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49-645: The National Government of 1937–1939 was formed by Neville Chamberlain on his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by King George VI . He succeeded Stanley Baldwin , who announced his resignation following the coronation of the King and Queen in May 1937. As a National Government it contained members of the Conservative Party , Liberal Nationals and National Labour , as well as

98-900: A parliamentary leader ; such leaders are often important political players. Parliamentary groups in some cases use party discipline to control the votes of their members. Parliamentary groups correspond to " caucuses " in the United States Congress and the Parliament of Canada . A parliamentary group is sometimes called the parliamentary wing of a party, as distinct from its organizational wing . Equivalent terms are used in different countries, including: Argentina ( bloque and interbloque ), Australia (party room); Austria ( Klub ); Belgium ( fractie / fraction / Fraktion ); Brazil and Portugal ("grupo parlamentar" or, informally, "bancadas"); Germany ( Fraktion ); Italy ( gruppo ), Finland (eduskuntaryhmä/ riksdagsgrupp );

147-607: A "Doctor's Mandate" to take a free hand and that each party would issue its own manifesto. Supporters of MacDonald formed the National Labour Organisation and the parties agreed to allow their local organisations to agree whether or not to oppose each other. The government was opposed by the Labour Party, Lloyd George and his Liberals and the New Party of Sir Oswald Mosley . Within the parties there

196-618: A general election should be fought to secure a mandate but this was anathema to the Liberal Party. The Liberals' acting leader and Home Secretary , Sir Herbert Samuel , fought in Cabinet against an election but found the Liberal Party dividing in several directions over the course of action. One group, under Sir John Simon emerged as the Liberal Nationals , was prepared to accept the tariff and expressed willingness to take

245-597: A large proportion of the Labour party's base refused to support any cuts to benefits or wages except to "the salaries of Ministers". Efforts to bring public expenditure cuts produced further problems, including a mutiny in the Royal Navy over pay cuts (the Invergordon Mutiny ), with the result that the pound sterling came under renewed pressure, and the government was forced to take the radical step of taking

294-672: A number of individuals who belonged to no political party. In September 1939, Chamberlain requested the formal resignations of all his colleagues, reconstructing the government in order to better confront Nazi Germany in the Second World War . Chamberlain is best known for his appeasement policy, and in particular for his signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938, conceding the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia to Germany. He said it brought "peace in our time" and

343-684: A reduced majority, but over the next two days it became increasingly clear that Labour and the Liberals would have to be brought into government and that Chamberlain was unable to achieve this. On 10 May 1940, Germany invaded the Low Countries and Chamberlain finally bowed to pressure and resigned, bringing the life of the National Government to a close. It was succeeded by an all-party coalition headed by Winston Churchill . Political alliance Parliamentary groups may elect

392-539: A region's group of countries') parliament(s), and, in a broader scope, to foster the bilateral relations between said countries. Parliamentary friendship groups play an important role in New Zealand's engagement in inter-parliamentary relations, with group members often called upon to participate and host meetings for visiting delegations from the other part, as well as often being invited by the other country's parliament to visit it. Friendship Groups do not speak for

441-512: A series of conferences to enable more home rule in India and other colonies. Baldwin's last years in office were seen as a period of drift, but in late 1936 he achieved a notable triumph in resolving the Edward VIII abdication crisis without major repercussions. Baldwin took the occasion of George VI 's coronation as an opportune moment to retire. Neville Chamberlain was seen by many as

490-515: Is to support the leadership by enforcing party discipline . In Armenia , political parties often form parliamentary groups before running in elections. Prior to the 2021 Armenian parliamentary elections , four different parliamentary groups were formed. A parliamentary group must pass the 7% electoral threshold in order to gain representation in the National Assembly . Higher electoral thresholds for parliamentary groups discourages

539-407: Is typically led by a parliamentary group leader or chairperson , though some parliamentary groups have two or more co-leaders . If the parliamentary group is represented in the legislature, the leader is almost always chosen from among the sitting members; if the leader does not yet have a seat in the legislature, a sitting member of the group may be expected to resign to make way for him or her. If

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588-547: The Factories Act 1937 , designed to better working conditions in factories, and placed limits on the working hours of women and children. The Coal Act 1938 allowed for nationalisation of coal deposits. Another major piece of legislation passed that year was the Holidays with Pay Act 1938 . The Housing Act 1938 provided subsidies aimed at encouraging slum clearance , and maintained rent control . Chamberlain's plans for

