UK: Formation of Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government - full text
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On May 6 a general election was held to elect members to the House of Commons (the lower chamber of Parliament, the UK's bicameral legislature). The opposition Conservative Party under the leadership of David Cameron won the largest number of votes and seats, but fell 20 short of the 326 seats required to achieve an overall majority. It was the first time since 1974 that a UK general election had returned a hung parliament (i.e. a House of Commons in which no political party had an overall majority).
The Liberal Democrats, with 57 seats, emerged from the election with a pivotal role to play in the formation of a new government. Once the results had been announced, the Liberal Democrats, led by Nick Clegg, entered into coalition talks with the Conservative Party and the ruling Labour Party, the latter having won 258 seats, a loss of 91. On May 11, as the coalition talks between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats drew to a successful conclusion, Gordon Brown announced his resignation as prime minister, marking the end of 13 years of Labour government. Queen Elizabeth II invited Cameron to form a government and he was subsequently appointed prime minister during the evening of May 11. Cameron's new coalition cabinet included five Liberal Democrat ministers, including Clegg as deputy prime minister with special responsibility for political and constitutional reforms. It met for the first time on May 13.
Immediate Context
The general election was called by Prime Minister Brown on April 6, and Parliament was dissolved on April 12. All three main parties went into the election having changed leader since the last election in May 2005. Cameron became leader of the centre-right Conservative Party in December 2005, replacing Michael Howard. Brown succeeded Tony Blair as leader of the centre-left Labour Party and prime minister in June 2007. Clegg was elected as leader of the centrist Liberal Democrats in December 2007, succeeding Sir Menzies Campbell who had replaced Charles Kennedy in January 2006.
For the first time in a British election, the three main party leaders engaged in a series of televised debates, similar to those that preceded US presidential elections. The third largest party, the Liberal Democrats, achieved a breakthrough in opinion polls after the first debate broadcast on ITV on April 15 in which Nick Clegg was regarded as the strongest performer. Commenting on the debate, the left-of-centre The Guardian newspaper said that Clegg had "stole the first televised leaders' debate in British political history by offering himself up as the fresh and honest alternative to two tired old parties in an electrifying, fast-moving, 90-minute primetime broadcast". Clegg's "revelatory performance" had "the potential to change the political landscape". In the aftermath of the debates between the three leaders, the Liberal Democrats' poll ratings rose to the point where many commentators considered the possibility of a Liberal Democrat role in government. However, on polling day itself the Liberal Democrats' share of the vote increased by only 1 per cent, and they suffered a net loss of five seats. Nonetheless, the poor performance of the Labour Party and the Conservatives' inability to achieve a majority meant that Clegg was thrust into the position of kingmaker.
The full text of the coalition agreement reached by the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats was released on May 12. On the key issue of political reform, the parties agreed to the establishment of five year fixed-term parliaments. The new coalition government would put a binding motion before the House of Commons stating that the next general election would be held on the first Thursday of May 2015. Following this motion, legislation would be brought forward to make provision for fixed term parliaments of five years. This legislation would also provide for dissolution if 55 per cent or more of the House voted in favour.
The parties agreed to bring forward a Referendum Bill on electoral reform— a key demand of the Liberal Democrats—which included provision for the introduction of the Alternative Vote (AV) system in the event of a positive result in the referendum, as well as for the creation of fewer and more equal sized constituencies. Both parties would whip their parliamentary parties in both houses to support a simple majority referendum on AV, "without prejudice to the positions parties will take during such a referendum". In February, the House of Commons had approved a government amendment to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill providing for the holding of a referendum by October 2011 on whether the AV system should be introduced for parliamentary elections. In response to the furore which had greeted the revelations over MPs' expenses published by the Daily Telegraph in mid-2009, the coalition partners also agreed to bring forward early legislation to introduce a power of recall, allowing voters to force a by-election where an MP was found to have engaged in "serious wrongdoing". They also agreed to establish a committee to bring forward proposals for a wholly or mainly elected upper chamber on the basis of proportional representation.
