Political Parties Flashcards
socialism
a state of mind and a political movement that places such values as equality of opportunity, social justice and collectivism are high on its scale of values. it is either opposed to free-market capitalism or proposes measures to moderate the undesireable effects of capitalism
Conservatism
a state of mind and a political movement tha tis naturally adverse to excessive change and reform. it is sceptical about strongly held political views, prefers the known to the unknown and generally supports the retention of traditonal institutions and values
Liberalism
a state of mind and a political movement that places freedom, rights and tolerance high on its scale of values
Old Labour/ Social Democracy
social democracy is a political, social and economic ideology that supports economic and social interventions to promote social justice within the framework of a capitalist economy and a policy regime involving:
- a commitment to representative democracy
- measures for income redistribution
- regulation of the economy in the general interest and welfare state provision
New Labour/ Third Way
a movement to update Britain’s Labour Party by discarding the traditonal Labour platform calling for state ownership of the means of production. the movement was led by Tony Blair.
One Nation Conservatism
a form of British political conservatism that views society as organci and values paternalism and pragmatism. the phrrase comes from Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative Prime Minister 1876, 1874-1880
New Right
a political movement that became popular in the USA and Britain in the later 1970’s and 1980’s. it was largely a combination of very liberal attitudes towards the free market and capitalist economy and very conservative attitudes to society, morality and the maintenance of law and order. in the UK it is associated with Thatcher
Classical Liberalism
a political philosophy and ideology belonging to liberalism in which primary emphasis is placed on securing the freedom of the individual by limiting the power of the government
Modern Liberalism
focuses around the use of the state for the benefit of society as a whole. it is generally associated with social welfare programmes and a variety of other means that are used to support society
Party Systems
a concept in comparative political science concerning the system of government by political parties in a democratic country
Left Wing/ Right Wing
a commonly used way of describing political tendencies. left wing normally relates to ideas associated with socialism or social democracy. right wing normally refers to conservative ideas
Factionalism
a tendency within parties to split into different intenal groups who hold views that are at variance with the main beliefs of the party. such groups/ factions may be formal groupings or merely informal tendencies
Consensus Politics
a circumstance where two or more major political parties broadly agree on most basic policies. in other words, a period where there are a few or no major political conflicts. it may refer to a single issue where different parties agree to support the same policies. this implies a lack of strong ideology in politics
Adversary Politics
the opposite of consensus. this is a circumstance where political parties are engaged in considerable conflict over political issues. this also implies that there are strong ideological conflicts in politics
characteristics of left wing ideology
three points
favours:
- nationalisation of public services
- large state intervention in social and economic policy
- greater equality
characteristics of a central ideology
favours:
- less state intervention but some regulation from the government on key policies
characteristics of a right wing ideology
favours:
- privitisation of some public services
- lessened state internvention in social and economic policy
- greater personal autonomy
Authoritarian
government requires a strict obedience to the authority of the state
Libertarian
the rights of the individual are favoured over the state. in some cases government is believed to hinder individual freedom
features of a political party
five features
- parties aim to gain power by winning political office through elections
- parties have a broad focus across many different areas (such as health, education, finance etc)
- membership of parties tends to share a common ideology: conservatism, socialism, liberalism
- minority parties recognsie they can’t hold power so instead seek influence
- may have narrow range of views e.g. Brexit Party or with a wide range e.g. Conservative party and can thus split into factions
function of a political party: Policy making
four points
- particularly important for opposition to oppose the party in power
- all members tend to have a role in suggesting policies e.g. at conferences
- most polices made by ruling parties are made by ministers and their advisers
- also involves aggregation, surverying the range of demands of the population and supporters and alinging policy with that, sometimes making personal compromises
function of a political party: representation
5 points
- Many parties claim to support a specific part of society e.g. UK Labour represents the working class and trade unions.
- However many now claim to represent the national interest. Thus they instead seek to ensure that all groups in society have their interests and demands at least considered.
