exam questions 2

• Explain and analyse three ways in which judicial independence is upheld in the UK

  Security of tenure held by judges

  • Judges have open ended terms but must retire by 75
  • this means politicians cant intimidate judges by threatening to sack or suspend them
  • additionally they can only be removed through a power contained in the Senior Courts Act 1981 in which a vote in both houses decides on removal of a judge
  • a lengthy formal process is needed to remove a judge not just one persons word securing independence even more
• Explain and analyse three ways in which judicial independence is upheld in the UK

  The offence of contempt of court

  • Contempt of Court Act 1981 - offence to deliberately fail to obey or respect the authority of a court of law
  • under sub judice rules, the media and politicians are prevented from speaking out publically during legal proceedings
  • allows for justice to be administered fairly without pressure being brought on by politicians or the public
  • maintaining judicial independence
• Explain and analyse three ways in which judicial independence is upheld in the UK

  Growing separation of powers

  • Before 2009: 12 law lords sat in Appellate Committee in the HoL
  • law lords could make law and interpret it, lack of seperation
  • appointments were secretive and open to cronyism
  • Constitutional Reform Act 2005
  • creation of supreme court (2009)
  • Lord chancellor no longer head of judiciary
  • also has to swear an oath to defend judicial independence
  • allowed judiciary to be independent without influence from political branches
• Explain and analyse three influences upon individual MPs when voting in the House of Commons

  Party Whip system

  • Whip issues instructions on how MPs should vote on a weekly basis
  • Three line whip is a strict instruction to attend and vote according to the party line
  • Boris Johnson expelled multiple rebel conservative mps because they voted against the whip and against a no-deal Brexit
  • party whip influences MPs because the consequences of voting against the whip is disciplinary action, or expulsion
• Explain and analyse three influences upon individual MPs when voting in the House of Commons.

  The delegate model and constituency representation

  • Delegate model - MPs act as a mouthpiece to the wishes of their constituency and cannot apply their own judgement
  • 1/5 of Labour MPs defied the three-line whip and voted against the Brexit Bill at a second reading in 2017 and many cited constituents as the reason for doing so
  • they are influenced to vote in line with what their constituents want using this model
• Explain and analyse three influences upon individual MPs when voting in the House of Commons.

  Trustee model and personal beliefs

  • Contrast to delegate model, trustee is tasked with using own knowledge and judgement to make decisions, power is given by constituents to trustee to make decisions for them
  • associated with conservativism because of its paternalistic nature
  • edmund burke
  • tobacco and vapes bill second reading april 2024, liz truss and kemi badenoch voted against the bill whereas the majority of cabinet voted for
• Explain and analyse three ways in which the Official Opposition can challenge the government in the House of Commons

  PMQs

  • can be seen in functions such as PMQs where in an edition in December 2023 where the leader of the opposition Starmer asked about homelessness at Christmas which is important as the leader of the official opposition can ask five or more questions
  • This is significant as it encourages the prime minister to ensure their performance is good as Cameron said that "he fears the trepidation" in a 2015 BBC documentary
• Explain and analyse three ways in which the Official Opposition can challenge the government in the House of Commons

  Opposition Days

  • can raise topics which are of interest to other parties and can be used to expose government failings
  • 17 out of the 20 opposition days are granted to the official opposition and they can choose the topic of debate. For instance in February 2024, Labour raised knife crime and ministerial service reform
• Explain and analyse three ways in which the Official Opposition can challenge the government in the House of Commons

  Select Committees

  • can challenge government ministers in policy areas by submitting reports
  • They are sometimes chaired by members of the official opposition such as in 2019 Lilian Greenwood of the transport select committee with the report on pavement parking
  • can lead to government improving its policy
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under pressure since 1979

  Fading convention

  • collective responsibility is the convention where members of the government are held accountable for the actions of the government as a whole and ministers must support cabinet decisions or resign from the government
  • the 'Wets' remained in Thatcher's first cabinet despite criticism of government policy
  • Boris Johnson remained as Foreign Secretary despite publicly criticising Brexit policy in 2018
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under pressure since 1979

  Fading Convention (2)

  • In March 2019, eight cabinet ministers voted against a government motion to request an extension to Article 50. This included the Leader of the House, Andrea Leadsom, who remained in her post until June
  • shows a lack of cohesion within government and undermines democracy as ministers may be silenced over their views
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under pressure since 1979

  Leaks from media/ministers

  • Theresa May ordered her ministers to stop leaking details of cabinet discussions over Brexit policy 2017. In April 2019, there was a formal inquiry into the leaking of discussions about Huawei. Cabinet discussions have been revealed in books written by former ministers, such as Ed Balls
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under pressure since 1979

  Leaks from media/ministers (2)

  • Shows the rise in the role of media. Communications are being made in less traditional ways.
  • Leaks are purposeful and make a specific impact. leaks can change how the public may view agendas or legislation leading to a lack of trust in a government
  • can make a government seem incompetent when they are unable to control their own cabinet
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under pressure since 1979

