local parties and 200 members
• All members vote using OMOV and AV system,
• In 2018 leader Vince Cable suggested that non-MPS could become leader, and that non-party members could vote in leadership elections

Question 6

What are the main areas of disagreement in the Conservative party?

Answer 6

1. Brexit
   E.g. in 2019 3 Conservative MP’s left the party over it’s EU policy
2. Gay Marriage
   E.g. David Cameron publicly supported it in 2010
   A majority of Conservative MP’s voted against it
3. Pensions
   E.g. since 2010, The Conservative Party has supported pension caps. Traditionally, conservatives would not support a generous welfare state

Question 7

Are the conservatives a one-nation party?

Answer 7

1. Yes, support for private property
   E.g. the ‘help to buy’ scheme assists people in buying their own property
2. Yes, support for gay marriage
   E.g. David Cameron supported Gay Marriage in 2010, so the Conservative party has abandoned Thatcherism in this regard
3. No, little support an organic society
   E.g. in May’s 2017 manifesto she promised to remove free school meals for 4-7 year olds.

Question 8

What are the main areas of disagreement in the Labour party?

Answer 8

1. EU
   E.g. Old labour anti-EU, New labour pro-EU (Corbyn-Blair)
2. Economic policy
   E.g. Tony Blair privatised 4% of the NHS
   Old Labour would have opposed this
3. Foreign Policy
   E.g. Blair supported the Iraq War
   Jeremy Corbyn opposed the Iraq War.

Question 9

What is the membership of political parties?

Answer 9

1. Conservative party membership has fallen from 2.8 million in 1952 to 124k in 2018
2. Labour had 552k in 2017 which has increased dramatically since 2015, as a result of the election of Corbyn
3. Lib Dems had 99k in 2018, a significant increase since 44k in 2014.

Question 10

Is Labour still committed to its original principles?

Answer 10

1. Yes, nationalisation
   The 2019 Labour Party manifesto supported nationalising rail, mail and public transport
2. Yes, gay marriage
   E.g. in 2010, a majority of Labour MP’s voted for Gay Marriage, thereby ensuring it would pass
3. Welfare State
   E.g. the Labour Party still supports an extensive welfare state, as it supports the building of large numbers of council houses.

Question 11

How have parties tried to select a broad range of candidates?

Answer 11

1. Labour introduced all-women shortlists in 1993
   E.g. this resulted in 101 female Labour MPs being elected in 1997, compared to 37 in 1992
   (in 2017 Labour announced they would do this for 50 of its top target seats
2. Conservatives have tried priority lists, lists of priority candidates
   E.g. women and those from ethnic minorities. Priority candidates are offered to the local party when it draws up its shortlist for parliamentary candidates
3. Public hustings
   E.g. parliamentary candidates must answer questions on their policies in front of the public, as well as members

Question 12

How do parties establish policy?

Answer 12

1. Conservatives use a top-down process
   E.g. the leader’s team effectively decides what goes in the manifesto. Delegates at the party conference do not vote on policy
2. Labour use the National Policy Forum
   E.g. the NPF agree on the direction of policy and arranges policy commissions (NPF is made up of representatives across the party) Policies are then voted on at the party conference. The leader can use personal authority to win support for his policies at conference
3. Lib Dems use the Federal Policy Committee
   E.g. FPC develops policies to be put to party conference which is held twice a year(FPC is a mix of parliamentarians and other party members). Any member can make a policy proposal to the party conference. The conference votes on all policies and all members can vote.

Question 13

What are the sources of party funding?

Answer 13

1. Large donation from wealthy donors
   E.g. Blair was criticised for accepting a £1million donation from Formula 1 tycoon Bernie Ecclestone in 1997, and then giving Formula 1 an exemption from the ban on tobacco advertising in sports events
2. Membership fees, have become less significant
   E.g. Conservative party membership has fallen from 2.8 million in 1952 to 124k in 2018
3. Trade unions to the Labour party
   E.g. donations from unions are worth millions to Labour but their value is likely to be reduced by political funding changes in the Trade Union Act 2016
4. State funding
   (counters financial advantage of the government or parties with large funds)

Question 14

What are the types of state funding?

Answer 14

1. Short money
   E.g. state funds paid opposition parties in the Commons to pay for administrative costs and to enable effective scrutiny of government
2. Cranborne money
   E.g. state funds paid to opposition parties in the Lords to pay for administrative costs to enable effective scrutiny of government
3. Policy Development grants
   E.g. any party with two or more sitting MP’s is allocated a share of a £2million annual fund to help to develop policies
4. Funding for election campaigns
   E.g. state subsidies are given to parties during election campaigns to help with costs

Question 15

How has party funding been reformed?

Answer 15

1. Spending limits
   E.g. Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 limited party spending in general elections campaigns to 30k per constituency
2. Donations must be declared
   E.g. Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 states that donations over 5k must be declared with the Electoral Commission
3. There great scrutiny over donations
   E.g. Political Parties and Elections Act 2009 allows the Electoral Commission to investigate cases and impose fines.

Question 16

How have relationships with the media affected political parties?

