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List of Liberal Party and Liberal Democrats (UK) general election manifestos

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This is a list of the British Liberal Party, SDP–Liberal Alliance, and Liberal Democrats general election manifestos since the 1900 general election.

From 1900 to 1918, the Liberal general election manifesto was usually published as a form of a short personal address by the leader of the Party. From 1922, the party usually published a more formal document.

From the 1900 election to the 1979 election the party went to the polls as the Liberal Party. In 1983 and 1987, the party went to the polls under the banner of the "Alliance", as a result of the pact between the Liberals and the Social Democratic Party, the latter of which formed as a breakaway from Labour in 1981. Since 1992 it has competed as the Liberal Democrats, due to the merger of the Liberals and the SDP in 1988.

From 2010 to 2015, the Liberal Democrats, having signed an agreement with the Conservatives, served as junior partner in the first coalition government since the Second World War.

  Liberals win a majority.
  Liberals win the most seats without an absolute majority.
Election Leader Election winner Manifesto title Link to text
2024 Ed Davey Labour For a Fair Deal [1]
2019 Jo Swinson Conservative Stop Brexit, Build a Brighter Future [2]
2017 Tim Farron Hung (Conservative) Change Britain's Future [3]
2015 Nick Clegg Conservative Stronger Economy. Fairer Society. Opportunity for Everyone. [4]
2010 Nick Clegg Hung (Conservative-led coalition) Change That Works for You [5]
2005 Charles Kennedy Labour The Real Alternative [6]
2001 Charles Kennedy Labour Freedom, Justice, Honesty [7][8]
1997 Paddy Ashdown Labour Make the Difference [9][10]
1992 Paddy Ashdown Conservative Changing Britain for Good [11][12]
1987 David Steel Conservative Britain United – The Time Has Come [13][14]
David Owen
1983 David Steel Conservative Working Together for Britain [15][16]
Roy Jenkins
1979 David Steel Conservative The Real Fight Is for Britain [17][18]
October 1974 Jeremy Thorpe Labour Why Britain Needs Liberal Government [19][20]
February 1974 Jeremy Thorpe Hung (Labour) Change the Face of Britain [21][22]
1970 Jeremy Thorpe Conservative What a Life! [23][24]
1966 Jo Grimond Labour For All the People: The Liberal Plan of 1966 [25][26]
1964 Jo Grimond Labour Think for Yourself [27][28]
1959 Jo Grimond Conservative People Count [29][30]
1955 Clement Davies Conservative Crisis Unresolved [31][32]
1951 Clement Davies Conservative The Nation's Task [33][34]
1950 Clement Davies Labour No Easy Way: Britain's Problems and the Liberal Answers [35][36]
1945 Archibald Sinclair Labour 20 Point Manifesto of the Liberal Party [37][38]
1935 Herbert Samuel National Government 1935 Liberal Party General Election Manifesto [39]
1931 Herbert Samuel National Government Liberal Address to the Nation [40]
1929 David Lloyd George Hung (Labour) David Lloyd George's Election Address [41]
1924 H. H. Asquith Conservative The Liberal Manifesto [42]
1923 H. H. Asquith Hung (Labour) A Call to the Nation [43]
1922 H. H. Asquith Conservative Manifesto to the Nation [44]
1918 H. H. Asquith Hung (Conservative-dominated coalition) Herbert Asquith's Election Address [45]
December 1910 H. H. Asquith Hung (Liberal with Irish Nationalist support) Herbert Asquith's Election Address [46]
January 1910 H. H. Asquith Hung (Liberal with Irish Nationalist support) Herbert Asquith's Election Address [47]
1906 Henry Campbell-Bannerman Liberal Henry Campbell-Bannerman's Election Address Archived July 22, 2002, at the Wayback Machine
1900 Henry Campbell-Bannerman Conservative Manifesto of the National Liberal Federation [48]

See also

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Further reading

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  • Iain Dale, Liberal Party general election manifestos, 1900–1997, Routledge, 2000, ISBN 0-415-20591-3

References

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