  PMs ignoring their cabinet

  • undermining the ability of ministers to have discussions prior to coming to a collective decision
  • Mo Mowlam's criticisms of Blair undermining cabinet government.
  • Michael Heseltine, Geoffrey Howe and Nigel Lawson all criticised Thatcher's approach to her cabinet when resigning.
  • Prime ministers appoint special advisers, such as Dominic Cummings, with de facto ministerial powers and rely upon them for advice rather than the cabinet
• Explain and analyse three ways in which collective responsibility has come under threat since 1979

  PMs ignoring their cabinet

  • Cabinet ministers may feel as though they are being ignored. Feel pressured to not speak about their own views.
  • PMs may act against the "first amongst equals" not seeking advice, seeking advice elsewhere or simply ignoring any advice given.
  • Shows why CR is becoming weak and under threat
• Explain and analyse three circumstances under which referendums have been held in the UK


  Political Pressure

  • SNPs success in 2011 Scottish Parliament elections gave momentum to the 2014 Scottish Independence membership referendum
  • UKIPs initial success in the 2014 EU elections with 3.4 million votes, added pressure to David Cameron to call a EU Referendum in 2016
  • Divided public and politics in the UK for many years to come and Brexit would continue to be a major focus for government for 5 years following it
  • Lead to resignation of David Cameron
• Explain and analyse three circumstances under which referendums have been held in the UK

  Mandate for Constitutional Change

  • 1997 Referendums on devolution for Scotland and Wales
  • pre-legislative referendums used to measure support for devolved parliaments and fiscal responsibilities for Scotland and Wales
  • Scotland turnout - 60% - Yes 74%
  • Wales turnout - 50% - 50.3% yes
  • Since the Blair government, it has become the accepted practice to secure a demonstration of public support before embarking on important, possibly irreversible constitutional changes
• Explain and analyse three circumstances under which referendums have been held in the UK

  Coalition Agreement

  • Av referendum 2011
  • David Cameron agreed to hold a vote on changing the electoral system for Westminster because this was a demand of the Liberal Democrats, as part of the coalition agreement establishing the government in May 2010
  • clegg and lib dems had u-turned on various policies, supported tripling tuition fees for uni students leading to a low turnout of just over 40%
• Explain and analyse the significance of three sources of the British constitution

  Statue Law

  • acts of parliament implemented by the executive
  • Supreme source of constitutional law as parliament is sovereign
  • HRA 1998, enshrined ECHR into UK law
  • CRA 2005, established the UK Supreme Court
  • fixed term parliaments act 2011, GE could not be called tactically
• Explain and analyse the significance of three sources of the British constitution

  Convention

  • accepted norms of behaviour
  • not legally enforceable but expected
  • Continued usage gives a degree of authority
  • Monarch by convention must give royal assent to acts of Parliament
  • only time refused, 1707 Queen Anne refused to approve the Scottish militias bill
  • Gordon Brown created the convention that the UK wont declare war without a Parliamentary vote first, seen before British interventions in syria and Iraq, convention is held up strengthening its authority
• Explain and analyse the significance of three sources of the British constitution

  Authoritative Works

  • UK constitution is uncodified and not written in a single document like its US counterpart
  • rely on expert opinions and writings of constitutional experts
  • A.V. Dicey's idea of the Twin Pillars of the constitution, parliamentary sovereignty and the rule of law are used as reference points by politicians today to explain the constitution
  • sources are long standing and referred back to when constitutional clarity is needed
• Explain and analyse three ways in which pressure groups seek to influence government policy

  • Insider Lobbying (1)
  • PGs can use insider status to directly meet with and persuade MPs and civil servants in an attempt to influence their decision-making with regards to policy
  • British Medical Association (BMA) and Dept. for Health and Social Care ('core' insider, hold permanent positions on policy committees and consultation meetings) or National Farmers' Union (NFU) and DEFRA.
• Explain and analyse three ways in which pressure groups seek to influence government policy

  Insider Lobbying (2)

  • Successful method: British Plastics Federation (BPF) was able to successfully lobby Dept for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to cut recycling targets, despite opposition from environmentalist groups like Greenpeace and RecycleNow.
• Explain and analyse three factors that can influence voting behaviour

  Ethnicity

  • BAME voters tended to vote labour historically due to the labour government's history in helping and adopting their rights
  • eg. Race relations act 1976
  • discrimination could be taken to court as a complaint in a civil court
  • After the Iraq War under Tony Blairs government, support had diminished somewhat
  • 2005 - 71% BAME voters voted for Labour
  • 2015 - 65% BAME voters voted for Labour
• Explain and analyse three factors that can influence voting behaviour

  Age

  • younger votes also have a lower turnout than older voters 47% of 18-24 y/o vs 72% of 65+ y/o
  • Conservative policy has favoured older demographic
  • On 23 November 2010, the Minister for Pensions announced £1 million fund to help older people who are at most risk of longer-term loneliness
  • Labour policy has tended to pander towards younger demographic
  • some labour policies they wish to implement in 2024 are: reforming ofsted, set up technical excellence colleges, provide better mental health support in schools