Political Parties Flashcards

1
Q

Why did over half the voters not stick with the same party in the 2019 General Election?

A

Boris Johnson’s Brexit promise (to finish Brexit deal by January 2020)

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2
Q

Define Aggregation.

A

Developing and converting policies from a range of competing demands into a coherent programme of action.

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3
Q

What is populism?

A

Where parties seek to appeal those who feel unrepresented.

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4
Q

What are 2 key features of a political party?

A

-Representative
-Share similar ideologies

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5
Q

What approach to global problems do the left wing favour?

A

An internationalist approach.

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6
Q

What is Left-wing?

A

A belief of the importance of creating a fair and equal society through positive state intervention.

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7
Q

What 3 things do left-wing beliefs usually include?

A
  • Higher taxes on the wealthy
  • An extensive welfare provision
  • Greater state influence on the economy
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8
Q

What are right wing beliefs?

A

Political beliefs deriving from liberal and conservative ideology, and emphasises conservative values such as law and order, the importance of national sovereignty and strong defence.

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9
Q

What 3 thing to right wind beliefs usually include?

A
  • Limiting excessive government
  • Keeping taxation low
  • Protecting individual liberty
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10
Q

Name 5 2019 conservative manifesto policies.

A

• Increase the number of nurses by 50,000
• Leave the EU in January (2020)
• No income tax, VAT or NI rises
• Reach net zero by 2050
• Pension rose by at least 2.5% per year

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11
Q

Name 5 2019 Labour manifesto policies.

A

• Increase health budget by 4.3%
• Hold a second referendum on Brexit
• Raise a minimum wage from £8.21 to £10
• Stop state pension age rises
• Scrap UC

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12
Q

Name 5 Lib Dem manifesto policies.

A

• A penny income tax rise for the NHS
• Stop Brexit
• Recruit 20,000 more teachers
• Legalise Cannibis
• Give 0-hour contract workers a 20% rise

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13
Q

By what percentage has party membership declined from 1983 to 2005?

A

65%

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14
Q

What were 2 successfully implemented policies by the Conservatives?

A

• Recruiting 20,000 new police officers
• Recruiting more doctors and nurses, including 4000 more doctors and 9,300 more nurses.

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15
Q

What were 2 unsuccessfully implemented policies by the Conservatives?

A

• Build 300,000 new houses per year, only managed approx. 235,000 per year
• Build 40 new hospitals over the next 10 years, only 10 have planning permission

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16
Q

Name 1 right wing populist party from the UK.

A

UKIP/Reform UK

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17
Q

Who have the most say on which candidate is selected?

A

Local constituency parties.

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18
Q

Who completely controls the appointment of ministers?

A

The Prime Minister.

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19
Q

How is a party leader selected?

A

Whoever gets the lowest amount of votes is eliminated; people transfer their vote to someone else until the next round until their is no one else left to eliminate.

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20
Q

Who does the leader choose un an opposition party to form the leadership team?

A

A small group of frontbench spokespersons.

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21
Q

Name 1 example of when people in a party do not agree with who has been voted as their leader.

A

Labour 2015-16
After getting defeated in the 2015 election, Miliband resigned
Corbyn was elected by the party membership, many didn’t like him as his ideas were very ‘left-wing’ for Labour
Many refused to acknowledge him as ‘their leader’.

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22
Q

What is a mandate?

A

Something that represents the consent of the people, allowing a party to do what it feels is necessary in the national interest.

23
Q

What is a manifesto?

A

A collection of policies and commitments a party creates and possesses of what they are going to do if they are elected.

24
Q

What are 3 key features of a manifesto?

A
  • Simplified points and pledges easy for the general public to understand/comprehend
  • Free-to-view document accessible to the public
  • Stuff they know the people want to hear
25
Q

What is a basic definition of the doctrine of the mandate?

A

Consent from the public to the party/government.

26
Q

What are 4 problems of the doctrine of the mandate?

A
  • It depends on a single party winning the election
  • Voters who opt for one party do not necessarily agree with the whole manifesto
  • Parties could abandon or change their policies, and they do not have a mandate (public consent) for that
  • Some manifesto commitments are vague/open to interpretation
27
Q

State one time where there was an issue with the doctrine of the mandate.

A

2010 general election- 2+ parties involved so it was unclear which parties manifesto no longer applies.

