Author Archive: Democratic Audit UK
As Scotland and Wales demand greater devolution Northern Ireland is handing power back to Westminster
Social security has long occupied an ambiguous place in Northern Ireland’s devolution settlement. Mark Simpson of Ulster University discusses the implications of last month’s decision to temporarily hand legislative competence to Westminster. Similar PostsThe current talks in Northern Ireland exemplify the mistrust that has attended devolution from the outsetThe Northern Ireland Secretary’s suggestion that Stormont’s […]
To enhance women’s representation, internal party democracy may need to be ‘managed’ in the short term
With a general election in the Republic of Ireland imminent, gender quotas have already doubled the proportion of women candidates relative to the 2011 general election. In most cases the implementation of quotas at constituency level has been straightforward. However, problems have arisen largely due to ‘local’ versus ‘central’ conflict, writes Claire McGing. Here she explores how […]
Significant changes to the referendum process are required to make direct democracy deliberative in practice
Despite their surface similarity, deliberative democracy and direct democracy often pull in different directions. In this context, Lawrence LeDuc asks how the conduct of referendums can be made more deliberative. He finds that the process is currently inhibited by the intrusion of politics, the absence of clarity, the amount and quality of information, and the degree […]
Barnett and beyond: time for a new system for funding devolution?
Last Wednesday’s Autumn Statement and Spending Review set out spending limits for the rest of the parliament, not only for UK government departments but also for the separate Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland governments. Akash Paun explains how this works, and how it’s growing more complicated. Similar PostsScottish devolution will now have a bigger fiscal […]
Current proposals for English devolution are characterised by democratic, constitutional, financial and strategic deficits
The issue of devolution is squarely on the agenda. Yet despite appearing to have obtained the coveted policy position of a principle without political enemies, the devolution mission itself is not guided by any clear principles, writes Bob Hudson. Instead, actions have been tactical rather than strategic, while current proposals are characterised by democratic, constitutional, […]
The gendered dimensions of constitutional change: Women and the independence referendums in Scotland and Catalonia
Constitutional debates around independence claims present various gendered dimensions and implications for women and gender equality policy issues more broadly. In this article, Tània Verge and Alba Alonso challenge the idea that differences between women and men’s voting patterns can be simply reduced to risk aversion, and write that the public debates largely suffered in […]
The records of Tory women’s organisation provide a crucial insight into gender and conservatism in the twentieth century
Drawing of evidence from the Conservative Party archive David Swift sheds light on the active and changing role that women have played in the the Party since the 1920s. His research reveals a story which is far more complex than standard narratives which centre heavily on Margaret Thatcher as the ‘female Conservative’ par excellence. Similar PostsThis May be Tory feminism: […]
Book Review: The Media and Public Life: A History by John Nerone
In The Media and Public Life: A History, John Nerone details the emergence of journalism as a practice grounded in the representation of public opinion, positing a number of key transformative moments in its evolution. Exploring the tensions between the ideal of the journalist as a public intellectual and the realities that jeopardise this role, Nerone presents […]
Evolution or revolution: Spending Review implications for local government and the Northern Powerhouse
Despite being trumpeted as a “devolution revolution”, the detail of the Spending Review suggests that the government’s approach is distinctly evolutionary; the Treasury is far happier passing down the axe than cutting local government loose. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a positive story to tell about local growth and the Northern Powerhouse, writes Ed Cox. […]
There is a candour deficit among political parties when it comes to fiscal debates
There was something highly implausible about the pre-election fiscal debate. The Autumn Statement saw George Osborne dramatically soften the blow facing Whitehall departments and cuts are to be a quarter of the size planned just seven months ago, despite the fact nothing fundamental has altered in the economy. Gavin Kelly writes that this highlights “candour deficit” […]
Democratic Audit's core funding is provided by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Additional funding is provided by the London School of Economics.