637-564: The League of Nations and sanctions against Italy for invading Abyssinia . The following month a massive storm developed when it emerged that the new Foreign Secretary, Sir Samuel Hoare , had negotiated the Hoare-Laval Pact which proposed to cede most of Abyssinia to Italy. Many were outraged, including many government MPs, and the agreement was dropped and Hoare sacked, though he later returned to government. The government sponsored

686-502: The Netherlands ( fractie ); Poland ( klub ), Switzerland ( fraction / Fraktion / frazione ); Romania ( grup parlamentar ); and Russia ( фракция/fraktsiya ), Spain ('grupo parlamentario'), and Ukraine ( фракція/fraktsiya ). Generally, parliamentary groups have some independence from the wider party organisations. It is often thought improper for elected MPs to take instructions solely from non-elected party officials or from

735-499: The Parliamentary Friendship Groups , also called Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Groups , Friendship Parliamentary Groups , or Parliamentary Group of Friendship [and Cooperation] . "Parliamentary Friendship" groups are groups of congresspeople/members of parliament who voluntarily organise themselves to promote parliamentary relations between their own Parliament and another country's (or even

784-515: The United Kingdom Parliament there exist associations of MPs called "all-party parliamentary groups", which bring together members of different parliamentary groups who wish to involve themselves with a particular subject. This term is in a sense the opposite of the term 'parliamentary group', which designates a group that includes only members of the same party or electoral fusion. One special kind of parliamentary groups are

833-512: The politics of the United Kingdom , a National Government is a coalition of some or all of the major political parties . In a historical sense, it refers primarily to the governments of Ramsay MacDonald , Stanley Baldwin and Neville Chamberlain which held office from 1931 until 1940. The all-party coalitions of H. H. Asquith and David Lloyd George in the First World War were sometimes referred to as National Governments at

882-629: The Conservative Lord Irwin (later Lord Halifax). Further tensions emerged over the Ottawa Agreement , which set up a series of tariff agreements within the British Empire , and the remaining Liberals and Snowden resigned their ministerial posts although they continued to support the government from the backbenches for another year. MacDonald considered resigning as well to allow a party government to take office but

931-556: The Dominions except Ireland . For some time there had been calls to expand Chamberlain's war ministry by bringing in members of the official Labour and Liberal parties but both parties refused to join (with the one exception of Liberal MP Gwilym Lloyd George , who joined the government as Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade ). For the first few months of war Britain saw comparatively little action apart from at sea, but

980-561: The Government of their own country, or even for the whole of the Parliament/Congress to which they belong, as they are usually self-regulating and self-fulfilling. Parliamentary Friendship Groups are active in the national congresses/parliaments of countries such as Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Israel, Laos, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Korea, Switzerland, and

1029-508: The Labour Party officially repudiated the new National government. It expelled MacDonald and made Henderson the leader of the main Labour party. Henderson led it into the general election on 27 October against the three-party National coalition. The Government was initially applauded by most, but the Labour Party were left in a state of confusion with the loss of several of their most prominent figures, and MacDonald, Philip Snowden and James Henry Thomas did little to explain themselves, with

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1078-619: The National Liberals, despite the parliamentary position being reversed. That balance was to cause tensions, particularly as the Diehard wing of the Conservative party felt unrepresented. The government entered protracted wrangling over whether or not to introduce tariffs. Both the Liberals and Snowden found it particularly difficult to accept but were in a heavy minority. However, both MacDonald and Baldwin wished to maintain

1127-503: The curtailing of excess working hours by the Factory Act and much slum clearance . Another success was the Holidays with Pay Act 1938 , which gave a fortnight's paid holiday a year to workers, starting in 1939. The school leaving age was also to be increased from Autumn 1939, but was deferred as war loomed. Further reforms were curtailed by the increased international tension which came to occupy most of his time. In foreign affairs,

1176-846: The cuts proposed by the May Report , even if the Labour Party and the Trade Unions led by Ernest Bevin did not. MacDonald duly changed his mind during the night and met with the Conservative and Liberal MPs the following morning. On 24 August, MacDonald agreed and formed a National Government composed of men from all parties with the specific aim of balancing the Budget and restoring confidence. The new cabinet had four Labourites (now called " National Labour ") who stood with MacDonald, plus four Conservatives (led by Baldwin and Chamberlain) and two Liberals. Labour unions were strongly opposed and

