1.3 pressure groups and other influences

Question 1

How do pressure groups differ from political parties?

Answer 1

• they don’t usually enter their own candidates at elections
• do not seek to exercise power themselves

Question 2

What do pressure groups seek to do?

Answer 2

• they seek to influence the government to adopt their ideas, or not to pursue a policy of which they disapprove

Question 3

What are sectional groups (or interest)?

Answer 3

• seek to promote the interests of an occupation or another group in society
• e.g. trade unions represent their membership in negotiations with employers over wages + working conditions
• membership is usually restricted to people who meet specific requirements

Question 3

What are the three main types of pressure groups?

Answer 3

• sectional groups or interest groups
• cause groups or promotional groups
• social movements

Question 4

What are cause groups (or promotional)?

Answer 4

• focused on achieving a particular goal or drawing attention to an issue or group of related issues
• membership is usually open to anyone who sympathises with their aims
• e.g. Greenpeace promotes awareness of environmental concerns and tries to influence the government

Question 5

What is a special category cause group?

Answer 5

• one that promotes the interests of a group in a society, most often one that cannot stand up for itself
• members do not belong to the social group for which they campaign
• e.g. most members of housing charity Shelter are not themselves homeless

Question 6

What are social movements?

Answer 6

• similar to cause groups but more loosely structured
• usually politically radical and seek to achieve a single objective
• e.g. the Camps for Climate Action were created for short periods of time to protest against the expansion for Heathrow airport

Question 7

What are Insider groups?

Answer 7

• rely on contacts with ministers and civil servants to achieve their aims
• e.g National Union of Farmers have close links with the relevant government department (DEFRA)
• tend to have objectives that are broadly in line with their views of the government, which increases their leverage
• low profile groups rely on discreet behind the scenes contacts rather than seeking publicity e.g. Howard League for Penal Reform
• high profile groups supplement their lobbying with use of the media to make their case e.g. Confederation of British Industry

Question 8

What are Outsider groups?

Answer 8

• not consulted by the government
• objectives may be far outside the political mainstream and so the government is unlikely to enter dialogue with them (animal rights protestors who try to intimidate animal testing laboratories on ceasing their work
• they may wish to preserve its independence and reputation for ideological purity by keeping the government at a distance (e.g. Occupy movement sees government as closely aligned to the global capitalist movement against which they are protesting)

Question 9

How do insider groups tend to negotiate?

Answer 9

• tend to negotiate quickly behind the scenes using their private contacts in Whitehall

Question 10

What methods do outsider groups use?

Answer 10

• resort to less discreet methods to draw attention
• may try to exercise influence through email campaigns and petitions, or staging demonstrations and publicity stunts

Question 10

How do pressure groups methods vary?

Answer 10

• will be determined largely by the resources available and by its status as an insider or outside

Question 11

How are resources a factor in deciding the effectiveness of pressure group activity?

Answer 11

• large membership who pay subscriptions means that a group is likely to have the financial resources to run offices, pay permanent staff and organise publicity e.g RSPCA employs 1600 people
• size of membership can be important in persuading the government that it reflects a significant section of public opinion

Question 12

How are tactics and leadership a factor in deciding the effectiveness of pressure group activity?

Answer 12

• experienced,capable leadership is vital to success
• key to success is knowing which ‘access points’ in the UK political system to target

Question 13

How is public support a factor in deciding the effectiveness of pressure group activity?

Answer 13

• pressure groups whose agenda is in step with public opinion are usually more successful than those whose objectives fail to engage it, or whose methods alienate potential sympathisers

Question 14

How is government attitudes a factor in deciding the effectiveness of pressure group activity?

Answer 14

• insider contacts with government ministers and civil servants are often a key to success
• government will usually listen to the groups on which it relies for specialist knowledge of a policy area, and with whose agenda it can see some common ground

Question 15

Case Study: The BMA and the ban on smoking in cars carrying children

Answer 15

• BMA purpose is to protect the interests of doctors
• used the grounds that passive smoking is particularly harmful in a confined space
• insufficient support for their case
• attracted the support of other pressure groups when introducing children being in the cars
• the ban came into force in 2015
• the BMA showed a willingness to focus on an attainable goal

Question 16

What are Think tanks?

Answer 16

• a body of experts brought together to investigate and offer solutions to economic,social or political issues

Question 17

An example of a think tank

Answer 17

• the shift of conservative party thinking towards a more overtly free-market-oriented approach in the 1970s owed a great deal to Margaret Thatcher’s patronage of right-wing think tanks, such as the Centre for Policy and the Adam Smith Institute

Question 18

Why are think tanks often ignored?

Answer 18

• the work of think tanks is often said to lack the academic rigour expected in university circles
• think tanks are typically are staffed by young, ambitious individuals who see their time there as a springboard to a political career

Question 19

Who are Lobbyists?

Answer 19

• someone who is paid by clients to seek to influence government, or parliament on their behalf, particularly when legislation is being considered

Question 19

Why do people dislike lobbyists?

Answer 19

• unease about the legitimacy of some professional lobbying activities
• many people dislike the idea that influence can be bought by wealthy individuals and organisations, who can afford lobbyist fees

Question 19

What is a concern about lobbyists?

Answer 19

• the lobbying system for many years was expected to regulate itself, lobbyists being allowed to decide whether or not their names appeared on a public register
• In 2014 the government made it a legal requirement for anyone lobbying on behalf of a third party to register if their activities include discussing policy, legislation or government contracts with a minister or senior civil servant
• this did not allay the anxieties of critics who wanted greater transparency

Question 20

How many people does lobbying employ and how much money is spent on it?

Answer 20

4000 people and £2 billion

Question 21

What is the revolving door process?

Answer 21

• where senior politicians and officials take well-paid jobs in the private sector after they leave government service

Question 22

Why may powerful cooperations lobby?

Answer 22

• in an attempt to modity policies that affect their business interests