Great Britain: Political Parties and Institutions

February 13, 2013

“Left” and “right” are harder to locate than they were: here “left” implies a big-state, secular, socially liberal, internationalist and green outlook; right, the reverse.

Democracies: Nominate Candidates (compare to US with primaries—no one else has this mechanism which effectively weakens one of the most imp function of pol parties) , Run campaigns (compare to US’s "candidate centered campaigns"),

get voters voting (register, GOTV, Give cues to voters), act as linkage institution, articulate interests, aggregate interests, act as a modifying influence on government, Provide a "loyal opposition", political socialization, policy formation, monitor elected representatives

FUNCTIONS OF POLITICAL PARTIES

2005 election results

This is because the UK has what kind of electoral system?

Labour Party• Created in 1906• Traditional support from the working class• Support from trade unions- big source of parts• Traditionally Socialist but not Marxist- social democracy plus welfare

state• Beveridge Report- accepted by both parties- social welfare programs

(health care, unemployment, retirement pensions)• Favored more of a socialist system- creation of the National Heath

Care system in 1948• Old Platform: Nationalize industries, denuclearization, demilitarize,

withdraw from the EU• Traditional industrial labor union base started to decrease during the

70’s, 80’s as the economy changed, decline of blue collar workers• 1992 election loss- expected to win, helped usher in Blair’s Third Way• Devolution

Conservative Party- Tories

• Dominated GB from WWII to 1997• Also followed the Beveridge Report- did not attempt to

repeal the NHS (broad consensus of the welfare state model)• Historically more pragmatic instead of ideologically extreme-

closer to the center than old Labour• Noblesse oblige- duty for upper classes to support the

welfare of the lower classes• Traditionally middle class support• Now two wings:1. Traditional: elite should be guardians of the country/

noblesse oblige, supports EU membership2. Thatcherite- Euroskeptics, favor market reforms

Liberal Democrats

• Formed in 1989• Multiparty system• Limited by single member district, plurality electoral

system• 2005 election: 62 of 646 MPs but 22% of vote• Alternative Vote system referendum defeated• Also lost support as Labour moved towards the political

center• Centrist Platform: market reforms but still welfare state

model with support for gov’t spending on welfare and education

Other Parties

• Scottish National Party- independence referendum (opposed to Labour’s devolution), gained majority in Scotland’s parliament in 2007 for the first time, democratic socialist

• Plaid Cymru- Welsh but does not demand independence, democratic socialist

• Sinn Fein- political wing of IRA• Democratic Unionist Party- Protestants in Northern

Ireland• British National Party- right wing, nationalist, anti-

immigrant, withdraw from EU, 1.9% in general election but no seats in Parliament

Thatcher• The Iron Lady, Margarette Thatcher Milk Snatcher• First female PM of a major European country• Conservative party- 1979-1990• Autocratic management style- TINA (There Is No Alternative)• Weakened trade unions and local gov’ts• Privatization- all industries (telephone, oil, gas, rails, airlines, council

houses, mines), reduced # of people working for the British state• Unemployment doubled• Monetarism- natural rate of unemployment determined by the labor

market, not Keynsian policy • Welfare state- preached against it but it actually grew, no radical cuts• Victory in the Falklands War• Anti-EU• Resigned rather than face defeat in an election

Welfare state

Even under Thatcher and Major, Britain experienced real growth in both social services and health care provisions

Tony Blair

• Labour PM 1997-2007 (2nd largest term since WWII)• Third Way- moved Labour towards the center, abandoned

traditional support base- unions and socialists• Market Reforms in education and health care• Personalistic leadership style- began to resemble a presidential

system• Supported USA during the Iraq War- portrayed as Bush’s loyal

lapdog• Labour Party upset, several cabinet members resigned• Good Friday Agreement- Northern Ireland 1998, power sharing• Resigned in June 2007

The cover of Labour's 1997 general election manifesto

Blair announced at the end of his speech at the 1994 Labour Party conference that he intended to replace Clause IV of the party's constitution with a new statement of aims and values. This involved the deletion of the party's stated commitment to "the common ownership of the means of production and exchange", which was widely interpreted as referring to wholesale nationalisation. The clause was replaced by a statement that the party is one of democratic socialism. A special conference approved this highly symbolic change in April 1995

New Labour: the Third Way

The Iraq War

Blair Hands Over Leadership of Labor Party

LONDON, June 24 — Long heralded and often rancorous, Britain’s transfer of power from Tony Blair entered its final countdown on Sunday when the governing Labor Party anointed Gordon Brown as his successor. The ceremonial crowning of Mr. Brown as the only candidate in a seven-week contest for the party leadership opens the way for a defining moment in his long rivalry with Mr. Blair, when the two men are to pay separate visits to Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday, Mr. Blair to quit as prime minister and Mr. Brown to take over.

