{"product_id":"serpents-goats-and-turkeys-a-century-of-liberal-labour-relations","title":"Serpents, Goats and Turkeys: A Century of Liberal-Labour Relations","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe\ndefinitive, insider history of the often turbulent political relationship\nbetween the Liberals and Labour. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNatural\nallies or fierce competitors? For the past century, Britain's two major\ncentre-left parties have co-existed in sometimes harmonious but more often\nfraught duopoly, from the 1903 agreement that a prominent Liberal complained\nwas 'nursing into life a serpent which would sting their party to death' to the\n1976-77 pact that gave us the phrase 'turkeys voting for Christmas' and beyond,\nto the failed negotiations that led to the controversial 2010-15 Lib\nDem-Conservative coalition.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCharting\n100 years of British political history, \u003ci\u003eSerpents, Goats and Turkeys \u003c\/i\u003eexplores\nthe formal and informal arrangements that have existed between the parties,\ncovering electoral deals, support for minority governments, formal pacts and\nfull coalitions. What have been the overlaps of policy and ideology, and where\nhave the parties been most divided? What explains the periods of co-operation\nbut also the unwillingness or inability to work together for any significant\ntime?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn\nthe wake of the 2024 'Loveless Landslide', former coalition Cabinet minister\nDavid Laws also draws on unpublished records and private diaries from the past\nthirty years of Lib-Lab wrangling to consider the likely options in the event\nof a future hung parliament. Should the parties work together? Would they be\nable to? And what are the prospects for voting reform? The answers to such\nquestions will have major implications for British democracy and the future of\nour politics.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHardback | 384 pages | Published September 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Biteback Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":63956803158365,"sku":"9781785908842","price":31.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0978\/3459\/8749\/files\/9781785908842.jpg?v=1774263763","url":"https:\/\/www.thebookmark.ie\/products\/serpents-goats-and-turkeys-a-century-of-liberal-labour-relations","provider":"The Bookmark ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}