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  • Politics

United Kingdom - Politics

Key facts

  • Last Elections: May 2005
  • Next Elections: 2010
  • Head of State: HM Queen Elizabeth II
  • Head of Government: Prime Minister Gordon Brown
  • Ruling Party: Labour Party

Led by Tony Blair, Labour won the May 1997 elections with the largest majority in its history – 418 seats, against 165 Conservatives, 46 Liberal Democrats and 30 others (mainly representing nationalist interests in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland). Blair became prime minister. John Major resigned as Conservative leader and was replaced by the former Welsh Secretary, William Hague.

Referendums over the introduction of a certain level of self-government were held in September 1997. The Scottish referendum produced a strong majority for a separate parliament (74%) with limited tax-raising powers (63% majority) on a turnout of over 60%. In Wales, the result was a narrow majority, on a low poll, for a Welsh Assembly.

The first elections to the new Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly were held on 6 May 1999. Labour emerged as the largest party in each legislature, although without an overall majority in either. The elections were the first to be held in Great Britain under a system of proportional representation.

In the general election in June 2001 – 11 months before the full five-year term – in a record low turnout, the Labour Party won a decisive victory with 413 seats and 41% of the votes; the Conservatives took 166 seats (32%) and the Liberal Democrats 52 (18%). Hague resigned as Conservative leader and was replaced by the former shadow defence secretary, Iain Duncan Smith. Then, in November 2003, following a no-confidence vote of Conservative MPs, he, in turn, was succeeded by shadow chancellor of the exchequer, Michael Howard.

Immediately after the terrorist attacks in the United States on 11 September 2001, the UK lent its total support to the US Government in building a broad coalition to fight international terrorism, then in military operations in Afghanistan from October 2001 and Iraq from March 2003.

In the hard-fought May 2005 general election, the Labour Party won fewer seats (356) than in 2001, and received a reduced share of the votes (35.2%); while both the Conservatives (with 197 seats and 32.3%) and the Liberal Democrats (with 62 seats and 22.0%) made gains. At 61.3%, voter turnout was only 2% higher than in 2001 and this was mainly due to an increase in postal voting. In December 2005 shadow education minister David Cameron became Conservative Party leader. In June 2007 Blair was succeeded as Labour Party leader and prime minister by Gordon Brown, who was the only candidate.

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