Parliament Flashcards
Evaluate the extent to which further reform of both chambers of Parliament needs to be urgently considered [30]
points
hol undemocratic
need to reflect society
devolution
reforms modernised westminster
Evaluate the extent to which further reform of both chambers of Parliament needs to be urgently considered [30]
hol undemocratic
YES - HOL UNDEMOCRATIC
- No peers are publically elected
- 92 hereditary peers
- 26 Church of England peers
- Life peers
COUNTER - Steps taken to make it more democratic (Reduction of hereditary peers). There is also a danger of losing what makes the Lords special with their expertise
Evaluate the extent to which further reform of both chambers of Parliament needs to be urgently considered [30]
need to reflect society
YES - NEED TO REFLECT SOCIETY
- Commons dominated by older, white, male, privately educated
- HOC is only 32% women compared to 50% country as whole
- 29% privately educated compared to 8% country
- FPTP not representative, in 2015, UKIP should have won 82 by proportion but won just 1.
COUNTER - Politicians don’t recognise their duty to represent the views of all of their constituents - you don’t need child MPs to hear child issues debated.
Evaluate the extent to which further reform of both chambers of Parliament needs to be urgently considered [30]
devolution decentralised power
NO - DEVOLUTION HAS DECENTRALISED POWER ADEQUATELY
- Significant powers delegated to Scot, Wal, NI
- EVEL = Legislative grand committee enables English MP’s to vote on English only matters prior to 3rd reading of a bill
COUNTER - EVEL is very limited (the LGC cannot pass bills entirely) which is arguably unfair as many exclusively Scottish, Welsh and NI issues can be made without the input of English MPs but not the other way round (West Lothian question)
Evaluate the extent to which further reform of both chambers of Parliament needs to be urgently considered [30]
reforms modernised westminster
NO - REFORMS MODERNISED WESTMINSTER
- Parliament Act 1911 and 1949 - minimised role for an unelected chamber
- Fixed Term Parliaments Act - elections not called for party advantage
- Recall of MPs - they have to perform
- Committee reform
COUNTER - FTPA ineffective as shown with May 2017
Evaluate the effectiveness of the House of Lords [30]
points
powerless
little democratic legitmacy
examines statutory instruments
valuable expertise and scrutiny
Evaluate the effectiveness of the House of Lords [30]
powerless
YES - POWERLESS
- 1911 lost power to vote and 1949 saw its delay cut to just 1 year
- No say on financial
- Salisbury convention = no resistance to bills mirroring manifesto promises
- Its select committees have little teeth and broad focuses (e.g. the Constitution Committee)
COUNTER - Salisbury convention just a convention - not always honoured (Blair’s ID cards)
Evaluate the effectiveness of the House of Lords [30]
little democratic legitimacy
YES - LITTLE DEMOCRATIC LEGITIMACY
- No peers publicly elected
- 92 hereditary peers
- 26 Church of England peers
- Life peers
COUNTER - Steps taken to make it more democratic (reduction of hereditary lords) and so it is not typically viewed as undemocratic - hence its role is valued and significant
Evaluate the effectiveness of the House of Lords [30]
examines statutory instruments
NO - EXAMINES STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
- Unlike the Commons has the time to study secondary legislation slipped through by ministers
- Can raise flags and knock controversial secondary legislation to the Commons for scrutiny
COUNTER - Secondary legislation is, by its nature, ‘small fry’ stuff’. It is very rare for it not to get waved through ‘on the nod’
Evaluate the effectiveness of the House of Lords [30]
provides valuable expertise and scrutiny
NO - PROVIDES VALUABLE EXPERTISE AND SCRUTINY
- Possesses many experienced ex-ministers, military figures, business experts, religious leaders whose comments and tabled amendments are highly values
- Summons ministers to answer questions.
e.g lord baroness of loughborough, uk sport
COUNTER - Many peers rarely attend, offer very little real life expertise and almost 100 have inherited the job.
Evaluate the extent to which the arguments in favour of a fully elected second chamber are convincing [30]
points
lords ineffective
large number of lords political leniency
could lead to gridlock
industry experts
Evaluate the extent to which the arguments in favour of a fully elected second chamber are convincing [30]
lords ineffective
LORDS CURRENTLY INEFFECTIVE yes reform 1
-The Lords consider draft bills. Amendments to legislation as proposed by the Lords have to be approved by the Commons. Following the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949 the Lords can have no interference on finance bills and can only block the same piece of legislation once. Even in times of ‘legislative ping-pong’ they almost always back down as seen with the Hunting Act 2004. Cash for honours 2007 means they’re unpopular.
COUNTER - lords not interfering shows how members accept they’re not elected and act within their limits.
Evaluate the extent to which the arguments in favour of a fully elected second chamber are convincing [30]
large number of lords political leniency
LARGE NUMBER OF LORDS POLITICAL LENIENCY yes reform 2
- 248 Conservative and 211 Labour. Whilst 214 are crossbenchers (2016) with no political leniency this is still a large number
- COUNTER - Still no majority which means they are restrained
Evaluate the extent to which the arguments in favour of a fully elected second chamber are convincing [30]
could lead to gridlock
COULD LEAD TO GRIDLOCK AS SEEN IN USA no reform 1
- An elected chamber would grant further powers to the Lords, in line or similar to that of the Commons. Currently, the Lords only have the power to delay legislation as they notably did in 2015 for the tax credit cuts. They do not act on legislation in the manifesto of the elected party known as the Salisbury convention(honouring the public interest). This also means the Commons can act decisively and quickly in times of emergency such as the Prevention of Terror Act 2006
- Having two chambers of similar powers would likely lead to a situation known as ‘gridlock’ where parliament largely gets nothing done
- COUNTER - Unrepresentative of nation
- Only 24% of Lords is female, only 5% from ethnic minorities and only 4% under 50 (2018)
Evaluate the extent to which the arguments in favour of a fully elected second chamber are convincing [30]
industry experts
INDUSTRY EXPERTS no reform 2
-The House of Lords allows experts in their field to assess the government. For instance, Lord Sugar the business tycoon and Lord Crisp a former executive of the NHS
COUNTER - Accountability
-Whilst the Lords powers may be limited they do still have powers which means they should be accountable to the public, 92 are hereditary following the House of Lords act meaning they can do as they wish
