Government and Legislature

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House of Commons functions:

Provides government - too much power over legislature?

Enacts legislation - may conflict with executive functions e.g. MP's representative area may want something his government policy is against

Hold executive to account for it's conduct

Authorise and control taxation and expenditure

Represent the people

House of Commons composition:

650 MPs

Speaker - Independent chair of the house

Whips - Party officials who maintain party discipline

Leader who controls the management of time

Role of Backbench MPsVoting, debating ,questions, committee membership, grievances of constituents

House of Lords purpose:

Federal state

Protect constitution

Questions controversial legislation

House of Lords reform:

Parliament Act 1911 - Removed ability to veto money bills - House of Commons given power to overrule HL veto after 3 sessions

Parliament Act 1949 - Amended 1911 Act to reduce veto time to 2 sessions

Life Peerages Act 1958 - Enable appointment of a new class of peers based on merit (not hereditary) - People with various backgrounds of expertise

House of Lords Act 1999 - Hereditary peers generally no longer have the right to sit and vote in HL

Legislative Process - Public bills, private members' bills, private bills

First reading - Title read out

Second reading - Chance for parliament to reject the bill

Committee stage - Detailed scrutiny of the bill, usually by a standing committee of 16-50 MPs

Report stage - Whole house considers the amendments made by the committee

Third reading - General debate on the bill

Scrutiny of the executive

Debates - topic usually chosen by the opposition - Takes place in Westminster hall

Parliamentary questions - Written and oral e.g. Prime Minister's questions

Parliamentary committee system - membership is proportionate to the party strength in the commons

Collective Ministerial Responsibility

Confidentiality

AG v Jonathan Cape [1976] QB 752 - Enforced by convention (not enforceable in courts as no legal basis)

Ministerial Code 2010 Para 2.1 requires ministers to 'argue freely in private while maintaining a unisted front when decisions have been reached'

BUT Freedom of Information Act 2000 may allow the disclosure of Cabinet minutes which can be stopped by the AG as per R (Evans) v AG [2013] EWHC 1960

Unanimity

Ministerial Code 2010 Para 2.3 says 'decisions reached by the Cabinet or Ministerial Committees are binding on all members of the government' - Caused many resignations e.g. Robin Cook and Clare Short in 2003

Votes of Confidence

Government will only remain in power if they retain support of their party or parties e.g. Labour Government 1979

Prime Ministers will only remain in power if they retain the support of their party or parties e.g. Thatcher 1990, Blair 2007

Suspensions of Collective ResponsibilityE.g. European Economic Community Referendum 1975 and The National Government 1932

Coalition GovernmentE.g. Lib-Lab 1978-1979, The Coalition 2010.

Individual Ministerial Responsibility

Legal Responsibility

A minister can be sued or judicially reviewed for something that their department has done e.g. M v Home Office [1994] 1 AC 437, Carltona v Commissioner of Works [1943] 2 All ER 560

Government and its officials are not above the law [rule of law]

Political Responsibility - Accountability to Parliament

Various mechanisms - voting on bills and debates, oral and written questions to ministers, investigations by departmental select committees, votes of confidence.

Conventions in place in order to ensure control by Parliament and accountability of the executive.

Ministerial Code 2010 para 1.5 says 'Ministers only remain in office for so long as they retain the confidence of the Prime Minister'

A minister is responsible for his/her department

Chrichel Down Guidelines 1954 - Must defend civil servants who carried out expicit orders or acted in accordance with policy laid down by the minister - Minister is always responsible even if he has no knowledge of, or disagrees with the conduct

Attempts to blame the civil servant - Prisons 1995, The West Coast Mainline nad Virgin Railways 2012

Ministerial Code 2010 para 1.2 says 'Ministers have a duty to Parliament to account and to be held to account, for the policies, decisions and actions of their departments and agencies'

Resignation is rare but more likely to be reshuffled e.g. Chloe Smith 2013

Financial Impropriety

Parliamentary Privilege - All MPs are subject to Parliament's own legal rules on payments, expenses etc

Ministers are subject to additional requirements laid down by convention

Ministerial Code para 1.2 says 'ministers should not accept any gift of hospitality which might or might reasonably appear to compromise their judgement or place them under an improper obligation'

