Myths, methods and minorities

This chapter sets out the methodological framework, demonstrating through the study that there is a distinctive British tradition of minority government: parties in a hung parliament usually preferring minority to coalition governance, grounded in majoritarian rule and relying on examples from British history when formulating strategy, but open to pragmatic innovations in order to stay in power. Popular and scholarly myths surrounding the 1970s British Minority Governments show how some of the conclusions of existing historical and political science studies, documentaries, and television news, have helped to form and perpetuate these false assumptions. It is argued that this book’s interface with and challenges to existing international minority government theory provide the basis for a new perspective on British political history and minority governance globally.