Does Britain have a two party system?
To examine whether Britain has a two party system we must first determine what a two party system is and what its features are. There are five main features of a two party system: The first is that the two main parties must have a parity of power; that is they must both have similar amounts of seats in the Commons when looked at over a large period of time. The second is that they both must enjoy a parity support; that is they must gain roughly the same percentage of votes over a large period of time. The two main parties must also have a duopoly of support and a duopoly of representation in the Commons. Lastly, all these factors must apply across the nation in every constituency. Now we must answer the question to what extent do these factors apply to Britain? As well as discussing whether other Party systems apply to Britain and whether the same applies to other elections in Britain such as for the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament.
The most important feature of a two party system is the existence of two parties equally capable of governing alone. These parties must alternate in Government. From 1945 to 1970, the Tories governed for thirteen years whilst Labour governed for twelve. Despite this there are also long periods of uninterrupted rule such as 1951 - 1964 and 1979 - 1997. So to some extent there is a parity of power but the Conservatives have been in government the most.
To examine whether Britain has a two party system we must first determine what a two party system is and what its features are. There are five main features of a two party system: The first is that the two main parties must have a parity of power; that is they must both have similar amounts of seats in the Commons when looked at over a large period of time. The second is that they both must enjoy a parity support; that is they must gain roughly the same percentage of votes over a large period of time. The two main parties must also have a duopoly of support and a duopoly of representation in the Commons. Lastly, all these factors must apply across the nation in every constituency. Now we must answer the question to what extent do these factors apply to Britain? As well as discussing whether other Party systems apply to Britain and whether the same applies to other elections in Britain such as for the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament.
The most important feature of a two party system is the existence of two parties equally capable of governing alone. These parties must alternate in Government. From 1945 to 1970, the Tories governed for thirteen years whilst Labour governed for twelve. Despite this there are also long periods of uninterrupted rule such as 1951 - 1964 and 1979 - 1997. So to some extent there is a parity of power but the Conservatives have been in government the most.