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Parties & Coalitions

What political parties are for, how coalitions and alliances form, and what happens when nobody wins a majority.

Blue, red and yellow look like fixed facts of British politics, but for most of history party colours changed from town to town. …

9 November 2026

Parties pick candidates, write programmes and organise both government and opposition. Here is what a political party is, how UK …

9 November 2026

Whips keep MPs voting with their party. Here is what the Chief Whip does, what one-, two- and three-line whips mean, when MPs get…

9 November 2026

A minority government runs the country without a majority in parliament. Here is how it survives from vote to vote, what happened…

9 November 2026

Party political broadcasts are the one place on UK television and radio where parties speak to voters in their own words. Here is…

9 November 2026

A hung parliament is one where no party has a majority of seats. Here is what it means, who stays in Downing Street while talks g…

9 November 2026

Anyone can found a political party, but to put its name on a ballot paper it must be registered with the Electoral Commission. He…

9 November 2026

A confidence and supply deal lets a party prop up a government without joining it. Here is what the two words mean, what the 2017…

9 November 2026

When no party wins a majority, parties have to share power or find another way to govern. Here is what a coalition government is,…

9 November 2026