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‘Time is the oxygen of Parliament'. So said the now Leader of the House Sir George Young MP in a speech to the Hansard Society in March, setting out his party's agenda for parliamentary and legislative reform and the need for improvements to enable MPs to ‘undertake scrutiny in a measured and considered manner'.
But four months on, the parliamentary session ends with the Academies Bill securing Royal Assent after just one week of debate and consideration by elected members in the House of Commons. The coalition government's approach to the timing of new bills demonstrates that MPs are not being given the time and space to undertake scrutiny in a considered manner.
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Young people want face-to-face contact with politicians and
a two-way discussion on social media.
www.headsup.org.uk
Young people on the HeadsUp.org.uk forum Politics
and Politicians...what needs to change? place as much importance on face-to-face
contact as they do on digital forms of engagement with politicians. Forum users
said that digital engagement is good if used properly, but it is not a
replacement for "actually getting out and about and talking".
Users of HeadsUp.org.uk,
which came runner up in the Empowering
Young People and Citizens category at the 2010 Nominet Internet Awards,
insisted that genuine engagement was very important to them, but only if their
ideas and suggestions were listened to and taken into account. Although some
expressed a preference for face-to-face engagement, most also accepted that if digital
engagement was welcome if it was a two way dialogue.
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Record number of parliamentarians to debate with under 18s on
HeadsUp online forum
The current HeadsUp forum Politics
and Politicians: what needs to change? has a record 19
decision-makers taking part, including seven new MPs, demonstrating an
enthusiasm from the new Parliament for engaging with young people and understanding
their views on politics.
The online forum - Politics
and Politicians: what needs to change? is running from 21 June - 9 July and
will allow young people to have their say on the new government's plans so far,
the role of an MP, young people's representation in Parliament and much more.
They will be discussing these issues with 19 decision-makers including; Peers,
new MPs, shadow and serving Ministers:
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Why can't I vote at my ATM?
The practicalities of the ballot box.
June 23, 6.45pm, Portcullis House, Westminster
Chair: Dr. Andy Williamson (Director, Digital Democracy Programme, Hansard Society).
Speakers: Tom Harris MP; Jason Kitcat (Open Rights Group); Jenny Watson (Chair, Electoral Commission).
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Parliamentary reform: the Coalition
Government's agenda after Wright
A speech by Leader of the House of Commons,
Rt. Hon. Sir George Young MP
June 16, 6.30pm, Thatcher Room, Portcullis House, Westminster
Chaired by Peter Riddell, Chair, Hansard Society
Members of the media are invited to attend - to book your place please email mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or phone 020 7438 1225
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The Speaker of the House of Commons Rt Hon John Bercow MP
gives speech to the Hansard Society tomorrow:
Reform in a New Parliament: Reviving the Chamber
Wednesday June 9, 6pm - 8pm, Attlee Suite, Portcullis House, Westminster
Chaired by Peter Riddell, Hansard Society
The speech will be followed by Q&A session
To attend, contact mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or phone 0208 438 1225
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The Liberal Democrats win twice the amount of seats as the Conservatives and over three times as many as Labour with a massive 50.7% of the seats across the country.
The results of the 2010 Y
Vote Mock Election and Google School Elections involving over 250,000 young
people are now in and they show that young people support the Liberal Democrats
as the party that they believe should be in Government. Students gave the Liberal Democrats a narrow
majority over the other parties - 50.7% of the seats in constituencies where
Mock Elections were held. The
Conservative Party achieved 24.9% of the vote and Labour came in third, being
elected in only 15.9% of seats. This of
course differs wildly from the real general election result, in which Labour
achieved 39% of the vote.
Smaller parties achieved 8% of seats collectively, doing much better than smaller parties in the General Election, where they achieved 4% of seats.
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Coalition government: lessons from near and far - PublicService.co.uk, Monday 24 May 2010 - Dr. Fox looks at the new coalition deal from a comparative perspective and suggests that too much detail in the agreement could hamper its efficacy.
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Article in response to our new report Has Devolution Delivered for Women? including comments from Dr. Ruth Fox - Wales Online / Western Mail, Tuesday May 25 2010.
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Significant new measures needed if improvements in
women's representation in the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are to be
sustained
A report
commissioned by the British Council and produced by the Hansard Society, concludes
that the battle for fair and equal representation of women is far from won and
urgent new action is needed if the progress made in Edinburgh and Cardiff over
the last decade is to be sustained in the next one. Has
Devolution Delivered for Women? , written by Joyce McMillan and
Ruth Fox, explores the progress that has been made in improving the levels of
female representation in the devolved legislatures over the last 10 years,
analyses how this happened and what obstacles now threaten that progress. It
explores the impact that women have had on the culture of politics in Scotland
and Wales and the policy commitments that have been secured as a result of
their leadership.
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Report on the differing outcomes in Mock Elections of two local schools in Worthing, West Sussex - Worthing Herald, Thursday 13 May 2010
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Young people do
not rate the same issues as important at
election time
HeadsUp.org.uk,
the innovative online forum for 11-18 year olds, has found that young people
care about significantly different issues from adults when it comes to
politics. The latest online forum, which ran throughout the general election (report
available to download here), found that although young people and adults
agree that the economy is important, they disagree on their priorities for
other political issues.
Read the full report here
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Dr. Andy Williamson, Director of Hansard Society's Digital Democracy Programme has written about the voting system in the UK for Local Government Chronicle, saying that it is out of date and needs updating. Andy said:
"It seems blindingly obvious in this digitally enabled age of IT-led
process transformation that we should be able to register, vote and
count those votes so much more efficiently and reliably if we use the
right tools and develop better processes to support them. "
Read the full article here
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Dr. Andy Williamson - keynote
speaker at the European eDemocracy Conference
Director of Digital Democracy, Dr. Andy
Williamson, gave a keynote address at the European eDemocracy Conference in
Krems, Austria. The speech, entitled 'Embedding Citizens at the Heart of
Democracy' took a challenging look at how digital democracy initiatives have
failed to engage citizens in a climate of individualism, government technocracy
and risk aversion. It set out some routes to overcome these problems such as
allowing solutions to emerge from both government and civil society through
effective partnerships that can help overcome the distrust felt. The speech will be available to read here shortly, in the meantime Andy answered five questions on the future of eDemocracy in this short video:
http://vimeo.com/11559689
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The media has been eager to hear our experts' views on various issues over the course of the 2010 General Election:
Chaotic polling problems lead to calls for e-voting - BBC Online, Friday 7 May 2010. Dr. Andy Williamson comments on electronic voting in the wake of voter anger over not being able to vote in some areas.
Dr. Ruth Fox on the political parties' options following the General Election (YouTube clip) - Bloomberg TV, Friday 7 May 2010
Cameron may ignore guidelines and claim victory - The Guardian, Wednesday 5 May 2010
No magic number for Conservatives in election - Reuters, Wednesday 5 May, 2010
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Media attention for the Hansard Society's new report on trust in politics:
Politics of Trust: what's trust got to do with it? - The Public Trust Partnership Wednesday May 5, 2010
'No' to business as usual politics - Public Service, Wednesday May 5, 2010
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After weeks of election campaigning, hustings, opinion polls and debate, Harrogate Grammar School's Mock Election is won by Tom Spain in a landslide victory for the ‘Tomunist Alliance' party.
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Briefing Paper from the Hansard Society and the Political Studies Association
What's Trust Got To Do With It?
On the day leading politicians go head to head on the BBC to debate trust in politics, a new Briefing Paper, What's Trust Got To Do With It?, argues that public dissatisfaction with politics is based on deeper problems than lack of trust in MPs and Parliament. The Paper identifies the more urgent challenge as being the decline in the relevance of politicians and political institutions to people's everyday lives.
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After weeks of election campaigning, hustings, opinion polls and political discussion, over 400 schools and nearly 20,000 young people will finally get their long-awaited chance to vote in the Hansard Society's Y-Vote Mock Elections on Thursday May 6. Many schools in your area are eager to show off their activities to journalists on Thursday.
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Find out what
young people think about the policies, politicians and parties in the 2010
general election
Monday
26 April - Friday 14 May
www.headsup.org.uk
A lively debate is happening on the current
HeadsUp
forum for 11-18
year-olds, arguing about who they would vote for if they could and why? The
young people are debating policy proposals, TV Leaders' debates and the impact
of gaffes, with many certain about voting intentions if they had the chance.
Although
under-18s can't vote, they still have very informed and diverse opinions on politics,
politicians and the political parties, visit HeadsUp.org.uk to see more.
So far a variety of views have been
expressed in the forum thread Who
would you vote for?, such as:
I would vote for Lib Dems because they would most
likely introduce a new voting system
that I think would improve the general election for future years. I also think
that this country needs change,
and although that is the campaign of the conservatives, we have not had Lib Dems for a long time:; it
would be a great change for Britain.