28
Q

What are the 8 issues of carrying out manifesto policies?

A
  • Unforeseen national emergency (e.g. covid or war)
  • Coalition government
  • General failure to implement it
  • Contradictions
  • Size of majority
  • Backbenchers influence
  • Financial issues
  • Break one promise to keep another- priorities.
29
Q

What does ‘evaluate the view…’ mean in GCSE Exam terms?

A

HFDYA.

30
Q

What are 3 reasons as to why political parties need money?

A
  • For promotion and advertising
  • Run campaigns
  • Pay people to run campaigns
31
Q

What is short money?

A

Money allocated to the opposition parties for their work in the house of commons based on the number of seats they have.

32
Q

What was Cash For Honours?

A

A scandal under Tony Blair when it was suggested that some party donors had been given a seat in the house of lords due to party donations.

33
Q

What is Cranbourne Money?

A

subsidies the work of scrutiny carried out by the opposition in the house of lords.

34
Q

Name 7 ways in which political parties get money.

A
  • Membership fees
  • Fundraising events
  • Donations from supporters
  • Loans from wealthy individuals or banks
  • Candidates
  • Grants (from electoral commission)
  • Public money (e.g. short money, Cranbourne money)
35
Q

Why did affiliations make up 26% of Labours political funding?

A

Donations from trade unions.

36
Q

What are 2 reasons as to why private wealthy donors might donate?

A
  • To politically influence the party into what they want
  • The offering of political honours (place in the House of Lords, gifts etc.)
37
Q

Name 2 reasons as to why parties want private donors in particular to donate.

A
  • Money helps carry out their policies
  • Makes the party more financially secure
38
Q

What is one example of a reason as to why private donations are controversial?

A

2006 Cash for Peerages scandal
Wealthy individuals loaned labour money and then were nominated for honours
They found a loophole in the 2000 Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act

39
Q

What are 3 problems of the current system of political funding?

A
  • Wealthy individuals have an inequal impact on decisions
  • Wealthy individuals can be bribed with honours
  • There is not enough state funding
40
Q

What are 4 arguments FOR state funding of parties?

A
  • Parties play an important role in representative democracy, so deserve public funding
  • Public funding would remove the great disparity in resources available to different-sized parties
  • If the state matched donations by party members, it might encourage participation by the public and recruitment to parties
  • It would curb the possibly corrupt influence of private backers on party policy.
41
Q

What are 4 arguments AGAINST state funding of parties?

A
  • Increased state funding could lead to calls for greater state regulation, possible reducing parties’ independence
  • It is hard to decide how much support a party should have to qualify for funding
  • Public funding could isolate parties from the wishes of the voters
  • Taxpayers would resent compulsory contributions to parties which they disapprove
42
Q

What are 2 examples of countries with state funding of parties?

A

Spain and Guatemala.

43
Q

How does party state funding work in Guatemala?

A
  • Parties receive funding in proportion to the number of votes they get in the 1st round of the presidential election.
  • They gain a rate of 2 quetzals per vote, ONLY IF they receive 4% of the total valid votes.
    -The TSE (Tribunal Supremo Electoral) audit and control party funds, parties have to submit a detailed report and can be taken to court if anything is wrong
  • Private funding is not contemplated or prohibited by law.
44
Q

How does party state funding work in Spain?

A
  • It is not a direct part of the electoral fund
    -Funds from private sources are allowed
    -Campaign subsidies are proportional to
    the no. of votes and seats obtained
45
Q

What is totalitarianism?

A

Where the state controls all aspects of citizens lives including how they think.

46
Q

What is one example of a country with totalitarianism?

A

Eritrea.

47
Q

Define Welfare.

A

To provide a support network for citizens.

48
Q

What is Free Market?

A

Low gov control of economy.

49
Q

Define Protectionism.

A

To protect the country from outside influence.

50
Q

Define Authoritarianism.

A

Very strong law and order, very controlling by state.

51
Q

What are 2 issues with the political spectrum?

A
  • Vague terms, which vary from country to country.
  • Many issues do not fit easily into a category, like the environment.
52
Q

Who was the first Conservative PM?

A

Sir Robert Peel (1834-35, 1841-46).

53
Q

Which PM established the modern conservative party?

A

Benjamin Disraeli (1868, 1874-80).

54
Q

What influential book did Hobbes write in 1651 about the need of a strong government?

A

Leviathan.