ARE REFERENDUMS GOOD FOR THE UK?

ARE REFERENDUMS GOOD FOR THE UK?

1. Yes

   • They can encourage participation and education, as show in the Scottish Independence referendum and Brexit referendums, which enhances legitimacy and consent in the political system.
   • They have provided a clear answer to political issues and the results have been successfully implemented, such as the creation of devolved bodies.
   • They have enhanced liberal democracy by serving as a way to limit the power of the government.
   • The management of referendums is overseen by the independent Electoral Commission in the same manner as elections, Theis limits government manipulation of them.
   • They have enhanced representation in the UK by allowing popular sovereignty to be directly expressed.
   • As an accepted constitutional convention, they provide another way in which the public can engage in politics between elections and ensure a responsive government with a mandate to act
   • As referendums are advisory, Parliament remains sovereign and can implement the decision in an effective manner. Although the public voted to leave the EU, Parliament decides the manner of the withdrawal.

2. No

   • Turnout for some referendums has been low, such as the AV referendum, which undermines the legitimacy of the decision and the effectiveness of direct democracy.
   • Close results can be more divisive rather than settling an issue, as seen in Brexit and the Scottish independence referendum.
   • The campaigns surrounding some referendums have been misleading, raising questions over the legitimacy of the result.
   • The government decides if and when to call a referendum, which concentrates power in the government rather than limiting it.
   • They have undermined representative democracy in the UK, challenging key principles of the 'trustee model' in which elected representatives act in the best interests of the electorate on the basis of the consent given at an election