To what extent have the parties involved in the Conservative- Liberal Democrat coalition remained faithful, since 2010, to principles and ideas?

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To what extent have the parties involved in the Conservative- Liberal Democrat coalition remained faithful, since 2010, to principles and ideas.

The Conservative party and the Liberal Democrats formed a coalition after the 2010 general election as a result of a hung parliament. Whilst both parties have remained faithful to some election promises, both have had to compromise. The Liberal Democrats have succeeded in their aims of raising the pre tax threshold and scrapping the ID card scheme, but have had to compromise on constitutional reform. The Conservative party have kept their commitment to reduce the role of the state through their 'Big Society' scheme, as well as their commitment to favour enterprise and support the business sector, however they have not increased prison capacity.

In their election manifesto, the Liberal Democrats (LD) made a pledge to raise the threshold at which at which people start paying income tax to £10000, which edges towards social liberalism, the idea that through economic management and welfare provision, the freedom of the individual can be increased. The agreement of the Conservative party to implement this policy shows how the party has moved away from Thatcher's retraction of the welfare state, and the 'New Right', towards a 'One Nation' stance, pioneered by Ken Clarke, the idea being that economic progress can be achieved through a Keynesian commitment to the welfare state. The LD have also kept their pledge to scrap the ID card scheme, which follows on from their pledge to introduce a Bill of Rights to protect individual rights. The LD have also implemented their pupil premium, extra financial support aimed at the poorest school children. This once again is a move back to social liberalism, and emphasis on freedom of the individual.

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In their manifesto, the Liberal Democrats pledged constitutional reform, most notably the use of STV for all UK elections and giving 16-year-olds the right to vote and stand for election. Whilst the coalition did hold a referendum on changing the electoral system, it was for the use of AV, not STV, which has fundamentally led to the LD not remaining faithful to their ideas on constitutional reform. The LD have also failed to implement their policy to scrap tuition fees over six years. Tuition fees actually increased to £9000 per year, which lead to anger from many students towards ...

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