40 - Power

The aim of a political party is to win power, to win enough seats in a General Election to have an overall majority and be able to form a government. This is the only way it gets to enact its policies and to carry out actions that it believes will make the country a better place. 

If you are in opposition, without the seats to be able to block votes, you're not able to do a thing. 

To do win an election, a political party has to be able to read the mood of the nation and ensure that its policies are relevant, and likely to command support. It also needs to recognise that in this day and age many people only have an overview of what a political party believes; the headlines, the soundbites. So it is important to ensure that a party's message can be delivered swiftly, concisely, and clearly. 

In the last election, the Tories got this aspect spot on. The main slogan they had through the election was the very simple "Get Brexit done". That's what people heard, and that's what many people voted for. It was clear, and concise. 

Other parties were also clear. You knew that if you were voting for the Lib Dems you were voting to revoke article 50 and remain in the EU. In the event that Swinson were to have got a majority that's what would have happened. 

Labour were far less clear; there seemed to be all sorts of flip flopping, and eventually the message was that in the event of a Labour majority Corbyn would negotiate a better deal with the EU for Brexit, and then put it to a referendum, at which time he'd remain neutral and act as a facilitator for the debate. 

Whilst I think this was actually a sensible position, the problem was that it was not in place right at the start of the campaign, and it almost appeared that it was being improvised as time passed, which caused confusion among the public. 

Furthermore, the Labour manifesto contained too many promises for "free" things, which many did not think could be delivered over the course of a parliament. (This is even ignoring the stat I heard during the election that it's usual for only 1/4 to a 1/3 of any manifesto actually becomes law). It would have been much better to have prioritised which aspects of the manifesto were most important, and focus on those over the course of the next parliament Then once delivered, and shown to work, move on to the next set. 

One thing I very much liked that used to happen in the past is the pledge card; a card - debit card sized - highlighting the six main issues in bullet points. Clear. Concise. That way everyone knows exactly what the priorities are. 

I've also seen debates about ensuring the Labour party is ideologically pure, and not compromising; but I ask this question... Is it better to be ideologically pure in opposition, or to make small compromises and be elected to power?

I know what my answer would be...