Party political system

the party political system, which has existed since the seventeenth century. Since 1945 there have been seven Labour and eight Conservative governments in Britain. Some have had large majorities in the House of Commons, while others have had small ones. The great majority of the MPs in the House of Commons belong to either the Conservative or the Labour Party, which are the largest political parties. This division emphasizes thecontinuation of the traditional two-party system in British politics. The Labour Party has traditionally gathered its support from the trade unions, the working class and some middle-class backing. The Conservative Party has traditionally regarded itself as a national party. Conservative Party has also become more radical in recent years, and has departed from what used to be considered as the consensus view of British politics. The party's support comes mainly from business interests and the middle and upper classes. Smaller political parties also have some representation in the House of Commons. Among these have been the Liberals and Social Democrats. Other small parties such as the Greens and Communist Party, as well as publicity-seeking fringe groups, may also contest a general election. But a party which does not achieve a certain number of votes in the election loses its deposit - the sum paid when a party registers to fight an election. An innovation in British party politics during 1982-7 was the emergence of the Alliance as an electoral force. This was formed by the co-operation for electoral purposes of the Liberals and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). The Alliance gained substantial support in public opinion polls. But it did not make a comparable breakthrough into national politics and the House of Commons. The Liberals and the SDP saw themselves in this period as an alternative political force to the Conservative and Labour Parties. They tried to 'break the traditional two-party system. In 1988 a majority of the two parties merged into one party called the Social and Liberal Democratic Party. The party which wins most parliamentary seats at a general election, or which has the support of a majority of MPs in the House of Commons, usually forms the new government. Once the results of a general election are known, the majority party in the Commons normally forms the new government, and the largest minority party becomes the official opposition. The opposition has its own leader and 'shadow government'. The opposition parties may try to overthrow the government by defeating it on a 'vote of no confidence' or a 'vote of censure'. The opposition parties consequently attempt to influence the formation of national policies by their criticism of pending legislation; by trying to obtain concessions on bills by proposing amendments to them; and by striving to increase support for their performance and policies inside and outside the Commons. They take advantage of any publicity and opportunity which they think might improve their chances at the next general election. Inside Parliament, party discipline is exercised by the Whips, who are chosen from party MPs by the party leaders, and who are normally under the direction of a Chief Whip. Their duties include informing members of forthcoming parliamentary business; maintaining the party's voting strength in the Commons by seeing that their members attend all important debates or are 'paired' with the opposition. Outside Parliament, party control rests with the national and local party organizations, which can be very influential.

<== попередня сторінка	\|	наступна сторінка ==>
The parliamentary electoral system	\|	The government

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