Hansard Society

Programmes

Parliament and Government

Research and ideas on Parliament and politics

What we do

The Parliament & Government Programme undertakes cutting edge, high quality research in the field of politics and democracy. The only research programme of its kind in the UK, our core area of work is focused on reform of the Westminster Parliament. As such our innovative research is at the forefront of debate about the role of Parliament and parliamentarians, the future of representative democracy, and the public's engagement with politics and the political process.

Our impact

As Parliament's 'critical friend' we have a long-standing reputation for developing challenging but realistic and workable policy recommendations to reform Parliament, particularly in the field of legislative scrutiny, many of which have subsequently been implemented at Westminster. Our rigorous, evidence based research is often quoted in parliamentary reports and utilised by government departments, our team are regularly called to give evidence to parliamentary select committees and we advise parliamentary officials on initiatives for reform both here in the UK and abroad. Our publications and reports are regularly covered in the media and used by academics in their research both nationally and internationally.

Our work also engages with a broad audience both at home and abroad through our journal, Parliamentary Affairs, published in conjunction with Oxford Journals (Oxford University Press). The journal consists of peer-reviewed articles by leading academics in the fields of political history and political science as well as commentary articles for a broader audience including teachers and students of politics and citizenship.

We provide advice and support to the Associate Parliamentary Group on the Constitution, Parliament and Citizenship, the International Parliamentary Strengthening Network, the Global Organisation of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC), and the Women and the Vote campaign. We are also an active supporter of the Study of Parliament Group and our Programme Director represents the Hansard Society on its Executive Committee.

Supporting our work

Generous suport for current and past projects has been provided by a wide variety of organisations including: Accenture, BBC, CIPFA, DLA Piper, Electoral Commission, House of Commons, House of Lords, KPMG, Ministry of Justice, National Audit Office, Nuffield Foundation, OFCOM and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

If you share our concern about the need to strengthen Parliament and promote democracy and would therefore like to support our research, please contact the Programme Director, Dr Ruth Fox.

Who we are

Our research team:

Dr Ruth Fox - Programme Director
Matt Korris - Research Fellow

A number of the Programme's projects also benefit from the consultancy advice and support of Hansard Society Fellow Alex Brazier.

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Has Devolution Delivered for Women?

Significant new measures needed if improvements in women's representation in the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly are to be sustained

The new report Has Devolution Delivered for Women? 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. It 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 also examines 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.
Key findings include:
- Voluntary action by the political parties is not enough to maintain the high levels of women's representation in Scotland and Wales
- A new ‘King Report' (along the lines of Sir Anthony King's Report on the BBC's coverage of the devolved institutions) on gender and the media in politics is needed.
- There has been a change in culture towards a ‘new politics' in Edinburgh and Cardiff in terms of less confrontational and less party-bound ways of working. But there is a growing perception that Holyrood is reverting back to an increasingly Westminster style of confrontational politics and the debate about how to redress this needs to be reopened.
- The dramatic increase in women's representation at the dawn of devolution was achieved through strong, well-organised campaigning across a range of parties and organisations. The time has come to start rebuilding these alliances within Scotland and Wales, across the UK and internationally.
Read a full write up and download the report here.
What's trust got to do with it?

Politicians have rarely been trusted, and the expenses scandal did not therefore lead to a collapse in trust in politics and politicians because levels of trust were already so low. But public dissatisfaction with politics is based on deeper problems than lack of trust in MPs and Parliament. This new briefing paper identifies the more urgent challenge as being the decline in the relevance of politicians and political institutions to people’s everyday lives.

What’s Trust Got To Do With It? recommends that MPs should concentrate on reforms to tackle lost satisfaction, relevance and influence rather than trying to address trust.

To download a copy of the briefing paper, please click here.
The Reform Challenge: Perspectives on Parliament: Past, present and future

Since its inception the Hansard Society has made many influential recommendations for parliamentary reform. In the run up to the general election the Hansard Society asked the three main parties to lay out their party's plans for parliamentary reform, should that party form the new government. These lectures have been collected in a pamphlet, The Reform Challenge, along side speeches from the Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon John Bercow MP and the Lord Speaker, Baroness Hayman, to give an overview of their ideas for reform. In addition, Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the Parliament and Government programme, examines public confidence in Parliament and MPs, and proposes priority areas for reform. The lectures were chaired by Peter Riddell (Chair, Hansard Society).
Who Governs? Forming a coalition or a minority government in the event of a hung Parliament

The Hansard Society and the Study of Parliament Group have published a new pamphlet on hung Parliaments on Thursday March 11. Who Governs? Forming a coalition or a minority government in the event of a hung Parliament examines what will happen in the event of an uncertain general election result this year – with particular focus on the implications for Parliament, but also looking at issues such as financial markets, how long it will take to resolve and the role of the Queen.
Audit of Political Engagement 7

The annual Audit of Political Engagement carried out by the Hansard Society measures the nature and extent of political engagement and reveals where views have changed - and where they remain constant. It offers a yearly snapshot of political knowledge and engagement in Britain.

This year's Audit 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.

Click here for more.
Representative democracy article for Democracy Live

To mark the launch of the BBC's new Democracy Live website, Ruth Fox, Director of the Parliament and Government Programme, was asked to give her thoughts on the current state of democracy in the UK. Her article can be accessed on the Democracy Live website, and is reproduced here.
Timetabling of business in the House of Commons

The Parliament & Government programme has submitted evidence to the Procedure Committee inquiry on the timetabling of business in the House of Commons. We argue that there is a pressing need to reform timetabling and the use of programme motions to rebalance scrutiny in favour of Parliament, and set out a number of recommendations for improving the system.
Hansard Society evidence on MPs' expenses

Peter Riddell, Chair of the Hansard Society, and Dr Ruth Fox, Director of the Parliament and Government Programme, have appeared before the Committee on Standards in Public Life to give evidence to assist the Committee's investigation into MPs' expenses. They recommended to the Committee that 'thorough changes' to the system are needed, and that the Committee should 'aim above the bar'.

The appearance followed the Hansard Society's submission of written evidence to the Committee, which presented the findings of our research in the areas of public trust and engagement and made a range of suggestions for reforming the current expenses system.
Restoring Trust in the House of Lords

Recent events in the House of Lords have raised serious questions about standards of conduct within the second chamber, including questions around allowances, peers' external interests and enforcement of sanctions for misconduct. The Hansard Society co-hosted a seminar, with the Lord Speaker, in May 2009 drawing together a group of peers, academics, journalists, and people with a background in complex ethical and regulatory matters, to explore these issues.

This new briefing paper, produced by the Parliament and Government programme, draws on some of the views discussed at the seminar, supplemented by our own research. It examines these issues and sets out a range of measures for reinstating public trust in the House of Lords.
Lords Committee report on fast-track legislation

The House of Lords Constitution Committee has published the report on its inquiry into Fast-track Legislation (previously termed 'emergency legislation'), to which the Parliament & Government programme gave evidence earlier this year.

The Committee's report quotes the Hansard Society's written submission and Dr Ruth Fox's oral evidence extensively, and agrees with a number of our recommendations.