Political parties, and whether people any longer give them credence, has been the subject of much discussion recently. Do parties act as an important part of the democratic process by aggreagating the vote, or do they stifle open debate, turn off the electorate and either encourage apathy or drive people to single issue groups. One of the things I have always found in the past is that they are aften lacking in any ideological base, and as a consequence they become slightly obsessive about THEIR subject. Timothy Garton Ash on why We must stand up to the creeping tyranny of the group veto.