E.g. Peter Mandelson 1998, David Laws 2010

'Lying' to the House

Ministerial Code general principle says 'ministers who knowingly mislead parliament will be expected to offer their resignation to the Prime Minister'

E.g. Matrix Churchill Trial 1992

Personal ConductCauses many resignations e.g. Chris Huhne 2012, Andrew Mitchell 2012, Profumo 1962 etc

Winston Churchill - "...democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried"

General Election

Walter Bagehot - "No-one will contend that the ordinary working man who has no special skill... can judge much of intellectual matters'

Women couldn't vote until 1928

Vote every 5 years fixed term as per Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011

Who cannot vote?

Citizens who lack legal capacity

Non UK, Ireland or Commonwealth citizens

Convicted prisoners - R (Pearson) v Home Secretary 2001, Hirst v UK (No2) 2005 BHRR 441

Mental health detainees

Members of House of Lords - unless no longer sitting e.g. hereditary peers as per S3 House of Lords Act 1999

Convicts for corrupt or illegal practices at elections

How does one vote?

ECHR, Protocol 1 Article 3 - "free lections at reasonable intervals by secret ballot, under conditions which will ensure the free expression of the people in the choice of the legislature"

In person at polling booth

By post - Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000

Fraud by post - R (Afzal) v Election Court [2005] EWCA Civ 647

Many new suggested developments such as voting via internet, mobile phone and supermarkets

Who may stand as a candidate for election as an MP?

Pre-requisites

Nomination

Deposit (Has Pros and cons)

Who may not stand?

Pursuant to separation of Powers e.g. Judges, civil servants etc.

Aliens

21 years old and younger

Mental health detainees

Members of House of Lords - unless no longer sitting

Bankrupts

Person guilty of corrupt or illegal practices

Certain categories of convict

'First Past the Post' Westminster voting system

Constituencies - Single member, equal value of vote

Boundaries determined by Boundary Commission

Campaigning

Limits and other rules constrain parties and individual candidates to ensure fairness and propriety in electioneering

Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000

What may or may not be said

Advertising

Broad Casting

Spending

Funding

The Electoral Commission

Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000

Independent

Registers political parties

Public education relating to current electoral systems in the UK and EU

Reform

Should voting be compulsory?

Should campaigning be funded from taxation?

Extended postal voting?

'E-voting'?

Alternating voting systems?

The Prime Minister

Leads government and Coalition (or party)

Convention, not law

Appointed my Monarch (prerogative power)

Convention to be leader of majority party and a constituency MP in the House of Commons

Appoints, directs, promotes, demotes and fires ministers

Addresses the nation when there is a crisis

Minister of the Civil Service

Prerogative powers e.g. war/treaties

The Cabinet

Convention, not law

Evolved from Curia Regis - 'King's Advisers'

21 Cabinet Ministers paid

Make policies

Pm decides: Frequency and duration of meetings, content & conduct, agenda, who speaks and for how long.

Special Advisers

PM has 18.5

Deputy Pm has 4

Cabinet ministers up to 2

Code of Conduct for Special Advisers 2010

May be political

No duty to be impartial or objective

The Civil Service

Servants of the crown

Statutory protections include the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, Civil Service Commission and a duty to the government not to parliament

Non-political, neutral

Independent

Permanent

Civil Service Code 2010

Nolan Principles

Open Government

Arguments for:Democracy: People's government, right to know, participation

Corruption not hidden

Arguments against:

National Security

Public safety

Strong, viable, credible government - united front

Good governance - uninhibited debate

Can appeal to the Information Commissioner and then the courts

Scottish ministers v Scottish Information Commissioner 2007 - Can over-rule ministers; public interest

HM Treasury v Information Commissioner 2009 - Ministry did not have to reveal whether it held legal advice

Corporate Officer House of Commons v Information Commissioner - Details of MP's expenses claims; public interest

Cabinet Office v Information Commissioner - Ordered disclosure on balance of public interest regarding the legality of the Iraq war

Parliament

Responsible Government

Prime Minister & Cabinet

Elections and Democracy