Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

UK Politics > Constitutional Reforms > Flashcards

Constitutional Reforms Flashcards

1
Q

what was the HoL reform Act 1999?

A
  • ended hereditary right to be a lord
  • kept 92
  • appointed life peers who were appointed on merit
  • stage 2 was wholly elected HoL
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

give examples of life peers?

A
  • Lord sugar (business)
  • Lord Coe (sport)
  • Lord Lloyd-Webber (culture)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

give 3 problems solved by the HoL reform Act 1999

A
  • removed conservative bias of house
  • more representative as wider range of people - more minorities, more women, more religious
  • more expertise - more legitimate house
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

in 2018, what is the makeup of the Lords?

A

244 conservative
187 Labour
181 cross-bench

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

why is the lords now more democratic ?

A
  • represents wider range of society

- if PM just appointed friends would reduce legitimacy of govt

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

give 3 ways in which HoL reform Act 1999 didn’t go far enough

A
  • HoC remains superior to HoL
  • failure to go through with stage 2 - HoL would have more power and reduced power of PM - could claim legitimacy
  • 24 bishops + 2 archbishops - not representing other religions - we are multicultural country
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

why do commons remain superior to lords?

A

they are elected - more legitimacy

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

what problems did the HoL reform Act 1999 create?

A
  • ultimately gave more power to PM - had control of every branch
  • gained more lords legitimacy so more likely to challenge govt - more bellicose
  • increasing in size still - nearly 1000 today
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is an example of the Lords challenging the govt?

A
  • terrorism act, reduced it from 90 - 28 day detention
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What was devolution in 1998?

A
  • transfer of power from central govt to region - Scot & Wales
  • Scotland gets tax varying powers +-3% of UK +primary legislative power
  • Wales got secondary legislative power
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What problems did devolution in 1998 solve?

A
  • pleased strong Scottish movement in Scotland
  • differing needs for different areas - decentralisation - more power closer to the people
  • reducing calls for independence/ decreasing risk of UK breakup
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

why was nationalist movement in scotland pleased with devolution ?

A
  • 19 yrs of tory rule who they hadn’t voted for - thatcher era
  • generally voted labour
  • Poll tax - thatcher tested on Scots 1yr before England
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

in what ways was devolution in 1998 not successful?

A
  • Scottish independence referendum 2014
  • limited powers to both bodies (only have devolved powers)
  • wales had different settlement to Scotland
  • UK law remains supreme
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

what problems did devolution create?

A

potentially further devolution
slows down decision making
increased costs and bureaucracy

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

give examples of further devolution

A

2011 Wales - primary legislative powers

2014 - scottish independence referendum

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

what was the Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011?

A
  • elections happen every 5 years on a fixed date

- unless 2/3 MPs vote for one

17
Q

in what ways was Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011 successful?

A
  • prevented elections being called based on popularity - fairer, more democratic
  • reduces power of govt, particularly PM
18
Q

in what ways was Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011 not successful?

A
  • didn’t prevent snap election in 2017
  • 5 years is actually quite long - shorter terms would have provided more accountability
  • govt saving popular policies until the end to gain popularity
19
Q

What was the Human Rights Act 1998?

A
  • codified fundemental rights for everyone in the UK

- comes from ECHR

20
Q

in what ways was the Human Rights Act successful?

A
  • protected rights better e.g. right to life, not be tortured, guarantee of fair trial etc…
  • limits power of govt. , can no longer just ignore rights
  • more power for judges who now have one document to interpret
21
Q

in what ways was the Human Rights Act not successful?

A
  • not well enough protected as no parliament is binding on any other
  • potentially prioritises the rights of the few over the rights of the many
  • far more challenges to govt. - rights based culture - people are far more willing to challenge + sue people
22
Q

What was the Constitutional reform Act 2005?

A
  • reduced power of Lord Chancellor
  • created UK supreme court - opens 1 oct 2009
  • set up the Judicial appointments committe (JAC) - independent body to appoint judges
23
Q

How was the Constitutional reform Act 2005 successful?

A
  • reduced role of Lord Chancellor - used to be in all 3 branches of govt.
  • limits the executive/legislature branch of govt. by holding them accountable
  • limits power of PM who can no longer have a role appointing justices
24
Q

give an example of judiciary holding govt to account?

A

ginna miller

25
Q

How was the Constitutional reform Act 2005 unsuccessful?

A
  • supreme court is not sovereign
  • only limited ways in which it could have gone further
  • unelected judges with far more power than they used to have
26
Q

What was the electoral reform 2011?

A

-referendum to change electoral system in UK to AV voting instead of First Past the Post

27
Q

What were the results of the 2011 AV referendum?

A
  • 42% turnout

- 67%/33% NO vote

28
Q

What are the problems of FPTP?

A
  • governments are elected on a minority of the votes cast in a general election
  • leads to a lot of wasted votes - those who vote green and UKIP
  • leads to many people voting tactically
  • some votes have more value than others
29
Q

What is an example of a government winning with the minority of the votes and what is it called?

A
  • 2005, Labour won with 35.2% of the vote

- tyranny of the minority

30
Q

What were the stats for voting with UKIP and SNP in 2015?

A
  • UKIP 13% of vote - 1 seat

- SNP 5% of vote - 56 seats

31
Q

What problems were created by the AV referendum?

A
  • only one option of electoral reform offered - made govt think don’t want electoral reform - perhaps don’t want AV
  • really low turnout - lack of education/political apathy

UK Politics (17 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions