25.) Development of British Democracy

Question 1

What did the Great Reform Act of 1832 do?

Answer 1

-Get rid of rotten boroughs
-One in five males can vote

Question 2

What was the Second Reform Act of 1867?

Answer 2

-30% of men able to vote, mainly in cities

Question 3

What was the Third Reform Act of 1884?

Answer 3

-Established uniform franchise: no more borough/county split
-60% of men could vote

Question 4

What was the Representation of the People Act of 1918?

Answer 4

All men over 21 (19 for veterans) could vote and all women over 30 who owned property could

Question 5

What was the Representation of the People Act 1928?

Answer 5

-Women votes equal to men
-All men and women over 21 can vote
-Property qualifications removed

Question 6

What was the Representation of the People Act of 1969?

Answer 6

It reduced the voting age to 18 for all

Question 7

What other measures helped democracy in the UK?

Answer 7

-Secret ballot introduction (1872)
-Direct bribery of voters banned (1883)

Question 8

What was the name of the committee set up to investigate lowering the voting age to 18?

Answer 8

Latey Committee

Question 9

Name an early vote reform group?

Answer 9

Chartists

Question 10

When and what were the Chartists’ demands?

Answer 10

After the Great Reform Act of 1832, the Chartists demands were:

-All men have the vote
-Votes by secret ballot only
-Elections every year not every seven years (before 1911 GEs were fought every 7 years not 5)
-Equally sized constituencies
-MPs should be paid
-MP property qualification should be abolished

Question 11

Name some key leaders of the Chartists?

Answer 11

-William Lovett
-Francis Place
-Feargus O’Connor
-Susanna Inge
-Anne Walker

Question 12

What was the Chartists main tactic?

Answer 12

Petitions - there were three (1839, 1842, 1848) which contained up to six million signatures

Question 13

Although the Chartists failed, what was their legacy?

Answer 13

All of their demands except yearly elections have been achieved

Question 14

Why were the aristocrats of that time unwilling to give working men the vote?

Answer 14

-The working men wouldn’t be educated enough to understand politics
-The working men might seize power through the ballot box

Question 15

Who were the two groups who focused on rights for women?

Answer 15

Suffragists and suffragettes

Question 16

Who founded the suffragettes?

Answer 16

Emmeline, Christabel and Sylvia Pankhurst

Question 17

Who was the leader of suffragists during the early 20th century?

Answer 17

Millicent Fawcett

Question 18

What were the suffragists’ tactics?

Answer 18

Peaceful: meetings, leaflets, petitions and lobbying of politicians

Question 19

What were some key arguments about votes for women?

Answer 19

-Women are intellectually equal to men
-Women pay equal taxes and obey the same laws as men
-Women could vote in local elections and become mayors already

Question 20

What were some key arguments against votes for women?

Answer 20

-Separate spheres: politics is a “man’s business”
-Women not making the ultimate sacrifice that men are
-Women would outnumber men and take over from them

Question 21

When were the first ethnic minorities elected to Parliament?

Answer 21

1987

Question 22

What did the electoral commission find in November 2019?

Answer 22

-25% black people not registered to vote in British elections
-24% Asian voters not registered to vote in British elections

Question 23

What are some arguments for 16-17 year olds receiving the right to vote?

Answer 23

-Can join the armed forces
-They pay income tax and NI
-They can get married and enter sexual relationships
-They can receive benefits and tax credits

Question 24

Name a pressure group focusing on helping ethnic minorities vote?

Answer 24

Operation Black Vote

Question 25

What article of the UN universal declaration of human rights says all may vote?

Answer 25

Article 21

Question 26

What was the name of the court case that decided if prisoners could vote?

Answer 26

Hirst v UK (2005) - ECtHR - prisoner vote ban unlawful and violates Article 3 of the First Protocol of the ECHR

Question 27

Give reasons why prisoners should have the right to vote?

Answer 27

-Voting is civic duty and without it rehab is harder
-Voting is fundamental right
-No evidence that taking vote is deterrent
-Removing vote alienated person from society
-ECtHR has ruled against UK, government must abide by this whether it disagrees or not

Question 28

Give reasons why prisoners should NOT have the right to vote?

Answer 28

-Those who commit crimes need to accept consequences
-Losing the vote is a deterrent
-Prisoners are housed in large numbers in constituencies with prisons, they often don’t live there normally so shouldn’t be picking the MP for that area
-Public opinion is against prisoners’ voting
-ECtHR ruling goes against the spirit of the initial ECHR definition, a case of judicial overreach