UK Political Parties

List of political parties in the United Kingdom From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from UK political parties) Jump to navigationJump to search This article lists political parties in the United Kingdom.

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Contents 1	Brief history and overview 1.1	The start of political parties 2	Parliamentary parties 2.1	Party descriptions 3	Local government 3.1	Principal authorities 3.2	Civil parishes and community councils 4	No elected representation 4.1	Miscellaneous minor parties 4.2	Minor left-wing and far-left parties 4.3	Minor right-wing and far-right parties 4.4	Minor centrist and pro-European parties 4.5	Minor religious parties 4.6	Minor English parties 4.7	Minor Scottish parties 4.8	Minor Welsh parties 4.9	Minor Northern Irish parties 4.10	Joke/satirical parties 5	Defunct and historical parties 5.1	Defunct English parties 5.2	Defunct Scottish parties 5.3	Defunct Welsh parties 5.4	Defunct Northern Irish parties 5.5	Defunct religious parties 5.6	Defunct left-wing and far-left parties 5.7	Defunct right-wing and far-right parties 5.8	Defunct joke/satirical parties 5.9	Defunct single-issue Eurosceptic parties 6	See also 7	Notes 8	References 9	External links Brief history and overview Before the middle of the 19th century, politics in the United Kingdom was dominated by the Whigs and the Tories. These were not political parties in the modern sense but somewhat loose alliances of interests and individuals. The Whigs included many of the leading aristocratic dynasties committed to the Protestant succession, and later drew support from elements of the emerging industrial interests and wealthy merchants, while the Tories were associated with the landed gentry, the Church of England and the Church of Scotland.

By the mid 19th century, the Tories had evolved into the Conservative Party, and the Whigs had evolved into the Liberal Party. The concept of right and left came originally from France, where the Right supported a smaller state with less influence on the lives of the public, and the Left advocated the opposite. In the late 19th century the Liberal Party began to lean towards the left. Liberal Unionists split off from the Liberals over Irish Home Rule and moved closer to the Conservatives over time.

The Liberals and Conservatives dominated the political scene until the 1920s, when the Liberal Party declined in popularity and suffered a long stream of resignations. It was replaced as the main anti-Tory opposition party by the newly emerging Labour Party, which represented an alliance between the labour movement, organised trades unions and various socialist societies.

Since then the Conservative and Labour parties have dominated British politics, and have alternated in government ever since. However, the UK is not quite a two-party system as other parties have significant support. The Liberal Democrats were the third largest party until the 2015 general election when they were overtaken by the Scottish National Party in terms of seats and UK political party membership, and by the UK Independence Party in terms of votes.

The UK's First Past the Post electoral system leaves small parties disadvantaged on a UK-wide scale. It can, however, allow parties with concentrations of supporters in the constituent countries to flourish. In the 2015 election there was widespread controversy[1][2][3] when UKIP and the Green Party of England and Wales received 4.9 million votes[4] (12.6% of the total vote for UKIP and 3.8% for the Greens) yet only gained one seat each in the House of Commons. After that election, UKIP, the Liberal Democrats, and the Green Party of England and Wales, together with its Scottish and Northern Ireland affiliated parties, the Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru, delivered a petition signed by 477,000[5] people to Downing Street demanding electoral reform.

Scottish Parliament debating chamber Since 1997, proportional representation-based voting systems have been adopted for elections to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, the Northern Ireland Assembly, the London Assembly and the UK's seats in the European Parliament. In these bodies, other parties have had success.

Traditionally political parties have been private organisations with no official recognition by the state. The Registration of Political Parties Act 1998 changed that by creating a register of parties.

Membership of political parties has been in decline in the UK since the 1950s, falling by over 65% from 1983 (4% of the electorate) to 2005 (1.3%).[6]

The start of political parties The Electoral Commission's Register of Political Parties[7] lists the details of parties registered to fight elections in the United Kingdom, including their registered name. Under current electoral law, including the Registration of Political Parties Act, the Electoral Administration Act 2006, and the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, only registered party names can be used on ballot papers by those wishing to fight elections. Candidates who do not belong to a registered party can use "independent" or no label at all.

