Summary
Summary Political Parties AS/A level revision notes
- Course
- Institution
Political parties revision notes
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
ojasbinilohani
Content preview
Political PartiesWhat is a political party?
•An organisation of people with similar political values and views which develops a set of
goals and policies that it seeks to convert into political action by obtaining office, or a share
in government, or by
influencing the government currently in power
• It may pursue its goals by mobilising public opinion in its favour, selecting candidates for
office, competing at elections and identifying suitable leaders
Key features of political parties
• Members share similar political values and views
• Seek to have their candidates elected as
representatives
• Seek to form a government (local, regional, national)
• Have an organisation that develops policy, recruits candidates and identifies leaders
What are the functions of political
parties?
• Representation
• Participation
• Recruiting office holders
• Formulating policy
• Political education
• Providing government
How should political parties be
funded?
•MPs are paid from general taxation
• Their basic annual salary in April 2022 was £84,144—in April 2016 it was £74,692
• They are also allowed to claim expenses to cover the cost of running an office, living in
Westminster and their constituency, and travelling between the two
• However, in the UK there has been resistance to state funding of parties (a practice that
happens in some other countries)
More ways:
•Parties must meet most of their election costs from
– The voluntary subscriptions of their membership
– Fundraising events in MPs’ constituencies
– Donations from individuals and organisations
• A vast majority of the Conservative Party's donations come from
individuals: 68% during the 2019 election campaign
• During the 2019 general election campaign, 93% of Labour Party donations came from
trade unions
• In 2015-17 financial companies donated £11.3m and property companies donated £3.6m to
the Conservatives
• Angus Fraser, a hedge fund manager, donated £1.4m
, • The Unite trade union donated £1.6 million to the Labour Part in 2020 and UNISON
donated £376,242 to Labour
However…
Party funding has been a controversial area because of the suspicion that powerful interests
offer financial support in return for political influence.
– The Conservatives have been the party of big business
– Labour has traditionally been funded by the trade unions
– ‘New Labour’ (1994–2010) were partly funded by donations from successful individuals as
Labour became friendlier towards the business community
– The Liberal Democrats (the least well-funded of the main UK parties) often criticise their
opponents for being bankrolled by the wealthy.
How do we stop people buying influence?
• Political Parties, Elections and
Referendums Act (2000)
– An independent electoral commission was set up to supervise party spending on election
campaigns
– The amount that a party could spend was capped at £30,000 in a constituency
– Donations of more than £5,000 (nationally) or £1,000 (to a constituency party) had to be
declared, and parties had to publish details of donations at regular intervals
– Donations from individuals not on the UK electoral roll were banned
Should parties be funded by the state?
•There is already some state funding of parties:
– The main political parties receive a share of £2m in Policy Development Grants to pay
policy advisors
– Short money is given to opposition parties to fund parliamentary work
• Labour receives £6.7m a year, the SNP receives £1.2m
• UKIP rejected its £500k in 2015, claiming it was corrupt and favoured big parties
•It is unlikely that party funding will change:
– Labour and the Liberal Democrats
suggested limiting donations in 2015 but…
• The Conservatives stood to lose most from such a move so would not agree
– In the 2016 Trade Union Act, the Conservatives tried to limit Labour’s funding from trade
unions by making new trade-union members choose whether to ‘opt in’ to making payments
towards
the Labour Party
• Labour peers rejected this in the HoL
What are current Conservative policies?
•Thatcherism is based on the ideas of
The New Right.This consists of…
-Neoliberalism:
→a small state
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller ojasbinilohani. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $7.62. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
59783 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now