The reason I would vote for conservatives is because I dont really think
much of Lib Dem's, I'm sorry, but i dont. I also wouldn't vote for labour is
because gordon brown hates the idea of grammer schools, and if he had his way
then all the grammer schools would shut down, and my school would too!
I think the Greens should get to run the coutry! They are focused on the
enviroment which is what we need right now! If they inforce some laws anout
being more Green global warming will be gone in no time!!!
For more information please contact Kate Egglestone/Virginia Gibbons, mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or 020
7438 1210
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Essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary politics
Discounted
rate for Hansard Society members
The April 2010 issue of Parliamentary Affairs looks at The Politics
of Britishness.
As well as abstracts from the articles (see Editor's
Notes), Parliamentary
Affairs podcasts are also available. These are interviews with the
authors designed to explore themes from their work.
The podcasts are between 10 and 15 minutes long, and designed to inform researchers and to serve as teaching tools to
stimulate discussion amongst students.
Parliamentary Affairs is a long-established journal published by Oxford University Press in association with the Hansard
Society. Individual subscriptions cost £60 a year; special reduced
subscriptions for Hansard Society
subscription members cost £27 a year (UK),
€41 (Europe), US$54 (rest of the world).
- Individual subscriptions
cost £60 a year from jnls.cust.serv@oxfordjournals.org
or Journals Customer Service
Department, Oxford University
Press, Great Clarendon Street,
Oxford
OX2 6DP
For
further information, contact
Virginia Gibbons, Head of Communications at the Hansard Society on mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or 020 7438 1225
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Research shows manifesto commitments don't always reflect what public say they want
Research carried out by the Hansard Society over the past seven years for the annual Audit of Political Engagement demonstrates that public attitudes to politics and political engagement are complex, contradictory and rarely uniform. While there is strong agreement that the political system is in need of reform, there is little consensus on what shape that reform should take.
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I've talked a lot over the last couple of years about the ephemeral nature of social media - it's a mayfly not an elephant. And last night's leader's debate was perhaps the first real opportunity to test out the veracity of this claim and indeed, to some extent, the value of social media as a democratic enabler. Tweets might persist in the ether but their half-life is in reality incredibly short. The second problem with Twitter is content or, as last night demonstrated, the lack of it. What the leader's debate confirmed was that Twitter is a great place to make a comment, state a strongly held opinion or make a joke or sarcastic remark. Last night it lacked much else and didn't add to the quality of the debate.
The leader's debate confirms that we use Twitter for posture, position and rebuttal. To signal agreement or otherwise (and disagreement is of course always more interesting), to forward and to endorse. Let's not forget that the instant nature makes it gaffe-prone too; @ericpickles's careless omission of the ‘r' in ‘shirt' turned a harmless retort into mass hilarity.
All of this makes tweets a good way to gauge instant mood and response. A handy thing at election time. But caution is needed because we're then obliged to look at who is tweeting and quickly conclude that this not a broad demographic, rather a narrower political and digital elite.
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As previous research from the Hansard Society has shown, UK elections are far less candidate-driven, and attract far fewer donations than in the United States. Whilst the parties have evidently invested in online front-end tools during this campaign, there has been little evidence that they have created any meaningful increases in participation during the campaign. What will prove to be important will be the internal use of the internet within the party and campaign offices in order to organise their efforts on the ground.
Digital media serves to inform the press about developments during the campaign, and these will then trickle down to the mainstream.
So far, it does not appear that a direct link has been created online between citizen and candidate/party in this election.
Read more about the digital election at the Hansard Society's Digital Democracy blog
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New research from the Hansard Society
Behind the Digital Campaign, a new report from the Hansard Society published today, examines the work done by the political parties' digital teams in the build up to the 2010 election. It demonstrates how their strategies have been influenced by digital campaigns in other countries and outlines the development of the ‘perpetual campaign'. It concludes that while the internet unlikely to lead to dramatic changes in the electoral landscape in this election, there are some noteworthy aspects to the general election digital campaign:
- UK political parties are largely followers not innovators
- Digital media is more effective in personality-led campaigns than party-led campaigns
- Expenditure and experimentation during the pre-election period has led to the ‘perpetual campaign' building communities of supporters to mobilise during the election period
- Third-party and single-issue digital campaigns are more likely to increase political participation and knowledge
- Social networking tools influence political activists, insiders and the media - stories generated on blogs and Twitter generally only reach the public when mainstream media take them up
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The vital task facing the new Parliament and new MPs
A Hansard Society pamphlet, The Reform Challenge, published today, brings together perspectives and proposals on the urgent task facing the new Parliament - how to renew our democratic system and regain public confidence and trust.
In a series of Hansard Society lectures addressing the issue of parliamentary reform, representatives from the three main political parties (Rt Hon Jack Straw MP, Rt Hon Sir George Young MP and David Howarth MP), the Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon John Bercow MP and the Lord Speaker, Baroness Hayman, put forward their proposals. The Reform Challenge brings together their thoughts to provide a comprehensive over-view of the challenges facing the next Parliament and their priorities for reform.
In addition, Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the Hansard Society's Parliament and Government programme, examines public confidence in and satisfaction with the effectiveness of Parliament collectively and MPs individually. She puts forward 15 priority areas for reform covering the legislative and scrutiny process and public engagement with the parliamentary process.
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On March 30, the Hansard Society published the report Politicians Get Their Clicks which has received coverage in several online publications. Some of these have been listed below:
In this general election, 'data is king' - Public Service, Wednesday 31 March, 2010
The digital campaign is more than two clicks away - UKauthorITy.com, Wednesday 31 March, 2010
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Politicians Get Their Clicks
A new Digital Paper, Politicians Get Their Clicks, published today by the Hansard Society, concludes that the 2010 general election will not be the much heralded first ‘internet election'. Rather, the role of digital media will be as an invaluable tool to support effective on-the-ground communication and campaigning.
The report examines the model of the Obama internet campaign and points out the critical differences between the US and the UK elections - the amount of money donated online in the US is significantly greater and the focus on an individual is critical. Politicians Get Their Clicks argues that digital developments in elections in Commonwealth countries are more relevant in predicting what we might see in the UK 2010 general election.
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Outside experts should teach us about sex - say young people on HeadsUp forum
www.headsup.org.uk
The HeadsUp
online forum for 11-18 year-olds, which took place from 1-19 March, has published its report of
young people's views on sex education. The young people taking part in the Sex education - do you get enough? forum, felt that they did not want to be taught sex
education by people they know, for example their teachers, but felt an outside
specialist or expert in sex education would be preferable and less
embarrassing:
Who
should teach us is definitely not teachers as it is embarrassing and awkward it
should be somebody from outside the school so maybe somebody from Brooke or
other sexual health organisations that exist out there.
I would most certainly
not want to learn from teachers and school, it would be embarrassing.
Download
the full report here.
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On Thursday March 11, the Hansard Society published a new pamphlet, Who Governs? Forming a coalition or minority government in the event of a hung parliament, examining what will happen in the event of an uncertain general election result this year. The report is quoted in the following articles:
Past offers little comfort as hung parliament looms - Irish Times, March 17, 2010
Welcome to life under Nick Clegg - Sunday Time, March 14, 2010
Lib Dem activists face investor scrutiny - Financial Times, March 11, 2010
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The Hansard Society asked the three main parties to lay out their party's plans for parliamentary reform in a series of three lectures. The first lecture took place on March 9 and featured Jack Straw MP (Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice). This received some attention in the media.
Tory plan to cut MP numbers 'undemocratic' says Straw - BBC, March 9, 2010
Jack Straw: Tory plans to cut MPs are 'anti-democratic' - Telegraph, March 10, 2010
Straw accuses Cameron of 'outright gerrymandering' over boundary review - Wintour and Watt blog, Guardian, March 10, 2010
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The Scout Association has been working with the Hansard Society and Oxfam to encourage young people to register to vote. More information about the project can be found at http://www.activecitizens.net/
The events have attracted press coverage, some of which is listed below:
Oxfam
and Scouts join forces to encourage young voters - Civil Society Media,
Monday 15 March
Charities
campaign to encourage first-time voters - Children & Young People Now,
Sunday 14 March
Scouts urge
young people to vote - Jakehead.com, Saturday 13 March
Scout
Association urging young people to vote - BBC, Saturday 13 March
Nottingham
event to encourage youngsters to vote - This is Nottingham, Saturday 13
March
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Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
The latest issue of Parliamentary Affairs includes a focus on Devolution: Ten Years On.
This special issue of Parliamentary Affairs looks at how devolution has taken place over the past 10 years, examining the devolved institutions and how politics has developed in these differing environs, as well as the implications for Westminster.
