Representative Democracy in Britain Today

Representative Democracy in Britain Today PDF Author: Colin Pilkington
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 9780719048180
Category : Democracy
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
In the aftermath of the Scott Report and the Nolan Committee this new study looks at the declining accountability of government in Britain, and the growth of quangos and agencies as well as the Monarchy and House of Lords are examined.

Representative Democracy in Britain Today

Representative Democracy in Britain Today PDF Author: Colin Pilkington
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 9780719048180
Category : Democracy
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
In the aftermath of the Scott Report and the Nolan Committee this new study looks at the declining accountability of government in Britain, and the growth of quangos and agencies as well as the Monarchy and House of Lords are examined.

Democracy in Britain

Democracy in Britain PDF Author: Matt Cole
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 0748626697
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
This textbook brings together an introduction to the political theory of democracy since Ancient times and a critical picture of its place in Britain today.The author examines the work of Plato and Aristotle, Rousseau and Mill, Marx and Weber, and locates them and others in the debate about what democracy means. He then scrutinises Britain's claim to be a developing democracy, from the power of the Prime Minister and the role of political parties to the influence of pressure groups and the media, as well as recent constitutional changes.In the context of declining public trust in political institutions and increasing reluctance to vote, crucial questions are tackled: do we have a democracy, and why does it matter? Key Features:*A wide-ranging, accessible introduction to the place of Democracy in Britain today*Divided into two halves: on democratic theory (reflecting its history, development, and key concepts) and democratic practice (examining political institutions)*Offers examples of documentary material to illustrate the ideas presented*Up-to-date: includes material written after the 2005 General Election

Representative democracy?

Representative democracy? PDF Author: Ron Johnston
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 1526139901
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 259

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Book Description
Members of Parliament in the United Kingdom are elected to represent geographic constituencies; but how are these defined and what are the consequences for democracy? Tracing the UK’s system of parliamentary representation from its origins in the thirteenth century right through to the present, this comprehensive new survey reveals how a system initially designed to restrain the power of monarchs gradually evolved to serve their interests, then those of political parties before the twentieth century ‘settlement’ of an independent process for revising the constituency map. That settlement is now under pressure, with the traditional pattern of constituencies representing communities about to be replaced by one which elevates numbers above community. Advanced under the slogan of ‘making votes equal’, this new regime promises fairness yet, as the authors show, is destined to fail to address the disproportional and biased election results that have long been a feature of UK politics. Concluding with a detailed consideration of the ways in which various parts of the UK have embraced alternatives to first-past-the-post over the last two decades, this book serves as a timely reminder that the needs of political parties do not always coincide with those of us, the electors.

Democratic Incongruities

Democratic Incongruities PDF Author: D. Judge
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1137317299
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 239

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Book Description
Clear disparities exist between notions of representative democracy and political practice in Britain. Alternative models of democracy, however, have their own incongruities in trying to marry representation and democracy. This book analyses the mismatches in democratic theories and between theory and practice in British representative democracy.

Representation

Representation PDF Author: David Judge
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 9780415081979
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
This book examines the meaning and practice of political representation in Britain. It reveals the intricate connections between theory and action and how different notions of representation coexist in a complex and potent mix. The thoughts of major theorists - from Edmund Burke, Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill, through G.D.H. Cole to Paul Hirst - are used to outline the diversity of ideas and practical forms of representation in Britain. Clear accounts of microcosmic, trustee, party, interest, functional, associational and territorial modes of representation are provided as a foundation from which ideas about 'post-parliamentary governance' and the 'crisis of legitimacy' are analysed. A wide-ranging review of representation at local, subnational, national and European levels reveals the concept's fundamental significance in the practice of modern politics.

Representative Government in England

Representative Government in England PDF Author: David Syme
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Great Britain
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description


Representative Government in England

Representative Government in England PDF Author: David Syme
Publisher: Legare Street Press
ISBN: 9781020819384
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Syme's incisive critique of the flaws and limitations of representative government in England remains as relevant today as when it was first published over a century ago. Written with clarity and insight, this book is essential reading for anyone who cares about the future of democracy. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Responsible Parties

Responsible Parties PDF Author: Frances Rosenbluth
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300241054
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 335

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Book Description
How popular democracy has paradoxically eroded trust in political systems worldwide, and how to restore confidence in democratic politics In recent decades, democracies across the world have adopted measures to increase popular involvement in political decisions. Parties have turned to primaries and local caucuses to select candidates; ballot initiatives and referenda allow citizens to enact laws directly; many places now use proportional representation, encouraging smaller, more specific parties rather than two dominant ones.Yet voters keep getting angrier.There is a steady erosion of trust in politicians, parties, and democratic institutions, culminating most recently in major populist victories in the United States, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere. Frances Rosenbluth and Ian Shapiro argue that devolving power to the grass roots is part of the problem. Efforts to decentralize political decision-making have made governments and especially political parties less effective and less able to address constituents’ long-term interests. They argue that to restore confidence in governance, we must restructure our political systems to restore power to the core institution of representative democracy: the political party.

Agents of the People

Agents of the People PDF Author: Pasi Ihalainen
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004183949
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 546

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Book Description
This book on the pre-history of democratization shows how and why more modern attitudes to democracy started to emerge in the late eighteenth century. Focusing on the language of parliamentarians, the author reconstructs and compares debates on the political role and representation of the people in Britain and Sweden. His analysis demonstrates not only the persistence of the classical, pejorative, conception of democracy but also the gradual re-evaluation of the notion prior to the French Revolution. The author analyses the clash between British and French conceptions of democracy as well as the first definitions of the sovereignty of Parliament as the sovereignty of the people. Furthermore, by placing parliamentary discourse in the context of public debates, he reveals the previously ignored role that parliaments played in redefining the most crucial concepts in Western political theory.

The Future of Representative Democracy

The Future of Representative Democracy PDF Author: Sonia Alonso
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139501178
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 323

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Book Description
The Future of Representative Democracy poses important questions about representation, representative democracy and their future. Inspired by the last major investigation of the subject by Hanna Pitkin over four decades ago, this ambitious volume fills a major gap in the literature by examining the future of representative forms of democracy in terms of present-day trends and past theories of representative democracy. Aware of the pressing need for clarifying key concepts and institutional trends, the volume aims to break down barriers among disciplines and to establish an interdisciplinary dialogue among scholars. The contributors emphasise that representative democracy and its future is a subject of pressing scholarly concern and public importance. Paying close attention to the unfinished, two-centuries-old relationship between democracy and representation, this book offers a fresh perspective on current problems and dilemmas of representative democracy and the possible future development of new forms of democratic representation.