Answer 16

1. Gaining support from the media can be advantageous
   E.g. Blair convinced Rupert Murdoch to switch the Sun newspaper’s support to Labour
2. Newspapers can affect how a party leader is perceived
   E.g. Ed Miliband was dubbed ‘Red Ed’ by many newspapers, making it more difficult for him to appeal to centrist voters
3. Some media outlets have an unofficial political leaning
   E.g the Telegraph and the Daily Mail are consistent with Conservative supporters, whereas the Mirror and the Guardian generally favour Labour

Question 17

Which factors affect electoral outcomes?

Answer 17

1. Party leadership
   E.g. media coverage is heavily focused on the characteristics of the leader, some have personalities which are hard to connect with voters, such as May and Brown, which results in poor electoral results
2. Funding
   E.g. traditionally Labour has the benefit of trade union funding, but this has become less significant. Conservatives have a clear advantage, they have many wealthy donors
3. The media
   E.g. support for Blair in 1997 election, ‘give change a chance’
4. Policies
   E.g. appealing and well thought out policies, such as those of New Labour in 1997, have greater electoral appeal than poorly crafted policies, such as the ‘dementia tax’ in May’s 2017 manifesto
5. Electoral system, FPTP favours parties with concentrated geographical support
   E.g. in the 2015 election, UKIP won 3.9 million votes but gained 1 seat, whereas the SNP won 1.5 million votes and was rewarded with 56 MPs.

Question 18

Do minority parties affect the political agenda?

Answer 18

1. Yes, the SNP
   E.g. SNP won a majority in the 2011 Scottish Parliament elections, which allowed it to pressure the UK government into giving Scotland an independence referendum in 2014.
   (Although SNP did not convince scots to leave, it enjoyed a boost in membership, allowing Nicola Sturgeon to become the de facto voice for Scotland, challenging the Conservative government on its approach to Brexit negotiations)

No, the SNP have not had a large impact
E.g. despite the SNP’s success in the 2015 and 2017 general elections, Nicola Sturgeon was unable to convince the Conservative government to consider arranging a specially tailored version of Brexit for Scotland

2. Yes, Lib Dems
   E.g. Lib Dems played a significant role in influencing the political agenda, allowing Cameron to introduce socially liberal policies (such as gay marriage) that faced stern opposition from sections of his own party.

No, Lib Dems did not
E.g. the 2010–15 coalition was between two parties that were fairly close to each other on the political spectrum. Lib Dems were convinced to increase tuition fees, whereas the Conservatives did not make comparable concessions. The key issue on the political agenda for that government was austerity, which both parties supported, so the Lib Dems did not change the agenda significantly.

Yes, UKIP
E.g. UKIP won 2014 European Parliament elections made Conservatives fear that UKIP would take millions of votes from them in the next general election, resulting in a Labour victory. As a result, Cameron promised a referendum in the Conservative manifesto. Without UKIP’s electoral success, there would have been no referendum.

No, UKIP did not
E.g. it was the Conservatives who chose to hold a referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU and the Conservative government which was ultimately left to
determine the nature of Brexit.

Question 19

Is the UK a two party system?

Answer 19

1. Yes, two significant parties compete for power
   E.g. either Conservatives or Labour have been in government since 1922

No, there has been a move away from a single party government in the UK
E.g. there was a coalition from 2010 to 2015, and a minority government in 2017

2. Yes, coalition and minority governments are rare in UK politics
   E.g. there has been two coalitions since WW2

No, smaller parties have played a significant role in government and politics
E.g. UKIP won 2014 European Parliament elections made Conservatives fear that UKIP would take millions of votes from them in the next general election, resulting in a Labour victory. As a result, Cameron promised a referendum in the Conservative manifesto. Without UKIP’s electoral success, there would have been no referendum.

3. Yes, recent elections have seen a return to two party politics
   E.g. the 2017 election saw Labour and Conservatives win over 80% of the vote, the first time this had happened since the 1980s

No, as multiple parties hold power across devolved nations despite the results of the 2017 general election
E.g. as of 2018, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all headed by governments from different political parties.

Question 20

Is Labour a socialist party?

Answer 20

1. Yes, Jeremy Corbyn is significantly to the left of all
   recent Labour leaders
   E.g. in Corbyn’s 2017 manifesto he promised to build 150k council and social homes, raise minimum wage to £10

No, Labour’s grass roots are more left wing than its parliamentary party
E.g. only 15% of Labour MPs nominated Corbyn in 2015

2. Yes, key figures on the shadow front bench also describe themselves as socialists
   E.g. John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, has described his economic vision as ‘socialism with an iPad’

No, many prominent Labour parliamentarians played key roles in Tony Blair’s and Gordon Brown’s governments
E.g. Yvette Cooper

3. Yes, Corbynism includes socialist policies E.g. renationalisation of railways and public utilities, higher taxes on corporations and high earners and increased public spending

No, Corbyn’s left-wing approach continues to receive criticism from Labour MPs on the right of the party
E.g. Chuka Umunna, who believe Corbyn is making the party unelectable.