As well as abstracts from the articles (see Editor's Notes), Parliamentary Affairs podcasts are also available. These are interviews with the authors designed to explore themes from their work. The podcasts are between 10 and 15 minutes long, and designed to inform researchers and to serve as teaching tools to stimulate discussion amongst students.
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A guide to process and procedures
A new pamphlet from the Hansard Society and the Study of Parliament Group, published today, examines what will happen if there is an uncertain election result - with particular focus on the implications for Parliament.
Who Governs? Forming a coalition or a minority government in the event of a hung Parliament sets out what will happen if no party has overall control. The authors (Robert Blackburn, Ruth Fox, Oonagh Gay and Lucinda Maer) explore the constitutional process of forming a government, the role and impact that parliamentary procedure will have in the process, and examine the constitutional issues regarding the calling of a second general election. Drawing on past history, they examine the lessons to be learnt from the devolved legislatures, and international comparisons, and explore what impact, if any coalition and minority government might have on the culture of politics in the next Parliament. Finally, they assess what role constitutional and parliamentary reform may play in any post-election inter-party agreement.
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Hansard Society Welcomes Wright Committee Result
As a strong advocate of the Wright Committee proposals for reform of the House of Commons the Hansard Society has welcomed this afternoon's vote by MPs who unanimously accepted the key recommendations.
Commenting on today's outcome, Dr Ruth Fox, said, ‘Today's result is an important milestone in reform of the House of Commons. We urged MPs to support the reforms - indeed we first recommended a Business Committee for the House of Commons nearly two decades ago - so we are delighted with the unanimous support for them in the House today.'
‘There is now a clear mandate for change and the Government should move quickly to implement them. If the proposals are to be in place for the next Parliament the Standing Orders of the House need to be amended.'
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The 2010 Hansard Society annual Audit of Political Engagement has received lots of coverage in the media, some of which is listed below:
General Election 2010: Facebook and Twitter to have unprecedented impact - Telegraph, Tuesday 6 April 2010
MPs' expenses scandal 'has not caused collapse in trust in
politics' - Guardian, Wednesday 3 March 2010
Parliament's drift into irrelevance - Politics.co.uk Wednesday, 03, Mar 2010 01:33
Many young voters not registered, says watchdog - BBC, Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Only 22% of parents would be proud to see their child become
an MP - Andrew
Sparrow, Guardian, Wednesday 3 March 2010
Blunkett warns of widening gap between politicians and
public - David Blunkett MP's blog, Wednesday, 03, Mar 2010
Hansard: No silver bullet - Politics.co.uk, Wednesday, 03, Mar 2010
Expenses row had 'modest impact' on MPs' reputations - Epolitix, Wednesday 3 March 2010
Move over Mondeo man - Mr Bored and Ms Mistrustful rule road
in 2010 - Polly Curtis, Guardian, Saturday 27 February 2010
Lalit Modi eases fears of IPL terrorism after Englishmen
wobble - Guardian, Saturday 27 February 2010 16.52 GMT
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Decline in relevance of Parliament - but Parliament ‘worthwhile'
Increase in dissatisfaction with MPs in general - but not own MP
The 2010 Hansard Society annual Audit of Political Engagement published today shows that while the MPs' expenses scandal has affected the public's satisfaction with and perception of MPs and the Westminster Parliament, there has not been a collapse of trust in politicians or politics.
Most significantly, there has been a big decline since the first Audit in 2004 in the perceived impact of the Westminster Parliament on people's lives, compared to other institutions. Only 19% think Parliament is one of the top three influential institutions on their everyday lives - an 11% drop from 2004. But 60% still think Parliament is ‘worthwhile', compared to only 14% who disagree.
There has been no overall collapse of trust in politicians - 26% say they trust politicians generally compared to 27% in 2004 and 73% say they distrust politicians compared to 70% in 2004. Because levels of trust were already low, the MPs' expenses scandal merely confirmed and hardened the public's widely held scepticism about politicians rather than changed their views.
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Young voters demand more two-way communication
A Hansard Society report - Parliament 2020: visioning the future Parliament - asking first-time voters, parliamentarians and parliament officials about their visions for a future Parliament found that all groups wanted to see Parliament using new technologies to more actively engage with citizens.
The top priorities for all three groups (first-time voters, parliamentary officials and MPs and Peers) were:
- Greater use of new technologies
- Interactive communication
The main concern of MPs and Peers was the modernisation of procedures in Parliament, and while parliamentary officials, MPs and Peers prioritised access to information, first-time voters prioritised:
- Education and outreach
- Transparency and accountability
- Diversity of representatives
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Peter Riddell, Hansard Society Chair, gives the inaugural Parliamentary Affairs Annual Lecture
Thursday 25 February, 6.30pm, Macmillan Room, Portcullis House
In 2009 the reputation of politicians and politics itself reached rock bottom. Peter Riddell, Chair of the Hansard Society, in his speech at the inaugural Parliamentary Affairs Annual lecture tomorrow evening will examine the role of politicians in a modern representative democracy. He will say:
‘...We need, and should nurture, politicians if we want a vibrant and healthy democracy. Criticising politicians as a class - regardless of their individual merits, as well as weaknesses - is counter-productive and dangerous. It is likely to deter good people from putting themselves forward as candidates - and is one reason for the record retirements at the end of this Parliament. So, just as we celebrate politics as a crucial activity in a healthy democracy, so let us recognise the vital role of politicians.'
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On February 10, the Hansard Society published the report Digital citizens and demoncratic participation: An analysis of how citizens participate online and connect with MPs and Parliament which has received coverage in several online publications. Dr Andy Williamson, participated in a panel discussing whether MPs should use online tools on Sky News on February 16.Director of the Hansard Society eDemocracy Programme. Below is a selection of articles discussing the report.
What do the public want politcians to get up to online? - Mark Pack, Liberal Democrat Voice
Hansard Society report: Britons want MPs to communicate online - Total Politics blog
People want MPs to engage online - Public Service
Digital Citizens want to engage with politicians - passive democracy is not enough - UKauthorITy.com
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Passive democracy is not enough
A Hansard Society report - Digital citizens and democratic participation: An analysis of how citizens participate online and connect with MPs and Parliament - shows that for Britons who are already online, the internet has made it easier to take part in civic and political activities and that half of them prefer to use the internet to take part in democratic life.
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In an open
letter to Leader of the House, Harriet Harman, seven organisations
concerned with parliamentary and constitutional reform have come together to
urge the Government and MPs not to act as a roadblock to reform of the House of
Commons before the general election.
The Better Government Initiative, Constitution Unit, Democratic Audit, Electoral
Reform Society, Hansard Society, Power 2010 and Unlock Democracy all support
implementation of the recommendations of the Select Committee on Reform of the
House of Commons (the ‘Wright Committee') which include:
- a Business Committee for the House of Commons to give MPs a greater
stake in the shaping of the parliamentary agenda, thus offseting the power of
the executive;
- reforms to the appointment of Select Committee members and chairs;
- new opportunities for public initiation of House of Commons proceedings,
for example through the trialling of a Petitions Committee.
UPDATE - Harriet Harman has given a date for discussion of the Wright Committee report as March 4 - Guardian, Tuesday 9 February 2010
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Dr. Ruth Fox, Director of the Hansard Society's Parliament & Government Programme, was on BBC Breakfast discussing the process of parliamentary privilage. This interview was also covered in the Independent:
"If it is a defence against almost any action that an MP takes in Parliament, in any relationship with their work, then I think this is going to be deeply damaging for the public. They will see that it is putting MPs above the public, giving them enhanced powers, making them essentially above the laws that they themselves make."
Read the coverage:
The Independent
BBC News
-
Telegraph - February 4
Liberal Conspiracy - February 4
Left Foot Forward - February 3
Guardian - February 3
Read the press release and letter here
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The Hansard Society is recommended in a report released by the
Procedure Committee - Election of the Speaker and of the Deputy Speakers.
In its conclusions and recommendations it suggests that hustings for the
position of Speaker of the House of Commons should be organised by
organisations such as the Hansard Society. In June 2009 the Hansard Society
organised the first ever public hustings, which were streamed live on the BBC -
the first time a non-parliamentary business event had been broadcast live from
within Parliament. The report said:
"Hustings
4. We welcome the part played by outside
organisations such as the Hansard Society in organising hustings for the
election of the Speaker and believe that this is a role best filled by these
bodies, rather than by the House itself. (Paragraph 19)"
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Changes must be in place before election
The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, welcomes today's announcement that the recommendations of the House of Commons Reform Committee (the Wright Committee) will be debated on February 23 - nearly two months after their publication - and urges MPs to reach a speedy consensus so changes can be in place before the election.
Reforms suggested by the Wright Committee, such as establishment of a business committee, enshrining a commitment to set up select committees within six weeks of Parliament returning, and elections for select committee chairs and members, have serious implications for the new Parliament. If they are not implemented before the general election, we run the risk of months of delay during which a new government, of whatever political persuasion, could escape effective parliamentary scrutiny.
