Of the three main parties only the Liberal Democrats make an explicit pledge on conflict prevention in their manifesto:
We will also give greater support to conflict prevention which saves money and saves lives.
The Conservatives talk about conflict prevention in more traditonal terms:
We will work with our allies across the world to prevent conflict and secure peace.
And the Labour Party talks of using:
our international reach to build security and stability combating terrorism and extremism, curbing proliferation, preventing and resolving conflict, and tackling climate change.
Some of the nationalist and minor parties are more forthright in their support for conflict prevention:
The SNP believes that Scotland should join with the world community where necessary to preserve peace and security. We propose a Scottish Centre for Reconciliation and Conflict Resolution, to promote peaceful alternatives to armed conflict.
The Green Party says:
Respect is gained by taking a leading role in preventing conflict, protecting civilians threatened by conflict and promoting human rights and international law. The Green Party wants Britain to have this kind of respect.
Plaid Cymru says:
We will continue to press for an ethical foreign policy which emphasises conflict prevention and we call for real, effective action to curtail the international arms trade.
Sinn Fin makes extended reference to the need for reconciliation in Northern Ireland as part of the ongoing process of conflict resolution there. Internationally, it states:
While no two conflict resolution processes are identical, Sinn Fin has ensured that our experience of the Irish peace process is widely available to others... to assist in dealing with the causes of conflict internationally. Sinn Fin representatives continue to act as expert advisors and experienced observers in a wide variety of international situations.
The UK Independence Party, the Democratic Unionist Party and the British National Party appear to make no reference to conflict prevention in their manifestos.
