The main parties

Including LibDem

2017 Conservative and labour vote share

Just over 80%

Since WWII…

All governments have been either labour or conservative

Are their policies similar?

Yes

Themes for a siimilarities essay

• economic policy

• Welfare policy

• Foreign policy

Why they are economically dissimilar

taxes - differs

• labour windfall tax on energy companies, conservatives want 2% reduction of National Insurance same time, which labour criticises

• Starmer trying to separate from old labour values, but rejects this ‘new labour’ policy shows their dissimilarity

• During COVID labour urged for more money for free school meals and COVID recovery, tories stuck to Thatcherite roots and wanted to prevent dependency culture - Sunak said he will ‘govern as a Thatcherite’, so would prefer to not raise tax

• Parties therefore innately left and right wing

• Parties cautious ahead of polling but swing to more radical extremes after elections

• Like Starmer said to reduce government spending to a minimum during his campaign, later announcing plans to increase income tax for those earning £80k+ to rise public spending

Why are they economically similar

• hold united views on big areas of economy

• Government intervention during economic crisis, which contrasted in the past tories’ laissez faire values showing they are becoming more similar are they grow

• Sunak Furlough scheme - supported by Starmer

• Both accept some privatised services have worked well

• Conservatives semi nationalised railways, labour announced to bring them to public control but avoid return to whole nationalisation

• Unity = statmer’s aim to move labour away from Old labour

• Starmer has supported the use of private finance initiatives NHS

Therefore more similar on broader things

Why are they dissimilar on welfare

• During austerity under Cameron, conservatives less money into public funding, labour accused them of underfunding

• Starmer accused Sunak of being the cause of dangerous ambulance and A&E waiting times

• Following COVID, labour’s shadow chancellor Reeves had attempted to counteract tories by promising to inject more finance into healthcare to Improve response times

• Labour wants to merge social care into NHS in etas of separate service as it is today

• Contrasts conservatives wanting public service dependency lowered

• Therefore labour want to put more competency into how welfare services are run

Why are they similar on welfare

There have been so many major disagreements on welfare in the PAST

• Historically labour pro welfare, tories rejected it

• But since Blair, sides have moved closer

• New labour = “hand up, not hand out”, similar to tories

• Since pandemic Conservative Party dedicated money to NHS acting on ‘noblesse oblige’

• Conservative Party wrote off debt of NHS hospitals COVID

• Same with Labour supporting decision to increase National insurance to help fund NHS

• After COVID, welfare lines blurred

• Also Keir Starmer’s shadow health minister Wes Streeting has called for more private healthcare to escape debt

• Sunak also approves of this and has pledged for waiting times to be reduced

Why are they dissimilar on foreign policy

Both now accept Brexit

• but conservatives more supportive of hard brexit than Starmer

• Israel Gaza and transatlantic alliances differences in approach

• David Lammy, shadow foreign Secretary, criticised conservative’s in consistency on China

• Conservative party stronger immigration stance - Rwanda bill, Sunak stated he will “stop the small boats” despite tactics going against HRA

• Labour criticised Rwanda bill instead promising to fix UK’s failing asylum sister and process claims Whicker

Why are they similar on foreign policy

Aligned on recent global events

• Similar in Israel-Gaza

• Mirrored backing of Israel

• David Lammy - reiterated David Cameron and said Labour supported Israel in retaliation but that this response must be proportionate to bounds of international law

• Russia-Ukraine

• Both support giving Ukraine military support - announced July 2024 Starmer promise UK will give £3bil a year until 2030-31, Sunak also pledged £500mil to Ukraine when he was in power