Pressure groups and other influences

• Sectional groups


  Seek to promote interests of their occupation or another group in society, they represent members who are in a particular group in society
• Examples Sectional groups

  • Trade unions
  • Some trade unions representing doctors (believe by serving interests of members community will also benefit)
• Sectional groupslarge companies


  • Large corporations such as Google and Amazon (also act as pressure groups as they employ lots of people so have important place in economy)
• Cause/promotional groups


  Focused on achieving a particular goal or drawing attention to an issue, try to turn it into government action, special category which helps stand up for those who can't themselves
• Examples Cause/promotional groups

  • Greenpeace (promoting environment awareness to influence green policies)
• Insider groups


  Have close links with government/MPs, have the ear of government, rely on contacts to get their way, can be low profile and discreet or high profile and use the media
• Examples Insider groups

  • Howard League Prison reform (low profile and discreet)
  • Confederation of British Industry (high profile and use the media)
• Outsider groups


  Don't have special relationships with government, their views don't align with government policies, may want to keep independence and reputation by keeping government at a distance so remain neutral
• Exampes Outsider groups

  • Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
  • Amnesty International
• Methods pressure groups use


  • Lobbying
  • Violence
  • Protest
  • Petitions
  • Boycotts
  • Celebrity endorsement
• Why pressure groups are successful


  • Insider status: close links with government so can advise and influence ministers
  • Wealth: pay for things that can promote cause
  • Large membership: control large section of society so more disruption
  • Organisation: allows group to maximise resources and target them effectively to achieve goals
  • Celebrity endorsement: gets media attention to campaign and elevates it
  • Expertise: more likely to be listened to by government
• Example of insider status: Howard Prison reform ended ban on books
• Example of wealth: BBA paid lobbyist to persuade ministers to cut tax on banks
• Example of large membership: when train strikes, lots of members gone on strike
• Example of organisation: RMT organised series of strikes to get bonuses during Olympics
• Example of celebrity endorsement: Marcus Rashford free school meals
• Example of expertise: 2016 AA used statistics to get ban on phone use while driving
• Why pressure groups are not successful


  • Goal may contradict government policies so difficult to change the government's mind
  • Government can resist pressure from group because it is in a strong enough position
  • Countervailing forces: go against stronger pressure group which won the debate
  • Goals of group go against popular opinion
  • Group alienates public: commits acts the public doesn't like such as violence
• Example of goal contradicting government policy: BMA failed to go against 7 day NHS
• Example of government resisting pressure: Stop War coalition organised mass rallies against Iraq war but Blair had landslide victory and clear majority so was able to go to war
• Example of countervailing forces: pro-smoking group Forest tried to prevent restrictions on smoking but failed as ASH successfully got restrictions
• Example of goals going against popular opinion: groups tried to go against legal recognition of gay marriages but failed as recognising gay marriages was more popular
• Example of group alienating public: ALFA and PETA fail to achieve goals as public opposed their methods
• Corporations


  Large companies seek to lobby the government to encourage them to legislate (or not legislate) in certain areas
• Corporations


  • Uber took to heavy lobbying to convince the public and authorities that Transport for London had made the wrong decision to revoke its licence in London
• Think tanks


  Privately funded, non-profit organisations that conduct research with a view to changing political policies
• Think tanks


  • The Centre for Policy Studies
  • The Adam Smith Institute
  • The Centre for Social Justice
• Lobbyists


  Companies who get paid to gain access to government for their clients, often employing ex-politicians who know how to access decision-makers
• The ethics of lobbying is often questioned, as companies can afford to pay lobbying companies' fees in order to influence government
• The issue of a 'revolving door' between Parliament and big business has recently come under criticism in the UK
• The number of former ministers taking up jobs outside Parliament rose by nearly 60 per cent in 2017
• Parliament and big business

  • Former Chancellor George Osbome was criticised for becoming editor of the Evening Standard and other roles such as a $650,000-a-year advisory post at BlackRock