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Dr Ruth Fox was quoted in an article discussing the issue of district council potentially dropping the
practice of counting ballots through the night. The article discusses the affect this may have on the financial markets in the UK.
Read the article on Bloomberg here
-
Letter to the Guardian published:
Despite the Wright committee's report on reform of the House of Commons attracting praise and enthusiasm across the political parties (Letters, 14 January), at today's business questions,
the government again failed to schedule a Commons debate on its
recommendations. Reforms such as establishment of a business committee,
enshrining a commitment to set up select committees within six weeks of
parliament returning, and elections for select committees, have serious
implications for the new parliament.
See the letter on the Guardian website here
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Election manifesto commitments needed
The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, today welcomed the Speaker's Conference report on Parliamentary Representation and called on the political parties to come up with firm manifesto commitments to promote active citizenship and political literacy.
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11-18 year olds
want more lessons on financial literacy to avoid future credit crunch
HeadsUp.org.uk
The
young people using the HeadsUp online The Economy: What Went Wrong? forum expressed a
sense of shock that adults had allowed the credit crunch to happen and thought
it was important for their generation to learn from the situation to avoid the
same thing happening in the future. They wanted more education from a young
age, about economics and how to manage their personal finances.
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The speech given by Sir Ian Kennedy, setting the context for IPSA's proposed MP's expenses scheme, to the Hansard Society received wide media coverage:
Politics.co.uk
Telegraph
Epolitix
Times
Sky News
Daily Express
-
Labour's real advantage at next election is a better distribution of voters
January 2010 issue of Parliamentary Affairs
Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
In the forthcoming January 2010 issue of Parliamentary Affairs, leading academics demonstrate that changes in the redistribution of seats to create uniform constituency sizes have only a minor impact on the outcome of elections - the geography of each party's support base is much more important.
-
New Public Bill Committees can improve legislative scrutiny
Parliamentary Affairs article now available online
Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
In a forthcoming issue of Parliamentary Affairs - now available online- Jessica Levy, parliamentary researcher to Dr Tony Wright MP, outlines the potential of new Public Bill Committees to revitalise Westminster's legislative process.
-
Our most recent Democracy Forum on Civil Liberties that took place on Tuesday December 8 provoked a heated debate amongst our panel. Sir Ian Blair, Peter Oborne and Henry Porter engaged in a lively discussion on the night, a discussion that has since continued ...
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Appointment of lay members with voting rights raises important constitutional and parliamentary issues, says Hansard Society
Following today's statement by the Leader of the House that the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009 is to be amended to implement the Kelly report recommendations regarding the role and remit of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, further clarification from the House of Commons is still needed on the appointment of lay members.
The Kelly Report recommended that at least two lay members who have never been parliamentarians should be appointed, with voting rights, to the Standards and Privileges Committee as a ‘step towards enhancing public acceptance of the robustness and independence of the disciplinary process' in the House of Commons. (Kelly recommendation 51, p106-107)
Today's statement does not address this recommendation which raises important constitutional and parliamentary issues as there is no precedent for non-elected members to be appointed to a House of Commons Committee and to be accorded voting rights equal to those of the MPs (see Editors' Notes). For the Standards and Privileges Committee to appoint lay members, then authorisation will be needed through a Resolution of the House. This will need to be laid by the Government.
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Dr Ruth Fox, Parliament & Government Programme Director, appeared on the Daily Politics Programme to discuss the potentially historic numbers of new MPs after the general election. Ruth points out that many of the MPs retiring have an indepth knowledge of parliamentary process. You can ...
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The Lord Speaker, Rt Hon Baroness Hayman, will deliver a speech to the Hansard Society on Wednesday December 9 at 6.15pm at the House of Lords, Westminster.
The Lord Speaker will call for the Lords to take responsibility for putting its own House in order through self regulation that meets 21st century standards, building on recent recommendations from the Eames report on a new Code of Conduct and taking forward the Senior Salaries Review Body's proposals for reform of the system of financial support for members.
In her speech, Ermine, Ethics and Engagement: Evolution in the House of Lords, the Lord Speaker will also call for the House of Lords to set up its own process to consider the strengthening Parliament agenda - parallel to the Wright Committee report published in the Commons last month.
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Tuesday December 8, 6.30pm - 8pm
Portcullis House, Westminster
Speakers:
- Sir Ian Blair (former Metropolitan Police Commissioner)
- Peter Oborne (journalist and commentator)
- Henry Porter (political columnist and novelist)
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HeadsUp forum users are well-informed about
climate change and more than ready to play their part in the solution
www.headsup.org.uk
Young people taking part in the forum felt
that adults don’t necessarily have the degree of knowledge that young people do
about combating climate change and the people in power are not doing
enough.
HeadsUp is the Hansard Society’s innovative
web forum, where 11-18 year-olds debate political issues with legislators and
policy-makers. This three week forum, in partnership with the Department of
Energy and Climate Change, looked at the issue of climate change in the run up
to the UN Summit in Copenhagen.
It involved legislators such as Joan Ruddock MP (Minister of State, DECC), Jo
Swinson MP (Member, Environmental Audit Committee) and Caroline Lucas MEP (Leader
of the Green Party). The
full report is available to read here.
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The
Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow MP delivered the Political Studies Association/ Hansard
Society Annual Lecture to a packed audience in Portcullis House. This was the
second lecture delivered by the Speaker to a Hansard Society audience, taking
us yet further into the challenge of public engagement in the light of the
‘reputational carnage’ wreaked upon our constitutional institutions by the
expenses scandal. The lecture, entitled ‘Parliament
in an anti-politics age: the outreach challenge’, took the following
approach. Their has been a lot of coverage of the speech. Read a write-up of the event, the full speech, listen to the audio and see photos here.
Evening Standard
Financial Times Westminster Blog
Daily Mail
Telegraph
Times Online
BBC
Epolitix
Independent
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Dr Ruth Fox appeared on the BBC Record Review to discuss the implications of the Tony Wright report, specifically the way that the House of Commons elects its committee chairs, considering if it should be a secret ballot election, to reduce the influence of the party whips. Ruth pointed out that given that the Government had amended the motion that set up the Tony Wright committee, they would almost certainly have to implement it. Andrew Pelling MP said that it would be the election that decided upon reforms, and Dr Evan Harris MP said that the reforms suggested in the report didn't go far enough.
Watch the full Record Review here or watch a clip on BBC online here
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The Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon John Bercow MP, will deliver the 2009 Political Studies Association/Hansard Society Lecture on Monday November 30 at 6.30pm at Westminster.
In his speech, Parliament in an anti-politics age: the outreach challenge, the Speaker will candidly acknowledge how much damage the expenses debacle has done to the reputation of the House of Commons and undermined the efforts of those involved in parliamentary outreach.
He will identify the factors related to our changing society which would have made outreach a testing challenge even if the expenses affair had not occurred.
He will set out the strategy which he thinks is the best means of reconnecting Parliament and the public.
In addition, he will announce a new institutional innovation which he thinks will assist that cause.
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Beccy Allen, Researcher & Project Manager, Hansard Society Citizenship Education Programme, wrote this with reference to the HeadsUp.org.uk forum Climate Change - How should the world summit tackle the problem.
"I read Tim Jackson's piece on the flaws of consumerism in
relation to climate change with interest. In particular as he gives one of the
few mentions in the Copenhagen Special to the role of young people. He is right
that our teenagers are under immense peer-pressure to reinforce their identity
and social standing through what they buy, wear, talk on and listen to.
Read the full letter
Read the full report of the forum here
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House of Commons Reform Committee report, Rebuilding the House, needs to be urgently implemented before general election but further reforms of legislative process are needed
Proposals published today by the House of Commons Reform Committee to enhance Parliament's control over its own agenda, timetable and procedures have been welcomed by the Hansard Society as a useful start to much needed reform of parliamentary procedures and the legislative process. However, the recommendations to facilitate greater public involvement in the parliamentary process are weak and disappointing.
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11-18 year-olds to discuss the
impact of the recession on young people
November
23 - December 11
HeadsUp.org.uk
HeadsUp is the Hansard Society's innovative
web forum, where 11-18 year-olds debate political issues with legislators and
policy-makers. The second forum of the 2009/10 series
is the very topical The Economy:
What Went Wrong? This
forum has an in depth back-up section
to inform forum users about the issues surrounding the economy. They then have
the space to tell each other and legislators what the effect of the economic
downturn has been and will be on their lives; as well as give their views on
what went wrong.
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Legislative issues need to be resolved quickly if new system is to be in place in time for general election says Hansard Society
Following publication of the Kelly report on Wednesday November 4, the Hansard Society has urged Parliament to clarify its stance on the future role and remit of the new Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) after the report recommended new legislation to significantly change its focus.
