Conservative lists shed tears in preparation for a fresh start (5,5)
I believe the answer is:
clean sweep
'preparation for a fresh start' is the definition.
I know nothing about this answer so I can't tell whether it can be defined by this definition.
'conservative lists shed tears' is the wordplay.
'conservative' becomes 'C' (UK political abbreviation).
'lists' becomes 'leans' (I've seen this in other clues).
'shed tears' becomes 'weep' (I've seen this before).
'c'+'leans'+'weep'='CLEAN SWEEP'
'in' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for clean sweep that I've seen before include "Complete change; winning all the trophies" , "Complete achievement of objectives" , "That's when you get everything going" .)