• Our work

      Themes

    • Brexit and Parliament
    • Future Parliament
    • Governance of Parliament
    • Making better law
    • Parliaments around the world
    • Parliamentary scrutiny
    • Political engagement
    • Representation
    • publications

    • Publications Home
    • Procedural and constitutional guides
    • Briefings
    • Reports
    • Submissions
    • projects

    • Audit of Political Engagement
    • Mock Elections 2019
    • services

    • Statutory Instrument Tracker®
  • About

      about

      who we are

    • What we do
    • Our history
    • contact

    • Our people
    • Contact us
    • Contacts for the media
    • careers

    • Jobs
    • subscribe

    • Insight Notes newsletter
    • Hansard Society newsletter
  • Blog
  • News
  • Events
  • Journal
  • Scholars
Hansard Society logoHansard Society logo
  • Our work

    • Themes

      • Brexit and Parliament
      • Future Parliament
      • Governance of Parliament
      • Making better law
      • Parliaments around the world
      • Parliamentary scrutiny
      • Political engagement
      • Representation
    • publications

      • Publications Home
      • Procedural and constitutional guides
      • Briefings
      • Reports
      • Submissions

      projects

      • Audit of Political Engagement
      • Mock Elections 2019

      services

      • Statutory Instrument Tracker®
  • About

    • about

        who we are

      • What we do
      • Our history
      • contact

      • Our people
      • Contact us
      • Contacts for the media
      • careers

      • Jobs
      • subscribe

      • Insight Notes newsletter
      • Hansard Society newsletter
      • Join our newsletter

        Get the latest updates on our research and events, together with expert comment and analysis, delivered to your inbox each month.

        You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our privacy policy here.

        Thank you!

        You have been successfully added to our newsletter list.

        Follow us

        :( Oops! Something went wrong...

        Please reload the page and try again.

        Insight Notes

        Subscribe to our regular Insight Notes on parliamentary data, procedures and the legislative process at Westminster, including updates on Brexit Statutory Instruments - in your inbox every sitting Monday afternoon.

        You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our privacy policy here.

        Thank you!

        You have been successfully added to our Insight Notes email list.

        Follow us

        :( Oops! Something went wrong...

        Please reload the page and try again.

      Follow us

  • Blog

    Blog

    • blog

      • Despatch Box Blog
  • News

    News

    • news

      • News Home
  • Events

    Events

    • events

      • Events
  • Journal

    Journal

    • journal

      • Parliamentary Affairs
  • Scholars

    Scholars

    Robert Halfon MP campaigning for election in his Harlow constituency
    blog / 11.05.18

    Repairing the accountability chain between people and Parliament, by Robert Halfon MP

    Share this

    Robert Halfon MP explores the "shocking" findings in the 2018 Audit of Political Engagement and explains how he is aiming to repair the "rusty and breaking" chain of accountability between voters, MPs and government.

    Profile photo of Robert Halfon MP

    Robert Halfon MP

    Member for Harlow and Chair of the Education Select Committee

    Robert Halfon has been MP for Harlow since 2010 and Chair of the Education Select Committee since 2017. He is a former minister (2015-2017) and Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party (2015-2016).

    When I was 10 years old, I came to Parliament for a tour. During that first visit, I was told that Parliament had a thousand rooms. My 10-year-old self was in awe at the idea that a building could have so many rooms and, from that day forward, I knew I wanted to be an MP – to get elected and do my best to represent and support thousands of constituents living in my patch.

    “England is the mother of parliaments” – as John Bright said in the late 19th century – not only for its thousand rooms or the history that flows through each and every one of them, but because it is the heart of representative democracy, in the UK and in the many countries worldwide which adopted the Westminster model.

    Democracy in the UK owes its existence to representative government, in which the line of accountability runs directly from voters to Members of Parliament to government. For this chain to work effectively, the links must be strong and active; engagement between the voters and Parliament is fundamental.

    Audit of Political Engagement findings

    The Hansard Society’s latest Audit of Political Engagement report suggests quite strongly that, in reality, that chain is breaking. The report found a clear divide between voters and representatives and some of the findings were shocking. The vast majority of people feel like they have very little or no influence over decision-making, both at the local level (72%) and in the country as a whole (82%).

    Generally, people thought the British system of governance was bad at ensuring the views of most Britons were represented. The report also suggests that ordinary people think it’s difficult to get involved in politics or to have a final say about Britain’s future direction.

    This is a huge shame. It is incredibly sad that the mother of parliaments is unable to carry out its true function because the accountability chain between voters, MPs and government – upon which this Parliamentary democracy is built – is rusty and breaking.

    What to do?