- Tend to be biased towards one section due to ideological bias.
- Populist parties quickly arise to support underrepresented groups, e.g. The poor.
- Issue parties are also arising e.g. The Green party
functions of political parties: selecting candidates
2 points
- Spend a lot of time selecting candidates for office at all levels e.g. Local councillors, elected mayors aswell as for devolved assemblies and the national parliament.
- Candidates are decided on a local and regional level, through party committee staffed by activists. Mostly local constituent parties deciding but national leaders do have some say.
functions of political parties: identifying leaders
5 points
- in the ruling party, the PM completely controls the appointment of ministers.
- In opposition parties, the leader choses a smaller group of ‘frontbench’ spokespersons who form the leadership.
- Potential leaders are able to train by getting opportunities in formal internal party organisations.
- Problems with leadership in the past include Jeremy Corbyn winning overwhelmingly in the leadership contest but being too far left to represent much of the party.
- Contrastingly, Boris Johnson was agreeably elected leader in 2019
functions of political parties: contesting elections
2 points
- Form part of the process of publicising election issues, persuading people to vote and informing them about the candidates - done so by party activists.
- Representatives are present at vote counting so ensure election contests are fair and honest.
functions of political parties: political education
3 points
- Continuously involved (not just at election time) in informing about the political issues of the day, explaining the main areas of conflict and outlining their own solutions to the problems they have identified.
- Also educate on how the political system works. Green for example raises awareness about the environment.
- In some ways however the media and think tanks have taken over this role, aswell as social media.
how are political parties funded
7 ways
- collecting membership subscriptions from members
- holding fundraiser events e.g. dinners, conferences
- recieving donations from supporters
- raising lonas from wealthy individuals or banks
- the self financing of candidates for office
- up to £2 million per party available in grants from the Electoral Commission
- ## short money granted to opposition parties in the Commons and Lords
historically where does the majority of the Conservative’s funding come from
large businesses and individuals
what did the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 do
regulate funding by reducing foreign influence, limiting how much could be spent on elections, stating donations over £5000 had to be declared and those over £7500 had to be put on an electoral register.
historically where does the majority of Labour’s funding come from
trade unions
why don’t small parties have a regular income
because any donor is acting out of idealism rather than any prospects of gaining influence
Political Parties and Elections Act 2009
gave the electoral commission the power to investigated and impose fines, restrict donations from non-UK residents and impose tighter regulations in the run up to an election
the MP’s expenses scandal 2009
several MPs and Peers were found to have misused allowances and expenses permitted to them - many sackings, resignations and even prison sentences
why is the current system of party funding controversial
4 ways
- clearly favours bigger parties
- large donors may expect political return on their investment, whilst parties can’t change policy as a direct result of a donation, they may be influenced
- aspects of funding may verge on being corrupt, some donor may expect to recieve an honour
- the steady decline of party membership means parties are even more reliant on donors
what are the four basic solutions to solving problems with party funding
- impose restrictions ont he size of individual donations to parties. to be effective, the cap would have to be relatively low
- impose tight restrictions on how much parties are allowed to spend
- restrict donations to individuals and outlaw donations from businesses, pressure groups and trade unions
- replace all funding with state grants for parties paid out of general taxation
pros of state funding
7 pros
- would make parties more democratically responsive
- reduces corruption and influences of ‘special interests’
- parties won’t have to spend time and resources trying to source funding
- could help break two party dominance as funds are shared out proportionally
- current rule around state funding are weak
- Cranborne money for opposition and short money for opposition is shown to be effective
- in a democracy you have to pay for it, can’t allow it to work on its own
cons of state funding
- would allow parties to ignore important stakeholders e.g. labour and the trade unions
- politicians could become isolated from real life issues with the removal of interest groups
- could reinforce two party dominance as it favours established parties, especially if funds are shared out based on past elections - the 2007 Phillips Report recommended a pence per voter formula, benefits two biggest parties the most
