Politics Case Studies

Paper 1: UK Politics - Democracy & Participation

• The features of direct democracy: 2016 Brexit Referendum - 72% turnout.
• The features of representative democracy: 2019 turnout - 67%.
• The similarities between direct democracy and representative democracy: 2019 European Parliament Elections and similarity to the 2016 Brexit Referendum.
• The differences between direct democracy and representative democracy: Conservative and Labour Big Beasts and the side they supported during the 2016 Brexit Referendum.
• Advantages of direct democracy: 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum - turnout 85%.
• Disadvantages of direct democracy: 2011 AV Referendum - 42% turnout.
• Advantages of representative democracy: the 2019 General Election as a confirmatory referendum resolving Brexit, e.g. Labour's vote fell on average by more than 10 points in the most pro-Leave areas.
• Disadvantages of representative democracy: 2009 Parliamentary Expenses Scandal.
• Debates over suffrage: 75% of 16 and 17 year olds voted in the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum - the highest turnout by age category.
• The work of a current movement to extend the franchise: In 2013, Liberty submitted written evidence to the Joint Committee on the Draft Voting Eligibility (Prisoners) Bill.
• How different pressure groups exert influence and how their methods and influence vary: the impact and tactics of Vote Leave in 2016.
• Thinks tanks, lobbyists and corporations, and their influence on government and Parliament: 2014 Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act.
• Debates on the extent, limits and tensions within the UK’s rights-based culture: 2018 Supreme Court ruling on Lee v Ashers Baking Company Ltd.
• The work of two contemporary civil liberties pressure groups: Votes at 16; the Open Rights Group.

Paper 1: UK Politics - Political Parties

• The functions and features of political parties in the UK’s representative democracy: in a 2017 survey by Handard 38% believed parliament was doing a good job of representing their interests.
• How parties are currently funded and debates on the consequences of the current funding system: the Conservatives raised £2.5m from 4th-10th December 2019; Labour raised £165,471.
• The Conservative Party: 2019 General Election Manifesto.
• The Labour Party: 2019 General Election Manifesto.
• The Liberal Democrat Party: 2019 General Election Manifesto.
• The importance of other parties in the UK: the fate of Change UK.
• The ideas and policies of two other minor parties: 2019 Green Party General Election Manifesto; 2019 Scottish National Party Manifesto.
• The development of a multi-party system and its implications for government: the Brexit Party secured first place in the 2019 European Parliament Elections with 29 seats.
• Explanations of why political parties have succeeded or failed: the Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party sued ITV in 2019 legal over their exclusion from the Leaders Debate.

Paper 1: UK Politics - Electoral Systems

• Northern Ireland government shutdown. From 2017 it’s been suspended due to Single Transferable Vote.
• “The number of MPs a party has in Westminster rarely reflects the number of votes the party's candidates received.” Electoral Reform Society.
• 2015 – Belfast South – this was won with only 24.5% of the vote.
• In 2005, only 1/3 of all Constituencies were actually won with more than 50% of the vote.
• In 2017, the “safest seats” were for Labour and in Liverpool (X3 seats.
• AMS allows for more local representation. in the Glasgow region in 2011, 3 Labour, 2 SNP, 1 Conservative and 1 Green MSP were elected.
• Results under different systems: Conservatives would have won under FPTP, AV and AMS but would not have had a majority in any. Labour would have won under STV, but without a majority.
• Electoral Systems by country: England – FPTP, Scotland – AMS, Wales – AMS, Northern Ireland – STV.
• Referendums – 10 since 1997. Turnouts range from 34% to 85%.
• Electoral Reform Society – campaigning for move away from FPTP to a Proportional Representative system.

Paper 1: UK Politics - Voting Behaviour and the Media

• 2019 Local elections – a growth from middle income earners voting for the Liberal Democrats.
• 2017. Class ABC1 voted 44% Conservative compared to 40% Labour.
• 2017. Women vote evenly across Labour and Conservative. Men vote 45% to 39% Conservative.
• Most Conservative newspapers. Express, Mail, Telegraph (all above 75% Conservative voters).
• Late 1990s – Class Dealignment becomes a major issue.
• Ethnicity – more likely to vote Liberal or Labour. But now being mitigated by class and income as a driving factor
• Age – For every 10 years you age, your chance of voting Conservative increases by 9%.
• Gender – fluctuates. Typically women voted Labour / Liberal with men voting conservative. Thatcher gained a lot of female voters. Now being mitigated by impact of employment and class.
• Employment Status – Labour wins with full-time students or those new to work. Conservative leads with retirees. Both parties share a roughly equal share of full-time workers.
• Class – typically AB1 voters turn towards conservative with strong links to their employment status and income. C1, C2 and D typically vote Labour with connections to benefits and support, however Thatcher won a lot of support from this group with her 1979 election promises.
• Education – ties in with class and income. Higher levels of education on their own don’t show much trend, but with class and income there is more connection.
• Opinion polls – have not predicted successfully the outcome of 2015 election, 2017 election or 2016 EU referendum.

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