influences on parliament Flashcards
which six bodies can influence law making
individuals, public bodies, law commission, pressure groups, EU/ European Courts, news/media
what can the media do to influence parliament
draw government attention to public concerns
why are the government very likely to respond to issues brought up by the media
so they do not alienate vooters
describe the role of pressure groups in influencing parliament
pressure groups are those groups that have a particular or special interest. There are two types of pressure groups; 1. sectional pressure groups are in government organisations which represent a certain group of people, often work group professions. For example, the law society, teaching union, BMA. They will attempt to make the government reconsider laws in certain areas. 2. Cause Pressure Groups are outside government organisations promote a particular cause, for example extinction rebellion or fathers4justice. They may cause the government to reconsider the law in certain areas by using the news/ media to advertise their campaign and gain support, petitions strikes and protests, lobbying, radical action and celebrity endorsement.
give two examples of the impacts of pressure groups
Health act 2006, medical groups campaigned tirelessly to ban smoking indoors.
The league against cruel sports, an instrumental campaign for the introduction of the hunting act 2004.
what is a method that all influences on parliament can use to make change
lobbying, dates back to members of the public meeting MPs in the lobbies of the HOC asking them to change the law.
describe lobbying
anybody can lobby their own MP, it will also be used by pressure groups to highlight their concerns. Most lobbying tends to be done by professional groups on behalf of trade associations and charities. This is likely to have significant input on changes to legislation. Often individuals will ask MPs a question in parliament on an issue to gain publicity.
what are the four purposes of the law commission
law commission act 1965 states that the objective of the law commission is to reform (bring about change), codify (put laws into statutory footing),consolidate (condense lots of existing pieces of law into one) and repeal (remove existing laws)
describe the process the law commission will go through to make changes
the law commission will first research the law they are considering and then will produce a consultation paper to allow experts and politicians to comment. It will then produce a final report which will include a draft bill if they decide a change to the current law is necessary. some examples that have become law are the family law act 1996 and the fraud act 2006.
what is the most recent reform to the law commission
the law commission act 2009 amended the 1995 act which places a requirement on the lord chancellor to report to parliament annually on the governments progress. since 2010 there has been a procedure in place for ‘uncontroversial’ acts which has resulted in six acts being passed through.
describe the royal commission
royal commissions are temporary commissions to investigate and report on one specific area of law. Many royal commissions have lead to important changes such as the Phillips commission in 1981 which ultimately resulted in the police and criminal evidence act 1984. They focus on one specific area, making it an expert enquiry. However, the royal commission has effectively been abandoned in modern society.
give two examples of laws that originated from manifestos
human rights act and the hunting ban
