Hansard Society eNewsletter - June 2009
Hansard Society
Statement
Hansard Society Commons Reform
Agenda
Ruth
Fox, Director of the Hansard Society Parliament
and Government programme, has said:
‘MPs
are elected to represent their
constituents but they also have a constitutional duty to ensure effective
scrutiny of the Government.
‘We
have long argued that the balance of power between MPs and the Government in the
House of Commons needs to change.
‘If
public faith in our representative
democracy is to be restored, radical reform is needed to: provide for better
scrutiny of the Government; improve the quality and effectiveness of the law
making process; enhance the relationship between Parliament and the public; and
make the institution more efficient.'
The Hansard Society recommends
several reforms for the House of Commons. Read
them here.
Events
Young People: Who cares what they
think?
A
Hansard Society Democracy Forum to discuss what the contribution of under-18s to
politics should be will take place on Wednesay 10 June at 6.45pm, Portcullis
House, Westminster. It will look at:
- Are young people
properly represented in our democratic system?
- Are young
people's views best expressed by those with more life
experience?
- Which is more
important - representation or experience?
Chair:
Michael Raftery (Director, Hansard Society Citizenship Education
Programme).
Speakers: Jo
Swinson MP, Emily Benn PPC, Emily Beardsmore(Chair, BYC), Gerarld Owusu MYP.
Click
here to register
Hansard Society Speaker
Hustings
Submit your
questions
The
Hansard Society is hosting a Speaker Hustings in
Parliament in June where potential candidates for the post of Speaker will be
taking questions from MPs. In addition, the potential candidates will answer a
selection of questions from members of the public submitted via the Hansard
Society about what they see as the priorities for the new Speaker. Closing date
for questions is Thursday June 11.
Submit your question now (Mark 'events' in the contact
field)
Y Vote
Young voters grill
MEPs
Local
candidates for the forthcoming European elections were given the chance to make
their case to young voters during an event at City College Plymouth. The Y Vote
Mock Election event allowed young people the opportunity to question MEPs on a
wide range of subjects affecting them.
Click
here for the full story and press coverage
HeadsUp
Youth Citizenship Commission Debate
II
The
Youth Citizenship Commission was set up by Gordon Brown in 2008 to look at ways
of developing young people’s understanding of citizenship and increasing their
participation in politics. They used HeadsUp as part of their evidence gathering
and are now back on the forum to explain what they’ve found and to discuss their
conclusions with the HeadsUp users and other decision-makers.
The topics to
be discussed will be: Your community Generational trust Citizenship education As
usual there will be lots of decision-makers ready to hear your thoughts and get
involved in the debate. Please forward this to anyone aged 11-18 years old who
maybe interested!
Click
here for more information
eDemocracy
Visioning the Future
Parliament
The
eDemocracy Programme's
Parliament
2020 project is now in full swing and we have completed our three
UK focus groups. At Westminster we held one
for parliamentary officials and a second for MPs and Peers. Our third focus
group was held at the University of Westminster and was for the first time
voters. Recognising that the traditional focus group approach might not be
appropiate for this group, we turned to an innovative method of using Lego to
brainstorm ideas for what a parliament of the future might look like. The
results are fascinating, as you can see for yourself in this short video
clip.
Twitter
Hansard Society is all a Twitter!
We
are delighted to annouce that the Hansard Society now has its very own Twitter
account. Through Twitter we will keep you informed with live posts from selected
events and regular updates on the various activities of the Hansard
Society.
Follow us at www.twitter.com/hansardsociety