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PARLIAMENT - Coggle Diagram
PARLIAMENT
2.1 - The structure and role of the commons and the Lords
Functions of Parliament
Legislation
It is much more accurate to say that legislation is passed
through parliament
than by parliament.
'effectiveness'
of Parliament when it comes to legislation comes down to their ability to scrutinise government.
Ineffective -
The Blair government did not lose a vote in the commons until
2005.
The Sailsbury convention
prevents the lords from delaying a bill which is a 'manifesto bill' thus limiting their ability to scrutinised.
The parliament acts of 1911 and 1949
- the lords cannot veto legislation they can only amend and delay it for up to a year - they also cannot delay the passing of 'money bills' such as the budget.
Effective -
The removal of hereditary peers in 1999
meant more defeats in the lords - as there was no longer a stable majority.
Cameron was defeated trying to change the wording of the EU referendum make it more remain friendly '2015'.
May's minority government
gave loads of power to parliament and was beaten
28 times
- most shockingly of which when in early 2019 her Brexit deal was rejected with 118 conservative MPs voting against it.
Scrutiny (goes into 2.4)
Representation
Parliamentary privilage
The ability of parliamentarians to speak freely and not be bound by any other body.
Does parliamentary democracy effectively r
epresent the people?
YES
Each MP represents a geographical area and brings forward the grievences of the people who live there.
NO
FPTP means that representation in the commons is far from proportional. The lords are also unelected which is not representative.
Models of representation
The delegate model, The trustee model, the doctrine model (carry out manifesto promises)
Does Parliament reflect the people?
Descriptive representation
is important in the commons and focuses on the representation of marginalized groups.
YES - Parliaments are become more diverse, almost half of MPs are women (41%) and after the resignation of Lousie Haigh Starmer's cabinet is entirely state-school educated.
NO - White middle class men still dominate the commons, Laura Pidcock commented upon her election that ‘place reeks of establishment and power’. Only approximately 6% of the lords are from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Recruiting and maintaining government
legitimacy
Features of Parliament
Parliament is governed through the idea of the
'fusion of power'
and 'parliamentary government'
Parliament itself is comprised of
3 separate areas
: - The house of commons - The house of lords - the monarchy
Key features of parliamentary government -
The fusion of powers (legislator + Executive)
Governments are formed on the basis of representation in the commons
Government personnel typically come from the largest party in the commons and they must sit in parliament.
Governments can only govern with the ‘confidence’ of parliament -
confidence and supply
arrangement.
The government’s ‘face’ is that of the cabinet
The prime minister
is not head of state but head of government.
The role of the monarch
The monarch's role as the head of state is more of a symbolic thing. In Bagehot’s formulation, the monarchy is a ‘
dignified’
rather than an ‘effective’ institution
Interactions with parliament...
Appointing a government
- conventionally the leader of the largest party
The King's speech
- sets out the government's programme at the start of each parliamentary session.
The Royal Assent
- The final stage of the legislative process, Monarchs never refuse to grant Royal Assent
opening and dismissing parliament
- At the request of the PM the monarch
'dissolves'
parliament before a general election
The structure of the two chambers
The Lords
People's peers
These appointments a made on the basis o
f individual recommendations t
o the lords through the appointments comission. By the end of 2018, 70 had been appointed, although their lack of resemblance to ‘ordinary’ citizens has been a source of criticism.
Lords spiritual
There are
26 bishops and archbishops of the Church of England.
They are collectively referred to as the ‘Lords Spiritual’. They are appointed by the Prime Minister on the basis of recommendations made by the Church of England
Life peers
Entitled to sit in the lords for their own lifetime and are appointed by the prime minister. These people are experts in a specific field and dominate the lords around 690.
Hereditary peers
These peers hold inherited titles which carry the right to sit in the Lords. Once, there were over
700 hereditary peers, but since 1999 only a maximum of 92 are permitted to sit.
These 92 were elected by other members of the house
Current party split
- conservative majority
The commons
The make-up of the commons
All 650 MPs must be elected to a constituency - most of these represent a party but some stand as independents
You therefore need 326 MPs to form a majority in the commons
Most MPs are '
back benchers'
unless they are members of the cabinet or the shadow cabinet
The role of MPs
represent and deal with issues from constituents, - scrutinise the government - debate and amend legislation - provide legitimacy
EG - assisted dying bill was brought to the house by a private members bill by
Kim Leadbeater
current make-up of the commons
How MPs can gain power
questioning ministers
participating in debates
voting on legisaltion
participating in bills and committees
ROLES
Whips
they are responsible for '
towing the party line'
and ensuring that legislation is passed.
whips 'pair' opposing MPs if they must be absent for a vote.
going against the whip risks ones position in the party.
EG - Punishments
21 MPs
were banished from the party by chief whip Mark Spencer (under Johnson) because they did not agree with the government's position on the EU. Sep 2019
7 MPs
had the whip removed in July of 2024 for voting with the SNP to scrap the 2 child benefit cap
The speaker
This is an MP selected to be the i
mpartial chair
of the house.
Duties
- calling on MPs, ensuring parties receive equal time when debating, discipling MPs, announcing the result of votes, casting the deciding vote in the event of a tie.
the opposition
- an incredibly integrated part of the chamber - seen through events such as PMQS
criticises the work of government and presents and alternative to the electorate
2.2 - The comparative powers of the Commons and the Lords.
Exclusive powers of the commons
Main powers of the Lords
Debates about the relative powers of the two chambers.
EXAMPLES - The impact of COVID on the workings of Parliament
2.3 - The legislative process
Stages of the process
There are 3 types of bill -
Public Bills
- apply to everyone and either the government or backbench MPs propose them. Most bills are public.
Private bills
- change the law for a limited set of interests such as a single organisation or an individual.
Hybrid bills -
combine aspects of public and private bills and are used in very specific circumstances when a bill both has a broad public purpose and will affect people at a local level
How the process of legislation begins
The first stages of a bill very rarely come from within Parliament - the are commonly either from
pre-parliamentary or extra-parliamentary exercises.
Ideas often come from: Polls, Think Tanks, The media, pressure groups, manifestos
2012 health and social care act
- needed a lot of consultation to guarantee a degree of support from doctors.
To tackle the issue of changing the ofsted rating system Bridget Phillipson consulted both focus groups and think tanks.
1st/2nd reading
The first reading is not a forum for debate, this is an opportunity foe the bill to be understood. It is an the second reading that amendments are suggested.
Green paper
- A bill that is open to amendments and not yet decided.
White paper
- A bill that is almost complete and wants to be passed without amenmendts.
committee + report stage
Bills at this stage are referred to
public bill committees
which are set up for different legislation - these made amendments line by line and close loopholes.
The majority of amendments are passed by government
important parts of bills are often never properly scrutinised in the commons as opposition MPs attempt to
'wreck amendments'
Private members bills
a very hard to get through - often run out of support, funding and time.
Success - Private members legislation changed the law on abortion, capital punishment, divorce and homosexuality in the 1960s which were very important (also now with assisted dying bill).
judges
must in some cases declare an act 'inconsistent' if it violates the ECHR and can also rule 'incompatibility' against the HRA.
delegated legislation
a method of amending regulations without having to go through parliament - done by government or public bodies.
This in a sense undermines parliamentary sovereignty.
Interactions between the two houses
Parliament's influence
Parliament legitimates rather than legislates
Parliament's influence on the details of legislation is
limited
, they transform legislation via amendments and tweaks rather than creating it.
Parliament provides legitimacy for the policies formed by the executive.
