Coalitions in Britain - Administrative Formation in Hung Councils

Based on a survey of 151 local authorities in Great Britain where no single party had an overall council majority, this article examines the administrative arrangements which form when political parties unused to compromise have to negotiate with each other for a share of power. It also considers the attitudes of the actors involved to the different ways of working that emerge in these 'hung' councils. The survey shows that hung councils experience a wide variety of political partnerships. Contrary to earlier surveys concerning of administration which discovered that open power-sharing arrangements have replaced single-party minority government as the most common response to a hung situation. The sharing of committee chairs has also become more widespread.