Political Parties - Topic 2.3 Flashcards
The emerging and minor British political parties
What have the SNP done while in office in Scotland?
2007-
- Scotland has maintained free university tuition by not adopting the tuition fees that exist elsewhere in the UK
- Prescription are free of charge, as is bus travel for under-22s and NHS dentral treatment for under-26s
- 16- and 17-yeaar olds are allowed to vote in local council elections and were allowed to vote in the IndyRef
- The way the SNP government in Holyrood established its own response to the Covid pandemic significantly raise the governing profile of the Scottish government at the expense of the UK government
- Nicola Sturgeon stated that victory in the Scottish parliament elections gave the SNP a mandate to press for another independence referendum. In 2022, she committed her government to holding this referendum in October 2023 (which never happened)
How has Scottish government been constrained under the SNP?
2016-
The Supreme Court ruled Sturgeon’s decision to call another independence referendum illegal, since it was a power reserved to Westminster. This may have contributed to Sturgeon’s surprise resignation in 2023. In the Gina Miller case (2017), the court established that Holyrood did not have to be consulted over legislation withdrawing the UK from the EU, even though Scotland voted decisively to remain in the EU.
The SNP rejects nuclear weapons, national defence policy is determined at Westminster and so Trident is still based in Scotland. Westminster blocked a Scottish government bill implementing self-identification for people who want to change gender, since it claimed this conflicted with the Equality Act, which has legal force across the UK.
How have Plaid Cymru done in Wales?
Plaid Cymru’s main basis of support has been in the Welsh-speaking parts of Wales, and it has never achieved an electoral breakthrough in Labour-dominated South Wales, where most constituencies are located. In 2024, Plaid Cymru won 4 seats in Wales, the most its ever won, and so its influence at Westminster has always been minimal.
Between 2007 and 2011, it formed a coalition with Labour on the agreement that there would be a referendum giving the National Assembly for Wales further devolved powers. However, Labour’s dominant influence in Wales has ensured that Plaid’s influence has been limited both at Westminster and on the Assembly.
How had UKIP influenced British politics?
Pre-2016
Founded in 1993, UKIP had little impact until the 2004 European Parliament elections when it achieved 16.1% of the vote. Following the election of Farage as leader in 2006, it began to broaden its support among the white working class by opposing not only the UK’s EU membership but also further immigration. The implications of the expansion of the EU in 2004 and 2007, and the resulting number of Easter Europeans coming into the UK, contributed to its growing electoral success. In 2014, UKIP beat both Labour and the Tories, with 26.6% of the vote and 24 seats.
How had UKIP influenced the Brexit Referendum?
2016
David Cameron’s manifesto commitment in the 2015 Election to offer the public an ‘in/out’ referendum on the UK’s membership to the EU was a response to the growing Euroscepticism of British politics, which UKIP had done much to fuel. Farage played a defining role, placing the free movement of EU citizens to and from the UK at the heart of the case. This was highly effective in mobilising voters in traditional working-class parts of the country to vote Leave, despite Labour’s support for Remain.
How had the Brexit Party/Reform UK influenced British politics?
2018-
In 2021, Labour abandoned its commitment to re-establishing the free movement of EU people to and from the UK because it was electorally unpopular. This demonstrates that although a minority party, the ideas of the Brexit Party/Reform UK have successfully ‘made the weather’ in terms of political debate in the UK.
How successful has the Green Party been in British politics?
The Greens are a victim of FPTP and so have achieved little success at Westminster. In 1989, the Greens achieved 15% in the EP elections and in 2010, Caroline Lucas won the Greens’ first seat in Brighton Pavilion with 31.3% of the vote. In 2024, the Greens earnt 4 seats with 6.4% of the national vote.
By not standing in certain constituencies, the Greens have been able to influence the result by deciding not to stand. The Greens have had a significant influence on British politics by increasing greater awareness of the importance of environmental protection. All the main UK and regional parties have made environmental protection a more prominent part of their manifestos.
How successful have the Greens been in Scottish politics?
The AMS has given the Greens greater influence in Holyrood where in 2021, it secured 8/129 seats. The Greens then entered a confidence-and-supply agreement with the SNP and two Green MSPs were given ministerial office.
How have the DUP influenced Northern Irish politics?
The DUP’s priority is to keep Northern Ireland as a part of the UK. It maintains strong links with the Free Presbyterian Church, its social conservatism and intense Protestantism. The DUP have played an indispensable role in the development of the peace process in Northern Ireland. In 2007, the DUP agreed to power share with Sinn Fein. However, the difficult relationship that the DUP have with Sinn Fein has meant that it has not been easy for them to cooperate in government and from 2017-2020, Stormont was suspended when Sinn Fein withdrew from government.
How have the DUP influenced British politics?
Especially in relation to Brexit negotiations
In 2017, the DUP had a confidence-and-supply agreement with May and had a strong influence over the actions of the government. Since 2017, the DUP’s seat share in Westminster has halved to 5 and has been unable to block the NI protocol to keep NI in the EU single market and making a trade border between the island of Ireland and Great Britain.
How have Sinn Fein influenced Northern Irish politics?
Sinn Fein is a republican party commited to the unification of Ireland. Since it does not acknowledge the justification for NI being part of the UK, its Westminster MPs - 7 in 2024 - do not take up their seats. However, Sinn Fein has served in government with the DUP in 2022 and won the greatest number of seats in Stormont - 27 out of 90. This is notable as Michelle O’Neill is Northern Ireland’s first nationalist first minister.
