The Conservatives: A Guide to Party Policies, Leaders and Statistics
1. The Conservatives
By Lillian, Maria, Umesh, Geraint and
Desiree
The Conservatives
2. 1980s Present
Margaret Thatcher was the leader of the party and was David Cameron is currently the leader of the party
the first female Prime Minister and won her party the and Prime Minister, however, is now Prime Minister
majority vote in 1983 and 1987. of the first postwar coalition government.
Popular due to her supporters in the Falklands War of Popular due to their policies in preventing the
1982 and she decreased the country’s inflation by 4%. Budget Deficit from going out of hand and helping
increase employment.
Unpopular due to high levels of unemployment in the Unpopular due to the recent university fee increase
UK - in other words, not enough people were getting and their priorities are of the economy, not the
jobs! country’s standard of living.
Changes the party made included adopting a free-trade Changes included the cabinet reshuffle and the
market and decreased trade union powers. changes in education such as core GCSE exams
into English Baccalaureate Certificate.
The Conservatives
3. What factors have led to party policy
change over the last 20 years?
The conservatives have, in the past, been seen as the ‘party of
the rich’ and to broaden their appeal they have adopted much
more left-wing policies, as the rich aren’t the majority.
Another factor for party policy change is the rise to prominence
of the ‘wets’. Thatcher labelled conservatives with left-wing ideas
as the ‘wets’ and those with more traditional conservative views
as the ‘dries’. ‘Wets’ since the Margret Thatcher era have had
more of a sway in Conservative policy, they oppose the lowering
of tax and public spending cuts.
The Conservatives
4. • Education sector
Main Policies
• The Conservative Party will improve the quality of teaching by doubling the size of Teach First, which will attract top graduates to the teaching profession.
• Conservative Party will allow schools to reward teachers who are very good and deal with teachers that are under-performing or are not teaching to a high
standard.
• Party will stop funding for teachers trainees who don’t have a lower second degree or better.
• Party will want teachers and professional experts to review the National Curriculum and introduce the English Baccalaureate.
•
• Health Sector
• The Party will increase investment in the NHS every year.
• Party will give patients the power to choose any healthcare services that meet the standards of the NHS.
• Party will end the funding age discrimination in the NHS.
• Party will invest around £800 million in the best medical technology to advance diagnosis, prevention and treatment in the NHS.
• Party will strengthen the power of doctors and nurses as patients' expert guides through the health system by enabling them to commission care on their
patients' behalf.
• Party will publish more data about the performance of healthcare providers, including on Mixed Sex Accommodation and MRSA rates, to guarantee the
highest quality standards.
•
• Jobs and Welfare Sector
• The Conservative Party will develop local Work Clubs, these are places where unemployed people can gather to exchange skills, find opportunities, make
contacts and provide mutual support.
• Party will also investigate how to simplify the benefit system in order to improve incentives to work.
•
• Transport Sector
• The Party will make network rails more accountable to its customers and also establish a high speed rail networks.
• The Party will stop central government funding for new fixed speed cameras and switch to more effective ways of making our roads safer.
•
• Economy Sector
• The Party will make the benefit system fairer by withdrawing Child Benefit from households with one or more higher-rate taxpayers – about 15 % of families.
• Party will work in partnership with local authorities in England to freeze council tax in 2011-12.
• Party will set out a credible plan to tackle the deficit and debt. Our plan will eliminate the structural deficit – the part that does not go away as the
economy grows – in the next five years.
• Party will cut Corporation Tax from 28 % to 24 % over four years which is the lowest rate in the G7. We have also cut the small companies’ rate to 20%
• Party will protect those on low incomes from the effect of public sector pay constraint and other spending constraints.
• The Party has been chosen to prioritize the NHS, schools, security and the infrastructure that will help our economy grow. To do so we have reformed welfare
and cut waste.
•
The Conservatives
7. 3 Key Members
David Cameron
Prior to becoming Prime Minister, David Cameron was elected
Leader of the Conservative Party in December 2005 on a
mandate to change and modernize his Party.
During his time as Leader of the Opposition he promoted social
justice and social action; advanced the green agenda; set
protecting the NHS as a top priority; and was proud to see a
significant increase in the number of women and ethnic minority
candidates standing for the Conservative Party.
As a Member of Parliament, David Cameron held a number of
positions on the Opposition Front Bench prior to becoming Party
Leader. After the 2005 General Election, he was appointed
Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills. He had
previously held the positions of Shadow Deputy Leader of the
House of Commons (2003), Front Bench Spokesman for Local
Government Finance (2004), and Head of Policy Co-ordination
in the run-up to the General Election of May 2005. He was also
a member of the influential House of Commons Home Affairs
Select Committee between 2001 and 2003.
8. Andrew Feldman
Andrew Feldman, 45, is Chairman of the Conservative
Party and Chairman of the Party Board.
In this role Andrew continues to be responsible for
running the professional operations at CCHQ. Working
closely with Sayeeda Warsi, his brief is to bring the
Conservative family together and strengthen the three
branches of the Party - Voluntary, Parliamentary and
Professional - and connect them more effectively.
Grant Shapps
In 1999 he was selected as Conservative candidate for Welwyn Hatfield, In
General Election of 2001, he produced one of the best Conservative swings
of the election, slashing Labour's majority from 5,595 to just 1,196.
Grant became MP for Welwyn Hatfield at the May 2005 General Election
with a majority of 5,946. The 8.2% swing was one of the biggest nationwide.
In December 2005 he was appointed as a Vice Chairman of the
Conservative Party with responsibility for campaigning. In July 2007 he was
promoted to Shadow Housing Minister. After the May 2010 election, Grant
became Minister of State for Housing and Local Government, and was sworn
of the Privy Council.
In September 2012 Grant was appointed as Chairman of the Conservative
Party and Minister without Portfolio.