Topics 5-8 Flashcards
Blair Seat Majority 1997, 2001, 2005
179 - 1997
167 - 2001
66 - 2005
House of Lords Act 1999
92 hereditary peers - originally wanted to remove all and make it elected
Scotland Act 1998
Created Scottish Parliament
Gave it legislative and tax varying powers
Control over public services
Scotland Act 2016
-Raise taxes and to set income tax rates (3%) and bands
-Right to 50% of VAT raised in Scotland
-Control over key welfare benefits e.g. Disability living allowance
-Franchises for Scottish Parliament Elections (votes for 16/17s)
-Sewel Convention enshrined into law - westminster must ask Holyrood for permission if legislating on a devolved matter
Scotland Act 2012
Varying income tax rate up to 10p
Could borrow £5 billion
Controls of Scottish Parliament
Health and Social Policy - NHS free subscription, Minimum pricing on alcohol, abortion law
Education - No Uni fees, school system is different
Devolution in London
Power over policing, transport and economic development
Political figures
Sadiq Khan current mayor - ULEZ
Wales Act 2017
Welsh assembly given tax varying powers
- collects 10% of income taxes and can vary bands by 10%
Control over local elections and assembly
Rail franchising and speed limits
PR Voting System
Welsh controls
Tax - control of 10p of income tax
Health - NHS (No prescription charges)
Education - Welsh compulsory to 16, no exams Summer 2021
Northern Ireland: Good Friday Agreement -1998
Created NI Assembly and Executive
Established power sharing between unionists and nationalists
Has its own political parties
-Stopped functioning in 2017 - couldn’t come to a power sharing agreement, didn’t restart till 2020 - ruled by Westminster for 3 years
Northern Ireland Controls
Primary legislative controls for areas not in Westminster
Tax - Corporation Tax
Social - Same sex marriage legalised between 2017-2020 and abortion laws liberalised
Human Rights Act - 1998
Incorporated ECHR into UK Law but allows for executive derogation (Article 5), could only declare incompatibility - couldn’t strike down.
Constitutional Reform Act - 2005
Separation of powers
Supreme Court created
Independent Appointments Commission created
Freedom of Information Act - 2000
Anyone can access documents within proper reason
Anti Terrorism Crime and Security Act - 2001
For suspects: allowed indefinite detention without trial of foreign nationals if they couldn’t be deported
Amendedment 2005: Increased period suspects could be held without charge from 14-28 days
Prevention of Terrorism Act - 2005
Prevent terrorism irrespective of nationality
Replaced indefinite detention with control orders
Select Committes: Health and Social Care Committee example
Made reports on governments response to Covid
Select Committee Recommendation Acceptance rate
40%
Back Bench Business Committee Setup
2010
Crossparty Select Committee ignore rate
60%
Boris + Blair Government Seat Majority
80 + 179 Seat majority
HOL objections - Marriage Act 2013
Lords Spirituals (Bishops) interventions: offered religious objections to proposals
Parliamentary Privilege - Bob Seely 2022
Russian invasion of Ukraine, British lawyers were supporting Russian oligarchs to fight legal battles against Western Sanctions
Backbenchers - Time spent in Chamber 2006-2022
24%
Bill rejection increase stats
Blair - 4 times
Cameron - 7 times in coalition
Cameron - 3 times
Theresa May - 33 times
May - Brexit Withdrawal Agreement: Loss Statistics
432-202 : 118 Tories voted against
Rebellion Increase from 2005-2010 - 2010-2015
28-35%
Urgent questions increase per sitting day
0.2 - 2013/14
0.9 - 2017/19
Boris 1 Line Bill Election
Overrode fixed term parliament act to call election
Corona Virus Act - Government Power
Gave government power to pass secondary legislation to deal with Covid
May NHS Budget Plan
Increase NHS budget by £20.5 billion a year by 2023
May Ministerial Resignation Numbers
38
2021 Welsh General Election Turnout
46.6%
Good Friday Agreement Stats
71.1% For / 81% Turnout
Population of England that has had a Metro Mayor
41% (9 total)
Metro Mayor Election Turnouts
28% - 2017
34% - 2021
Brexit Stats
52% Leave
72% Turnout
Scotland Brexit Remain Stat
62%
Wales Green investment Plan 2021
£1.8 Billion to be committed over 3 years
Cabinet Experience - Jeremy Hunt
Served for 9 years since 2010, was elected by Truss and Sunak as Chancellor
Cabinet Experience - Ben Wallace
Secretary of State for Defence under Johnson - experience as soldier
Cabinet Experience - Truss (Bad)
Appointed Kwasi Kwarteng and James Cleverley - both had limited experience in Government
-Kwasi made chancellor despite having served less than 2 years in cabinet
Loyalty - Boris & Julian Smith
Bojo sacked Julian Smith (NI Sec) and replaced him with Brandon Smith
-Julian spoke out against a no deal Brexit
-Julian was very effective NI sec whom restored the NI Assembly and was well liked
Mixed Cabinet - May
Cabinet balance:
Brexiteers (Bojo, David Davis)
Remainers (Philip Hammond and Jeremy Hunt)
Mixed Cabinet - Bojo
Appointed significant number of Brexiters and allies to his first cabinet
Priti Patel (Home Sec), Dominic Raab (Foreign Sec) both being Brexiters
Diversity - Blair
Margaret Becket - first female foreign Sec
‘Blairs Babes’
Diversity - Conservatives
A list Nus Ghani for Wealden
Diversity - Brown
Jacqui Smith first female Home Sec
Diversity - Against
1997 more MPs in Parliament called ‘John’ than Women
1979 - 7 female MPs total
Coalition - 4 females in 1st cabinet
Executive being held to account - Thatcher
1990 Former ally Geoffry Howe resigned which created leadership challenge which brought her down
Executive being held to account - May
Failed to effectively manage her cabinet and was constantly underminded by leaking and briefing against the government, esp Bojo.
