...Government and Politics Megan Barry ‘Should direct democracy be more widely used in the UK?’ Direct democracy is a form of government in which all laws are created by a general vote of society. This means that political decisions are put forward to the people as they are the ones who are going to be directly affected by the outcome of the decision. An example of direct democracy used occasionally in society is referendums. A referendum is a general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been referred to them for a direct decision. Within this essay I am going to be arguing whether direct democracy should be used more widely by weighing up the benefits and the disadvantages of direct democracy and the result on the general public. One argument for direct democracy being used more extensively in the UK is that it gives a more advanced and more accurate representation of the public’s attitude on an issue raised in parliament. Many local citizens do not often communicate with their MP; occasionally it can be difficult for Parliament to come to a decision that accurately reflects public opinion. MPs have to make choices bases what they personally feel is right and is not always entirely what the public want. Referendums give a distinct result that reflects the public’s demands. This is better as the public are satisfied and there is little need for ‘guess-work’ by the government. An example...
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...Democracy is defined as the government of the people, by the people and for the people. In a democracy people have influence over or access to decision making and everyone must be treated equally. Direct democracy is a system in which every voter can take part in reaching a decision. The most obvious modern version is referendum where people vote “yes” or “no” to a specific question. Switzerland holds referendum at least three times a year to make the most important decisions even though they elect a parliament which is left to minor decisions. However, they hardly ever take place in the UK (the last one was in 1975), normally only at a time of constitutional change or when the issue is serious and based on public opinion. One argument in favour of a greater use of direct democracy would be that direct democracy is the purest form of democracy and reflects perfectly the view of all the citizenry. There is not a difference between the people and the government and the people can shape their society accurately. However, direct democracy is impractical in a large society with 45 million voters. The amount of money and time that referendums take is not suitable for urgent decisions. Another argument to support the use of direct democracy would be that it prevents politicians from going beyond their power when making decisions and it would increase legitimacy as the government is getting direct consent from the people through such methods such as referendums. Nevertheless, direct...
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...Assess the arguments in favour of the greater use of direct democracy in the UK (25 marks) Direct democracy is a form of government in which all laws are created by a general vote of society. Direct Democracy is supposedly meant to remove the division between the government and the people being governed. The UK currently has a representative democracy with aspects of direct democracy. Direct democracy is genuine democracy in action. With popular participation emerges the precise and true view of all the citizenry. The people determine their future and shape accurately their society. There is no vacuum or distinction between the government and the people. For example this clear link can be seen in the case of the Scottish referendum on independence in 2014. However, the above may be more a reflection of an ideal and an aspiration than a functional practical possibility. In a large scale society direct democracy is not achievable, with voting population of almost 45 million. This means there is too many varying opinions for the public to come up with clear concise decisions. Representative Democracy requires the voter to vote for some candidate or party with whom they are very unlikely to agree on everything - the 'take it or leave it' option. Direct Democracy allows voters to vote on the issues separately. The problems with representative democracy can be seen in the case of the Liberal democrats as once they got into office very few of their policies came to fruition...
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...Assess the arguments in favour of the greater use of direct democracy in the UK. (25 marks) Direct democracy is the purest form of democracy, it is an anarchic system. Direct democracy is commonly associated with the use of referendums. The more use of referendums in order to gain a greater use of direct democracy in the UK arguably leads to unpopular decisions by the government being prevented. The use of referendums can inform government policies meaning that the government are more sensitive to act within what the people vote for, e.g. the regional government vote in 2004, where the people of North-East England had rejected the regional government.This gave the government a mandate for action. However, it could also be argued that this would mean the tyranny of the majority in the UK for particular issues. The minority that loses is not taken into account by the government, leaving them defenceless, where in fact the minority are expected to be protected in a pure democratic society. The government would also not take the people who can not vote into account on the questions being proposed to the electorate, e.g. prisoners and people aged under 18. Although, the government now under David Cameron are discussing the decision to allow 16 and 17 year olds to gain a vote in the referendum (predicted to be held in 2017) concerning the issue of staying in the EU. It could be argued that referendums help confirm the government principles with legitimate...