IPSA was established under the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009. However, the Kelly Report makes clear that the legislation was drafted in haste and a number of improvements could and should be made to the new body's scope, powers and governance.
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Ruth Fox, the director of the Hansard Society's Parliament and
Government Programme, offered her thoughts on the current state of
democracy in the UK, on BBC Democracy Live.
Read the full article here.
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Possible constitutional stumbling blocks, says Hansard Society
The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, broadly welcomes the recommendations put forward in the Kelly Report today, but questions whether some of these recommendations will require new primary legislation - and therefore a vote in Parliament - to be enacted. In particular:
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‘New Code of Conduct should help restore trust in House of Lords'
In June 2009, The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, published a briefing paper Restoring Trust in the House of Lords setting out a range of measures which should be taken if trust and faith in the House of Lords is be restored. We welcome the Eames Review Report which embodies a number of these recommendations, specifically:
- The appointment of a fully independent Commissioner for Standards to conduct investigations into all alleged misconduct by Members.
- The new proposed Code which seeks to articulate more clearly and comprehensively the general principles of conduct which should guide Members.
- That all Members should give a formal, signed undertaking to abide by the Code at the same time as taking the oath of allegiance on their introduction to the House and at the start of each new Parliament.
- Amending the wording of the Code so that it does not amount to a ‘lawyer's charter' which, contrary to the public interest, could delay inquiries into members misconduct.
- That future induction and mentoring of new Members should be improved and focus on standards and not just on political or practical matters.
- That Members of the House of Lords should be banned from accepting payment in return for providing parliamentary advice or services to outside bodies or persons.
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Schools are the best place for education
and action on climate change, say young people on the HeadsUp forum
www.headsup.org.uk
The young people on the HeadsUp forum discussing
climate change felt that schools are the best places for them to have an impact
and a voice on environmental matters. Some had already encouraged teachers to
switch lights and computers off, increase recycling in the classroom or set up
committees to look at how the school could reduce its environmental impact.
HeadsUp is the Hansard Society's innovative
web forum, where 11-18 year-olds debate political issues with legislators and
policy-makers. This three week forum, in partnership with the Department of
Energy and Climate Change, looked at the issue of climate change in the run up
to the UN Summit in Copenhagen.
It involved legislators such as Joan Ruddock MP (Minister of State, DECC), Jo
Swinson MP (Member, Environmental Audit Committee) and Caroline Lucas MEP (Leader,
Green Party). The
full report is available to read here
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A new Digital Paper from the Hansard Society - Twitter: Communication tool or pointless vanity? - shows that a higher percentage of Liberal Democrat MPs use Twitter compared to the other political parties:
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New Y Vote Mock Elections Website Launched
www.mockelections.co.uk
A new Y Vote Mock Election website, with Web 2.0
features, is launched today. The site is now easier to navigate and is an
essential tool for teachers wishing to run a mock election in their school. A mock election teaches students about the mechanics of an election and
enables them to discuss topical issues. Students can stand as a candidate, help
develop policy and a campaign strategy, design campaign posters and party
logos, write speeches, canvass for support and crucially cast their vote on the
day.
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Essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary politics
Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
The October 2009 issue of Parliamentary Affairs looks at Charter 88 and the constitutional reform movement 20 years on.
As well as abstracts from the articles (see Editor's Notes), Parliamentary Affairs podcasts are also available. These are interviews with the authors designed to explore themes from their work. The podcasts are between 10 and 15 minutes long, and designed to inform researchers and to serve as teaching tools to stimulate discussion amongst students.
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Demonstrable link between knowledge, interest and
engagement in politics
October issue of Parliamentary Affairs
Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
In the October 2009 issue of Parliamentary Affairs, Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the Hansard Society Parliament and Government programme, demonstrates that, in the wake of the MPs' expenses scandal, proposals for more direct and participatory decision-making mechanisms fail to take account of the demonstrable link between political engagement and levels of knowledge and interest. Dr Fox identifies this lack of knowledge and interest as one of the key barriers to participation in the political process and makes the case for enhanced political literacy education and well-resourced, high-quality citizenship education.
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The speech by Rt Hon John Bercow MP, Speaker of the House of Commons, entitled Parliamentary Reform: the route from here to there has had a range of press coverage, below is a selection of stories and opinion pieces covering the speech. You can listen to and download the text of the speech here.
The
Guardian
Michael
White
STV/Reuters
EPolitix.com
The
Telegraph
Press
Association
BBC News
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HeadsUp is the Hansard Society's innovative web forum, where under-18s debate political issues with legislators and policy-makers. The first forum for the 2009/10 series is Climate Change - how should the world summit tackle the problem? ahead of the UN summit in Copenhagen. The views of young people debating on HeadsUp will feed into the government's strategy at the summit. The three week debate is happening online from Monday September 28 until Friday October 16 and all of the comments by the legislators and young people on the forum can be viewed throughout the forum without registration.
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In the forthcoming October 2009 issue of Parliamentary Affairs, Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the Hansard Society Parliament and Government programme, demonstrates that, in the wake of the MPs’ expenses scandal, proposals for more direct and participatory decision-making mechanisms fail to take account of what the public really wants in terms of engagement and participation.
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The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, has long supported the principle of televised Leaders' Debates as an important contribution to the public's engagement with, and participation in, the democratic process.
The Hansard Society, which organised the first ever televised Speaker Hustings earlier this year, is happy to collaborate with broadcasters in the organisation of televised Leaders' Debates on the following principles:
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive of the Hansard Society, commented:
‘Televised debates between leaders of the major parties are now customary in most democracies and the Hansard Society has long supported such an event in the UK. We believe that civic society is most effective when its citizens are connected with the institutions and individuals who represent them in the democratic process. Televised Leaders' Debates would offer the opportunity to bring the election debate directly into people's living rooms where they can assess the parties' attitudes to the main policy issues at stake in the next general election.'
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Hansard Society/British Council debate at Festival of Politics
Thursday August 20, 2.30pm - 4pm
Committee Room 1, Scottish Parliament
Journalists are invited to attend a unique event at the Festival of Politics next week - Has Devolution Delivered for Women? Participation, Representation & Power looks at women's representation in the Scottish Parliament and the National Assembly for Wales.
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The Hansard Society, the UK's leading
non-partisan political research and education charity, welcomes further talks
on televised Leaders' Debates and believes such events encourage public
engagement with politics.
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive of the Hansard Society, commented:
‘As a result of Lord Mandelson's comments yesterday
we are encouraged to hear that serious consideration is being given by the Parties,
to participate in a televised Leaders' Debate.
The Hansard Society has long supported such debates and was responsible
for organising the first ever televised Speaker Hustings held in June.'
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More action is needed says Hansard Society...
In a new Briefing Paper, Restoring Trust in
the House of Lords (download
the paper here) published today, the Hansard Society has called
for more action to be taken if trust and faith in the House of Lords is to be
restored in the near future.
The Government's new Constitutional Reform and Governance
Bill will provide new powers to evict peers from the House of Lords for egregious
behaviour. But on its own, this new measure will not be enough to address
concerns about public confidence in the Upper House as it deals with only the
enforcement part of the problem.
Restoring Trust in the House of Lords sets out a range of further measures that are still
needed. Examining the complex issues of ethics, regulation, standards and trust
that specifically affect the House of Lords it makes recommendations for reform
including:
--Empowering the office of the Lord Speaker to be
able to better represent and act on behalf of the House and take forward a
mandate for reform.
- Significant revision
of the Code of Conduct, including setting out a clear ethos and mission for
the House of Lords and extending the Code to cover the use of allowances and
expenses.
- Consideration of the introduction of a hybrid payments system for allowances and expenses
to better reflect the degree of each peer's involvement in the work of the
House.
- Establishing a hierarchy
of possible sanctions that may be applied for breaches of a new Code of Conduct
up to and including permanent expulsion from the House.
- Establishing a system
of external independent regulation for the management of the Lords
allowances and expenses system and enforcement of the Code of Conduct.
Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the
Hansard Society's Parliament and Government Programme, commented: ‘Public trust has to be earned before it is
granted. It is clear that faith and confidence in both Houses of Parliament is
at a nadir - that's why incremental reform of the system will no longer do. A
radical overhaul is necessary to build a new culture of open, transparent,
independently monitored regulation coupled with robust sanctions for those who
transgress. Eviction of peers is important but much more action is required if
the House of Lords is to regain public confidence.'
The Senior Salaries Review Body is
currently reviewing the House of Lords allowances and expenses system and a
Leadership Group in the House of Lords has been established under the
chairmanship of the Rt Rev Lord Eames to revise the House of Lords Code of
Conduct. This Briefing Paper is a contribution to the public debate about these
important issues.
