Achieving accountable government
Back to the future by way of an Independent (Police) Commission: The Stevens Report in effect only pursues an established police agenda
Lord Stevens’ review of policing included a call for the abolition of the elected Police and Crime Commissioners. Barry Loveday thinks it unsurprising this proposal has emanated from a number of current and former chief constables. In this post he questions the potential bias in the views collected by the Stevens commission. Similar PostsDespite the manner of their election, […]
The potential lessons of a contemporary history of Whitehall stretch far and wide
Britain’s Civil Service has been the subject of near constant study, with its permanent nature acting as a repository of information about the day-to-day functioning of our Westminster government. A new study by the Institute for Government and Kings College London, aims to combine an academic approach to research with modern think-tank communication techniques to […]
England needs an integrated public services ombudsman, organised regionally
The House of Commons Public Administration Committee is currently considering the role of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. Professor Patrick Dunleavy, Co-Director of Democratic Audit gave evidence at the Committee’s most recent hearing on the topic. In this post, Richard Berry summarises the evidence presented and highlights key recommendations for improving the Ombudsman’s role […]
Democracy experts are divided on Lord Stevens’ proposals to reform police accountability
Last week the report of the Independent Police Commission, led by the former Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens and commissioned by the Labour Party, was published. Its recommendations included the abolition of the post of Police and Crime Commissioner – introduced in 2012 to establish a new form of democratic oversight of the police – […]
Should Police and Crime Commissioners be abolished? The Commissioners respond
This week the report of the Independent Police Commission, led by the former Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens and commissioned by the Labour Party, was published. One of its key proposals was for the abolition of the post of Police and Crime Commissioner, introduced in 2012 to establish a new form of democratic oversight of […]
The Universal Credit fiasco shows that we need a new model of Ministerial accountability
The Government’s Universal Credit scheme looks to be unravelling, with the Public Accounts Committee recently levelling a series of withering criticisms at the Department for Work and Pensions. Dave Richards and Martin Smith argue that the Secretary of State’s decision to pin the blame for these failures on his departmental officials marks the culmination of a long term blurring […]
All political parties, but particularly Labour, should embrace the cause of republicanism
The Royal Family, we are frequently told, stand above party politics and remain neutral on the big issues of the day. But this seemingly benign state of affairs masks a system in which the unelected head of state has a right and a duty to be consulted on important policy areas. Ken Ritchie argues that the […]
The Dutch model of pre-legislative scrutiny could help the UK produce better law
Parliament has increasingly been engaged in pre-legislative scrutiny in recent years. In this post, Anthony Zacharzewski of the Democratic Society considers the Dutch approach, which provides for independent scrutiny and advice to legislators as part of an established assessment framework. There are various ways we could apply this model to the UK, he argues, with […]
Having security chiefs give evidence to Parliament is progress, but future sessions must dig deeper
Last week was the first time that the heads of Britain’s security services have appeared in public in front of the newly reformed Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC). Andrew Defty argues that although the session was in and of itself significant, in future the ISC members must exert a greater degree of scrutiny if the committee is […]
Responsible openness is the right way forward for Britain’s Security Services
The activities and governance of Britain’s Security Services have been largely exempt from attempts to open up the public sector’s governance arrangements to greater scrutiny. However, following the publication of the Snowden files, the services are under greater pressure than ever to move towards a more open and participatory model. Here, Carl Miller suggests five […]
Democratic Audit's core funding is provided by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Additional funding is provided by the London School of Economics.