British Multiculturalism During the Cameron and May Majority Governments (2010–2017): Retreat, Survival and the Effects of Policy Design

Abstract

This chapter takes the second step in developing the book’s hypothesis. It examines the British case and highlights multicultural policy developments that took place under a Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government (2010–2015) and the subsequent majority Conservative government (2015–2017), which was headed first by Prime Minister David Cameron and then by Prime Minister Theresa May. The chapter draws the conclusion that it was the design of British multicultural policies that determined their fate under these governments. More generally, evidence from the British case suggests that minority rights may be more likely to survive under a majority (i.e. minimum winning coalition) government of the political right if they are written into formal rules, temporally “closed” and thus immune to the vagaries of political competition, and/or if they are under the control of multiple stakeholders.