In social policy parties cannot make a difference any longer even if they wanted to - this is one of the basic claims of globalization theory. Thus, left-wing parties as well as their right-wing counterparts are forced to cut social expenditure and to restructure welfare programs in certain ways due to economic pressures. While numerous quantitative and qualitative studies test this proposition, they generally do so in a rather restricted way by comparing the change of similar indicators in different national and institutional contexts. This paper argues that a more contextualized approach is necessary to shed a brighter light on the question of party convergence. Such a contextualized comparison not only considers different political-institutional settings, it also accounts for country-specific differences in the structure and generosity of existing welfare programs and party legacies. Thereby, it is possible to identify differing issues at the heart of the left-right conflict in the same policy area within different countries. Comparing changes in these nominally different but analytically equivalent issues under the influence of increasing external pressures promises insights not obtainable by customary ‘matched comparisons’. Empirically, the paper concentrates on party struggles over unemployment protection systems in Great Britain, Sweden and Germany. It unfolds in three steps: First, the theoretical framework is presented. Second, for each country the main left-right policy issues are identified, which, depending primarily on the structure of the unemployment protection system, range from aspects of benefit generosity to the mode of financing to administrative matters, e.g. union involvement. Third, and last, it is analyzed to what extent these traditional, country-specific party differences have prevailed or altered since the early 1990’s. It is concluded that, while the central points of conflict have partially changed and shifted to the right, there remain party differences of greater (Sweden) or lesser extent (Germany, UK).
