Define “pressure group”

The UK’s most influential centre-left pressure group

Because from the slightly more distant view of Yorkshire, the most influential centre-left pressure group in the country is currently the Liberal Democrats…

Hi Mat, haven’t you heard? According to Sunny Hundal, Donpaskini, Claude Carpentieri and the other “Liberal” Conspiracy mafia, the Lib Dems are no longer centre-left owing to the fact that they’re now in a position to implement some centre-left policies Labour had 13 years to implement but which it failed to even try to do so. According to the new “the entire left is in opposition, progressive politics is now about which middle-class middle-aged Oxbridge-educated twat will lead the Labour Party to its next electoral defeat (Abbott went to Cambridge)” wisdom, the Lib Dems are somewhere to the right of Michael Howard.

That is, if you agree with the line of this blog

Oh, I’m very aware that some on the “left” think any sort of compromise to stop the idiot right taking full power is disgusting, and suspect some would rather have the right in full flight, causing havoc and mayhem, because it’d be better, electorally, for them at the next election.

They also seem to think that a minority Tory administration calling a GE within a year would fall from power as the voters inevitably vote them out.

I’m not sold on either of these points.

But, y’know, this is a large, group blog, and while I’m uncomfortable with some of the posts made, that’s always been the case. And while some of the idiot partisans are making ridiculous statements on here, they’re making themselves look stupid for the most part.

I’ll continue to contribute when I’ve something to say. I’m not sure when/what that’ll be though.

I’m sure both of you are intelligent enough to know the difference between a political party and a pressure group.

Bbbut…

For yearsanyearsanyearsanyears I was told I was wasting my time with “that pressure group” and that I should join a “proper political party” (ie one with a chance of power).

The old Liberals used to be a think tank for Labour govts, then the Lib Dems got called a pressure group more often than was polite. I still sometimes refer to the Greens as such, for that’s pretty much their mission statement.

However, I’m prety sure one of my politics professors told me that the difference between a party and a pressure group was that parties ran candidates, generally you could put all parties into a venn diagram as a subset of pressure goup, if you want.

Not saying I agree with him, but…

I was told I was wasting my time with “that pressure group” and that I should join a “proper political party”

Not me

I like the proliferation of parties. If people want to be ideological pure, that’s up to them.

Oh, I’m very aware that some on the “left” think any sort of compromise to stop the idiot right taking full power is disgusting, and suspect some would rather have the right in full flight, causing havoc and mayhem, because it’d be better, electorally, for them at the next election.

Having been on the receiving end of some pretty unpleasant abuse elsewhere for daring to defend my decision to vote LibDem and still claim to be on the left I have to agree with this.
I think this is a good topic for the Blog Nation event.

Over whom exactly does this “influential” group exert any actual influence?