Reforming Parliamentary Democracy

Reforming Parliamentary Democracy PDF Author: F. Leslie Seidle
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773525076
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
Parliamentary government's continuity is rooted in enduring principles such as citizen representation and accountability to the legislature. But parliamentary systems have evolved in response to changes in the societies they govern and in citizens' views about democratic practices. In this title, the authors demonstrate how, in their respective countries, parliamentary governments have combined stability with the capacity to adapt to such changes. They provide analyses of reforms to parliamentary institutions and governance in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The authors address issues of representation - the move to a proportional electoral system in New Zealand, the unsuccessful attempt to establish a domestic head of state in Australia, and the reform of the British House of Lords - and demonstrate that citizens increasingly want legislative institutions to more closely reflect the societies they serve. To discuss responsiveness, the governance of indigenous communities and their place within the broader society in Canada and New Zealand are examined.

Reforming Parliamentary Democracy

Reforming Parliamentary Democracy PDF Author: F. Leslie Seidle
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773525076
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Get Book Here

Book Description
Parliamentary government's continuity is rooted in enduring principles such as citizen representation and accountability to the legislature. But parliamentary systems have evolved in response to changes in the societies they govern and in citizens' views about democratic practices. In this title, the authors demonstrate how, in their respective countries, parliamentary governments have combined stability with the capacity to adapt to such changes. They provide analyses of reforms to parliamentary institutions and governance in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The authors address issues of representation - the move to a proportional electoral system in New Zealand, the unsuccessful attempt to establish a domestic head of state in Australia, and the reform of the British House of Lords - and demonstrate that citizens increasingly want legislative institutions to more closely reflect the societies they serve. To discuss responsiveness, the governance of indigenous communities and their place within the broader society in Canada and New Zealand are examined.

A Short History of Parliament

A Short History of Parliament PDF Author: Clyve Jones
Publisher: Boydell Press
ISBN: 184383717X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 402

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Book Description
This institutional history charts the development and evolution of parliament from the Scottish and Irish parliaments, through the post-Act of Union parliament and into the devolved assemblies of the 1990s. It considers all aspects of parliament as an institution, including membership, parties, constituencies and elections.

The Anthropology of Parliaments

The Anthropology of Parliaments PDF Author: Emma Crewe
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000182312
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
The Anthropology of Parliaments offers a fresh, comparative approach to analysing parliaments and democratic politics, drawing together rare ethnographic work by anthropologists and politics scholars from around the world. Crewe’s insights deepen our understanding of the complexity of political institutions. She reveals how elected politicians navigate relationships by forging alliances and thwarting opponents; how parliamentary buildings are constructed as sites of work, debate and the nation in miniature; and how politicians and officials engage with hierarchies, continuity and change. This book also proposes how to study parliaments through an anthropological lens while in conversation with other disciplines. The dive into ethnographies from across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific Region demolishes hackneyed geo-political categories and culminates in a new comparative theory about the contradictions in everyday political work. This important book will be of interest to anyone studying parliaments but especially those in the disciplines of anthropology and sociology; politics, legal and development studies; and international relations.

The Pageant of Parliament

The Pageant of Parliament PDF Author: Michael MacDonagh
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description


Parliamentary Debates

Parliamentary Debates PDF Author: New Zealand. Parliament
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : New Zealand
Languages : en
Pages : 978

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The Parliamentary Debates

The Parliamentary Debates PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Great Britain
Languages : en
Pages : 968

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Book Description


Comparing Westminster

Comparing Westminster PDF Author: R. A. W. Rhodes
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191609811
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 433

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Book Description
This book explores how the governmental elites in Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa understand their Westminster system. It examines in detail four interrelated features of Westminster systems. Firstly, the increasing centralisation in collective, responsible cabinet government. Second, the constitutional convention of ministerial and collective responsibility. Third, the role of a professional, non-partisan public service. And finally, parliament's relationship to the executive. The authors explain the changes that have occured in the Westminster model by analysing four traditions: royal prerogative, responsible government, constitutional bureaucracy, and representative government. They suggest that each tradition has a recurring dilemma, between centralisation and decentralisation, party government and ministerial responsibility, professionalisation and politicisation, and finally elitism and participation. They go on to argue that these dilemmas recur in four present-day debates: the growth of prime ministerial power, the decline in individual and collective ministerial accountability, politicisation of the public service, and executive dominance of the legislature. They conclude by identifying five meanings of - or narratives about - Westminster. Firstly, 'Westminster as heritage' - elite actors' shared governmental narrative understood as both precedents and nostalgia. Second, 'Westminster as political tool' - the expedient cloak worn by governments and politicians to defend themselves and criticise opponents. Third, 'Westminster as legitimising tradition' - providing legitimacy and a context for elite actions, serving as a point of reference to navigate this uncertain world. Fourth, 'Westminster as institutional category' - it remains a useful descriptor of a loose family of governments with shared origins and characteristics. Finally, 'Westminster as an effective political system' - it is a more effective and efficient political system than consensual parliamentary governments. Westminster is a flexible family of ideas that is useful for many purposes and survives, even thrives, because of its meaning in use to élite actors.

The Evolution of Parliament

The Evolution of Parliament PDF Author: Albert Frederick Pollard
Publisher: London : Longmans, Green
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 456

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Democracy

Democracy PDF Author: Peter Kellner
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1907195858
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 365

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Book Description
Democracy is Britain's gift to the world. Most of the ideas and ideals that have shaped the world's democracies can be traced back to arguments and reforms that first erupted here. Democracy tells the thousand-year story of the bitter battles over those arguments and reforms, in the words of those who shaped our democracy, fought for it and resisted it. It includes the major documents of the past millennium, such as the Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights, and the speeches of the big beasts of the democratic jungle, such as Thomas More, Cromwell, Wilberforce, Gladstone and Churchill, as well as the contributions made to the democracy struggle by rebels, poets, satirists and novelists, from Shakespeare and Burns to Dickens and Orwell. Also featured are many important documents that have been rescued from obscurity, such as a speech that a prominent twentieth century MP was barred from delivering: he wanted to argue why he should not be expelled from the House of Commons. Democracy covers not just the constitution and the law, but debates over free speech, slavery, empire, the death penalty and Europe, and includes key events in England's relations with Scotland, Wales and Ireland. This remarkable chronicle is guaranteed to inform, educate and inspire.

The New Statesman

The New Statesman PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Great Britain
Languages : en
Pages : 1102

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Book Description