Politics: Books

Queer Conflict Research : New Approaches to the Study of Political Violence

Bringing together a team of international scholars, this volume provides a foundational guide to queer methodologies in the study of political violence and conflict. Contributors provide illuminating discussions on why queer approaches are important, what they entail and how to utilise a queer approach to political violence and conflict. The chapters explore a variety of methodological approaches, including fieldwork, interviews, cultural analysis and archival research. They also engage with broader academic debates, such as how to work with research partners in an ethical manner. (Provided by Publisher.)

Jamie Hagen is a lecturer in Global Politics at the University of Manchester.

Political Technology : the Globalisation of Political Manipulation

'Political technology' is a Russian term for the professional engineering of politics. It has turned Russian politics into theatre and propaganda, and metastasised to take over foreign policy and weaponise history. The war against Ukraine is one outcome. In the West, spin doctors and political consultants do more than influence media or run campaigns: they have also helped build parallel universes of alternative political reality. Hungary has used political technology to dismantle democracy. The BJP in India has used it to consolidate unprecedented power. Different countries learn from each other. Some types of political technology have become notorious, like troll farms or data mining; but there is now a global wholesale industry selling a range of manipulation techniques, from astroturfing to fake parties to propaganda apps. This book shows that 'political technology' is about much more than online disinformation: it is about whole new industries of political engineering (Provided by Publisher)

Who Governs Britain? Trade Unions, the Conservative Party and the Failure of the Industrial Relations Act 1971

Providing fresh insights from the archival record, Who governs Britain? revisits the 1970-74 Conservative government to explain why the Party tried – and failed – to reform the system of industrial relations. Designed to tackle Britain’s strike problem and perceived disorder in collective bargaining, the Industrial Relations Act 1971 established a formal legal framework to counteract trade union power. As the state attempted to disengage from and ‘depoliticise’ collective bargaining practices, trade union leaders and employers were instructed to discipline industry. In just three-and-a-half years, the Act contributed to a crisis of the British state as industrial unrest engulfed industry and risked undermining the rule of law. Warner explores the power dynamics, strategic errors and industrial battles that destroyed this attempt to tame trade unions and ultimately brought down a government, and that shape Conservative attitudes towards trade unions to this day.

“Who governs Britain? examines the efforts of the 1970–74 Conservative government to impose a formal legal framework on British trade unions. This attempt to regulate collective bargaining arrangements and solve Britain’s strike ‘problem’ descended into farce, and the Industrial Relations Act 1971 is known as a policy fiasco. Who governs Britain? explains why. The book provides new insights through extensive use of primary sources from the National Archives, Modern Records Centre and Conservative Party Archives. It employs a novel, multi-dimensional framework to analyse the Government’s failure to disengage from – and ‘depoliticise’ – this controversial process of reform. The attempt to pacify trade unions was thrown into doubt when presumptions about their deference to the rule of law proved unfounded. The National Industrial Relations Court was framed by trade unionists as ‘political’, an extension of government and therefore illegitimate. The book’s empirical chapters analyse key events in the Act’s short but tempestuous existence to provide fresh insights into the industrial battles that followed. The analysis illustrates how inadequate drafting, flawed assumptions about internal trade union dynamics, strategic failings and tensions linked to complex interdependencies at the heart of the core executive contributed to the government’s downfall. Who governs Britain? considers how the events of the early 1970s influenced Conservative attitudes towards trade unions in the 1980s, shaping the industrial relations landscape today. It will be of interest to scholars of British political and labour history and processes of (de/re)politicisation (Provided by Publisher).

Dr Samuel Warner is a Research Associate at The Productivity Institute (TPI) and the Department of Politics, University of Manchester.

Human Rights Politics

The book offers a comprehensive and clear introduction for students and those interested in human rights, written by a renowned human rights expert. It not only provides an introduction to the diversity of issues, actors and institutions in human rights policy and politics, but also offers assistance and suggestions on how the complex reality of human rights politics can be described and analysed with the help of political science and related disciplines. It deals with civil society engagement in human rights as well as state obligations and international efforts to protect human rights. This is an open access book (Provided by Publisher).

Exploring Parliament, Second Edition

This book offers a clear and practical insight into the UK Parliament, combining academic research with practitioner perspectives to show how it really works. Through evidence-based case studies, it explores the structures, processes, and relationships—both formal and informal—that shape parliamentary decision-making, giving students an authentic understanding of its key actors and dynamics.

The latest edition reflects major developments, including the 2024 General Election, new chapters on diversity and representation, and expanded coverage of devolved parliaments and interparliamentary relations. With over half the content newly authored, it provides up-to-date scholarship and a fresh perspective on the evolving role of Parliament. (Provided by Publisher.)

Louise Thompson is a Senior Lecturer in Politics at the University of Manchester.