Pressure groups

• What is a pressure group

  • Organisation that aims to influence political decision making
• Promotional group

  • They promote a specific issue like housing and homelessness. These are issues that almost everyone agrees with
  • Normally inclusive and they can build large amounts of support
• Interest Group

  • Designed to defend the interests of their members like trade unions
  • National Education Unio
• Insider group

  • Insider groups are those than are consulted by the government so they have an inside status
  • They are law abiding and need a good public image to have the trust of the gov
  • BMA is an insider group
• Outsider group

  • Those that are not consulted by the government and try to influence political decision making
  • Some outsider groups can become insider groups
  • They can use unconventional methods like blocking roads
  • SHAC is an outsider group
• Case study: Insider group British medical Association

  • Aims - Act as a Doctor's Trade Union, improve pay and conditions
  • Lobby for improvements off the government for better healthcare and public health e.g. a minimum unit price for alcohol sales
• BMA 2

  • Membership - 160,000 doctors and medical students
  • Methods - meetings with ministers, organising strikes by junior doctors
• BMA 3

  • Successes - plays a leading role in every debate regarding health. Well respected. Government had implemented policies due to the BMA like an opt out system for organising donation
  • Failures - BMA cancelled plans for a second junior doctor strike. Government didn't give junior doctors new contracts
• Case study: Outsider Group Extinction Rebellion

  • Aims - Making the government tell the truth by declaring a climate emergency. Forcing the government to act now. Convince the government to make a public assembly for climate change
• ER 2

  • Membership - no hierarchy of membership. Set up in 2018 and by 2020 it had 485 groups in 70 countries with 135 in the UK
  • Methods - peaceful and direct action. Mass protests, blocking roads, gluing themselves to buildings. Mass arrests which are intended to fill police cells
• ER 3

  • Successes - The environment sits on a higher political agenda higher than ever. All UK political parties have commited to making the UK carbon neutral by 2025. Select committees have set up in UK parliament the 100 member citizens assembly UK
• ER 4

  • Failures - some of its actions were unhelpful stunts. The pace of government action isn't what ER wanted. Lack of divisions may have caused local groups to use unsuitable actions. Lost momentum during COVID and BLM taking up the political agenda
• Working with the system

  • Influencing government - influencing ministers and civil servants through contributions
  • Influencing parliament - lobby MPs to influence gov bills. May lobby the HOL to improve legislation to initiate their own legislation
  • Influencing political parties - Unions have been part of labour since it's formation and essential in financial contribution
  • Using the courts - pressure groups may use judicial review to overturn gov legislation. Criminal justice and courts act 2015 removed charities from calling judicial review as they did it too much
• Working outside the system

  • Appealing to the public - use the media for public support. Outsider groups rely on the media and do marches to attract attention
  • Background campaigns - long term campaigns are designed to produce shits in public opinion
  • Short-term campaign - these are aimed at warning the public of a serious issue and solving it
  • Direct action - marches, demonstrations, strikes and unusual Stunts like climbing buildings. Some is legal like trade union strikes but some isn't like blocking roads. Violence is the most extreme and was seen in the 2020 BLM riots
• Factors that affect pressure group influence

  • Membership - large memberships often have larger influences on politicians, the public and media
  • Resources - Money funds, equipment, staff and advertising help pressure groups stay alive and spread messages.
  • Aims - Limited and easily achievable aims are more likely to be met like the Snowdrop campaign for Dunblane
  • Methods - direct action needs to be handled carefully as it can damage a groups image, and they aim for access points for their cause
• Factors that affect pressure groups influence

  • Celebrity endorsement - this can bring publicity towards an issue that politicians ignore like Marcus Radford
  • Links with logical parties - Trade unions are important to Labour and it provides funding for the campaigns. Pressure groups can be approached for support on a new policy
  • Relationship with the media - most pressure groups aim to get publicity off the media particularly when carrying out direct action
• Think tanks

  • Exist purely to develop new policies
  • Funded by donations by individuals, groups or businesses
  • Some have a clear position on the political spectrum and are usually independent of political parties but aim to convince political parties
  • Think tanks produce detailed reports and research which can be used by political parties
• Lobbyists

  • Paid operatives who are meant to influence the government
  • They are usually employed by wealthy corporations or pressure groups
  • Lobbying has grown to a £2 billion industry
  • Cash for access scandals where politicians offer to lobby for companies for money
• Corporations

  • May be invited by the government to contribute to policy discussions and to help produce legislation to their business
  • They lobby the government for favourable conditions
  • They threaten to leave the government if they don't meet the corporation's demands
  • Owners of corporations make donations to political parties
• The Media

  • Governments are scrutinised by the media, and are keen to attract positive reports
  • Gov ministers have personal links with figures in the media
  • Support from the media can help governments win general elections like in 1997
• Pluralism

  • Different groups, including pressure groups compete equally for power and influence which is then spread across different groups in society
• Are pressure groups good for democracy

  • Yes - PG are an essential part of democracy and allow for different views
  • Allow people to focus on issues that concern them
  • Gives people an outlet to participate in democracy any time rather than elections
  • Many pressure groups have more members than political parties, suggesting they are more relevant to the public
• Are pressure groups good for democracy

  • No - pressure groups can be undemocratic and give a louder voice to the powerful and rich which have more opportunities than lower tier pressure groups
  • PG often have a lack of internal democracy which can lead to leaders making decisions without the group
  • They focus on one issue which isn't ideal for society and government