British Liberalism and the Liberal Democrats

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Liberalism has greatly influenced the nation because modern Britain is based on liberal values. The Liberal Party dates back to 1859 in Britain and this party promoted balanced budgets, low taxes, and free market. In the early 20^th century, Liberals made some progressive reforms by creating programs of health insurance, unemployment insurance, and pensions. These were the early times of the British welfare state. However, Liberals lost very much of their popularity after the Great War and the party merged with the Social Democratic Party in the early 1980s. Nevertheless, the Liberal Democrats did not have much success since their creation, except through different alliances with parties in government. There are several reasons for these political failures. For example, several Liberals vote for the Labour Party or for the Conservatives that welcomes Liberals and Social Democrats. Besides, a union between two different groups of political ideals might not be the best way to build a political organization. Liberals are in favour of individual rights while the Social Democrats prefer supporting collective rights. Nonetheless, Liberals have made significant political contributions to British society over the 19^th and 20^th century. Nowadays, the Liberal Democrats still are trying very hard to get in power, but with little success. However, Liberals and Social Democrats, as a merged party, seem incompatible because they often have to support some of the policies advocated by the Tories and the Labour Party.