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Lords Information Committee Report ‘far-reaching' and ‘comprehensive'
The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, welcomes the House of Lords Information Committee report Are the Lords listening? Creating connections between people and Parliament, published this week but calls for greater access for specialist journalists.
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive of the Hansard Society, commented:
‘The Lords Information Committee Report is far-reaching and comprehensive and we wholeheartedly endorse its many excellent recommendations. But, in addition, we are calling for the Lords to adopt a media strategy that would play to its strengths - the experience, skills and knowledge of the peers and the detailed scrutiny of policy and legislation that is undertaken. Most press gallery journalists are general political correspondents and attendance by journalists at House of Lords debates and committees is often sparse. We would urge that greater access should be provided for specialist journalists to attend debates, committees and briefings relevant to their specialty. Improved coverage of the Lords would help enormously in connecting Parliament with the people.'
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Less than a fifth of population agree that Parliament broadly
reflects the make up of British Society
The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political
research and education charity, welcomes the Speaker's Conference interim
report published today which calls on the
political parties to use forthcoming candidate selections to change the culture
of politics and make the House of Commons more representative of society.
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive of the Hansard Society,
commented: ‘Our research shows that only 18% of the public agree that
Parliament broadly reflects the make up of British society and just 19% agree
that Parliament is ‘working for them'. This has a profound effect on our
parliamentary democracy and it is up to the political parties to take positive
steps to rebuild public confidence and trust in those who represent us.'
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HeadsUp is the Hansard Society's innovative web forum, where under-18s debate political issues with a variety of legislators and policy-makers. The most recent discussion was a follow up of the Youth Citizenship Commission debate in November '08. The Youth Citizenship Commission has recently launched its findings and recommendations on the subject of engaging young people with citizenship, politics and their communities. They used this HeadsUp forum to feedback their findings and get young people's responses to their recommendations. This forum ran from 15 June - 3 July and the report is available to download now.
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Students from three organisations will be travelling to Westminster on Wednesday July 8 to meet the Lord Speaker, Baroness Hayman, and members of the House of Lords Communications Committee to discuss their winning entries in the Raw Deal or Truth Told? Young People in the Media competition organised by the Hansard Society and the House of Lords.
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Most MPs use Facebook for one-way communication not campaigning
Today, the Hansard Society launches MPs on Facebook, the first in a new series of short Digital Papers examining how parliamentarians are using social media.
MPs on Facebook shows that while over half (51%) of Liberal Democrat MPs have a presence on Facebook, the figures for Labour and the Conservatives are 15% and 9%, respectively.
The research identified three main types of usage: campaigning, communication and personal:
- 46% of MPs are using Facebook primarily as a communications tool
- 31% of MPs are using Facebook primarily to canvas and campaign
- 13% of MPs are using Facebook primarily for personal information
- 10% of MPs' Facebook pages are ‘inactive'
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The
Hansard Society Speaker Hustings will be televised in full, including the
questions that were put to the candidates by MPs, at 9pm on Saturday June 20, on the BBC Parliament
channel, available on
Sky (Channel 504), Telewest (Channel 612), NTL (Channel 128/13) and Freeview
(Channel 81).
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Independents and ‘others' attract under-18s
Conservatives are largest party
Greens do particularly well with young people
Young people taking part in the Hansard Society Y Vote Mock Elections for the European Parliament returned fewer MEPs for the main political parties than their adult counterparts in the real Euro elections. All major parties saw a drop in support; the Conservative Party was the largest party with 17 seats and the Green Party was the only one that performed better in the mock elections.
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The Hansard Society Speaker Hustings - the first
ever of their kind - have enjoyed widespread coverage in the media. The hustings were streamed live on the BBC news
website and the candidates introductory speeches were shown on BBC Parliament
on 16 June.
Please click here for a full list of newspaper articles referring to the hustings
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The YCC returns to Hansard Society's HeadsUp
forum to discuss issues that matter to young people - June 16, 2009
The current discussion is a follow up the Youth Citizenship Commission debate in November ‘08. The Youth Citizenship Commission has been carrying out more research into the subject of engaging young people in Citizenship and politics, in particular, the crucial role of community engagement.
The three week debate is happening online now until
July 3.
Legislators and policy-makers involved include: Natascha Engel MP
(Chair of the All Party Youth Affairs group); Theresa May MP
(Shadow Secretary of State for Work & Pensions and Shadow Minister for
Women for the Conservative party); Karen Whitefield MSP
(Labour Party spokesperson for children and young people in the Scottish
Parliament); Professor Jon Tonge (Chair of the Youth Citizenship Commission); Dame Tanni
Grey-Thompson (Paralympic athlete).
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‘The election of a new Speaker provides a rare opportunity to fundamentally reform the way that the House of Commons works in the public interest.'
The Hansard Society has today launched a blueprint for reform of the House of Commons drawing on 20 years of research work and recommendations to strengthen Parliament.
The blueprint has been published to coincide with the first ever Speaker Hustings held in public view, and before the media, and hosted today by the Hansard Society.
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The Hansard Society held the first ever Speaker Hustings in Parliament on June 15 where potential candidates for the post of Speaker took questions from MPs. It was streamed live on the BBC news website and we twittered throughout the event to keep people up to date with the proceedings as they happened.
All of the participants spoke for 5 minutes, setting out their manifestos. MPs then asked questions, including Douglas Carswell MP, Stephen Pound MP, Ann Cryer MP, Martin Salter MP, Ann Milton MP, George Howarth MP, Michael Moore MP, Chris Mullen MP and quite a few more! On June 22 it was announced that John Bercow MP had won the election and is the new Speaker of the House of Commons.
The participants were:
- Margaret Beckett MP
- Sir Alan Beith MP
- John Bercow MP
- Sir Patrick Cormack MP
- Parmjit Dhanda MP
- Sir Alan Haselhurst MP
- Sir Michael Lord MP
- Richard Shepherd MP
- Ann Widdecombe MP
- Sir George Young MP
Listen to the event
See more photos on flickr
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An essential handbook for understanding the role of the Scottish Parliament in the Scottish and wider UK political process
The Scottish Parliament 1999-2009: The First Decade is a timely new publication from Hansard Society Scotland, published by Luath Press, examining the challenges and successes of the first 10 years of the Scottish Parliament and its impact on the lives of the Scottish people.
The Scottish Parliament 1999-2009: The First Decade costs £9.99 and is available from Luath Press
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Ruth Fox, Director of the Hansard Society Parliament and Government programme, 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.
Drawing on our substantial body of work in this area we recommend that the House of Commons:
1. Establish a Business Committee, putting control of the parliamentary timetable and agenda in the hands of a cross-party body of MPs rather than leaving it in the control of the Government, thus providing for greater consideration of topical issues.
2. Set up a Parliamentary Finance Office, modelled on the US Congressional Budget Office, to provide individual MPs with independent expertise and resources on financial matters, thus empowering them to better scrutinise the Government's proposals for public spending and taxation.
3. Enhance the role and authority of the publicly popular Select Committee's. Committee Chair's and members should be elected by MPs not selected by Party Whips; the work of committee's should be better integrated into wider parliamentary activity, and more time should be set aside for the detailed scrutiny work that committee's undertake.
4. Adopt a system of e-Petitions to help revitalise public engagement with Parliament. These should be incorporated with paper petitions and processed through a newly established ‘petitions (or even public engagement) committee' to ensure that the views of citizens are not ignored, and that they are properly integrated into Parliamentary procedures and processes.
5. Appoint a Chief Executive to professionalise the organisation and operation of the House of Commons. In light of the proposal to create an independent Parliamentary regulatory body which will take over the duties of the House of Commons Fees Office, there is an opportunity to substantially reform and modernise the internal administrative organisation of the House of Commons. At present the House is managed by the Clerk of the House under the auspices of the Speaker. Clerks are expert professional advisers on process and procedure - their expertise is not in the field of management, budgets and logistics. A Chief Executive should be appointed to take over these administrative and organisational aspects of the House of Commons. ‘
Ruth Fox is available for interview - contact Virginia Gibbons at the Hansard Society on mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or 020 7438 1225 or 07812 765 552
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Aberdeen based newspaper Press and Journal covered our Why Vote? European elections hustings series which ran in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen over 11-14 May.
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Alice Miles used the Hansard Society report A Year in the Life (2005) in an article on MP's expenses in The Times.
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The Scotsman discussed the Ten Years of The Scottish Parliament: Achievements and Futures
conference took place to a full audience at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh.
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Matt Korris, Research Fellow on the Hansard Society's Parliament & Government Programme, discussed the findings of the Audit of Political Engagement 6 with Paul Knipe of Lucid Magazine. The article, entitled 'Democracy of a Fashion', discusses whether there is a crisis of political engagement in the UK and surmises that 'it’s not all last season for democracy in the UK'.
