Politics is still an adversarial business: minority government and mixed-member proportional representation in Scotland and in New Zealand

Lundberg, T.C. (2013) Politics is still an adversarial business: minority government and mixed-member proportional representation in Scotland and in New Zealand. British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 15(4), pp. 609-625. (doi: 10.1111/j.1467-856X.2012.00522.x)

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Abstract

Both Scotland and New Zealand, small nations with a British political heritage, implemented mixed-member proportional (MMP) electoral systems in the 1990s. Minority government characterises most of the New Zealand experience since the introduction of MMP in 1996, while Scotland's only such experience occurred between 2007 and 2011. The Scottish experience differed significantly from that of New Zealand because Scotland has a different party system (characterised by two major cleavages) and exists in a system of multi-level governance, resulting in a more conflict-laden relationship between parties. The centre-periphery cleavage in the Scottish case results from being part of the United Kingdom, while New Zealand is an independent state. Both nations introduced MMP as part of an effort to bring about a ‘new politics’, but the impact of institutional engineering upon the behaviour of politicians has been limited.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Lundberg, Dr Thomas
Authors: Lundberg, T.C.
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
Journal Name:British Journal of Politics and International Relations
Publisher:Political Studies Association and Blackwell Publishing Ltd
ISSN:1369-1481
ISSN (Online):1467-856X
Published Online:18 June 2012

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
521831New Zealand, New Politics, and Mixed-Member Proportional Representation: Lessons for Scotland?Thomas LundbergThe Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland (CARNEGIE)52183SPS - POLITICS