Kavanagh et al: British Politics 5e
Political commentary
Essay questionsKavanagh et al: British Politics 5e
Chapter 32
Conclusion: continuities and change in 21st century British politics
The Guardian Century
century.guardian.co.uk/
The Guardian's Century website will assist you in gaining an overview of the trajectory of 20th century British politics and how this contributed to the political, economic and social characteristics of Britain at the beginning of the 21st century. You can either browse the site via its timeline or use the search facility to identify the Guardian's original reports on the most significant events in the 20th century.
The Guardian: Special Reports – Northern Ireland
www.guardian.co.uk/Northern_Ireland
One of the key developments during the last decade has been the progress towards peace in Northern Ireland (see Chapter 17). This section of the Guardian newspaper's website brings together news on the on-going development of the Northern Ireland peace process and will allow you to assess whether Northern Ireland will continue to pose the same challenges to British administrations as it did in the 20th century.
The Guardian: Special Reports – The Thatcher Era
www.guardian.co.uk/Thatcher/
The book has consistently pointed to the significance of the Thatcher governments in changing the character of the British polity. At this site, marking the 10th anniversary of Margaret Thatcher's resignation as Prime Minister you will find a range of analysis of the legacy of Britain's first female Prime Minister to 21st century British politics.
University of Montreal: Whatever Happened to Cool Britannia? The UK After Eight Years of Blair
www.cerium.ca/article944.html
Any similar assessment of New Labour for the moment has to be an interim one. However, here you will find the proceedings of a conference held at the University of Montreal in 2005, marking the eighth anniversary of the election of the current Labour government. Here you can download a variety of papers by leading political scientists and historians including Anthony Seldon, Andrew Gamble, Colin Hay, Brendan O'Leary, Christopher Harvie, Simon Bulmer, David Hine and David Sanders. Not only can you read the papers but you can see the presentations each academic made in video clips available on the site.
The Conservative Party: Our Key Challenges
www.conservatives.com/tile.do?def=challenge.home.page
In line with the focus of this chapter on the challenges which the future presents for those within the British political system by following this link you can find the six policy commissions which David Cameron has established to provide a strategic vision for the Conservative Party in coming years. Superficially bearing some resemblance to the Labour Party's Policy Review in the mid-1980s you can explore the working and proposals of the six commissions from the links on this page.
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