A-Level Edexcel Politics Democracy and Participation: With reference to the source, ou

Question

With reference to the source, outline three ways in which Parliamentary power has been strengthened:

Parliament came under heavy criticism in the 20th century and was seen to be failing in its core functions. However, much has changed in the last twenty years and the topic of 'Does Parliament matter?' needs to be revisited and reconsidered. In this period, we have seen Parliament reassert its power.

Parliament has benefited from a decline in the cohesion of political parties, which were constraining its independence. Next, there has been a growth in the independence and importance of Select Committees, whose reports make a difference to policy decisions. Also, the changes in the structure of the House of Lords since 1999 have made that House much more dynamic by removing the in-built Conservative majority. Finally, the role of backbench MPs has been improved through their ability to set agenda items. All of these factors make a difference to Parliament and how it functions.

In addition, we have seen subtle changes to the process of passing legislation. The actual process remains unchanged despite the same mechanisms. However, there have emerged 'handling strategies' with legislation, whereby there are a series of consultations between both houses of Parliament regarding key problems around certain bills. In particular, a department is set to propose a bill knowing that this bill does not mean Parliament will accept it in its entirety. The department knows this but feels that the government will be exposed to the House of Lords. Ultimately, the House of Lords has shown limitations in the considerations of the Commons and insists on strengthening the House of Lords, who have become more assertive.

The evidence of Parliament's revival can be seen in the defeats of both Blair and Brown governments where critical legislation was rejected due to their lack of intention. Cameron suffered a significant defeat as he had charmed through key reforms, yet ultimately there were aspects he did not have enough backing for. This serves as an indication that the public still shows enough discontent around human rights legislation as the manifesto had promised such legislation was omitted from the first Queen’s Speech in 2015.

With reference to the source, outline three ways in which Parliamentary power has been strengthened: Parliament came under heavy criticism in the 20th century and was seen to be failing in its core functions - Edexcel - A-Level Politics - Question 2 - 2017 - Paper 2

Worked Solution & Example Answer:With reference to the source, outline three ways in which Parliamentary power has been strengthened: Parliament came under heavy criticism in the 20th century and was seen to be failing in its core functions - Edexcel - A-Level Politics - Question 2 - 2017 - Paper 2

A decline in the power of political parties and their internal cohesion in parliament

The growing importance and independence of Select Committees

The improved position of backbench MPs

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