On the economy, the parties agreed that deficit reduction and continuing to ensure economic recovery was "the most urgent issue facing Britain". They agreed that a plan for deficit reduction should be set out in an emergency budget to be held within 50 days. "Modest cuts" of 6 billion to non-front line services would be made within the financial year 2010-11. The parties agreed to hold a full Spending Review and a full Strategic Security and Defence Review. It was also agreed that the personal allowance for income tax should be increased in order to help lower and middle income earners. The increase in Employer National Insurance thresholds proposed by the Conservatives would go ahead in order to stop Labour's "jobs tax". They also agreed to a longer term policy objective of further increasing the personal allowance to 10,000, making further real terms steps each year towards this objective. The parties agreed that reform to the banking system was "essential to avoid a repeat of Labour's financial crisis, to promote a competitive economy, to sustain the recovery and to protect and sustain jobs". The parties also agreed to rule out joining the European Single Currency during the duration of the coalition agreement. They agreed that there should be an annual limit on the number of non-EU economic migrants admitted into the UK to live and work. The parties would consider jointly the mechanism for implementing the limit.
The new coalition cabinet included five senior Liberal Democrats: (i) Nick Clegg (deputy prime minister with special responsibility for political and constitutional reform); (ii) Vince Cable (secretary of state for business, innovation, and skills); Chris Huhne (secretary of state for energy and climate change); Danny Alexander (secretary of state for Scotland); and (v) David Laws (chief secretary to the treasury). Several leading Conservatives were moved, demoted or denied jobs to make way for Liberal Democrats. The most notable Conservative demotion was Chris Grayling, the former shadow home secretary, who had been criticised during the election campaign over remarks he had made about bed and breakfast owners having the right to turn away homosexual couples. Notable Conservative appointments included George Osborne as chancellor of the exchequer; former party leader William Hague as secretary of state for foreign and commonwealth affairs; former chancellor of the exchequer Kenneth Clarke as lord chancellor and secretary of state for justice; Theresa May as secretary of state for the home department and minister for women and equalities; Liam Fox as secretary of state for defence; and Iain Duncan Smith, another former party leader, as secretary of state for work and pensions. The new cabinet held its first meeting on May 13 at which ministers agreed to take a 5 per cent wage cut, as part of the government's commitment to reduce the cost of government.
Reaction and Outlook
US President Barack Obama telephoned Cameron on May 12 and told him that "the United States has no closer friend and ally than the United Kingdom". He reiterated his "deep and personal commitment to the special relationship between our two countries - a bond that has endured for generations and across party lines, and that is essential to the security and prosperity of our two countries, and the world". In his message of congratulations to Cameron, European Commission President Jos Manuel Barroso said: "Many of the challenges ahead - delivering economic recovery, fighting global poverty, tackling climate change, ensuring energy security, - are common across the European Union and require a common response. I look forward to working closely with you on these and other issues, such as boosting the internal market and promoting smarter regulation, more transparency and greater accountability in the European Union".
Commentators were generally agreed that the new Conservative-Liberal Democrat government would be forced to deal with a myriad of external and internal strains. Commenting on the prospect of a coalition government during the election campaign, Theresa May—then Conservative shadow secretary of state for work and pensions—told the BBC that only a party with a clear majority could deal with the country's problems. She said that "discussing every issue as it came up ... means delay, it means you don't get the clear decisions, what you get is haggling behind the scenes".
Cameron's new coalition government took control of a country fighting a brutal war in Afghanistan, an issue which could become a key dividing point within the coalition. The Liberal Democrats were much less enthusiastic about the war and might oppose any further requests by NATO for an increase in troop numbers. The coalition might also face an upsurge in dissident republican violence in Northern Ireland, with several attacks in recent months including a large car bomb outside a courthouse in Newry, Co. Down, in February. Social and labour unrest was also a concern for the new government, especially given the scale of austerity measures facing the country. Companies such as British Airways were already facing industrial action, which could spread to the public sector. The relatively Eurosceptic Conservatives and more Europe-friendly Liberal Democrats could also fracture over relations with the EU.
The first hurdle for the new government to overcome would be the Queen's Speech on May 25. The terms of the coalition deal should ensure its passage, although some commentators noted that it might be a relatively minimalist programme shorn of anything that might disturb the fragile balance on either side of the divide. In a stable coalition, legislation often passed through the legislature relatively easily because the deal generally delivered majorities in both Houses of Parliamen. However, it is believed that the Conservatives would want to press ahead with major reforms promised in their manifesto, which the Liberal Democrats might not want to back. If the coalition fell, Cameron could either move forwards as a minority government or, more likely, ask the Queen for a dissolution and call another election at which the Conservatives would hope to secure an outright majority.
The Conservatives had pledged an emergency budget within 50 days if they defeated Labour in the election, and the Liberal Democrats agreed to proceed with the plan. The terms of the budget would be a the key to credibility with both investors and credit ratings agencies, who had threatened to strip the UK of its AAA credit rating if public debt was not reined in. During the election campaign, the Conservatives had periodically made explicit comparisons to the fiscal crisis in Greece, something they would be expected to stop doing once they were in office. However, analysts agreed that investors would want to see a properly costed tax plan, detailed spending proposals and a clear strategy to reduce the deficit. Credit rating agencies had held off any moves until after the election, but any downgrade or outlook change could seriously hurt sterling, gilts and filter through to stocks.
