Charles Kennedy
The voice against the war
Liberal conscience, popular touch.
Reformist Liberal DemocratOne of 729 ideologies · enter the Liberal Democrat hall →- Role
- Liberal Democrat leader
- Era
- 1959–2015
- Region
- United Kingdom
- Social band
- Reformist
- Placement
- −26 · −28 · +46
§ Where Charles Kennedy stands
3 axesKennedy led the Liberal Democrats to the left of New Labour on tax and spending: the 2005 manifesto proposed a 50 per cent income-tax rate on earnings above £100,000 to help fund free personal care for the elderly and abolish university tuition fees, and a local income tax in place of council tax. He accepted the market economy, keeping him only moderately left of centre.
Under Kennedy the Liberal Democrats opposed Labour's security legislation, voting against the Identity Cards Bill and helping defeat the government's plan in 2005 to hold terrorism suspects for 90 days without charge. He championed proportional representation and the devolution settlement in Scotland, and he grounded his opposition to the Iraq War in international law and parliamentary accountability.
Kennedy was a warm social liberal and internationalist. His party supported the Civil Partnership Act 2004 and the Gender Recognition Act 2004, and he was a committed pro-European who backed eventual British membership of the euro. His opposition to the Iraq War rested on international law and the authority of the United Nations rather than on pacifism.
How close are you to Charles Kennedy?
Three statements, one per axis. Answer them and we’ll drop you on the compass next to them.
§ The story
HistoricalCharles Peter Kennedy (1959–2015) led the Liberal Democrats from 1999 to 2006. Raised in a Catholic crofting family near Fort William in the Scottish Highlands, he studied at the University of Glasgow, where he was a champion debater, and in 1983, aged 23, won Ross, Cromarty and Skye for the SDP, becoming the youngest MP in the Commons. He backed the 1988 merger that created the Liberal Democrats, served as party president from 1990 to 1994 and succeeded Paddy Ashdown as leader in August 1999.
Kennedy's opposition to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which he voiced at the February 2003 anti-war rally in London and in the Commons vote that March, made his party the main parliamentary voice against the war, and in 2005 the Liberal Democrats won 62 seats, the most for a third party since the 1920s. In January 2006 he admitted a long struggle with alcohol and resigned under pressure from colleagues. He declined to back his party's 2010 coalition with the Conservatives, lost his seat to the SNP in May 2015 and died that June, aged 55.
Notable for
- 01Opposed the Iraq War
- 02Lib Dems' best-ever result
- 03Champion of civil liberties
Key works & moments
- 1983Elected SDP MP for Ross, Cromarty and Skye at 23, the youngest member of the Commons.
- 1999Elected leader of the Liberal Democrats in succession to Paddy Ashdown.
- 2003Leads his party against the Iraq War, speaking at the London anti-war rally in February.
- 2005Wins 62 seats, the most for a third party since the 1920s.
- 2006Resigns as leader after admitting a long struggle with alcohol.
- 2015Loses his Highland seat to the SNP in May and dies in June.
§ Minds closest to Charles Kennedy
All minds →
§ Also in the Liberal Democrat hall
Enter the hall →§ Common questions
4 answersWhat was Charles Kennedy's political ideology?
Charles Kennedy was a social liberal in the SDP and Liberal Democrat tradition: on the 99ideologies three-axis compass, a Reformist Liberal Democrat. Economically he sits moderately left of centre (−26), backing higher taxes on top earners to fund public services within a market economy. On governance he leaned clearly towards civil liberty (−28), opposing identity cards and long detention without charge, and socially he was progressive (+46), pro-European, internationalist and supportive of equal rights.
Was Charles Kennedy left-wing or right-wing?
Centre-left. Kennedy began in the SDP, a breakaway from Labour's right, but as Liberal Democrat leader he positioned his party to the left of Tony Blair's government on taxation, civil liberties and, above all, the Iraq War. He proposed a 50 per cent top rate of income tax and the abolition of tuition fees, while accepting the market economy. His refusal to back the 2010 coalition with the Conservatives confirmed where his sympathies lay.
Why did Charles Kennedy oppose the Iraq War?
Because he believed the case for war had not been made and that military action without a fresh United Nations resolution would lack legitimacy. Kennedy argued that weapons inspectors should be given more time, spoke at the London anti-war rally of February 2003 and led Liberal Democrat MPs in voting against the war on 18 March 2003. When no weapons of mass destruction were found, his stance was widely seen as vindicated, and it helped his party win 62 seats in 2005.
Which minds are closest to Charles Kennedy?
On the 99ideologies three-axis compass, the minds closest to Charles Kennedy are Paddy Ashdown (98% alike), Shirley Williams (97% alike) and Frank Church (97% alike). The furthest is Adam Sutler (14% alike).