Democracy Flashcards
What kind of democracy is the UK?
Representative democracy
What is representative democracy?
Voters elect politicians to make decisions on their behalf.
What principle is representative democracy based on?
Representation. Elected politicians should represent the interests of all constituents.
What is the main advantage of representative democracy?
Government is carried out by professional politicians whoa re well informed about political issues. THey are more likely to make educated decisions than a public who may not have the time to fully understand the issue.
What do politicians consider when making a decision?
All conflicting interests of their constituents. This protects the rights of all citizens, especially minorities, ensuring that implications for all community members are examined.
What other principle is enshrined in representative democracy?
Accountability
Elections allow voters to decide whether to renew their representatives mandate.
Who else can have influence over MPs?
Pressure groups, lobbyists and the london-based media. This separates MPs from their constituents.
What can contribute to an MP having a compromise of representation?
MPs can have second jobs.
What is an example of an MP having a second job?
2021
Owen Paterson resigns as MP after being criticised by Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards
He was lobbying on behalf of companies that employed him.
How do electoral systems weaken representative democracy?
FPTP is highly unproprtional.
How does the bicameral legislature weaken the representativeness of MPs?
House of Lords is unelected.
What % of the UK is privately educated?
7%
What % of the 2019 parliament is privately educated?
29%
What % of the nation is female?
51%
What % of the 2019 parliament is female?
34%
What is a counter argument to a representative parliament?
Legislation advancing rights has been passed by people not of those identities, eg: 2010 equality act.
What is direct democracy?
A form of democracy where decisions are made directly by the public without being channeled through representatives.
What are the 3 elements of direct democracy in the UK?
Referendums
Electronic petitions
Open Primaries
How are electronic petitions used?
If a petition on a government website gets 100,000 signatures it will be considered for debate in government.
What is a positive example for electronic petitions?
2020
Marcus Rashford’s petition for free school meals gained over 1 million signatures
Persuaded government to commit to free school meals for children during school holidays.
How are E-Petitions weakened?
They can raise fake expectations and consume parliamentary time.
What is a negative example of electronic petitions?
A petition to revoke Tony Blair’s knighthood gained more than 1 million signatures but could not be judged on as the monarch bestows knighthoods.
What are open primaries?
The public directly decide who candidates should be in constituencies.
What are open primaries?
The public directly decide who candidates should be in constituencies.
What is an example of open primaries?
IN 2015 13 conservative candidates were selected in this way.
What do supporters of direct democracy argue?
It engages the public and makes politicians more responsive to what people really think.
What is a benefit of direct democracy for the MPs?
Representatives are kept better informed of developing attitudes through referendums and other things.
What do critics of direct democracy argue?
Includes all things against referendums
It can lead to MPs not representing their own wishes
What do critics of direct democracy argue?
Includes all things against referendums
It can lead to MPs not representing their own wishes
What is an example of direct democracy creating a weakened representative democracy?
Theresa May was pro-remain but had to lead a leave campaign.
When was the Great Reform Act?
1832
Who passed the Great Reform Act?
Lord Grey
What did the Great Reform Act do?
Allowed one in five male adults to vote
Eliminated rotten boroughs such as Old Sarum
What is a rotten borough?
A constituency with almost no voters that still elected MPs.
When was the Second Reform Act?
1867
What was the second Reform Act 1867?
Allowed many working class men in cities to vote and doubled the size of the electorate
Who passed the second reform act 1867?
Benjamin Disraeli
When was the Third Reform Act?
1884
What was in the Third Reform act?
All working men who met a property qualification could now vote.
A total of 40% of adult men were still excluded.
When were the representation of the people acts?
1918, 1928 and 1969
What was the first representation of the people act?
All men over 21 could vote
Women over 30 who met property qualifications could vote
What was the second representation of the people act?
All men and women over 21 could vote
What was the third representation of the people act?
voting age was lowered to 18
