Political Ideologies Pt. 2

Political Ideologies and National Parties


Conservatives believe in a well-ordered society based on the personal responsibility of individuals. National traditions and patriotism are important to conservatives. They are suspicious of government and have therefore traditionally supported a limited role for the state. i.e. The state should not get too involved in matters it doesn't need to.
The creation and preservation of personal wealth and property are cornerstones of conservative thinking. For example, conservatives believe in a free market and believe government should not intervene with businesses.

Socialism:

Socialism consists of a variety of views on the left of the political spectrum. At the heart of the ideology is a belief in equality, which many argue can only be brought about by the ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange. The elimination of poverty and social deprivation and the eradication of the causes of inequality are all aspirations that are pursued by socialists.

Liberalism:

Liberals believe in the primacy of individual rights which should only be restricted, according to Liberals, if they infringe on on the rights of others. Personal freedoms are crucial to Liberal Philosophy.

National Parties:
British politics has been dominated by the Labour and Conservative parties since the Second World War. Below is a summary of the three main political parties in the UK and what they stand for.

The Labour Party:

Currently the Labour party exists as a centre ground Political Party. However, the Labour Party does hold on to some left wing beliefs such as redistribution of wealth, Public Spending (the Labour government has spent more on public spending than any other government), heavy taxation and increasing worker's rights. Nonetheless, the Labour Party's flexibility was well illustrated when it abandoned clause IV of its constitution which committed the party to nationalisation.

The Conservative Party:

The Conservative Party is a traditionally right wing, however, the conservatives too have shown flexibility in becoming, to some extent,a centre ground Party. For example, David Cameron has re looked the Tory stance on healthcare and has promised to match the spendings of Labour on the NHS for the first two years after the next General Election. Nonetheless most Conservative policies are synonymous to the political ideology of Conservatism above. For example, the Conservative Party support harsh punishments for criminals and call for a robust response to crime.

The Liberal Democrat Party:

The Liberal Democrat Party and its policies are synonymous to Liberalism. The Liberal Democrats believe in rebalancing the tax system to ensure that the radically rich who exploit tax loopholes are made to pay their fair share, and also intend to get the Bank of England to take into account house prices when setting interest rates.




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