As of 3 August 2015 the Electoral Commission showed the number of registered political parties in Great Britain and Northern Ireland as 492.[8]

Parliamentary parties Two parties dominate politics in the House of Commons. Each one operates throughout Great Britain (only the Conservative and Unionist Party stands candidates in Northern Ireland). Most of the British Members of the European Parliament, Scottish Parliament and the National Assembly for Wales represent one of these parties:

Conservative and Unionist Party, centre-right (314 seats in the House of Commons) Labour Party, centre-left (246 seats) Co-operative Party (all Co-operative Party MPs are also Labour MPs as part of a long-standing electoral agreement) Party	Date of foundation	Political position	Leader	House of Commons	Scottish Parliament	National Assembly for Wales	Northern Ireland Assembly	London Assembly	European Parliament	Local Government	Membership	UK vote share % (2017 general election)[9] Conservative and Unionist Party	1834	Centre-right	Theresa May closeup.jpg	Theresa May	313	31	12 [Note 1]	N/A	8	19	9,116[10]	124,000 [11] (Does not publish official membership numbers, data based on 3rd party sources)	42.4 Labour Party •Co-operative Party

1900 •1917 (Co-operative)

Centre-left	Jeremy Corbyn closeup.jpg	Jeremy Corbyn	245 [Note 2]	23 [Note 3]	29 [Note 4]	N/A	12	20	6,470[10]	552,000 [12]	40.0 Scottish National Party	1934	Centre-left	Official portrait of Nicola Sturgeon (cropped 2).jpg	Nicola Sturgeon	35	63	N/A	N/A	N/A	2	430[10]	125,500 [13]	3.0 Liberal Democrats	1988	Centre to centre-left	Vince Cable, Cambridge.jpg	Vince Cable	11	5	1	N/A	1	1	1,890[10]	100,500 [11]	7.4 Change UK – The Independent Group	2019	Centre to centre-left	Official portrait of Heidi Allen crop 2.jpg	Heidi Allen (interim)	11	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A Democratic Unionist Party	1971	Centre-right to right-wing	Arlene Foster MLA (cropped) 2.jpg	Arlene Foster	10	N/A	N/A	28	N/A	1	131	Not published	0.9 Sinn Féin	1905 (original); 1970 (current)