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...Democracy and participation: Democracy = a political system based on the idea that government should serve the interests of the people. Legitimacy = the extent to which a government has the right to rule and exercise power. Power vs. Authority: * Power= the ability to make someone do something that they would not do of their own free will * E.g - Coercion – the use of force to achieve ends – the military * Authority = the right to exercise power (based on the consent of those being ruled) * E.g - Legal/rational – HOC * E.g – Traditional – HOL Modern democracies have: Political tolerance Peaceful transition of power Free, fair and regular elections The government is accountable to the people The rule of law Freedom of the media Modern democracies have: Political tolerance Peaceful transition of power Free, fair and regular elections The government is accountable to the people The rule of law Freedom of the media What makes a government legitimate? * Referendums (‘Yes’ answers) * High turnout * Free, fair and regular elections * Lack of dissent * Displays of public support How legitimate is the UK? Legitimate | Not legitimate | * House of Commons is elected | * Electoral system unfair and distorts political representation (FPTP) | * Government elected with mandate to govern | * Every government elected has only achieved the minority of the popular vote | * House of Lords has traditional authority...
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...WHAT IS DEMOCRACY? Andrew Heywood The origins of the term 'democracy' can be traced back to Ancient Greece. Like other words ending in 'cracy' - autocracy, aristocracy, bureaucracy and so on -democracy is derived from the Greek word kratos, meaning 'power' or 'rule'. Democracy thus stands for 'rule by the demos', demos meaning 'the people', though it was originally taken to imply 'the poor' or 'the many'. However, the simple notion of 'rule by the people' does not get us very far. The problem with democracy has been its very popularity, a popularity that has threatened the term's undoing as a meaningful political concept. In being almost universally regarded as a 'good thing', democracy has come to used as little more than a 'hurrah! word', implying approval of a particular set of ideas or system of rule. Perhaps a more helpful starting point from which to consider the nature of democracy is provided by Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, delivered in 1864 at the height of the American Civil War. Lincoln extolled the virtues of what he called 'government of the people, by the people, and for the people'. What this makes clear is that democracy serves to link government to the people, but that this link can be forged in a number of ways - government of, by and for the people. Nevertheless, the precise nature of democratic rule has been the subject of fierce ideological and political debate. The next section will look at alternative models of democracy. For the...
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...The UK would benefit greatly from the wider use of referendumss? Discuss. A referendum is a form of direct democracy that involves a public vote on a single issue of public policy. It is a way of presenting a debated issue to public decision. The most recent referendum was in the UK; the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum which asked the question whether Scotland should break away from the UK or not. There are a variety of arguments both for and against the wider use of referendum in the UK. The use was greatly favoured by Tony Blair and his new Labour government in 1997 because they took the view that referendum was a democratic device that allows people the opportunity to give a direct voice in decision making. Therefore, any decision made via referendum acquires legitimacy because it has popular approval. Moreover, referendums can encourage political participation which will help the declining participation of the UK in the way that as referendums are where people can get directly involve in the decision making, they will see this as opportuniy to contribute to the political world as themselves, thereby encouraging them to turn out in election to vote and increase participation like in the 2014 Scottish referendum where the participation brough about a turnout of 84.59% compared to the 2010 general election turnout of 65.1%. Shown clearly in the example is the clear difference between participation of direct democracy and representative democracy which would greatly...
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...Democracy in the United Kingdom has changed a lot over the years however the definition has never changed. The right for people to choose and decide how a country is run. This essay will help decide whether the United Kingdom still follows that definition of being a true democracy and analysing how this has affected the people of the UK. The first thing to look at is the various types of democracy used in the UK. There are many examples of the various types of democracies with the first being direct democracy. A recent example of what a direct democracy can do is the Scottish Referendum taking place throughout Scotland. This allows the people of Scotland to take the decision of independence in to their own hands. This is a great example of how a democracy should work with millions of peoples voices being heard to make a decision that affects them all. While being one of the most direct ways to involve people it is also one of more timely efforts with the voting taking a long while before being put into effect. This can be seen with the Scottish Referendum taking two years to fully set up and then another year and a half before the final decision being implemented. The other type of democracy is the representative democracy which is what is used mainly in the United Kingdom. In this case citizens will vote for a representative of their constituency who will then represent their views in Parliament. The system used for these elections is known as the First Past The Post system...
