Author Archive: Democratic Audit UK
Book Review: Publics and Their Health Systems: Rethinking Participation by Ellen Stewart
Drawing on a detailed case study of Scotland’s National Health Service, Publics and Their Health Systems: Rethinking Participation is a novel contribution to the growing academic engagement with the institutionalisation of public participation as a routine feature of governance. Author Ellen Stewart offers a ‘citizen’s-eye view’ of the Scottish health system, challenging dominant policy narratives by […]
The new BBC White Paper could be a recipe for long-term decline
The provisions set out new BBC White Paper could compromise both the BBC’s international reputation for freedom from government interference, and its place at the heart of British popular culture which commands huge public affection, writes Steven Barnett. Similar Posts
Recovery in the polls: Predicting the London Mayor election result
The reputation of election polling took a battering after failing to predict the 2015 General Election result. Dr Kenneth Bunker looks at how polls fared in the London Mayor election, and what the long-term prospects for election polling are. Similar PostsLike the polling debacle of 1992, 2015 offers an opportunity to innovate‘Super Thursday’ tells us […]
‘Super Thursday’ showed us that British politics has changed for good
Last Thursday’s elections highlighted the persistence of multi-party politics, the growing distinctiveness of the devolved nations and the diversity of electoral systems. Katie Ghose argues these longer term trends deserve greater attention given the implications they have for the future shape of the UK. Similar PostsFirst-past-the-post – normal (disproportionate) service has resumedCanada’s 2019 federal election: […]
The New Blues? Explaining the success of the Scottish Conservative Party at the 2016 Scottish Parliament elections
Last week, the Conservatives have overtook Labour to become the main opposition party in Scottish politics. Alia Middleton considers the factors that worked in their favour, including new leadership and a distinctive campaign, but also writes there is a possibility that their success does not reflect a major shift in Scottish politics at all. Similar PostsEuropean elections 2019: what will […]
Improvements in turnout and more partisan voting: The consequences of embedding PCC elections in the electoral cycle
The first Police and Crime Commissioner elections in 2012 are infamous for their abysmally low turnout and the second batch last week thankfully saw some improvement. In this post, Andrew Defty looks at the variation in turnout across the 40 PCC elections to consider the impact of embedding the elections in the electoral cycle, and […]
‘Super Thursday’ tells us a lot about voter participation in the UK
Thursday 5 May saw a host of elections happening around the UK, on an unprecedented scale outside of a General Election. Democratic Dashboard’s Carl Cullinane looks at what the election campaign tells us about the state of voter participation in the UK. Similar PostsRecovery in the polls: Predicting the London Mayor election resultImprovements in turnout […]
Book Review: Social Policy in a Cold Climate: Policies and their Consequences Since the Crisis edited by Ruth Lupton et al
Launched at LSE by CASE, in Social Policy in a Cold Climate: Policies and their Consequences Since the Crisis editors Ruth Lupton et al analyse the impact of recent Labour and Coalition government policies on inequality and the provision of key services, including health, education, housing and employment, since 2007. This volume particularly highlights the different iterations and […]
Scottish election 2016: disaster for Labour, reality check for the SNP – and the Tories are back
Craig McAngus offers an overview of the fallout of yesterday’s Scottish Parliamentary Elections, which saw the SNP fall short of a majority and a surprisingly strong Conservative revival. Similar Posts
How to reverse the civic empowerment gap of young people? Teach them about politics in school!
The problem of low turnout among young people, particularly those from less affluent backgrounds, has been subject of many discussions. Anja Neundorf and Kaat Smets write that this gap in civic empowerment often develops at a young age due to varying degrees of parental political socialisation, and draw on recent research to emphasise that civic […]
Democratic Audit's core funding is provided by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Additional funding is provided by the London School of Economics.