Political Parties of Great Britain. The system of political parties in the UK appeared in the 17th century. At first, there were two parties: Tory (the party that supported the King) and Whigs (who supported the Parliament). The word "tory" means "an Irish robber". A "whig" was a Scottish preacher who could preach moralising sermons for several hours.
Now the main British political parties are:
• the Conservative Party
• the Labour Party
• the Party of Liberal Democrats
Since 1945 the British Government is constantly represented by two political parties: Conservative (who are called "Tory" by their opponents) and Labour (called "Whigs").
In 1988 the Liberal Party made an alliance with Social Democrats and the Party of Liberal Democrats was formed.
The proportional representation system in the UK means that all political parties, small and large, are represented in the government according to the proportion of votes they receive.
Questions:
1.When did the system of political parties appear in the UK?
2.What are the names of the parties?
3.How many parties is the British Government represented by ?
4.When did the Liberal Party make an alliance with Social Democrats ?
5.What does the proportional representation system in the UK mean ?