Extending human and civic rights
The John Lewis model reveals the tensions and paradoxes at the heart of workplace democracy
Politicians of all parties have been keen to promote the ‘John Lewis model’ of industrial organisation, emphasising its features of employee ownership and workplace democracy. Dr Abby Cathcart’s research into the company shows that management and workers have different visions of what ‘partnership’ means, with ongoing struggle taking place via the organisation’s democratic structures. This, […]
The UKs muddled approach to prisoner voting rights looks set to continue
The UK’s continued delay in responding to the issue of prisoner voting has spawned a hydra-headed legal debacle. Whereas countries like Ireland quickly passed legislation to enfranchise prisoners following a 2005 European Court decision, the then Labour Government vacillated, seemingly hoping that if delayed for long enough the problem would go away. It didn’t go away, but […]
What’s happening to our democracy?
Stuart Wilks-Heeg, 28 February 2011 Our fourth Audit of UK democracy, due for publication later this year, deploys International IDEA’s ‘State of Democracy’ assessment framework and is built around 77 separate ‘search questions’. As we consider the huge evidence base which our Audit is generating, however, one ‘overarching’ question which is not part of the framework becomes […]
Votes for prisoners: Still a reform too far?
Raminder Samrai Cross-posted from Our Kingdom, As the party conference season approaches, political observers will be paying close attention to potential fault-lines within the governing coalition. Yet those searching for tests of the coalition’s internal cohesion might be advised to look further afield than Liverpool and Birmingham this autumn – starting this week in Strasbourg. At […]
The asylum amnesty ‘scandal’: mind the gap
Guest author: Dr Alex Balch, University of Liverpool A new government, a period of fiscal restraint, problems over a massive asylum backlog, a failed Home Office IT project…. the Coalition in 2011? No – New Labour in 1999. Governments might change, but the gap between policy aims and outcomes (or the difference between what politicians say […]
Democratic Audit's core funding is provided by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Additional funding is provided by the London School of Economics.