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...To what extent do referendums strengthen democracy in the UK? Democracy is defined in Greek as government by the people. Referendums are undermining of the authority given to the people through a representative. The use of referendums in the UK allows for an increased participation from the electorate. This encourages direct democracy and therefore strengthens the basic principle of a democratic governing body. However, participation is a key part of the strengthening of democracy. In recent years we have seen a growth in the number of referendums held in the UK. Referendums are usually held to conclude on an important issue, such as devolution and issues regarding the changing of a constitutional law. It has become increasingly problematic that there has been a decline in the turn-out for referendums, a clear example of this is the Welsh national; assembly referendum held in 2011. The turnout for the Welsh national assembly referendum was 33%, with a 65% voting in favour of further devolved powers for the assembly. Although the vote was a majority decision 67% of the electorate did not vote, which undermines the result and therefore democracy is weakened without active participation by the electorate. As mentioned, the Welsh assembly referendum resulted in 67% of the electorate not voting, which means that these individuals will still get a devolved set of powers. Therefore unless you have a 100% turnout a referendum will forever be undemocratic. This can be described...
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...Assess the various measures, other than electoral reform, that have been suggested to improve democracy in the UK. The other measures to improve democracy in the UK are: having more referendums, lowering the voting age, making voting compulsory and finally the use of digital democracy. And this essay will assess all the measures and also it will determine which measure is the best to improve democracy in the UK. The first measure, which has been suggested to improve democracy in the UK, is the use of more referendums. A referendum is a popular vote where the people are asked to determine an important political or constitutional issue directly. A referendum has pros and cons. Firstly referendums are a device of direct democracy, which gives the general public direct and unmediated control over the governments decision making, this ensures that the public’s views and interests are always taken account of and are not distorted by politicians who claim to “represent them”. Another advantage is that referendums actually help to create a better informed, more educated and more politically engaged electorate, which gives the members of the public a strong incentive to cast there vote. Also another advantage is that referendums reduce the power of the government, because the government has less control over their outcome than it does over parliament, and therefore citizens are protected against the danger of over mighty government. And a final advantage to referendums is that there...
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...“How can UK democracy be enhanced?” Democracy is a political system where decisions are made in the interests of the people by decision-makers who are elected, accountable and can be got rid of peacefully. There 2 types of democracy: direct and representative ones. In the UK there is a direct democracy which gives every citizen the right to participate, the opportunity to express their views, thoughts and where voters determine specific policy outcomes. There is a constant debate whether the UK is a truly democratic country or not and to what extent. It is believed that nowadays Britain has a massive issues: the electoral system is totally unfair, there are unelected political members and the lack of parties, Civil Rights are in danger, citizens no longer have a wish to participate in elections, the media is prejudged and, finally, the UK is not representative. This essay will evaluate how to make the Great Britain more democratized. The major point is that there is a low rate of political participation in the UK that might lead to an arbitrary and autocratic government. It is significant element because it makes the government more accountable. There are some ways which can prevent this undemocratic style. Firstly, the UK government can introduce the compulsory voting which is nowadays enhanced in Australia. This method would force citizens to affect the outcomes of elections and make them more politically aware of issues. The second way is to increase the use of referendums...