On 10 May 2007, Blair announced during a speech at the Trimdon Labour Club in his Sedgefield constituency his intention to resign as both Labour Party leader and Prime Minister the following June.

On 24 June he formally handed over the leadership of the Labour Party to Gordon Brown at a special party conference in Manchester.

Blair tendered his resignation as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to the Queen on 27 June 2007, his successor Gordon Brown assuming office the same afternoon.

He also resigned his seat in the House of Commons in the traditional form of accepting the Stewardship of the Chiltern Hundreds to which he was appointed by Gordon Brown in one of the latter's last acts as Chancellor of the Exchequer It is impossible to resign from the UK Parliament, so this device is used for MPs wishing to step down.

http://jeffreyhill.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341d417153ef013487bdfaee970c-popup

Executives: PM --single most imp. player at apex of unitary govt. with powers not limited by courts or a written constitution:

But his power is not without limit:Rule of lawConfidence relationCabinet responsibilityPractical reasons Must call elections w/in 5 years and his part could be kicked outGlobalizationQuestion hourBack bench and rivalsCoalition Gov’t

Powers

1. Unitary Gov’t- the apex2. Vote of confidence3. can introduce legislation 4. majority in Parliament and party

discipline5. Decides election timing (Cameron

is currently changing this)6. sits in Parliament7. media increasing personalistic

nature (starting with Thatcher), question time

8. Chooses cabinet ministers and makes decisions with them

• By convention the Prime Minister is answerable to, and must maintain the support of, the House of Commons. Thus, whenever the office of Prime Minister falls vacant, the Sovereign appoints the person most likely to command the support of the House—normally, the leader of the largest party in the Lower House. (The leader of the second-largest party becomes the Leader of the Opposition or “Shadow Government”.) In modern times, by convention, the Prime Minister is always a member of the House of Commons, rather than the House of Lords.

•The Prime Minister may only stay in office as long as he or she retains the confidence of the House of Commons. The Lower House may indicate its lack of support for the Government by rejecting a Motion of Confidence, or by passing a Motion of No Confidence.

• Includes the Prime Minister and other ministers (each in charge of a major bureaucracy)

• Ministers = front benchers• Whitehall departments• Center of the policy making system• Unity is important- collective responsibility to keep party discipline

strong. Why?• Characteristics:1. Picked for party loyalty, not expertise2. Unlike US- make decisions as a whole3. Share __________ ____________a basic principle relating to the

decision making rules and procedures of the cabinet in parliamentary systems which requires that the cabinet and not the PM alone, assume responsibility for government policy and for directing the entire executive and that all cabinet members and senior sub cabinet level ministers publicly support all policy

• Those who break this are supposed to resign

Cabinet: aka the _________________ branch

Parliament's main roles are:• Examining and challenging the work of

the government (scrutiny)• Debating and passing all laws (legislation)• Enabling the government to raise taxes• Ultimate role: Confidence reln: select and

remove PM

http://www.parliament.uk/about/how/role.cfm

House Of Commons• 650 members (grows as population does)• Not as powerful as Congress- smaller staff, fewer committee, importance of party

discipline• Pick the PM- the leader of the majority party• Functions: Picking party leaders, debating legislation, communication between

voters and ministers (almost a linkage institution)• Vote on legislation but bills are actually written in Whitehall departments• Opposition parties face each other- two swords length apart!• Shadow Gov’t- cabinet of the minority party• Backbenchers- less influential MPs who do not have a cabinet position (trend-

declining party loyalty, ex: Labour MPs didn’t support Blair’s Iraq policy)• Intense debate- media attention and an informal check/balance (lack of formal

ones)• Party Discipline extremely important- if the majority party loses a vote of

confidence (key issue), tradition that cabinet resigns and a new election is called• Generous expense accounts- recent scandal so new restrictions

