The Legislature The House of Commons and the House of Lords

It is a commonplace that Britain has ‘representative government’; representative, that is, in the sense that the ultimate political authority, Parliament, has its main chamber elected on a franchise which includes, to all intents and purposes, all adult citizens. Moreover, elections are held to appo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inChanging Constitution p. 1
Main Authors Harrison, Kevin, Boyd, Tony
Format Book Chapter
LanguageEnglish
Published United Kingdom Edinburgh University Press 2006
Subjects
Constitution: government & the state
Constitutional & administrative law
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Summary:It is a commonplace that Britain has ‘representative government’; representative, that is, in the sense that the ultimate political authority, Parliament, has its main chamber elected on a franchise which includes, to all intents and purposes, all adult citizens. Moreover, elections are held to appoint the people’s representatives in other political authorities, such as local councils, the European Parliament, the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament. These bodies are examples of ‘indirect democracy’, in which citizens choose persons to ‘represent’ them and make decisions on their behalf. Edmund Burke, the great eighteenth-century parliamentarian, made the classic distinction between a ‘delegate’
ISBN:9780748622238
0748622233