LONDON (AP) – It’s a common refrain: Politicians are all the same. The party platforms released this week for Britain’s May 7 election tell a more diverse story, revealing, amid their hundreds of pages, which party wants to bring an NBA team to Britain and which has pledged to help bees.
British political manifestos lay out in detail each party’s plans for government. The contents are important, but so is the manifesto launch, a televised rally-cum-press conference designed to cement the party brand.
“Essentially it gives the party their day, their guaranteed day in the sun.” said Steven Fielding, director of the Center for British Politics at the University of Nottingham.
Ill-considered policies can return to haunt parties. In 2010 the Liberal Democrats made a promise to abolish university tuition fees. Then the party joined a coalition government that tripled them. It has since lost more than half its support.
And poor preparation can be an embarrassment. U.K. Independence Party leader Nigel Farage has said his party’s 2010 manifesto was “drivel. I didn’t read it.” He promised Wednesday that he has “read, absorbed and understood” every word this time around.