United Kingdom

British politics in 2009 was dominated by two major issues: the MPs’ expenses scandal and the continuing economic recession. The year also saw local and European elections in June, a failed attempt to oust Gordon Brown from the leadership of the Labour Party and a major cabinet reshuffle. The year came to an end with the Conservatives scoring around 40–41 per cent in most polls, similar to their position at the start of the year. Labour’s position was slightly worse than in early 2009, with most polls placing them between the late twenties and early thirties in percentage terms. Support for the Liberal Demo- crats was slightly higher than at the start of the year, mainly in the 18–20 per cent bracket, although nowhere near the levels that were to follow in mid- April 2010. Interestingly though, the level of support for ‘other’ parties reached comparatively high levels, especially around the European elections, and was still relatively high at 11–15 per cent in polls during December 2009