The Modern British Party System

Paul Webb is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Government at Brunel University and Associate Editor and Book Reviews Editor of Party Politics.

Party Systems in the UK An Overview The Electoral Market and the Competition for Votes in Britain How Parties Compete 1 Ideological Reputations How Parties Compete 2 Programmatic Adaptation How Parties Compete 3 Imagery, Media and Political Marketing Conflict and Cohesion within Parties Members, Leaders and the Distribution of Power within Parties Party Organizational Resources Parties and the Political System

`This is a really excellent book, the best on British parties that I have read in recent years. Paul Webb utilises the latest research and modern analytical techniques to provide a sophisticated study of parties and the party system which is packed with information. It is a major contribution not just to the literature on British politics but also to the comparative literature on political parties' - David Denver, Lancaster University `Paul Webb's new book is likely to remain the standard work on the British party system for years to come' - Peter Mair, University of Leiden `A landmark study. I cannot commend this book too highly to teachers of British politics, students and professional analysts alike' - Ian Budge, University of Essex `An excellent book that will be much quoted by scholars in future years' - Alan Ware, Oxford University `Paul Webb provides the most comprehensive and well-documented analysis of the programmatic and organizational changes in the British party system. His conclusion that British parties remain critically important to the functioning of democracy is strengthened by his comparative approach. This book is a major contribution to the study of British party politics' - Patrick Seyd, University of Sheffield