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This paper argues that agenda/opinion dynamics should be represented in the form of an error-correction model, where political agendas and public opinion coexist in a long-run equilibrium that is subject to short-run corrections. As such, responsiveness is theorised as an interdependent relationship between the political agenda and public opinion, where dynamic effects include both short-run corrections (i.e. negative feedback) and long-run equilibrium forces/friction. This paper considers time series data for the United Kingdom for the period between 1959 and 2001 on the content of the legislative agenda articulated in the Queen's Speech at the opening of each parliamentary session, coded according to the framework of the Policy Agendas project (see Baumgartner and Jones 1991; 1993; Jones and Baumgartner 2005), plus reconstituted public opinion data on Gallup's "most important problem" from British Political Opinion 1937 - 2001 (King et al 2001) and the original Gallup Index. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the current behaviour of government MPs in the British House of Commons, from the 2005 election to the Summer recess in 2006. Labour backbench rebellion so far in the 2005 parliament is running at the rate of a rebellion in 27 per cent of divisions. If Labour MPs keep that up, this session is on target to be the most rebellious first session of any post-war parliament, and the parliament will be on target to be the most rebellious parliament of the post-war era. The paper explains where this rebellion has come from (not where all commentators think) and the consequences for the rest of the parliament (not - yet - as serious as it could be). ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper addresses the problem of explanation in comparative politics. Accepting the principles of methodological individualism, the analysis equates social mechanism with the general class of explanatory principles. Successful explanations join social mechanisms with rigorous empirical analyses. Advances in statistical modeling allow the application of these methods of detailing and defending the validity of the empirical claims to complex, reciprocal, and multi-level political phenomena, the stuff of comparative politics. The paper illustrates these general principles. It offers theoretical support for reciprocal political influence in households and it tests this interpretation against alternative social mechanisms, matters of importance in the politics of Germany and Britain, and it employs appropriate statistical methods to model these complex reciprocal relationships. More generally, seeking to demonstrate the power of the explanation offered -and not just to offer a plausible account or a story in line with theoretical principles the explanatory power of its claims -the analysis insists on the need of both social mechanisms and rigorous empirical tests. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current literature suggests that Britain’s major parties traditionally have had weak relations with their MEPs, and only limited control of their legislative behavior. However, since the growth in codecision power of the European Parliament, the Labour and Conservative Parties have, in fact, created coordination systems to provide control of MEP legislative decisions. The paper outlines a model based on these new coordination systems, and the rewards and sanctions created to provide greater control. The paper concludes with discussion of implications of this change for the national parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper surveys the changing role and position of the Foreign Secretary in British government since 1974 in nine stages. First, it discusses the background, appointments and careers of Foreign Secretaries in this period. Next, it compares and contrasts the Foreign Secretaryship with other ministerial positions before going on to analyse the heavy demands placed on the Foreign Secretary. The fourth section examines the relationship between the Foreign Secretary and officials in the Foreign Office, discussing also the assistance given to the Foreign Secretary by the junior ministers and special advisers appointed to the department. The role of the Foreign Secretary in relation to the security and intelligence services is the subject of the fifth section. The role and power of the Foreign Secretary can only be understood in the context of the relationship between him and the Prime Minister, and the ups and downs in that crucial relationship since 1974 are analysed in the next section of the paper, leading in to a discussion of the Foreign Secretary’s position in the Cabinet. Before concluding, the paper discusses the role of the Foreign Secretary in parliament. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the span of abortion politics in Great Britain from the enactment of the 1967 Abortion Act through legislative activities in the 1990s. The paper is drawn from research on Britain I conducted as part of the project of the Research Network on Gender Politics and the State (RNGS), a cross national study of women’s movement impact on the state in post-industrial democracies and the role of women’s policy agencies in opening up the policy making process to women and women’s interests (Stetson 2001a). This project covers policy debates in several areas in addition to abortion: job training, political representation, prostitution and priority issues of the 1990s (RNGS 2002). The goal of the paper is to determine if there is a ?typical? British pattern of abortion politics by examining three policy debates that typify the British political system’s response to the competing interests over the regulation of the procedure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health makes up nearly half of each devolved government’s budget, unfailingly wins headlines, and across the UK is perceived to be in a state of crisis. It has thus been thrust into the headlines across the four countries, and has been the subject of heated debates. How this important policy sector is governed sheds light on what can and will be changed by devolved assemblies, and the divergence already showing between countries with similar baselines until 1998 provides a natural experiment in the mechanics of policy formation. This paper examines the divergence from two perspectives. First, it looks at the areas where there has been change and where policy and practice has remained the same, highlighting the continuing similarity in regulation and financing and the important divergence in governance, accountability and formal oversight. It explains this continuity, present and past divergence, and changes in countries’ trajectories by analyzing the relationship between the strengths of policy advocacy coalitions and the political opportunity structures