Coalition government and implications for care

Abstract

In May, the UK experienced the most competitive general election in decades. After 13 years of a Labour Party government, the Conservatives took 306 seats to Labour's 258, and the UK parliament was hung. No party had the majority needed to pass laws without support of other parties. A Conservative minority government was an option, but attention quickly turned to the Liberal Democrats' 57 seats. Deals were done and undone as the Liberals, branded ‘kingmakers’, decided who to side with. While some commentators had predicted a hung parliament, no-one had quite anticipated a Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition. The last time the conservatives and liberals shared power was between 1915 and 1922, and this is the first coaltion government for some years.