Attitudinal clustering within British parliamentary elites: Patterns of intra‐party and cross‐party alignment

Abstract

This article builds a picture of attitudinal groups both within and across British parliamentary parties. It illustrates how this can be achieved through a cluster analysis of British Candidate Survey data, the clusters being defined in terms of core political beliefs and attitudes towards European integration. This approach serves to shed light on the possibilities and dilemmas of cross‐party coalition building in the country. In particular, the strongly pro‐European libertarian centre is revealed as a significant component of all three main parties, and a potential pivot of cross‐party alignment.