House of Lords• Bicameral but different- very little power• No fixed numbers• No party has a majority, ¼ crossbenchers (have no party affiliation)• Historically the most important house- started to decline during the 1700’s• Membership- only hereditary house in world1. Law lords- 5, historically highest court of appeals but not judicial review (can’t

declare Parliament acts as unconstitional)- replaced with Supreme Court in 2009

2. Hereditary Peers- half until 19993. Life Peers- appointed for distinguished service, not hereditary4. Church of England bishops (no sep of church and state)• 1999 Labour reforms- less Hereditary Peers- now only 92 compared to 567 Life

Peers• 2007- House of Commons tried to make it an elected chamber, • Powers: delay legislation, debate bills, amend legislation (but Commons can

overule with simple majority vote), but NO veto power

Britain Wonders if More Elections Equal More DemocracyPEER GROUP The House of Lords rejected calls to replace its life peers with ones elected to a single 15-year term.

Benches in the House of Commons Chamber are coloured green. In contrast, the House of Lords is decorated in red.

Parliament

Unequal Bicameralism: Can delay legislation (but not _________ bills) by rejecting it, so it has to go back to the H of C and go through the process again

Erosion of Parliamentary sovereignty?

devolution of power to regional assemblies in Scotland (Scottish Parliament), Wales (Welsh Assembly) and Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland Assembly). Although, since the UK is a unitary system, these assemblies are not sovereign, and the assemblies can be suspended, as has happened with the Northern Ireland Assembly. Still, such a decision would (currently) be highly unpopular with the electorate in both places.

EU law trumps British law,

the Human Rights Act 1998 incorporates the European Convention on human rights, and the European Court of Justice (ECJ) asserts the power to exercise judicial review over UK law

increasing use of referendums.

Supreme Court is separate

Courts

1. Supreme Court- only created in 2009 (Law Lords in the House of Lords used to be the highest court of appeals)

• Appointed• Limited powers- cannot declare acts of Parliament

unconstitional• Can only rule if Parliament has overstepped their authority

but ministers are granted broad powers (Parliamentary soverignty)

• President and 11 justices2. Devolution- Scotland has a separate court system but laws

are very similar to the rest of GB

Courts continued

3. have authority to protect people against improper implementation of laws and regulations . . . but can not overrule parliament (no judicial review—except maybe as a result of Human Rights Act)

4. common law system (as opposed to civil law) based on precedents

5. EU- judges can use EU standards and plaintiffs can use the European Court of Justice

6. 1998 Human Rights Act7. Freedom of Information Act8. 2005 London Tube bombings- some civil liberties have been

restricted

When Britain's highest court ruled that the government could not continue to indefinitely detain foreigners suspected of terrorism without charging or trying them, saying the practice violated the European human rights convention. A special panel of nine law lords of the House of Lords, ruled 8 to 1 that the unlimited detention policy was draconian, discriminated against foreigners and was unjustifiable, even in the face of possible terrorist attacks

Does it create Judicial Review?

The question came up in 2004

Belmarsh Prison, London has been called "Britain's Guantánamo" by human rights groups.

Mr Straw, who as home secretary introduced the Human Rights Act into British law in 1998, said that provisions in the legislation made clear that the final decisions on what the law should be were for MPs to make, not the courts. "We anticipated a situation where the senior courts of the land may decide that a provision in an act of parliament was incompatible with the human rights act," he told Today. "The final say on whether that act should remain in force was not given to the courts but given to parliament. "Nobody - and that includes senior judges - wanted a situation where suddenly we had made a supreme court supreme over parliament, rather than having a system which is fundamental to our system of democracy, having parliament as the ultimate arbiter on behalf of the British people." . . . Mr Straw said: "It would much better if we could simply live in a society where such threats didn't exist and we could deal with all threats in society through the normal court system. "Very sadly, we are not able to do so, and it is for that reason that parliament - and it is ultimately a matter for parliament - judged that these powers were appropriate and right."

Does it create Judicial Review?

This gave people living in the United Kingdom the right to enforce the European Convention on Human Rights in UK courts. It has had a dramatic effect on public bodies and on political debate. The Human Rights Act is not quite a written constitution, but to keep up the Jamie Oliver image it may only be short scooter ride away from the full monty.

Perhaps the most significant reform was the passing into law of the Human Rights Act.