10/10/2014
José Ruiz Vicioso, MA in the History of Political Thought, University of Exeter
Once the referendum on Scottish independence has been held and the British political union has been saved, political parties in the UK have focused on preparing the upcoming general elections of May 2015.
The race to 10Downing Street has started and David Cameron's Conservatives, despite being in government, have not been able to seize any electoral advantage. Restricted within the limits of the coalition with the Liberal Democrats, theTories are suffering a powerful electoral competition both from the right and the left of the ideological spectrum.
The Labour Party has radicalised its speech on the defence of the public sector. Ed Miliband has raised the banner of the National Health Service, an issue in which they have always enjoyed more credibility than the Conservatives, even though it was Tony Blair who most favoured private participation in it. Labour is aware that to win support among voters it must retrieve a leftist discourse that connects with the working classes which have traditionally been its electoral base.
On the right, the United Kingdom Independence Party has become a real threat to the political establishment in Westminster. The populist UKIP has emerged as speaker of growing sectors of the population, which are increasingly concerned about two related issues: membership in the European Union and immigration, which is a consequence of the free movement of persons within the borders of the Union. Affairs that, according to all indications, will be key in the election agendas. The emergence of the UKIP as an actor in the political game has not only harmed the electoral interests of the Tories, but has caused notorious defections among its members. In recent weeks, two more MPs have abandoned their party and have moved into the ranks of UKIP, and another significant donor has announced that from now on he will finance Farage's party.
In this context, the recent annual conference of the Conservative Party has sought to represent a turning point from which to relaunch the party to the majority during this last – and crucial – political season. The proposals that their main leaders have made in Birmingham have sought to expand their potential electorate. On the one hand, they have announced substantial tax cuts, which would mainly affect the middle and lower classes, discontented with the government over recent year's measures. Furthermore, Cameron wants to renegotiate the membership terms of the European Union in order to restrict the entry of EU immigrants. Something difficult to defend before the EU institutions, but is a clear message to Euro-sceptics, who have caused so many headaches to the prime minister lately.
There are many questions that now arise. Will the Tories manage to translate tax cut into votes from the disenchanted middle class? Will they be able to attract voters disaffected with traditional parties with their Euro-sceptic and anti-immigration proposals? Over the coming months we will see who takes advantage in this election race that's beginning with uncertainty and no clear winner.