Read the full article here.
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Dr. Andy WIlliamson, Director of the Hansard Society eDemocracy Programme, took part in Westminster Hour's Sunday Supplement entitled 'Petitioning the Modern Way', discussing the value of e-Petitions and begins at around 44 minutes into the programme. It will be available until Sunday 10 May:
Listen to Westminster Hour
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Essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary politics
Discounted rate for Hansard Society members
The April 2009 issue of Parliamentary Affairs analyses party activism and asks: Where have all the Members Gone?
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Hansard Society HeadsUp forum users discuss transport with Lords, MPs and policy makers 20 April - 8 May www.headsup.org.uk
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Y Vote Mock Elections
Free Hansard Society resources teach young people about the election process
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The Audit of Political Engagement 6 has been mentioned and discussed by a wide range of media outlets, including TV, radio and print:
Coming up:
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‘Obama effect' comes to British politics
The Hansard Society's sixth Audit of Political Engagement, published today, indicates that an ‘Obama effect' may be developing among British black and ethnic minorities (BMEs):
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Hansard Society HeadsUp
forum users discuss crime in the UK with Lords, MPs and policy
makers
www.headsup.org.uk
HeadsUp is the Hansard Society's innovative website where
under-18s debate politics and political issues with legislators and other young
people. The most recent debate discussed Crime
in Britain:
How big is the problem? There were four main strands:
- The police - Do they treat young people fairly?
- The media - Does the media criminalise young people?
- Law, punishment and justice - Is prison enough to
prevent re-offending?
- Your
community - Do you feel safe?
Almost all forum users who
commented felt that prison sentences
are too lenient and some forum users commented that they felt a life sentence
should mean the rest of the person's life is spent in jail.
Read the full report here
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The Lord Speaker's Competition for Schools in partnership with the Hansard Society
The Hansard Society and the House of Lords are launching a new competition for young people aged 11 to 16 to express how they feel about media portrayals of their generation: Raw Deal or Truth Told? Young People in the Media. The entrants are being asked to look at issues such as portrayals of youth culture in television programmes, negative coverage in print media and questions like should celebrities, sports stars or musicians be role models? This follows on from the success of 2008's What a Waste! competition.
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The Hansard Society has had a lot of coverage from a variety of media outlets for the report MPs Online: Connecting with Constituents, sponsored by Microsoft, including coverage on BBC Radio 4 Today Programme, BBC Radio 5 Live and the House Magazine. Below is a selection of articles discussing the report.
MPs 'talking, not hearing online' - BBC News
MPs are 'talking, not hearing online' - Public Service
MPs reluctant to use social networking to engage constituents - Computer Weekly
Up to 40 MPs don't use e-mail - Times Online
MPs fail to get onboard with social media - Brand Republic
Net's not clicked yet with MPs - Janet Street-Porter, The Independent
MPs use web to talk, but don't listen, says Hansard. Are you surprised? - Publictechnology.net
MPs Not Very Good At T'Internet Shocker - Iain Dale
MPs born before 1940 are more inclined to blog, says Hansard Society - Guardian
MP bloggers: transmit but do they receive? - Labourhome
Why isn't my MP on Facebook? - Guardian Comment is Free
Scottish MP blogger online for an Orwell - Times Online
MPs born before 1940 are more inclined to blog, says Hansard Society - Guardian Online
How digitally literate are our politicians? - PeoplePoints
MPs online: the dawn of direct democracy? - Windows Live
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New Hansard Society research shows MPs are not utilising the power of online media to engage with constituents
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At the Channel 4 Political Awards, held in association with the Hansard Society, Rt Hon David Blunkett MP accepted the prestigious Hansard Society Democracy Award on behalf of the late Sir Bernard Crick.
Sir Bernard was nominated for the annual Hansard Society Democracy Award, which celebrates individuals or organisations which have advanced understanding of, and engagement in, parliamentary democracy.
David Blunkett paid tribute to the work of Sir Bernard, in particular the influential Crick report which led to the introduction of citizenship as a national curriculm subject to teach young people about active citizenship.
The Award was presented by Peter Riddell, Chair of the Hansard Society.
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‘Citizens or Consumers - which does a democracy need more?'
Hansard Society public meeting
Wednesday 28 January 2009, 6pm
Portcullis House, Westminster
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Presented at Channel 4 Political Awards
The shortlist for the Hansard Society Democracy Award for the individual or
organisation which has advanced understanding of and engagement in
parliamentary democracy is:
- Professor Bernard Crick
- David Davis MP
- June Sarpong (for her website Politics in the City)
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The Hansard Society has published a Briefing Paper to coincide with Thursday's Lords debate on ‘Enhancing Parliament's ability to communicate with members of the public'.
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The findings from the first Youth Citizenship Commission/HeadsUp online forum, which ran 17 November - 5 December, revealed that young
people using the forum felt that politics and politicians don't relate to their
lives enough. One young person said I am keen on debating and campaigning, and
finding ways to help combat issues...but what is it to do with politics?
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New research from the Hansard Society, Parliament and the Public: Knowledge, Interest and Perceptions published today, reveals strikingly low levels of knowledge about Parliament among the British public and highlights the need for a more representative Parliament:
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If you're after some fresh ideas on how to teach young
people about politics, come along to the FREE EU
and All That conference, tailor-made for citizenship
teachers.
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John Harris, when discussing class politics in the Guardian, referred to the speech made by Hazel Blears at Hansrad Society's Revitalising Politics conference on 5/6 November.
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Action
needed on ‘equality guarantees'
13 November 2008
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive of the Hansard Society said: ‘We welcome the Speaker's
Conference announced today and urge parliamentarians to seize this opportunity
to rise to the challenge of ensuring that Westminster
more accurately reflects those it represents.
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The Youth Citizenship Commission and HeadsUp
The Youth
Citizenship Commission has chosen the Hansard Society's online forum - HeadsUp - as the ideal place to consult directly with young
people. The Commission has been set up by the Prime Minister to look at what
British citizenship means to young people and how central government can better
engage with them as citizens. It will report its findings back to the PM taking
young people's views right to the top of Government.
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The Revitalising Politics conference took place on November 5/6 2008 in Parliament and attracted considerable media attention. It was organised by the Hansard Society and Professors Gerry Stoker (University of Southampton) and Colin Hay (University of Sheffield).
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Under-18s debate the issues with legislators
Under-18s tackled a variety of immigration issues in a secure and structured online debate, Immigration and the UK: What effect has it had on Britain?, organised by the Hansard Society from 29 September - 17 October, 2008 at http://www.headsup.org.uk/
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A hung parliament would ‘put an end to arrogant centralised government'
Speaking at the Political Studies Association/Hansard Society Annual Lecture last night, Clare Short MP said that public cynicism with the political system can only be overcome by a hung parliament with no party having an overall majority.
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Rt Hon Clare Short MP
gives Political Studies Association/Hansard Society Annual Lecture
Wednesday October 29, 6.30pm, Portcullis House
Making Politics Fit For Purpose
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Hansard Society research shows that men
tend to overestimate their actual political knowledge
On the other hand women tend to
underestimate how much they know about politics. For example, while the
percentage of men claiming that they know about politics is nearly 20 points
higher than that of women, the proportion that can name their MP is only 6
points higher (47% versus 41%).
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Channel 4/Hansard Society fringe meeting at SNP conference
Saturday October 18
12.30-1.30pm at the Royal George Hotel, Perth
People Like Us: Is Scottish Society fairly reflected in Holyrood?
Chair: Joyce McMillan (The Scotsman)
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Young people debate immigration with legislators
Follow the online debate at http://www.headsup.org.uk/
Under-18s are tackling a variety of immigration issues in a secure and structured online debate, organised by the Hansard Society. Immigration and the UK will run from 29 September - 17 October, 2008 at http://www.headsup.org.uk/
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Hansard Society/Channel 4 joint fringe meetings at this year's party conferences
Liberal Democrats
Monday September 15, 6.15pm at the Bourne Hall Hotel, Priory Road, Bournemouth
Speakers: Lord Dhlokia, Chris Huhne MP, Simon Hughes MP, Lembit Opik MP, Jo Swinson MP. Chair: Katie Razzall, Channel 4 News
Labour
Monday September 22, 6pm at Jury's Inn, Great Bridgewater Street, Manchester
Speakers: Dawn Butler MP, Harriet Harman MP, Peter Oborne (Channel 4 Dispatches), Lord Soley (ex- Chair, PLP). Chair: Faisal Islam, Channel 4 News
Conservatives
Tuesday September 30, 6.30pm at the Copthorne Hotel, Paradise Circus Birmingham
Speakers: Iain Dale (Total Politics), Julie Kirkbride MP, Eleanor Laing MP, Theresa May MP, Baroness Warsi. Chair: Katie Razzall, Channel 4 News
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Digital Dialogues 3, a new report from the Hansard Society, shows that government can successfully use the internet to engage, consult and build public trust - providing it is willing to use an experimental and adaptable approach to online engagement.