    “High politics is unlikely to engage the average voter who does not wake up every morning and read ‘Red Box’”

    We must, and can, take action. First, we – those in power, in Parliament, in local authorities and in government – need to focus on policies that appeal to people across the country. High politics is unlikely to engage the average voter who does not wake up every morning and read ‘Red Box’ or scroll through political blogs. Whether we focus on a mass programme to fix our potholes or bring an end to hospital car-parking charges, once and for all, the issues need to align with the interests of the public at large. Only then will we be able to catch the eye of the average Briton.

    When looking at issues, we need to keep in mind the economic and social positions of the majority of those at the grassroots. ‘Right to Buy’ and ‘Help to Buy’, for example, are great policies but they can only go so far when one-in-four of our population have less than £100 in savings.

    At the constituency level, in Harlow, I focus my work around five priorities that align with those of Harlow residents (whom I have got to know since moving to the town in 1999). My campaigns centre on the NHS, education and skills, the cost of living, the villages in the constituency and, finally, building an even better Harlow. These are the subjects that touch the everyday lives of those I represent – and in that vein, I hope to engage better with them.

    “Working on set priorities is useless if there is no method in place to communicate it to the voters – that’s where I get creative”

    On top of the issues on which we campaign, it’s vital that the form campaigning takes is considered. If party political leaflets do not shape voter opinions – as the Audit of Political Engagement report suggests – the focus must be on other methods of campaigning that throw what’s going on politically into the limelight and the public domain.

    My job in Parliament involves chairing the Education Select Committee, working as a member of the Conservative Party, helping the government get legislation through and – above all – acting as representative and ambassador for Harlow. When I’m not chairing the Committee, I am seeking out opportunities to question the government on my five Harlow priorities, or raising a Harlow-related issue in the Chamber.

    Working on set priorities is useless, however, if there is no method in place to communicate it to the voters – that’s where I get creative. It may be sitting at the side of the A414 on the way into Harlow with a huge sign or holding regular surgeries at the meeting places of different religious or community groups. I try to visit a Harlow school once a week and attend as many community events over the weekend as I can fit in. Speaking to Harlow residents in person helps me help them with a local issue and allows me to gain an understanding of the issues affecting their everyday lives, so I can take that to Parliament and change it for the better.

    Alongside these more traditional forms of communication, the rise and power of social media cannot be ignored. Facebook, Twitter and, increasingly, Instagram may not be a full substitute for face-to-face meetings with constituents, and a handshake may still have a greater impact than a re-tweet, but the instantaneous nature of communication that social media facilitates is invaluable.

    For the most part, I find Facebook and Twitter to be useful tools to communicate what’s going on in Parliament with my constituents – for example, by uploading a video of a question I asked in the Chamber within ten minutes of asking it – and to hear about what’s going on in Harlow. Given that social media platforms are developing at a rate of knots, we just have to make sure we can keep up.

    The Hansard Society Audit of Political Engagement report has, for the fifteenth year in a row, shed light on the state of engagement in Britain – and it looks like engagement between those at the grassroots and those in power isn’t so effective. That’s problematic not only for politicians who may find it difficult to get their message across but also for representative democracy as a whole. If the links in that accountability chain aren’t robust and durable, then Parliament will be unable to fully exercise its functions. By focusing on issues that actually align with the priorities of voters, and by communicating that message in a way that really connects with the electorate, we can start to strengthen the accountability chain and ensure that the mother of parliaments is able to fulfil its role.


    Enjoy reading this? Please consider sharing it

    Featured

    Audit 15 cover
    publica… / reports / 2018

    Audit of Political Engagement 15

    Related

    'First virtual PMQs and Ministerial statement on Coronavirus', © UK Parliament / Jessica Taylor.
    blog / 04.12.20

    Why the exclusion of pregnant MPs from the House of Commons during Covid-19 matters – for them and for others

    Covent Garden Market, Westminster election, 1 Jully 1808 (designed and etched by Thomas Rowlandson), This print records temporary wooden stands erected outside St.Paul's Church in Covent Garden Market to allow politicians running for Parliament in the Westminster election to address voters. On this occasion a large crowd has gathered, carrying banners and spilling out into the square, with some figures perched on a roof at right to listen to a speaker. (Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art)
    blog / 13.11.20

    Controverted elections: how disputed results used to be part and parcel of English political and parliamentary life

    Cover image for the Parliamentary Affairs journal
    journal

    Parliamentary Affairs (vol 73, issue 3, 2020)

    Cover image for the Parliamentary Affairs journal
    journal

    Parliamentary Affairs (vol 73, issue 2, 2020)

    The House of Commons debating the Withdrawal Agreement during the Saturday-sitting on 19 October, 2019
    news / articles

