IS A CONFIDENCE AND SUPPLY AGREEMENT A THREAT
TO WESTMINSTER DEMOCRACY?
THE CASE OF THE 2017 AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY
AND DEMOCRATIC UNIONIST PARTY
The article is an attempt of a theoretical reflection on the agreements signed by
two parties, with different relevance in political systems, in order to create a base of
support for a minority government. The author try to answer the question whether
such an agreement – in terms of transparency of a political system – is functional or dysfunctional for the stability of the Westminster democracy. He analyses
the case of the 2017 agreement between the Conservative Party and Democratic
Unionist Party using some system analysis and content analysis techniques. He
concludes that in the case of the United Kingdom the process of forming an
informal coalition in order to support the Theresa May’s minority government was
typical for the democratic system, but the transactional nature of the agreement
brought the British political system closer to patron-client patterns.
PEER REVIEW INFORMATION
Article has been screened for originality
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