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The Hansard Society is once again joining forces with Channel 4 to host three fringe meetings at this year's party conferences on the topic People Like Us: Is British Society fairly reflected in Parliament?
PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU DO NOT HAVE TO REGISTER IN ADVANCE FOR THESE MEETINGS
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A new book from the Hansard Society, Law in the Making: Influence and Change in the Legislative Process, analyses the elements that come together to make an act of Parliament and concludes that the widely-held view of Parliament as a ‘rubber stamp' for government legislation bears little resemblance to reality.
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The coalition celebrates 80 years of universal suffrage
On 2 July 2008,
members of the 2008: Women and the Vote
campaign (1) will celebrate the 80th birthday of women finally winning
equal voting rights as men (2).
With universal
suffrage now eight decades old, the coalition partners are drawing attention to
both the progress and the barriers still faced by women in British politics.
The alliance
has now called on the British, Scottish and Welsh Governments, and political
parties to put gender inequality back to the top of their agendas.
Fiona Booth, Chief Executive,
Hansard Society:
‘This
anniversary is a milestone for how far women have come in the last 80 years but
also highlights how much further we have to go to achieve equal political
representation between the genders. I would like to call on the major political
parties and the House of Commons authorities to work together to encourage more
women to stand for Parliament and make the House a more female friendly place.
We all need to tackle the pervasive
culture of acceptance that means currently only one in five of our MPs are
female. More needs to be done if we don't want to find ourselves in the same
position 80 years from now. A well-established democracy like ours should be
leading the international league tables for female representation, not lagging
behind.'
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Alex Brazier, joint author of the Hansard Society's 2006 report The Fiscal Maze; Parliament, Government and Public Money will be giving evidence to the Finance Committee's review of the parliamentary budget process on Tuesday June 17.
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Transparency and accountability vital for Parliamentary democracy
The Hansard Society welcomes the High Court ruling that MPs should disclose their expenses to the public.
Alex Boughton, Deputy Chief Executive of the Hansard Society commented:
“At a time when trust in our elected representatives is at a very low ebb it is important that politicians are accountable to the public they serve and are seen to be bound by the same conventions as the electorate. Transparency is key to a well functioning democracy and greater openness can only help restore trust in politics and faith that our representatives are spending public money in the most effective way.
“MPs’ expenses are clearly necessary to allow our representatives to serve the electorate to a high standard but it is also important that any abuses of trust are able to be highlighted and dealt with. This ruling is important to sustain Parliamentary democracy and accountability.”
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Tuesday 20 May, 6-7.15pm, House of Commons
Speakers:
- Richard Allan, Government Affairs Director, Europe, Cisco Systems
- Bethan Jenkins AM, Member, Petitions Committee
- Rt Hon Greg Knight MP, Chair, Procedure Committee
- Andy Williamson, Director, eDemocracy Programme, Hansard Society
Chair:
- Pete Picton, Online Editor, The Sun
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Liaison Committee's recommendations on financial scrutiny a real step forward
The Hansard Society welcomes the House of Commons' Liaison Committee Report on financial scrutiny and urges Parliament to do more to scrutinise and seek accountability for government spending.
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Effective diplomacy is vital
Under-18s taking part in a Hansard Society online debate at www.headsup.org.uk felt that overseas conflict must be a last resort and that diplomaticnegotiations should be exhausted before embarking upon any conflict decision.
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Mixed messages on political and constitutional reform
The Hansard Society's fifth Audit of Political Engagement, published today, reveals a high level of political ignorance about politics and constitutional arrangements in Britain:
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Unique collaborative blog launched to engage with public
http://www.lordsoftheblog.net/
Lords of the Blog [http://www.lordsoftheblog.net/] is a new collaborative online blog, launched and written by Members of the House of Lords to increase public engagement with the work of the Upper House and its Members.
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An essential handbook for understanding the effects of a hung parliament
No Overall Control? The impact of a 'hung parliament' on British politics is a timely new publication from the Hansard Society highlighting the challenges facing Parliament, the political parties, individual MPs and the public in the event of a hung parliament at the next election.
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If you're under 18 and feel strongly about how we can reduce waste, this is your chance to make your voice heard in Parliament - and win up to £100 for your team. A House of Lords committee has been examining all aspects of waste reduction and is joining forces with the Hansard Society to encourage young people to enter a new competition to present their views on waste and recycling - by video, audio or written submissions. Following the success of last year's essay competition, What a Waste! is being sponsored by the Lord Speaker, Baroness Hayman, and supported by Parliament's Education Service.
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Under-18s are tackling a variety of defence issues in a secure and structured online debate, organised by the Hansard Society. Defence d-day...Should our forces be in Iraq? will run from February 25 to March 14, 2008 at http://www.headsup.org.uk/
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WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 27
Politicians: A Class Apart or Servants of the People?
Hansard Society meeting examining the role of politicians.
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In the first Parliamentary Affairs of 2008, Ross Ferguson, former Director of eDemocracy at the Hansard Society, discusses how online forums can engage citizens with decision makers through the example of case studies run by the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Defence Select Committee. The article gives details about how online forums are best used and where they can be most effective, who they appeal to, and how, in certain circumstances, they can be used to engage the ‘unusual suspects’.
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Operation Black Vote's Welsh Assembly Shadowing Scheme has won this year's prestigious Hansard Society Democracy Award. The Award was presented by Peter Riddell, Chair of the Hansard Society at the Channel 4 Political Awards ceremony in London on the evening of Wednesday January 23.
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Under-18s taking part in a Hansard Society online debate thought that political correctness has gone too far. They concluded that political correctness leads to uncertainty and threatens free speech.
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The Hansard Society is delighted to join Channel 4 for the 10th annual Political Awards. The shortlist for the Hansard Society Democracy Award for the individual or organisation which has advanced understanding of parliamentary democracy is:
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Ken Clarke will be addressing this question in his inimitable style at The PSA/Hansard Society Annual Lecture on Wednesday December 12, 6pm - 7.30pm at Attlee Suite, Portcullis House, Westminster.
To receive further information or to register for this event, please email hans_admin@hansard.lse.ac.uk
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A detailed evaluation exercise of the Hansard Society’s HeadsUp innovative website for young people demonstrates a proven way to get young people interested in politics and involved in political debate. The HeadsUp Evaluation Report [PDF, 313KB] is available to download.
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Monday November 26,
6.30pm - 7.30pm,
Westminster.
Speakers:
Michael Wills MP, Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice;
Rt Hon Theresa May MP, Shadow Leader of the House of Commons;
Lord (Paul) Tyler, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Constitutional Affairs;
Alex Brazier, Director, Hansard Society Parliament and Government programme.
Chair: Peter Riddell, Chair, Hansard Society.
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Under-18s are tackling the sensitive subject of discrimination in a secure and structured online debate, organised by the Hansard Society. Discrimination in the UK - Fact or Fiction? will run from November 19 to December 7, 2007 at http://www.headsup.org.uk/
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If you're after some fresh ideas on how to teach political literacy, come along to the free EU and All That conference, tailor-made for citizenship teachers.
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The Hansard Society today welcomed the commitment to renew the constitutional settlement contained in the Queen's Speech but urged the Government to make implementation of its reform proposals a priority for this parliamentary session.
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Under-18s taking part in a Hansard Society online debate were supportive of animal testing in order to find vital cures for diseases. The debate Animal Cruelty – Who Cares? ran from September 17 to October 5, 2007 at www.HeadsUp.org.uk. Parliamentarians and decision-makers from all political parties took part in the debate.
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The Hansard Society, the UK’s leading non-partisan political research and education charity, has issued a Briefing Note providing background information on Hansard Society proposals and research relevant to the debate on Thursday October 25.
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The Respect? Advisory Group will discuss the campaign’s successful work in conjunction with the British Youth Council and YouthNet in challenging stereotypes of young people. They will also talk about their research into how MPs could better engage with young people. Natascha Engel MP will respond to the young people’s findings and discuss what MPs can do to engage with young people in their constituencies.
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Harriet Harman addresses Hansard Society Briefing meeting
At a Hansard Society Briefing today, the Leader of the House of Commons, Rt Hon Harriet Harman MP laid out her priorities to make the House of Commons more representative, more topical and more inclusive.
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Given by Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty
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Digital Dialogues, a new report from the Hansard Society, evaluates government’s use of social media to connect the public with the policy making process. It concludes that government has made good progress in the past 18 months from a ‘standing start’ and outlines key lessons learnt from 12 case studies, including:
Downloadable from www.digitaldialogues.org.uk