2A.5.3 Advantages and Disadvantages of influences on law making

Question 1

Advantages of political influence

Answer 1

• Each political party has its proposals for law reform ready and published in a manifesto during an election campaign so that, if they are elected as the government, the electorate knows what they wish to do in future parliamentary sessions to achieve their aims.
• If the government has a majority of seats in the House of Commons, virtually every one of their policy proposals will be passed. This can be said to make the law-making process popular with the majority of the population.
• By publishing manifestos, the public know before an election what the broad proposals of each political party are, and have a choice as to which set of proposals and law reforms they would wish to see put in place.
• Proposed changes to laws will be debated in Parliament and improvements to initial proposals can be suggested and included.
• Members of the House of Lords have expertise in a wider range of topics. Suggestions made by the Lords to alter government proposals carry considerable weight and authority and are generally non-political.

Question 2

Disadvantages of political influence

Answer 2

• If a different party is elected in a general election form the previous governing party, they may decide to repeal or alter some of the laws that the previous government passed. This is because their policies are likely to be different from the previous government. Such changes of policies can be costly, open to criticism and lead to piecemeal reform of laws.
• If the government has a large majority of seats in the House of Commons, they can force through their policy proposals, ignoring any criticism from opposition.
• If the government only has a small majority, it may be difficult or impossible to achieve changes to the law or their manifesto commitments.
• Suggestions to alter or improve the proposals made by experts in the House of Lords do not have to be accepted by the Commons or the government.
• If a crisis occurs, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the government’s focus will be to take measures to deal with that crisis, which may differ from their manifesto commitments.

Question 3

Advantages of media as an influence on law making

Answer 3

• The media can raise awareness of public concern of an issue with government – for example, damage to the environment. Government may have greater willingness to act on a media campaign if they see it is popular.
• The public can use the media to raise concern about issues and individual incidents, such as the Dunblane massacre and, more recently, terrorist related attacks. Individuals are much more prepared to use social media to raise concerns and voice opinions.
• The media can inform and raise public awareness, which is essential to encourage governments to form policy, to act and legislate. Governments are ultimately responsible to the electorate and, especially before an election, they will fear losing public support if they are not seen to be responding to an issue of public concern.

Question 4

Disadvantages of media as an influence on law making

Answer 4

• While radio and TV channels are required to remain politically neutral, this is not the case with newspapers, which may be willing to promote inaccurate individual views and campaigns, and may not have wide public support. Some newspapers give support to a specific political party and regularly promote their views.
• Newspapers are commercial businesses and may be prepared to sensationalise an issue to expand their readership. This can be seen as parts of the media manipulating the news and creating public opinion.
• There is no regulation on the expression of views on social media. Any views expressed may be inaccurate or have limited public support.
• Even if an issue appears to have wide public support, there is no guarantee that the government will act on it.

Question 5

Advantages of lobbying

Answer 5

• If successful, action may be taken by government, laws introduced or inquiries set up.
• Pressure groups may be more successful as they have greater expertise and influence.

Question 6

Disadvantages of lobbying

Answer 6

• Government ministers may have many requests made of them and be unable or unwilling to deal with all requests.
• Lobbying by pressure groups may be unsuccessful or have delayed response.

Question 7

Advantages of pressure groups as an influence on law making

Answer 7

• Pressure groups have experts in their membership or can employ experts to effectively argue their cause.
• There are many pressure groups with different aims and issues to promote. A wide range of issues can be drawn to the attention of government.
• Pressure groups often raise important issues. Environmental groups have made the government much more aware of the damage being done to the environment from greenhouse gases and other pollutants.

Question 8

Disadvantages of pressure groups as an influence on law making

Answer 8

• Pressure groups may seek to impose their ideas on the public or on government, even where there is limited public support. For example, when trade unions call strike action involving a public service, this can cause disruption for the general public who are unlikely to support the cause.
• Sometimes two pressure groups may have conflicting interests and will campaign for opposing actions. For example, when the ban against fox hunting was being considered, the RSPCA wanted it banned, but the Countryside Alliance wanted it to continue.

Question 9

Advantages of the Law Commission as an influence on law making

Answer 9

• The Law Commission uses legally qualified Commissioners to investigate, who are experts in their field. Their reports are thoroughly researched and recommendations for reform are fully justified. Draft Bills accompany their reports so there is no need for delay in consideration of the recommendations by Parliament.
• It is politically independent and has the aim of improving the law – it does not get involved in matters of public policy. It reports to Parliament, not the government, thereby maintaining its independence.
• If Parliament accepts a recommendation to codify an area of law, it becomes easier for lawyers and the public to understand and apply.
• Many old, unnecessary and irrelevant laws are removed from the statute book.

Question 10

Disadvantages of the Law Commission as an influence on law making

Answer 10

• Governments are reluctant to find parliamentary time to consider and debate ‘pure’ law issues. As a result, Parliament has to wait for government to accept a Law Commission report and act on it.
• Parliament tends to concentrate on debating matters of broad policy, such as health and education, rather than on ‘purely’ legal issues where there is limited popular support.
• Government is not bound to accept Law Commission reports or implement any recommendations, either fully or in part. For example, the Law Commission recommended in 1993 reforms to the non-fatal offences in criminal law, and in 1998, to the civil law of negligence but neither area of law has been changed.
• The government is not bound to consult the Law Commission before bringing any changes in the law to Parliament – e.g. the Commission was not consulted on changes to sentencing practice and procedure before any of the four acts were introduced on this issues.