Centre-left to left-wing	Mary Lou McDonald (official portrait).jpg	Mary Lou McDonald	7[Note 5]	N/A	N/A	27	N/A	1 [Note 6]	103	Not published	0.7 Plaid Cymru	1925	Centre-left to left-wing	Adam Price AM 2016.jpg	Adam Price	4	N/A	11	N/A	N/A	1	203[10]	10,500[14]	0.5 Green Party of England and Wales	1990	Left-wing	Sian Berry and Jonathan Bartley, 2018.jpg	Siân Berry and Jonathan Bartley (job share)	1	N/A	N/A	N/A	2	3	187[10]	41,073 [15]	1.6 Scottish Green Party	1990	Centre-left to left-wing	PatrickHarvieMSP20110510.JPG Maggie Chapman, Co-convenor of the Scottish Green Party.png	Patrick Harvie and Maggie Chapman	N/A	6	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	19[10]	7,091 [16] (December 2017) UK Independence Party	1993	Right-wing to far-right	Gerard Batten.jpg	Gerard Batten	N/A	N/A	4	N/A	1	7	108[10]	24,200 [17]	1.8 Social Democratic and Labour Party	1970	Centre-left	Colum Eastwood MLA.JPG	Colum Eastwood	N/A	N/A	N/A	12	N/A	N/A	59	Not published	0.3 Ulster Unionist Party	1905	Centre-right	Dervock RBL (cropped).jpg	Robin Swann	N/A	N/A	N/A	10	N/A	1	84	Not published	0.3 Alliance Party of Northern Ireland	1970	Centre	Cropped image of Naomi Long.JPG	Naomi Long	N/A	N/A	N/A	8	N/A	N/A	30	Not published	0.2 Green Party in Northern Ireland	1983	Centre-left		Clare Bailey	N/A	N/A	N/A	3	N/A	N/A	4[10]	406 [18] (May 2015) Traditional Unionist Voice	2007	Right-wing	JimAllister (cropped).jpg	Jim Allister	N/A	N/A	N/A	1	N/A	N/A	10	Not published	0.1 People Before Profit	2005	Left-wing to far-left	Eamonn McCann (cropped).jpg	Eamonn McCann	N/A	N/A	N/A	1	N/A	N/A	1	Not published Brexit Party	2019	Right-wing	Nigel Farage MEP 1, Strasbourg - Diliff (cropped).jpg	Nigel Farage	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	12	N/A	Not published	N/A Social Democratic Party	1990	Centre		William Clouston	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	1	2	Not published	0.0 Party descriptions Party	Description Conservative and Unionist Party	A party loosely divided into three categories: The Thatcherites or Conservative Way Forward, who strongly support a free market and tend to be Eurosceptic; the economically moderate, often more pro-European and socially liberal One Nation Conservatives, and the socially conservative, deeply Eurosceptic Cornerstone Group. Labour Party	A social democratic party with democratic socialist elements that has its roots in the trade union movement. The party in recent years is seen to have several internal factions, which include: Momentum, Open Labour, Progress and, the Labour members who stand on a split ticket with the Co-operative Party. Scottish National Party	Scottish nationalist and social democratic party which supports of Scottish Independence and membership of the European Union. Liberal Democrats	Liberal and social liberal. The party's main two branches are the social-liberals based around groups like the Social Liberal Forum, and the 'Orange Book' grouping, which supports classical economic liberalism. Strongly supports membership of the European Union. Democratic Unionist Party	Unionist and national conservative party in Northern Ireland. Socially conservative with close links to Protestantism. Sinn Féin	Irish republican party that supports the unification of the island of Ireland as a 32-county Irish republic. Plaid Cymru	Social-democratic and Welsh nationalist party in favour of Welsh independence. Social Democratic and Labour Party	Social-democratic and Irish nationalist party supporting a United Ireland. Ulster Unionist Party	Unionist party in Northern Ireland, conservative but with liberal factions. Green Party of England and Wales	Green political party that favours eco-socialism,[19] environmentalism,[19] and sustainability[19] Scottish Green Party	Green political party in favour of Scottish independence and Scottish republicanism. UK Independence Party	Eurosceptic and right-wing populist party. Favours national sovereignty, direct democracy, social conservatism and economic liberalism. Alliance Party of Northern Ireland	Liberal and centrist political party in Northern Ireland. Green Party in Northern Ireland	Green political and nonsectarian party in Northern Ireland. Traditional Unionist Voice	Strongly social and national conservative unionist party in Northern Ireland, opposed to the St Andrews Agreement. People Before Profit	Socialist party with Trotskyist elements that is active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Brexit Party	Hard Eurosceptic party that supports of a hard Brexit and is strongly positioned against a second EU Referendum. Social Democratic Party	Social democratic party supportive of localism and Euroscepticism. Local government Principal authorities Party	Ideology	Local authorities	Leader	Councillors Residents Associations of Epsom and Ewell		Epsom and Ewell, Surrey	Keith Lugton	34[20][21] Mansfield Independent Forum		Mansfield, Nottinghamshire	Martin Wright	19[22] Thurrock Independents		Thurrock	Graham Snell	17 Canvey Island Independent Party		Castle Point, Essex	David Blackwell	16[23][24] Residents for Uttlesford		Uttlesford	John Lodge	11[25] Havering Residents Association		Havering	Ray Morgon	11 Temple & Farringdon Together	Localism	City of London Corporation		10 Liberal Party	Liberalism, Euroscepticism	Liverpool, Mid Devon, Peterborough, Ryedale	Steve Radford	9[26] East Devon Alliance	transparency[27]	East Devon	Ben Ingham	9[28] Derwentside Independents		Durham	Watts Stelling	7[29] (+5 parish cllrs)[30] Llais Gwynedd	Regionalism	Gwynedd	Owain Williams	6[31] Runnymede Independent Residents' Group		Runnymede		6 Spennymoor Independents		Durham		5 (+16 Parish Cllrs)[10] Morley Borough Independents		Leeds	Robert Finnigan	5 Progressive Unionist Party	Unionism, democratic socialism	Belfast, Causeway Coast and Glens	Billy Hutchinson	4[32][33] Independent Community and Health Concern	Single-issue politics	Wyre Forest, Worcestershire, Shropshire	Dr Richard Taylor	4[10] Mebyon Kernow	Cornish nationalism	Cornwall	Dick Cole	4[10] Barnsley Independent Group		Barnsley	Phillip Birkinshaw	4[34] Newport Independents Party		Newport, South Wales	Kevin Whitehead	4 [35] People Against Bureaucracy		Cheltenham, Gloucestershire		3[36][37] Guildford Greenbelt Group		Guildford	Susan Parker	3[38] North East Party	Regionalism	Durham		3[39] Middlewich First		Cheshire East	James Basford	3[40] (+5 parish cllrs) Putting Hartlepool First		Hartlepool	Kelly Atkinson	3[41] Highwoods Group		Colchester	Beverley Oxford	3[42] style="background-color:#00AEEF " |