Following the announcement of the new coalition government, Gordon Brown stood down as Labour Party leader, ushering in a leadership battle expected to be between former Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary David Miliband, his brother Ed Miliband—the former Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change—and perceived more leftist contender Ed Balls amongst others. How quickly Labour could reassert itself as a credible opposition or possible government would impact on expectations of how long the current coalition government might last.
Historical Context
The history of the United Kingdom as a unified sovereign state began with the political union of the kingdoms of England, which included Wales, and Scotland on May 1, 1707, in accordance with the Treaty of Union, as ratified by the Acts of Union 1707. The Union created the United Kingdom of Great Britain, which shared a single constitutional monarch and a single legislature in London. A further Act of Union in 1800 added the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922, following the creation of the Irish Free State, the UK changed its formal title to the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".
The system of political parties began to develop in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, with the emergence of the Tories and the Whigs, which had by the mid-19th century evolved into the Conservative and Liberal parties, respectively. In the 1920s the Liberal Party became replaced by the Labour Party as the principal alternative to the Conservatives. During World War 1, the country was governed by all-party coalitions led by Herbert Henry Asquith and David Lloyd George.
The 1920s saw the Liberals, Conservatives and Labour contest four elections--1922, 1923, 1924 and 1929--on relatively equal terms. Only two of these contests saw a party win a working Commons majority. The minority Labour government elected in 1929 and supported by the Liberals ended in 1931 after the cabinet split over how best to balance the budget. Prime Minister Ramsey MacDonald was however persuaded that the world recession required him to form a coalition government including all Conservatives, some Liberals and a small number from his own party. This National Government went on to win the October 1931 general election. MacDonald, in failing health, resigned as prime minister in June 1935 and was replaced by Conservative leader Stanley Baldwin. The general election of November 1935 returned a nominal "National" government dominated by the Conservatives. The next election had been due to be held not later than late 1940, but upon the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 legislation was enacted providing for the extension of the current Parliament on a year-by-year basis. Upon the outbreak of the war, Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain formed a War Cabinet which saw the return of Winston Churchill as First Lord of the Admiralty. In May 1940 Chamberlain resigned as prime minister and was replaced by Churchill at the head of a new War Cabinet which included the Conservatives (and their associates), the Labour Party and the Liberals, which continued until May 1945, shortly after the end of the war in Europe. Over the 1939-45 coalition period an electoral "truce" had existed between the main parties whereby in the event of a by-election being necessary the only coalition party to nominate a candidate was that of the outgoing or deceased member.
The first post-war election in July 1945 resulted in a massive swing to Labour, which emerged with an overall majority of nearly 150 and which accordingly formed the first majority Labour government (those of 1923-24 and of 1929-31 having been minority governments dependant upon support from other parties, principally the Liberals). Labour called an early general election in October 1951 but failed to increase its narrow majority and the Conservatives, under Churchill, formed the next government with the help of the National Liberals. The Conservatives' 13-year period of continued office was ended in the general election of October 1964 when Labour obtained a narrow overall majority of four. The precarious Labour majority led Prime Minister Harold Wilson to go to the country in March 1966 and Labour achieved an overall majority of nearly 100. Labour, in power for nearly six years, was defeated in a general election in June 1970 and the Conservatives, led by Edward Heath, formed a Conservative government with an overall majority of 31 seats. The international oil crisis of late 1973 and industrial action in the coal industry in the winter of 1973-74 led to the declaration of a state of emergency and to imposed short-time working in the UK, and Health sought a renewed mandate in an election held in February 1974. The election failed to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons, instead producing a hung parliament. After negotiations with the Liberals, Labour leader Wilson decided to form a single-party minority Labour government. As leader of a minority government, Wilson made it clear that he would seek an early dissolution, and in the ensuing election in October 1974 http://www.keesings.com/search?kssp_a_id=26767n01uki&kssp_selected_tab=article Labour achieved a narrow overall majority of three. In 1977-78 the Labour government (led since April 1976 by James Callaghan) was dependent upon formal support from the Liberals, via the Lib-Lab Pact. The May 1979 general election ushered in a prolonged period of Conservative government under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990) and John Major (1990-1997). Labour won an emphatic victory in the May 1997 general election and remained in power until May 2010.
