Social Democratic Party (UK, 1988)
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Social Democratic Party
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| Founded | 1988 |
| Dissolved | May 1990 |
| Split from | Social Democratic Party (1981) |
| Succeeded by | Social Democratic Party (1990) |
| Ideology |
Centrism Social liberalism Social democracy |
| Political position | Centre-left |
| Colours | Blue and Red |
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) formed in 1988 was a political party in the United Kingdom led by David Owen which lasted for only two years. The party was formed as a result of the original Social Democratic Party, created in 1981 by the "Gang of Four" (Owen, Roy Jenkins, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams, all dissident Labour former ministers) voting to turn its electoral alliance with the Liberal Party into a full merger of the two parties. The new Social and Liberal Democrats (SLD) party thus gained all of the records and assets of the original SDP.
Three sitting SDP members of parliament,—Owen, John Cartwright, and Rosie Barnes—did not join the SLD, and opted to create a new continuing Social Democratic Party. They were joined by a small minority of former members of the original SDP.
The party was dissolved in 1990 in the aftermath of a by-election in Bootle in which the party's candidate was beaten by Screaming Lord Sutch's Official Monster Raving Loony Party.
The SDP was not alone in having members who rejected the merger with the Liberal Party to form the Social and Liberal Democrats. Among Liberals, Michael Meadowcroft led a breakaway faction which created a new Liberal Party.
The new post-merger SDP had two major advantages over the Social and Liberal Democrats (later known as the Liberal Democrats). Firstly, it enjoyed the financial support of Lord Sainsbury, owner of the Sainsbury chain of supermarkets. Secondly, its members regarded David Owen as a charismatic leader who looked and acted the part of a potential Prime Minister. The party also held the allegiance of seventeen members of the House of Lords, led by Phyllis Stedman. But despite an energetic tour of the nation's university campuses by Owen, the party remained very short of active members. A party conference at Paisley Town Hall in 1989 was held behind closed doors without the usual television coverage to conceal the rows of empty seats. A shortage of members left the party exposed to electoral embarrassment if it stood candidates in areas where there was a lack of activists to bring out the vote.
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