The outcome of the U.K.'s upcoming general election is no longer a foregone conclusion, with the opposition Conservative Party's steady lead in opinion polls recently narrowing. An election date of May 6 has been floated, leaving plenty of time for the usual twists and turns of election campaigning. All the same, given Prime Minister Gordon Brown's political difficulties and popular fatigue with the Labour Party's long grip on power, a Conservative win is certainly plausible. So what would be the implications of a Conservative victory on foreign and development policy?
Answering this question is tricky, not least because a consistent policy direction in this area is hard to find. Conservative Party media strategy has centered heavily around their leader David Cameron, who has been vocal about home affairs and the government's perceived economic shortcomings, but has stayed pretty silent on the Tories' global perspective. Nonetheless, several themes are emerging.
The Special Relationship?