New Labour Reforms

Question 1

House of Lords act 1999

Answer 1

Hereditary peers who were there bc they came from aristocratic families, not elected on merit
Unelected nature= undemocratic
92 peers, but need further reform under the cranborne compromise because being elected will embolden democracy as the current unelected nature limits its ability to scrutinise legislation., if elected through proportional representation, more representative of the electorate.

Question 2

Why against House of Lords?

Answer 2

If it was elected, it would be able to claim democratic legitimacy which would be much more assertive and prevent important legislations from being passes, remove knowledge and experiences of the lords, not bounded by parliamentary power so they are able to scrutinise n revise legislations

Question 3

Constitutional reform act 2005

Answer 3

The creation of the Supreme Court was designed to end the fusion of powers at the highest level of the uk judiciary, separate powers that would increase the judicial independence of the court by making it separate from parliamnet, judges appointed based on legal qualifications JAC.
Sig:
Reduces the power of lord chancellor bc he was kicked out of his judicial position, only had gov position.
Increases the independence of the country’s highest court n made it more effective in holding the gov n parliamnet to account, therefore seen as improving the rule of law. More fair
Decreases judicialisation.
Limited: the Supreme Court still lacked the power to strike down laws passed by the parliamnet, and in theory it could still be abolished with a simple act of parliamnet
Abuse of power of judges, conflicts between the judiaciary and par can take places undermining parliamnet sovereignty

Question 4

Devolution

Answer 4

For: improved uks demoracy by creating govt closer to the people of Scotland,wales and NI - restored peace following the troubles.
Against: devolution was asymmetric bc wales received limited powers bc they were less nationalists than Scotland. This leads to there being no substantial English parliament due to it limiting parliamentary sovereignty, creating a democratic deficit.

E.g Scotland act 1998, Belfast agreement 1998, gov of wales act 1998

Question 5

Human rights act 1998

Answer 5

Incorporated the echr into the uk con
For= freedom of info act 2000, improving rights of citizens bc the public have the right to request info from gov due to mps abusing expenses system using too much money.= mps expenses scandal, make govt more transparent and enables journalists to seek out sensitive info n hold the govt to account.sig as it made the gov more transparent and upholds their integrity by reducing secrecy and strengthening democratic participation in the uk
Hj n ht vs home office act 2010 helped 2 gay men.
Against= uncodified so can be repealed, belmarsh case- indefinitely imprison suspected foreign criminals for terrorism
The freedom of info act can be seen as too weak as the govt can turn down some requests if they judge they would negatively affect the current gov . It could also make it more difficult for politicians to discuss controversial matters through formal channels, which leads to them being discussed informally especially over WhatsApp, thus was Tony Blair reason and regret for passing this

Question 6

Explanation and significance of reducing hereditary peers?

Answer 6

Reduced aristocratic influence, making the House of Lords more meritocratic and representative of the appointed peers
Sig as they were selected for their expertise

Question 7

Explanation and significance of lords being assertive

Answer 7

Harder to pass laws
Sig as elected members might feel empowered to act more independently and assertively , opposing the commons more frequently, potential deadlock.
Remove experience n knowledge of lords as they are not bounded by parliamentary power so are able to revise n scrutinise legislation

Question 8

Explanation and significance for constitution reform act and counter argument

Answer 8

Holds the gov n parliamnet to account, enhancing the principle of accountability, emboldening democracy as it improves the rule of law.
CA = lacked power to strike down laws= ultimately power lies in parliamentary sovereignty, culture of bickering and abuse of power , undermining parliamentary sovereignty.

Question 9

Explanation for freedom of info act counter

Answer 9

Too much gov transparency which Tony Blair feared hindered discussions and fear of public scrutiny. He argued that it was being used more by journalists to create headlines and stories rather than for public genuine accountability