1225-456: The end, MacDonald and Snowden drafted a proposal that would cut benefits by 10%. Trade unions rejected this proposal. When a final vote was taken, the Cabinet was split 11–9 with a minority, including many political heavyweights such as Arthur Henderson and George Lansbury , threatening to resign rather than agree. The unworkable split, on 24 August 1931, made the government resign. The financial crisis grew worse and decisive government action

1274-640: The failure of the Norwegian campaign led to a massive outcry in Parliament. On 7 and 8 May 1940, a two-day debate took place in Parliament, known to history as the Norway Debate . Initially a discussion of what had gone wrong in that field, it soon turned into a general debate on the conduct of the war with fierce criticism expressed by all sides of the House. The government won the debate, albeit with

1323-564: The formation of parliamentary groups like Centre-right coalition and Centre-left coalition . In the Swiss Federal Assembly , at least five members are required to form a parliamentary group. The most important task is to delegate members to the commissions. The parliamentary groups are decisive in Swiss Federal Assembly and not the political parties, which are not mentioned in the parliamentary law. In

1372-541: The formation of parliamentary groups running in elections. The parliamentary groups of the European Parliament must consist of no less than 25 MEPs from seven different EU member states . No party discipline is required. Parliamentary groups gain financial support and can join committees. Hungarian mixed-member majoritarian representation rewards the formation of parliamentary groups, like United for Hungary . Italian parallel voting system rewards

1421-670: The government sought to increase Britain's armaments, while maintaining the unity of the Empire and Dominions and preventing any one power from becoming dominant on the continent of Europe. These proved increasingly difficult to reconcile, as many Dominions were reluctant to support Britain in the event of her going to war, and so military action risked splitting the Empire. Chamberlain took a strong personal lead in foreign affairs and sought to bring about peaceful revision of European frontiers in areas where many commentators had long-acknowledged grievances. In this, he received much popular support at

1470-525: The greatest landslide in British political history, the National Government winning a total of 556 seats and a Parliamentary majority of 500. It was a disaster for Labour, which was reduced to a small minority of 52. MacDonald was unified with the Conservatives and Liberal National leaders on one platform (he returning 13 of his 20 National Labour candidates). As few Labour MPs refused to abandon

1519-531: The most open opponents. The bill was fiercely opposed but eventually passed in 1947 in very different circumstances. With MacDonald's health failing, he retired as prime minister in June 1935, to be succeeded by Baldwin. Increasingly foreign affairs were coming to dominate political discourse and in November Baldwin led the government to victory in the 1935 general election on a platform of support for

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1568-465: The multiparty nature of the Government. On the suggestion of Hailsham, it was agreed to suspend the principle of Cabinet collective responsibility to allow the Liberals to oppose the introduction of tariffs while remaining in government. This held for some months. In 1932, Sir Donald MacLean died. MacDonald came under pressure not to merely appoint another Liberal, particularly as it was felt that they would be over-represented, and so instead appointed

1617-488: The only possible successor to Baldwin, and his appointment as Prime Minister was widely credited with bringing a new dynamism to the government. With a strong track record as a radical Minister of Health and competent Chancellor of the Exchequer many expected Chamberlain to provide a strong lead in domestic affairs and here the government had a number of successes, such as over the nationalisation of coal mining royalties,

1666-424: The parliamentary and organisational leadership will be held by the same person or people, whether ex officio or not; other parties maintain a sharp distinction between the two offices. Nevertheless, in almost all cases, the parliamentary leader is the public face of the party, and wields considerable influence within the organisational wing, whether or not they hold any official position there. A parliamentary group

1715-415: The party is not represented in the legislature for the time being, the leader will often be put forward at a general election as the party's candidate for their most winnable seat. In some parties, the leader is elected solely by the members of the parliamentary group; in others, some or all members of the wider party participate in the election. Parliamentary groups often have one or more whips , whose role

1764-402: The place of the main Liberals in the government. The party's official leader, David Lloyd George was incapacitated at this time but called for the Liberals to abandon the government altogether and stand independently in defence of free trade , but his call was heeded only by four other MPs, all of whom were his close relatives. It was eventually agreed that the government as a whole would seek

1813-410: The pound off the gold standard altogether. Debate then broke out about further steps to tackle the economic problems. At the same time the Labour Party officially expelled all of its members who supported the National Government, including MacDonald. Increasingly, the majority of the Cabinet came to believe that a protective tariff was necessary to support British industry and provide revenue and that