of the four systems. Rather than being four systems "moving apart" or "holding together," health policy in the UK should be seen as multi-arena politics in which some groups win in some places. Check author’s web site for an updated version of the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reveals a strategic tension between the gains parties accrue by moving towards the median voter and the losses they incur when they converge with other parties. I predict that parties lose more votes to abstention and voter volatility when they converge than they gain from moderating their policies, and hence the implications of 'indifference' outweigh those from 'alienation'. Using British Election Study data these expectations are tested in the 2005 British general election when voters perceived minimal differences between the major parties. The findings reveal that the Labour party lost votes due to perceived policy similarities and that these losses outweighed those votes gained from its spatial location. However, the Liberal Democrat party benefited, suggesting that Britain's two-and-a-half party system significantly alters the logic of Down's two-party spatial theory. The implications are important for theories of party competition. Vote-seeking politicians will diverge rather converge due to voter indifference, contrary to existing theoretical predictions. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What aspects of prime-ministerial personality, skill or style matter and make a difference to politics and government? What qualities have served well or poorly in Number 10 Downing Street? This paper applies the model developed by Fred Greenstein in his book "The Presidential Difference" to analyse prime-ministerial performance and the strengths and weaknesses of British prime ministers since 1945 in terms of: (1) their proficiency as public communicators, (2) organisational capacity, (3) political skill, (4) policy vision, (5) cognitive style and (6) emotional intelligence. There is at least as much to be learned from their failures and limitations in these terms as from their successes and strengths. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares the "official stories" of political party finance in the United Kingdom and Germany to explore similarities and differences in the ways that party financing affects democratic governance. It looks at the 2 biggest parties in each of these countries, and asks what the patterns of giving may indicate about the motivations of the donors. this cross-national comparison highlights the British patterns of what looks like donors' pursuit of selective benefits, with a few donors giving at very high levels, with the governing party reaping disproportionate rewards, and with few donors giving across the political spectrum. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Quangos" (quasi-autonomous, non-governmental organizations) are ubiquitous in British policymaking, often assailed as lacking a direct accountability to the electorate given their quasi-independent status. This paper argues that quangos provide an avenue for understanding the "personal vote" and political control of administrative policymaking in Britain. Quangos deal in policies that directly impact particularistic aspects of a member's constituency. Moreover, governments can expend political capital, gleaned through electoral support, to influence quangos when actions raise more universal policy issues. Statistical analysis of 246 British quangos observed from 2001-2005, suggests that increases in backbench salience (personal vote) and public satisfaction with government (government strength) increase the transparency by which quangos make decisions, thus decreasing their independence. Public satisfaction with the status quo of public service provision, by contrast, decreases transparency, increasing independence. These results suggest that far from being independent, quasigovernmental organizations are subject to political control through well-known channels. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to give a practitioner perspective on the influence of American campaign techniques on British politics. My view is that US electioneering methods have certainly influenced UK elections, but it is important to acknowledge the limits of that influence, and look at how other factors have shaped the approach and style of modern British campaigns. Moving forward, it is also useful to look at how changes in US political campaigning are likely to influence British politics in the near future. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the ambiguities in Montesquieu's account of the British Constitution paying particular attention to the role of history in the development of parliamenatary sovereignty in Britain. We argue that Montesquieu is much more critical of British constitutionalism than is typically supposed, and that his version of an ideal or best regime would be an "Anglo-Gothic" constitutional order combining the British principle of horizontal separation of powers with the Gothic principle of a vertical devolution of power. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the UK should be veiwed as a state of unions rather than a unitary or even union state and that this has implications for citizenship. Devolved governnment entrenches distinct aspects of distinct citizneship. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the last year in British politics with an emphasis on government, complementing Anthony King’s presentation on politics. It covers the tense relationship between Prime Minister Blair and Chancellor Brown; the Butler Report; the role of the Bank of England in economic policy-making; the effective delivery of public services, especially health; and the role of Britain in the EU. It concludes by suggesting that there is a new upsurge of populist opposition to the political class in Britain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the issue of differential levels of electoral participation at national, sub-national and supra-national elections within Britain. Electoral turnout is regarded as a key indicator of civic engagement in systems of multi-level governance. Using a combination of aggregate and individual level data it describes a process of electoral turnout decline from the late 1970s onwards. Britain is unusual for the range in recorded turnout for different types of election and various explanations for this are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Britain has frequently been portrayed as a ?reluctant European?. But does this mean that it is also a reluctant supranationalist? This question is explored: (a) by contextualising the type of supranationalism experienced within the European Union by reference to a range of other examples; (b) by examining historic British attitudes to supranationalism, and