Yorkshire Party	Regionalism	Hambleton, Selby, North Yorkshire	Stewart Arnold	3[43] the BOROUGH first[44]		Windsor and Maidenhead	Charles Hollingsworth	2[45] Morecambe Bay Independents		Lancaster	Roger Dennison	2[46] Henley Residents Group		South Oxfordshire, Oxfordshire		2[47] (+6 parish clllrs) Nottingham Independents		Nottingham City Council, Gedling Borough Council, Nottinghamshire	Francesco Lari	1[48] West Dunbartonshire Community Party		West Dunbartonshire	Drew MacEoghainn	1[49] Lincolnshire Independents		Lincolnshire	Marianne Overton	1[50] Renew	Pro-Europeanism	Portsmouth	Annabel Mullin	1[51] Harold Hill Independent		Havering	Lorraine Moss	1[52] Merthyr Independents		Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council	Stephen Brown [53]	1[54] The Cynon Valley Party		Rhondda Cynon Taf		1 [55] The Rubbish Party		East Ayrshire	Sally Cogley	1 Civil parishes and community councils Party	Political Position	Leader	Councillors Independents for Frome	Localism	Mel Usher	17[56] Devizes Guardians	Conservationism, Localism	Nigel Carter	11[57] Official Monster Raving Loony Party	Satire	Howling Laud Hope	6 Animal Welfare Party	Animal welfare	Vanessa Hudson	1 Pirate Party	Pirate politics	Harley Faggetter	1 Cornish Nationalist Party	Cornish Nationalism, Pan-Celticism	Androw Hawke	1 No elected representation

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "List of political parties in the United Kingdom" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This is a list of notable minor parties. Many parties are registered with the Electoral Commission but do not qualify for this list as they have not received significant independent coverage.

Miscellaneous minor parties Animal Welfare Party Democrats and Veterans (2018–present) Libertarian Party National Health Action Party Peace Party Pirate Party UK Populist Party (2015–present) Women's Equality Party (2015–present) Young People's Party UK Our Nation Minor left-wing and far-left parties Main article: British left Socialist Party of Great Britain (1904–present) Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist) (1968–present) Workers' Revolutionary Party (1973–present) Revolutionary Communist Group (1974–present) New Communist Party (1977–present) Socialist Workers Party (1977–present) Revolutionary Communist Party of Britain (Marxist-Leninist) (1979–present) Socialist Equality Party (1986–present) Communist League (1988–present) Communist Party of Britain (1988–present) Communist Party of Great Britain (Provisional Central Committee) (1991–present) Independent Working Class Association (1995–present) Socialist Labour Party (1996–present) Socialist Party (England and Wales) (also main constituent of TUSC; has stood as "Socialist Alternative") (1997–present) Socialist Resistance (part of Left Unity) (2002–present) Alliance for Green Socialism (2003–present) Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) (2004–present) TUSC (Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition) (2010–present) Left Unity (2013–present) Minor right-wing and far-right parties National Front (1967–present) British National Party (1982–present) National Liberal Party (1999–present) Britannica Party[58][59][60] (2011–present) British Democratic Party (2013–present) For Britain (2017–present) Minor centrist and pro-European parties 4 Freedoms Party (UK EPP) Something New[61][62] Whig Party Minor religious parties Christian Peoples Alliance (1999–present) Christian Democratic Party (UK) (1999–present) The Common Good (2004–present) Christian Party (successor to Operation Christian Vote) (2005–present) Minor English parties Main article: Politics of England See also: List of political parties in London Community Action Party; local centre-left party in Wigan. Community Group; local party in Doncaster. English Democrats; campaign for self-government for England. People's Democratic Party, a populist party focused on Northern England. The Republic Party, based in Pendlebury, Salford. Campaigning for the UK to become a Republic.[63] Roman Party. Wessex Regionalist Party, campaigning for devolution for Wessex. Minor Scottish parties Main article: Politics of Scotland Borders Party Communist Party of Scotland Independent Green Voice RISE – Scotland's Left Alliance; electoral alliance formed by SSP and former ISG Scotland Against Crooked Lawyers Scottish Christian Party – the successor to Operation Christian Vote in Scotland. Scottish Democratic Alliance – the successor to Scottish Enterprise Party Scottish Libertarian Party, a libertarian, pro-independence and Eurosceptic party Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party Scottish Socialist Party, a party campaigning for an independent, socialist and republican Scotland. Scottish Unionist Party, campaigns to prevent dissolution of the UK. Has strong links with the Orange Order. Socialist Party Scotland Solidarity, a split from the SSP in 2006. Minor Welsh parties Main article: Politics of Wales Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party Communist Party of Wales Cymru Sovereign Socialist Party Wales Welsh Christian Party – the successor to Operation Christian Vote in Wales. Minor Northern Irish parties Main article: Demography and politics of Northern Ireland Cross-Community Labour Alternative Fianna Fáil Labour Party of Northern Ireland Republican Sinn Féin Socialist Party (Ireland) Workers' Party Joke/satirical parties See also: Category:Joke political parties in the United Kingdom. Al-Zebabist Nation of Ooog Church of the Militant Elvis Party Fancy Dress Party