Number of Urgent Questions increased - 0.9 2017/19 from 0.2 in 2013/14
Cabinet in Decision Making - No
-Blair - Sofa Government
-Coalition - Quad
-Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng developed economic policy with little input from the cabinet - some spoke out against government
Cabinet in Decision Making - Yes
May and Bojo used Cabinet committees
-E.g. exiting the EU to make important decisions on brexit
-E.g. Boris used the Covid 19 strategy commmitte to make key decisions on restrictions - Matt Hancock, Michael Gove
Scotland Independence Improvement Turnout
2003: 50%
2021: 64%
How are S.C Justices Chosen
5 Member Selection Committee
S.C - Unrepresentative
12/12 White
11/12 Male
11/12 Went Oxford
12/12 Over 60
S.C. 3 Key Attributes
Neutrality
Indepdence
Review
S.C - Brexit Questioning over Judicial Neutrality
After ruling Parliament was needed to trigger Article 50, Daily Mail ran headline ‘enemies of the people’ suggesting they were defying 17.4m Brexit voters
Accused of being Arch-Remainers after ruling against Boris’ proroging of Parliament
S.C 2019 Prorogation Case
Boris temporarily suspended Parliament
S.C Ruled unanimously it was unlawful, reversing decision
Shows SC was able to check the power of government
S.C 2016 Article 50 Case
Gina Miller argued gov couldn’t give notice of britains intention to leave the EU without getting parliaments approval, gov disagreed but the S.C ruled against the gov and that parliament should therefore give its consent
-shows S.C can uphold parliamentary sovereignty
2022 Second Referendum on Scottish Independence Case
Uncodified makes it unclear who can legislate for an independence referendum
Scottish Parliament argued it could legislate an indy ref for itself under the Scotland Act 1998, arguing the power wasn’t reserved for government
S.C ruled that the Scotland act doesn’t give scottish parliament power to unilaterally legislate for indy ref instead its reserved for uk parliament
2014 HS2 Action Alliance Case
Environmental campaigners sought a judicial review on whether the government’s HS2 plans complied with Eu environmental directives
Court dismissed the appeal, ruling the scheme remain open to debate until parliament reached a decision on it
Shows they dont want to expand their own power
2015 Black Spider Menos Case
Rob Evans asked parlaiment to release letters by the then Prince Charles to government ministers - obliged to under freedom of information act
Government resisted, arguing they were sensitive
S.C Ruled in favour of Rob Evans
Parliamentary privilege: Ryan Giggs
Ryan Giggs 2011 Named by John Hemming about an affair he was having and he received a gagging order
Sport and Media select committee example
Investiation into press standards 2009-10 and phone hacking 2011-12, held a number of high profile interviews
discoveries led on to the leveson inquiry and some police investigation
Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee example
2016 was highly critical of Sir Philip Green and said he had to solve the problems with the BHS pension scheme
Ministerial Question Time number of written questions
2015 - 35000 written q’s and 3600 oral q’s
Salisbury convention 1945
Lord s can’t block legislation in manifesto
Parliament Act 1911
Lords can only delay legislation that comes to it for 2 years, 3 times
Andrew Bridgen Covid Example
Tried to hold ministers to account over covid vaccine and was ignored by public and press - Ministers walked out
Hilary Benn Syria example
intervened on debate on Syria, made case for air power to be used and swung chamber - air power used
Backbencher successful
