United Kingdom — Blair governments (1997–2007)
United Kingdom
Basis for the estimate: Minimum wage, devolution, Iraq war, public-service investment.
Official system and how it worked in practice
| Official system | Parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
|---|---|
| In practice | Liberal democracy electoral democracy plus strong rule of law, judicial and legislative checks, and protected individual rights |
“In practice” is V-Dem’s Regimes of the World classification for United Kingdom, 1997–2007, from expert-coded data (V-Dem Regimes of the World (v2x_regime), V-Dem dataset v16, March 2026). V-Dem codes each country as it stood at the end of each year, so the first and last years can reflect the previous or next government. The official system is the constitutional form during the period.
Political placement
| Map dimension | Score (0–100) | Position | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market | 60 | near the center | |
| Social Progressive ↔ Traditional | 32 | toward progressive | |
| Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian | 37 | near the center | |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 35 | near the center | |
| Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 88 | strongly toward intervention |
All nine underlying dimensions
| Dimension | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Economic ownership Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership | 65 | near the center |
| Civil liberties Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions | 53 | near the center |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 35 | near the center |
| Social and cultural values Progressive ↔ Traditionalist | 30 | toward progressive |
| Political governance Democratic ↔ Autocratic | 20 | toward democratic |
| Equality and hierarchy Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical | 51 | near the center |
| Economic management Free market ↔ State planning | 47 | near the center |
| Military intervention Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 88 | strongly toward intervention |
| Religion and government Secular state ↔ Religious authority | 37 | near the center |
Country and government scores interpret the policies of a specific government or period; they are not an authoritative ranking of countries, and official constitutional structures can differ from how power is exercised in practice. How scores are made.
Key positions (estimated)
| Statement | Position | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Opposition parties should be free to compete in elections. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Military intervention abroad can be justified to stop mass atrocities. | Strongly agrees | from their record |
| A national religious authority should have the power to veto legislation. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| The means of production should ultimately be owned collectively. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| Preserving a historic national majority is a legitimate immigration objective. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| Central economic planning is preferable to decentralized market decisions. | Strongly disagrees | estimated |
| Hate speech should be a criminal offense. | Agrees | from their record |
| Same-sex couples should have the same right to marry as opposite-sex couples. | Strongly agrees | estimated |
| Society works best when established social hierarchies are respected. | Disagrees | estimated |
| Differences in social status help maintain an orderly society. | Disagrees | estimated |
Closest ideologies
Most similar governments
Sources
- Wikipedia: Premiership of Tony Blair (Wikipedia search)
Last reviewed October 11, 2026.