Political parties in the UK - roles & funding (2.1) - Political Parties - UK Politics

Question 1

Functions of political parties within a democratic system (x6)

Answer 1

Representation
Participation
Recruiting office holders
Formulating policy
Providing government
Educate

Question 2

Representation (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 2

Represent the views of the people with a certain set of beliefs. Could be performed by individuals or pressure groups but parties bring order to the political system.

Question 3

Participation (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 3

Parties encourage people to participate in politics in order to win power or influence. Vote, join a party, support a party through funding etc. This includes encouraging and providing elections.

All main UK parties have procedures involving members choose candidates at elections & party leaders.

Question 4

Example of party encouraging participation

Answer 4

Labour party reduced subscription fee to £3 (normally £25) to increase membership - lead to the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader

Question 5

Recruiting office holders (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 5

Parties can choose their candidates

Question 6

Formulating policy (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 6

Parties generate policies that embody the ideas for which they stand. Put forward in elections in a manifesto.

Question 7

Providing government (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 7

Winning party at an election can form a government with the leader of that party normally becoming prime minister. They then hold the government office and run the country.

Question 8

Educate (as a function of a political party within a democratic system)

Answer 8

Parties have an educative function as they communicate and explain their ideas to the public (although can distort opponent’s policies in order to win support)

Question 9

How are MPs paid

Answer 9

through general taxation

Question 10

MPs allowed to claim expenses to cover costs of

Answer 10

running an office, living in Westminster and their constituency and travelling between the two.

Question 11

Majority of election costs must be funded by

Answer 11

Voluntary member subscriptions & fundraising events (i.e. not the state)

Question 12

Short money

Answer 12

Subsidy designed to help opposition parties to compensate for the lack of civil service help. A state provision to support the activities of the opposition in parliament

Question 13

Least-well funded main party

Answer 13

Liberal Democrats

Question 14

Why is party funding controversial?

Answer 14

Because of suspicion that finance = influence.
Large parties accused of offering political honours (e.g. place in the house of lords) to generous benefactors = counter democratic principles

Question 15

Liberal democrats criticise opponents for being (to do with funding)

Answer 15

bankrolled by the wealthy

Question 16

Tony Blair & Bernie Ecclestone case

Answer 16

Ecclestone (motor-racing boss) donated £1m to Labour. Alleged that there was a connection between this and a delay in implementing a ban on tobacco advertising in formula 1 racing. Blair justified himself claiming to be ‘a pretty straight sort of guy. The money was returned.

Question 17

Example of finance = influence

Answer 17

Tony Blair & Bernie Ecclestone case

Question 18

Reason for 2000 Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act

Answer 18

An attempt to overcome the perception that party funding had become an undemocratic feature

Question 19

2000 Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act lead to (x4)

Answer 19

Independent electoral commission set up to supervise party spending on election campaigns

Spending capped to £30,000 per constituency

Donations of more than £5,000 (nationally) or £1,000 (to a constituency) had to be declared. Parties had to publish details of donations regularly

Donations banned from those not on the UK electoral roll

Question 20

Cash for peerages scandal 2006

Answer 20

Wealthy individuals who loaned money to labour party had been nominated for honours. Looked like party was exploiting a loophole (loan not an outright ‘gift’). Later decided loans would be subject to the same rules as donations. Spending limits for parties were revised in the run up to the 2010 election.

Question 21

Former civil servant who proposed funding reforms & when

Answer 21

Sir Hayden Philips 2007

Question 22

Sir Hayden Philips’ 2007 reform suggestion

Answer 22

Move towards a system where parties are funded by taxpayers money - no party has acted on this recommendation - don’t want to add further burden to the tax payer

Question 23

Labor & Liberal supported funding idea & when

Answer 23

2015 election. Impose limits on individual donations to parties. Conservatives would lose out most and wanted to place corresponding restrictions on Labour’s trade union backers.

Question 24

2016 Trade Union Act

Answer 24

Obliged new trade union members to choose whether to ‘opt in’ to making payments towards the political levy - expected to lead to drop in funding received by Labour from trade unions

Question 25

Arguments in favour of state funding of parties (x6)

Answer 25

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

Could encourage public participation and recruitment to parties if state matched donations by party members

Curb the possibly corrupt influence of private backers on party policy

Parties can focus on representing the electorate rather than fundraising

Smaller parties will get fair financial support

Question 26

Arguments against state funding of parties (x6)

Answer 26

Increased state funding could lead to calls for greater state regulation, possibly reducing parties’ independence

It is hard to decide how much support a party should have to qualify for state funding

Public funding could isolate parties from the wishes of the voters

Taxpayers would resent compulsory contributions to parties of which they disapprove

Politicians may be less interested in what pressure groups have to say

There would be disagreement over how funding should be allocated