1862-867: The reform of local government were shelved because of the outbreak of war in 1939. Likewise, the proposal to raise the school-leaving age to 15, scheduled for implementation on 1 September 1939, could not go into effect. For a full list of ministerial office-holders, see National Government 1935-1940 . Members of the Cabinet are in bold face. National Government (United Kingdom) King Charles III [REDACTED] William, Prince of Wales [REDACTED] Charles III ( King-in-Council ) [REDACTED] Starmer ministry ( L ) Keir Starmer ( L ) Angela Rayner ( L ) ( King-in-Parliament ) [REDACTED] Charles III [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The Lord Reed The Lord Hodge Andrew Bailey Monetary Policy Committee In

1911-655: The result that the Labour Party soon swung fully against the government. This was in part because of the Trade Unions' decision to oppose all forms of cuts proposed by MacDonald and Snowden in response to the May Report , which had concluded the UK government needed to curb government expenditure to reduce the budget deficit amid the fallout from the Great Depression that began in 1929. The May Report in particular recommended to MacDonald that his Labour government cut unemployment benefit by 20%. The Trade Unions that represented

1960-493: The situation deteriorated and there was much fear that the budget was unbalanced, which was borne out by the independent May Report which triggered a confidence crisis and a run on the pound. The Labour government agreed in principle to make changes in taxation and to cut expenditure to balance the budget and restore confidence. However, the Cabinet could not agree on the two options available: either introduce tariffs (taxes on imports) or make 20% cuts in unemployment benefit . In

2009-449: The small subset of the electorate represented by party members. In any case, the exigencies of government, the need to cooperate with other members of the legislature and the desire to retain the support of the electorate as a whole often preclude strict adherence to the wider party's wishes. The exact relationship between the parliamentary party and the party varies between countries, and also from party to party. For example, in some parties,

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2058-424: The time, but are now more commonly called Coalition Governments. The term "National Government" was chosen to dissociate itself from negative connotations of the earlier coalitions. Similarly the all-party government of Winston Churchill in the Second World War was generally referred to as the National Government at the time. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 heralded the global Great Depression and Britain

2107-596: The time, but the policy has been much attacked since. The most prominent point in the policy of appeasement came in September 1938, when the Munich Agreement was negotiated. Following the agreement, the government sped up the re-armament process in the hope of being ready for war when it came. At the same time, it took a tougher line in foreign affairs, including making a guarantee to defend Poland against Germany. When Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, Britain declared war in tandem with France, supported by all of

2156-484: The wishes of the Trade Unionists led by Ernest Bevin , the support for the re-elected National Government was heavily Conservative. Although the Conservatives had a bare majority in Cabinet of 11, compared to nine non-Conservatives, the former held comparatively few of the most important jobs. The two groups of Liberals were similarly unbalanced in terms of posts, the official Liberals holding one more seat than

2205-505: Was hit, although not as badly as most countries. The government was trying to achieve several different, contradictory objectives: trying to maintain Britain's economic position by maintaining the pound on the gold standard , balancing the budget , and providing assistance and relief to tackle unemployment. The gold standard meant that British prices were higher than its competitors', so the important export industries did poorly. In 1931,

2254-407: Was needed as the leaders of both the Conservative and Liberal Parties met with King George V , and MacDonald, at first to discuss support for the measures to be taken but later to discuss the shape of the next government. MacDonald had originally wished to tender his resignation but was told to re-consider by the King on the grounds that the majority of opposition MPs and the country at large supported

2303-402: Was particular conflict between the Conservatives and Liberals. The 1931 general election campaign run by the National Government figures stressed their policies would aim to avoid any risk of Britain seeing such events as those of Germany two years ago including hyperinflation and MacDonald famously waved worthless Deutschmarks to emphasise the point. The result of the 1931 general election was

2352-450: Was persuaded to remain even though his health was now in decline. In domestic politics, he increasingly allowed Baldwin to give a lead, but in foreign affairs, the main direction was determined by MacDonald and Simon. The most prominent policy of the National Government in the early 1930s was the proposal to introduce Indian Home Rule , a measure fiercely opposed by the Diehard wing of the Conservative party, with Winston Churchill one of

2401-445: Was widely applauded. He also stepped up Britain's rearmament program, and worked closely with France. When in 1939 Hitler continued his aggression, taking over the rest of Czechoslovakia and threatening Poland, Chamberlain pledged to defend Poland's independence if the latter were attacked. Britain and France declared war when Germany attacked Poland in September 1939. Chamberlain wanted to focus on domestic issues. He obtained passage of

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