British experience of supranational entities on rather different lines from that of the EU. In the process issues of sovereignty, management and accountability within supranational entities are also considered. The paper concludes by arguing that Britain is not a reluctant supranationalist. The key variable is seen as the way in which sovereignty is handled ambiguously in the EU, whilst it is argued that supranationalism in the British imagination and experience has used ambiguity for other purposes, but the locus of sovereignty has been clear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is widespread agreement amongst commentators on British politics that devolution marks a radical change in its constitutional politics. However, the focus of the changes that are generally discussed tends to be on the new devolved institutions in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. Manifestly, the Scottish Parliament, Welsh and Northern Ireland Assemblies and the executives associated with them are radical departures from what went before. However, any effort to understand the nature of devolution and territorial politics requires to take account of its impact on the centre as well. This is done in the paper from a traditional, Diceyian perspective. It should be stressed at the outset that the Diceyian framework has been adopted not out of reverence for the late nineteenth century English legal thinker but first because of Dicey’s extraordinary influence on constitutional politics in the UK which continues to this day and second its value as an organising framework. It is also contended that Dicey’s work on these matters, unlike some of his better know work on Parliamentary sovereignty, contains consistent lines of argument that have been neglected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An examination of the extent to which it still remains appropriate to use the term civic culture in the 21st century. Can the term be used in a political system in which there is dwindling public trust and respect for politicians and political institutions? How should we describe the contemporary political system? This paper looks at the recently conducted citizen audit of Britain to examine the public’s contemporary attitudes and behaviour in relation to these questions; in particular, it examines the public attitudes towards the political system in general, levels of political trust. political competence and efficacy, the level and range of political activities and associational involvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starting from some basic assumptions about parliamentary behaviour and Westminster parliamentary institutions, I build a simple game theoretic model of intra-party politics in which the party leadership's control over MPs' career prospects is the key element. In this game, the MP may either dissent or toe the party line, the former course of action insulating the MP from the electoral effects of unpopular party policy, the latter option securing the MP a better shot at promotion. The party leadership responds by promoting or marginalizing the MP. The direct implication of this game is that MPs dissent when the promise of career advancement is not sufficient to offset the electoral costs of unpopular party policies. The game also predicts that leaders’ and MPs’ expectations will generate parliamentary careers marked either by vicious circles of dissent and marginalization or virtuous circles of loyalty and promotion. The paper goes on to test these predictions against data from the career patterns and voting behaviour of British MPs elected between 1970 and 1983. Statistical tests lend solid support to the model, showing, in particular, a clear reciprocal relationship between dissent and marginalization on the one hand, and loyalty and promotion, on the other. This reciprocal relationship between career expectations and dissent does not, however, operate in isolation from the broader parliamentary environment. The statistical evidence shows that the relationship between career expectations and dissent is influenced by factors such as factional and electoral politics, formal parliamentary rules, and an informal process of socialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous research on the reciprocal effects of citizens' issue attitudes and their party support emphasize citizens' issue positions, political competition revolves equally around issue salience, i.e., debates over which issue areas political parties should prioritize. Using multi-wave panel data from Germany and Great Britain, we analyze the reciprocal effects of citizens' issue salience and their party support over the period 1984-2009, and we conclude that citizens' issue priorities both influence and are influenced by their party attachments, and, moreover, that these effects are linked to parties' long-term policy emphases as articulated in their election manifestos. This effect is strongest among supporters of a small issue-orientated niche party, the Greens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article builds a conceptual framework for understanding the gendered character (and effects) of institutional formation, and tests it in a case study of the new Police and Crime Commissioners in England and Wales. Inspired by new institutionalism's generic claim that 'the organisation of political life makes a difference', we focus on how the gendered organisation of political life makes a difference. Four sets of variables are identified: (a) institutional rules about gender; (b) institutional rules which have gendered effects (but are not specifically about gender); (c) the gendered actors who work with rules; and (d) gendered policy outcomes. Taking the case of Police and Crime Commissioners, we establish quantitative indicators for these variables and analyse the relationship between them. Our early findings illustrate the links between gendered processes of institutional formation and gendered policy outcomes. We take the level of priority accorded to policy on violence against women and girls (VAWG) as our dependent variable, but show how the framework could be used to analyse a broader range of gendered outcomes. We conclude that a mixed methods approach (with a longer time frame) is required to further test our arguments, and to refine the analytical framework for wider use in researching the gendered nature of political institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an analysis of political participation in the age of the citizen-consumer in Great Britain. It looks the trend fueled by the marketization of society and politics, which leads to the focus on what makes each individual different. It highlights the decline of electoral participation and partisanship in the region as well as discusses the growing concerns on the crisis of legitimacy of representative institutions.