    Even with a majority, getting Brexit done on deadline will be no mean feat

    People walking over Westminster Bridge towards the UK Houses of Parliament
    news / articles

    The public think politics is broken, and are willing to entertain radical solutions

    School pupils in an assembly with their hands up.
    projects

    Mock Elections 2019

    People walking over Westminster Bridge towards the Palace of Westminster, Houses of Parliament
    projects

    Audit of Political Engagement

    'First virtual PMQs and Ministerial statement on Coronavirus', © UK Parliament / Jessica Taylor.
    publica… / submissions / 2020

    Procedure under Coronavirus restrictions: written evidence to the House of Commons Procedure Committee

    EU and UK flags superimposed on Big Ben, UK Parliament, Westminster
    publications / 2020

    A New Normal? Parliament after Brexit

    Join our newsletter

    Get the latest updates on our research and events, together with expert comment and analysis, delivered to your inbox each month.

    You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our privacy policy here.

    Thank you!

    You have been successfully added to our newsletter list.

    Follow us

    :( Oops! Something went wrong...

    Please reload the page and try again.

    Top three

    Lord David Frost
    blog / 19.02.21

    Lord Frost appointment raises parliamentary scrutiny questions

    A table tennis match
    blog / 13.02.21

    Ping-pong and packaging

    Coronavirus medical animation
    publica… / data / 2020

    Coronavirus Statutory Instruments Dashboard

    Latest

    Lord David Frost
    blog / 19.02.21

    Lord Frost appointment raises parliamentary scrutiny questions

    Lord Frost’s appointment as Minister of State in the Cabinet Office to lead on UK-EU relations brings some welcome clarity about future government arrangements in this area. However, it also raises challenges for parliamentary scrutiny, above all with respect to his status as a Member of the House of Lords.

    Lord Frost appointment raises parliamentary scrutiny questions
    A table tennis match
    blog / 13.02.21

    Ping-pong and packaging

    There was controversy on 9 February over whether the government had used procedural trickery to swerve a backbench rebellion in the House of Commons on a clause inserted in the Trade Bill by the House of Lords. Apparently, it was something to do with ‘packaging’. What does that mean, and was it true? The answer is all about ‘ping-pong’.

    Ping-pong and packaging
    House of Lords committee
    blog / 05.02.21

    Post-Brexit select committee changes highlight Lords–Commons differences

    The contrasting post-Brexit fates of the two Houses’ EU-focused select committees have come about through processes in the Lords and the Commons that so far have differed markedly. This difference reflects the distinction between government control of business in the Commons, and the largely self-governing nature of the Lords.

    Post-Brexit select committee changes highlight Lords–Commons differences
    Photo of the United Kindom taken from space at night
    blog / 03.02.21

    An inter-parliamentary body for the UK Union?

    Before Brexit, mechanisms for inter-parliamentary relations and scrutiny of inter-governmental relations in the UK were unsatisfactory. Post-Brexit, the need for reform has become urgent. There should be a formal inter-parliamentary body, drawn from all five of the UK’s legislative chambers, with responsibility for scrutiny of inter-governmental working.

    An inter-parliamentary body for the UK Union?
    EU flag missing a star, symbolising Brexit
    blog / 22.01.21

    Brexit and Beyond: Delegated Legislation

    The end of the transition period is likely to expose even more fully the scope of the policy-making that the government can carry out via Statutory Instruments, as it uses its new powers to develop post-Brexit law. However, there are few signs yet of a wish to reform delegated legislation scrutiny, on the part of government or the necessary coalition of MPs.

    Brexit and Beyond: Delegated Legislation
    EU and UK flags in front of Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster
    blog / 29.12.20

    Parliament’s role in scrutinising the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement is a farce

    Parliament’s role around the end of the Brexit transition and conclusion of the EU future relationship treaty is a constitutional failure to properly scrutinise the executive and the law. As the UK moves to do things differently after 1 January, MPs must do more to ensure they can better discharge their responsibilities regarding the making of UK treaties.

    Parliament’s role in scrutinising the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement is a farce
    Prev
    Next
    • Recent pages
      • Repairing the accountability chain between people and Parliament, by Robert Halfon MPblog
    • Home
    • Contact us
    • What we do
    • Jobs
    • Privacy policy
    • Site map

    Join our newsletter

    Get the latest updates on our research and events, together with expert comment and analysis, delivered to your inbox each month.

    You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our privacy policy here.

    Thank you!

    You have been successfully added to our newsletter list.

    Follow us

    :( Oops! Something went wrong...

    Please reload the page and try again.

    Copyright © 2020 Hansard Society • Charity No: 1091364 • Registration No: 4332105.