- short and Cranborne money supports those with seats but penalises those who fall victim to FPTP
- the Recall Act 2015, a result of the expenses scandal, allows constituents to hold their MP to account for any wrongdoing
- political parties and elections acts 2000 and 2009 - laws already put in place
- why should the tax payer fund parties they don’t agree with
- state funding is hard to introduce e.g. how is it shared out and who qualifies;
between 2006-7, unproven suspicion that many peerages were given out by Blair in return for donations
Cash for Questions scandal
a scandal in Major’s premiership in which two MPs were accused o fbeing bribed by the owner of Harrods to ask parliamentary questions and other tasks
key principles of One Nation Conservatism
8 principles
- human nature is inheritely bad, man is driven by basic appetites and not reason
- ordered and structured society, achieved through an absolute ruler and strong government, loss of some individual rights
- preserving traditional institutions and keeping traditions learning from ancestors to keep what works
- organic society theory a united nation to prevent social conflicts, social responsibility
- pragmatism principles are not eternal or fixed, flexible and undogmatic aproach to politics
- individualism people should have as many opportunities as possible, less government interferene
- property owning democracy as it encourages stability and security in society
- opposition to ideology upholding traditional values and not following a strict ideology
core ideas of Thatcherism/the New Right
5 core ideas
- deregulation privatisation to allow for competition for rapid growth and freedom
- disengagement no longer intervening in a failing economy or industry, thus allowing it to either become efficient enough to compete or disappear so resources can be moved elsewhere.
- trade union reform main culprits in industrial inefficiency and needed to have their power reduced
- low taxation high taxation was a disincentive to hard work
- dependency culture state welfare benefits were too high and people relied on them too much and there was no incentive to improve economic conditions
core values of social democracy
6 values
- common class interest those in a class share similar interests and these conflict with other classes, need to reconcile this
- equality central principle, all born equal and there is no natural order. some inequality to be an incentive
- social justice - redistribution of wealth except social and economic equality is unattainable, benefits should act as an incentive and aim to help the most needy
- equality of opportunity anxious to ensure all society has equality in opportunities, especially deprived areas where social forces work against them
- collectivism people should achieve goals collectively and actions taken in groups are usually the most effective
- common ownership - clause IV of the 1918 manifesto the common ownership of means of production and distribution, imposes economic equality through public industry
key New Labour/ Third Way policies
9 policy areas
- anti poverty adopted an attack on poverty, particularly child poverty. issued benefits so people can enjoy a decent standard of living
- economic policy capitalism should be allowed to flourish, limited role for trade unions and public sector borrowing is acceptable if invested in public sectors
- welfare services high quality public services should be preserved. the private sector should be involved if this improves quality and efficiency
- education central in policies towards poverty reduction, equality of opportunity and law and order. improving quality and access to education
- law and order ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’ - authoritarian attitude and tackling social causes of crime
- welfare benefits an incentive to work and take responsibility for one’s prosperity, not to redistribute income
- constitutional reform less radical reform that focus on decentralising government, mild lords reform and human rights act
- Europe Britain to remain at the centre but retain independence, cautious support for the single currency
- defence and foreign policy Britain to take a leading role in world affairs, defend human rights and help poor countries
core values of the Liberal Democrats
- liberty core value, the state should interfere as little as possible
- social justice to remove unjustifiable inequalities in incomes and society - removing artificial privilleges people might be born into
- welfare people can’t be genuienly free if enslaved by poverty, unemployment or sickness or the deprivations of old age - state welfare sets them free
- constitutionalism highly suspicious of the power of the government and thinks it should be firmly controlled, normally via the constitution
- social reformers strongly support minority social groups
- liberal demoracy supports constitutional reform to promote human rights and support democracy
- multiculturalism different cultures and lifestyles should be welcomed and granted special rights - links to their pluralist outlook on society
- the environment a modern value, human life will be enriched by a healhty physical environment and by biodiversity
