Video Lesson
Audio Notes
Representative democracy
Representative democracy, as the name suggests, is a system where the people are ruled by representatives who make decisions on behalf of the people. This system is used across the world, including in the UK.
Direct democracy
Direct democracy does not exist in any country today as the primary democratic method. In direct democracy, people make decisions for themselves. There are no representatives or MPs.
However, direct democracy can be seen in some cases in the UK:
- Petitions: people can sign if they feel strongly about an issue.
- Recall of MPs Act (2015): if enough constituents sign a petition, they can automatically trigger a by-election.
- Referendums: the public is asked about a decision directly, rather than their representatives, such as in the 2011 Alternative Vote Referendum and the 2016 European Union Referendum.
The case for reform
In the modern world, government derives legitimacy from the people’s consent. This can be seen through a range of factors in the UK:
- Devolution: powers have transferred from Westminster to Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and mayors in London and other cities.
- Independent judiciary: since 2005, the UK judiciary has been a separate branch of government.
- Free media: challenges government policy and the actions of MPs.
- Free and fair elections: general elections are held every five years, and referendums are held occasionally.
However, some argue that, in some respects, the UK political system is not democratic:
- Unfair voting system: some people feel unrepresented by the first-past-the-post voting system, as an imbalance is produced between votes cast and seats gained.
- House of Lords: the second chamber of parliament is full of members who weren’t elected there. Whilst a range of professions are represented, it is seen by many as undemocratic as the electorate does not choose the Lords.
- Protection of citizens’ rights: The 1998 Human Rights Act provides inadequate protection of citizens’ rights as governments have been known to ‘derogate’ from the Human Rights Act. Furthermore, due to the uncodified constitution in the UK, our rights are not entrenched and can be changed by a simple Act of Parliament.
There are many arguments for reforming the UK political system:
- Compulsory voting: governments could claim greater legitimacy, people would feel more educated about politics, and it works in places like Australia. However, it could encourage non-serious voting and be considered a violation of individual freedom.
- Lowering the voting age: voting at 16 would match other aspects of freedom at this age and may help to educate young people about politics. However, most 16-year-olds are still in full-time education and don’t appreciate factors like housing and the economy.
- Greater use of referenda: this could give government decisions more legitimacy as citizens could vote on important issues. However, it could divide the public’s views, as seen after the 2016 European Union referendum.