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Parliamentary Affairs Advance Access originally published online on February 29, 2008
Parliamentary Affairs 2008 61(2):396-407; doi:10.1093/pa/gsn005
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© The Author [2008]. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Hansard Society for Parliamentary Government; all rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Hung-up over Nothing? The Impact of a Hung Parliament on British Politics

Susanna Kalitowski1

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In the past few years, there has been increasing speculation that the next UK general election will produce a Parliament in which no single party holds a majority of seats in the House of Commons. In common parlance, this is referred to as a ‘hung parliament’, although some prefer the expressions ‘balanced parliament’, ‘minority parliament’ or ‘No Overall Control’ (NOC).2 In the UK, it is relatively rare for the Westminster Parliament to be ‘hung’ following an election; however, the probability is increasing due to the growth of third parties and the way that the electoral system translates popular votes into Commons seats. At regular intervals throughout the past two years, opinion polls have regularly predicted that the next general election is likely to produce a hung parliament.

Although they are common in other democracies, hung parliaments have traditionally been viewed in the UK as unwelcome aberrations that produce short-lived and . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   Hung parliaments: a rarity?
 

   Constitutional dilemmas?
 

   The role of the prime minister
 

   The role of the sovereign
 

   Lessons from outside of Westminster
 
WALES
SCOTLAND
CANADA

   The impact of a hung parliament at Westminster
 
PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURES
IMPACT ON THE COMMONS
IMPACT ON THE LORDS

   Would the public notice?
 

   A catalyst for electoral reform?
 

   Conclusion: unstable ‘nightmare’ or ‘great opportunity’?
 

   Funding
 

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