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...How democratic is the UK? The term democracy implies that the government in the UK is elected by the people for the people; this statement is true to an extent. However it is difficult to administer as most modern democracies are representative, where the public chooses who they wish to possess power to devise policies that will benefit them. Our electoral system in the UK is currently ‘First Past the Post’, where every person over 18 unless they’re in prison has the right to a single vote. ‘First Past the Post’ is an element of the UK democracy that can be seen as both democratic and undemocratic. It’s democratic because the system has survived the test of time and been relatively unchallenged, but when it has, ‘First Past the Post’ has won i.e. in the Referendum of May 5th 2011. Even if the majority win the minority can still run and succeed in the next election regardless of who won the last election. ‘First Past the Post’ can be undemocratic as if only around 60% of people vote how can the government say they represent the people when 40% of the people who can vote didn’t, this is how ‘First Past the Post’ can be seen as unfair. The system makes it very difficult for smaller parties to get elected because the three main parties dominate the elections these are Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats. For a party like the UKIP to get elected would be impossible as even though they had 3,881,099 votes they only got one seat but then the SNP had 1,454,436 had got...
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...Government and Politics 04) Explain the term referendum used in the extract (5 marks) A referendum is a general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been referred to them for a direct decision. They may be used to raise issues for discussion rather than to decide or confirm policy questions. In relation to the extract, Walsi is being accused of not having the knowledge base of understanding of actual independence. Walsi was being accountable for shortfall in any economic growth expected and being able to financially match the living needs of people, the needs of all generations - from health / population growth. 05) Using your own knowledge, as well as the extract, consider the circumstances in which the UK government might choose to call a referendum (10 marks) Only one nationwide referendum had taken place in the UK before the alternative referendum. This occurred in 1975 when Harold Wilson (the British Prime minister at the time) asked ‘Do you think the UK should stay in the EU?’ In answer to his question, 67% of the voters answered ‘yes’ so therefore the UK is still part of the EU today. Not only one referendum has happened, several referendums have also been held in particular regions of the UK such as Scotland and Wales. In 1997, voters in Scotland were asked whether they wanted a Scottish Parliament while voters in Wales were asked whether they wanted a Welsh Assembly. The answer to both of these referendums was yes. Also, just recently:...
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...Do the advantages of referendums outweigh the disadvantages? (25 marks) Referendums are a device of direct democracy and are a popular vote on an issue of public policy or constitutional reform. They are the most commonly used form of direct democracy in the UK and are used to widen political participation. In my opinion, I think the disadvantage of referendums outweigh the advantages for the following reasons. As referendums are a device of direct democracy, they give the public direct and unmediated control over government decision-making. This means that the public views and interests are properly and accurately given. It also means they cannot be changed or moulded to suit the politicians who represent the public. However, the point of having politicians to represent us is that they have political experience and knowledge to make correct and justified decisions. We have the democratic choice to elect the people that represent our views in parliament. Referendums therefore undermine parts of representative democracy as the general public is mainly badly informed, uneducated in politics and lack political experience. This means that although referendums give the public what they would like in the form of a democratic yes/no vote, the general public opinion could be very bad for the country in the long term. The public's interests are therefore best safeguarded by a government system of politicians rather than any form of popular self-government. On the other hand, referendums...
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...Participation in the UK Evidence derived from key indicators of political participation in the UK is broadly typical of the data obtained across all fields of our Audit in that they present a mixed picture of the health of UK democracy, with most, if not all, of the trends indentified here also being replicated in other established democracies. Election turnouts Elections are by no means the only mechanism of mass democratic participation but they are the most important form of direct political engagement for the great majority of citizens. In a democracy, elections are also the means through which popular representatives are chosen by the population as a whole. It would therefore be difficult to over-estimate the significance of electoral participation, as measured by turnout, to a democracy. Figure 1: Turnouts at UK General Elections, 1945-2010 (%) 90 85 80 75 70 65 60 55 50 45 40 84 82.5 76.7 78.8 72.7 78.7 77.1 75.8 76 72.8 72 72.7 75.3 77.7 71.5 65.1 59.1 Source: British Electoral Facts 1 61.3 UK general election turnouts typically fluctuated between 70 and 80 per cent from 1945 to 1992, peaking at 84 per cent in 1950. However, as figure 1 shows, turnouts in UK general elections fell dramatically from the late 1990s, with the lowest turnout (59 per cent) recorded in 2001. While levels of electoral participation increased in 2005 and again in 2010, the four lowest levels of turnout in post-war UK general...
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