Democratic stress, the populist signal and extremist threat A call for a new mainstream statecraft and contact democracy By Anthony Painter with additional research and contributions from Claudia Chwalisz Published in 2013 by Policy Network Copyright © 2013 Policy Network Policy Network 11 Tufton Street, London, SW1P 3QB Tel: +44 20 7 340 2200 Email:
[email protected] Website: www.policy-network.net All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. Design and layout: Alan Hunt Printed by: John Drewe Policy Network is a leading thinktank and international political network based in London. We seek to promote strategic thinking on progressive solutions to the challenges of the 21st century, impacting upon policy debates in the UK, the rest of Europe and the wider world. Through a distinctly collaborative and cross-national approach to research, events and publications, Policy Network has acquired a reputation as a highly valued platform for perceptive and challenging political analysis, debate and exchange. www.policy-network.net Democracy under stress Contents Executive Summary 7 Introduction 9 1. Stress and crisis 14 2. The underlying causes of democratic ‘stress’ 16 3. Populist response to democratic ‘stress’ 19 4. Extremism and populism 25 5. The ‘demand’ for populism and extremism 27 6. Mainstream party strategies to cope with democratic stress 31 7. Contact democracy as a strategic response 49 Conclusion - a renewed mainstream statecraft and ‘contact democracy’ 50 Annex 53 About the Author Anthony Painter is a political researcher and writer.