The article analyzes nineteenth-century polemicist's efforts to articulate the problem of work concerning politics .Thomas Carlyle treats a vision of politics as work, an image that would inform much of the political literature of nineteenth-century in Great Britain. It examines Carlyle's vision of politics-as-work, and the work of articulating that vision. It presents an argument that Carlylean work is best thought of as an endless practice.

Turnout decline is one of the major themes of recent work on British elections, and there is particular concern about its concentration among the young. Mark Franklin's model of turnout change fitted to British data emphasises the effects of changing electoral competition on successive generations, but the most recent and comprehensive study of this phenomenon, based on pooled analysis of the British Election Study (BES) minimises competitiveness except as a short-term factor, and fails to address generational differences. While there are some statistical problems in modelling age, period, and cohort effects together, these can be overcome. We first refute a claim that a long-term trend toward lower turnout in Britain has not been matched by a similar trend toward lower competition in British elections: in fact as Franklin argues there is a systematic relationship between turnout and competitiveness even more apparent after recent elections. Next, using the pooled BES data we estimate the effects on turnout of electoral competition measured at national and constituency levels, with controls and interactions with age and generations, and other background variables including income distribution. Finally, we construct a simple aggregate-level model that predicts turnout solely by electoral competitiveness and perceptions of party differences. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a survey analysis of university students in the United Kingdom and the United States, we examine how political knowledge affects the influence of political cues, emotion and symbolic predisposition in the formulation of foreign policy preferences on a salient issue, the war in Iraq. We argue that accessible cues and symbolic predisposition, namely the national identity dimension of patriotism, provide for consistent cognitive shortcuts in foreign policy judgment. However, we also argue that the significance of such cognitive shortcuts diminishes when relevant political information is more available. Thus we conclude that emotion-driven affect, cues and symbolic predisposition are triggered as a convenient guide in foreign policy judgment when citizens are less informed, whereas higher levels of political information increase the significance of relevant policy preference and knowledge in the formulation of related foreign policy judgment. ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article argues that, far from being benign, British imperialism actually undermined colonial democratisation and development through its focus on maintaining physical order and control and sustaining economic extraction. Both the budgetary priorities and the political and institutional machinations of British colonial regimes have demonstrated this.

The article compares the political pressures and institutions in Great Britain, Japan and Germany. The three countries are said to have experienced various reforms in relation to domestic financial crises and global pressure to increase supervisory capabilities. The author analyzed the political institutions in each country. She confirmed the arguments concerning the political and institutional aspects of the convergence theory. She also revealed the political dimensions where reform must be evaluated.

The article argues against the assumptions regarding the ideological polarization of partisans by examining the distribution of partisans in Great Britain between 1987 and 2001. It analyzes the impact of proximity on the likelihood of being a Conservative identifier in the country between 1992 and 2001. It illustrates that partisan preferences are consensual. It also argues that distance does not influence partisan support to the Conservative Party.

Neo-Liberalism and the Decline of Democratic Governance: The Case of Britain ..PAT.-Conference Proceeding [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the impact of political ideologies on British and French leaders' decisions to appease Nazi Germany in the 1930s rather than adopting more forceful deterrent policies. It shows how the division of Europe's great powers into three rival ideological blocs--liberal Britain and France, fascist Germany and Italy, and communist Russia--pushed British and French conservatives to view the appeasement of Germany as the best way of protecting their states' security.

The article analyzes differences in electoral performance in the 2005 general elections in Great Britain, illustrating how Bob Marshall-Andrews, the Labour Member of Parliament (PM) for Medway determined his electoral fortune. It explains that in Great Britain, most voters vote in almost complete ignorance of the views of the candidates and that electoral judgments have traditionally been about parties, not candidates.