Do Parties Matter Any More? Lower 6 politics

Key Issues Is there evidence of political parties being in long term decline? Have traditional parties lost their support? Do parties still play an important role? Has the importance of ideology in politics declined? What is consensus politics? How have the big two parties fared in recent years?

What are the reasons for the traditional parties losing their support Single issue protest politics Tuition fees Anti War Trident Expenses Scandal Financial irregularities almost the worse sin (‘on the fiddle’ / ‘taxpayers money’)

Globalisation making national decisions irrelevant Role of Europe / International organisations Technology / New Markets Britain’s diminishing role on global stage? Role of the Media Scandals Partisan publications continually looking for next story The dangers of being ‘on the record’ 24 hours a day

However….. Parties still represent the best way of recruiting prospective members of Parliament as in our current electoral system the Two ‘traditional’ big parties enjoy huge advantages come polling day Parties still have a vital and important role to play in British politics

A decline in ideology? Post World War Two – ‘end of ideology’ Francis Fukuyama – The End of History (1989) Broad acceptance of democratic values… changing priorities… Rise of Consensus politics

Britain since 1945 Consensus politics in general (mixed economy / welfare state / full employment / strong national defences) – McKensie (1955) ‘furious arguments about the issues that separate them’ However Pimlott (1989) ‘mirage.. Illusion…’ Used little before 1980, easier to detect in hindsight than at the time

1979-1997 Thatcherism – Rise of the ‘New Right’ Labour – Move to the left / 1983 key election Agenda had been moved firmly to the right (Role of markets / competition / Privatisation) Battle for the centre ground post 1992

1997-2010 Economic efficiency and Social justice ‘Hand in Hand’ – The Third Way An attempt to remove ideology and isolate the Conservative party as one stuck in the past and not representative of modern Britain's views Post credit crunch / election of Ed Miliband – a return to left / right divide? Impact of new parties (Nationalists / Greens…) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Way_(centrism)

Manifesto’s 2010 http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/interactive/2010/may/03/election-2010-manifesto-comparisons

Extended Task Summary Questions 1-3 (page 113) Revision Questions What fundamental changes have the Conservative and Labour parties made since 1979? Why are political parties important? What do the ‘alternative’ parties offer the British electorate? What are the main arguments for and against party funding in the UK? What are the fundamental difference in the organisational structure of the Conservative and Labour party – have things altered in recent years? Summary Questions 1-3 (page 113) Activities 1-2 (page 113) Look at the end of topic questions on page 114 – think about how you would answer each one of them