There are numerous different factors that can result in some pressure groups being more successful than others. A pressure group is a group of likeminded people that seek to influence government policy without seeking election for themselves. These different factors include specialist knowledge, methods, human resources and timing. The relevance of this question can not be understated as the membership of Pressure Group’s (PG) is increasing and the membership of Political Parties is decreasing. In 1997, Tony Blair remarked ‘we should resist the tyranny of pressure groups’.

One factor that can result in some PG’s being more successful than others is a PG’s specialist knowledge. The homelessness PG Shelter helped draw up the 2002 Homelessness Act. Their specialist knowledge helped them get access to law makers and as a result, they achieved their stated goal and were very influential in it too. This view is supported by Pluralists such as Robert Dahl and Charles Lindbolm, who argue that law makers sometimes need the expertise of PG’s. This is a factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others as a PG’s specialist knowledge can help them gain access to Whitehall and exert their influence.

Another factor that can result in some PG’s being more successful than others is a group’s methods. The National Campaign against Fees and Cuts organised the use of ‘direct action’ to protest an increase in Tuition Fees in 2010. The protests turned violent and arrests were made. Whereas Surfers against Sewage, used more peaceful methods and were successful in achieving a law on clean bathing water. This shows that a group’s methods can play a part in a PG’s success as a more radical approach can alienate politicians and therefore, not achieve their aims. This is a factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others as a PG’s methods can determine whether a government will consider their issue or whether they outright ignore it.

A further factor that can result in some PG’s being more successful than others is the timing of their campaign. An example of this would be the Snowdrop Petition to ban handguns following the 1996 Dunblane Massacre. The success of this petition can be attributed to the fact that there was a recent gun related massacre whereas if there wasn’t one, the government may have ignored. This is a factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others as the timing and relevance of their campaign can play a part in determining a pressure group’s success.

A final factor that can be a factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others is the human resources a group has. The agricultural umbrella group COPA-COGECA has over 30 years of experience and 50 million members across the EU which it uses to successfully lobby the EU in defending the budget allocated to the Common Agricultural Policy. This group has tremendous human resources and is successful in defending one of their aims, so this can be attributed as a factor. The more members a PG’s has, the more weight it gives to the PG as the PG can argue that it represents so much of the electorate and governments’ don’t want to upset the electorate as otherwise, they could be voted out. This is a factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others as the more members a group has, the more it can argue that it represents so much of the electorate.

In conclusion, these are all factors as to why some PG’s are more successful than others. Specialist knowledge, methods, timing and human resources all play a part in determining whether a PG’s is successful or not. However, no group can posses one of these and be successful. PG’s require a combination of these factors to even being considered as successful or not. Overall, the most important factor is human resources, as it gives a PG more weight and it is harder for governments to ignore. The more members also means more money to due to membership fees. Hence why human resources is the main factor as to why some PG’s are more successful than others.