Sociology

Britain, while being one of the classic democracies of the world, cannot today be called an entirely democratic country.  Democracy, as defined by Oxford Dictionary, is a form of government in which the people have a voice in the exercise of power, typically through elected representatives. Democracy, in todays world is institutionalized in a variety of forms, including the Presidential system, the Semi-presidential system, the Constitutional Republic, and of course, Constitutional Monarchy. Constitutional Monarchy, which the United Kingdom follows, is a system similar to the Constitutional Republic, the difference being that instead of the President, the head of state is the Monarch. To evaluate and analyze democracy in Britain, it is necessary to evaluate and analyze the various institutions of the government, as well as the rights given to the citizens of the nations. Parliamentary Development, impartiality of the electoral system, access to Human Rights and Justice, Freedom of Press, Decentralization and local governance, as well as an accountable, transparent administration are some recognized essentials of a democracy. Evaluation of a democracy is incomplete without these features. The importance of a democracy, not just in Britain, but in all nations, is paramount. Democracy recognizes the need for accountability of the government, ensures justice, liberty and equality for all, and establishes favourable conditions for the development of man and society. It encourages free thought, innovations and progress. Guaranteeing human rights, and ensuring a representative government, has improved the lives of men and women considerably.

Britain, with a long history of inequality under the monarchs, has prospered under democracy. Democracy, in the history of Britain is fairly recent phenomenon. Britain has a long history of absolute monarchy and only after 1850, with the emergence of democratic reforms in Europe and USA, trade unions, other pressure groups, as well as the creation of the mercantile class, did Britain become a democracy. This was a gradual change. Unlike countries like France and the United States, Britain did not become a democracy through revolution. It was not through the uprising of the people, but through slow increase in the parliaments power, that resulted in a democracy. Through the middle ages and the early modern period, there were four kingdoms in Great Britain, Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales, all of which developed their own parliaments. As Wales, Scotland and Ireland were annexed in the acts of 1535-42, 1707 and 1800 respectively, they all got representation in the parliament of Great Britain. However, the democratization of Britain, a process which took over 200 years is said to have started only in the 17th century. The English Civil War, from 1643- 51, a series of civil wars waged between the Parliamentarians and the Royalists, ended with the parliamentary victory, the execution of Charles I and the exile of his son, Charles II. The Commonwealth of England replaced the monarchy, but this was short-lived and Oliver Cromwell established the Protectorate, under his personal rule. However, in 1660, the English restoration began, with Charles II re-establishing the English monarchy. The Glorious Revolution of 1668, which replaced King James II with his son-in-law and daughter, William of Orange-Nassau and Mary, re-established a strong parliament. The parliament then passed the acts of 1689 and 1701, which lawfully upheld the existence of a parliament. However, suffrage for all men was achieved only in 1884 and in 1928 for women. This has led many to believe that this lack of a revolution, of resistance and the comparatively slow development of human rights have weakened the democratic foundations of Britain.

The British Constitution is considered to be an unwritten constitution, as there is no single document that is held to be the constitution. There are several written sources that exist like statutes, court judgments and treaties as well as unwritten ones like parliamentary constitutional conventions and royal prerogatives. However, there is a belief that this lack of a written constitution has resulted in an excessively powerful parliament. While supporters of this form of constitution claim that this makes the system flexible, most believe that this lack of a written constitution has ensured that the there are no checks on the power of the parliament and that fundamental rights of British citizens can be abridged by them. While the accountability of British politicians to the people is used to extol the democratic nature of the political system, the argument is a weak one, as accountable or not, the parliament has the power to pass laws as it pleases. History Learning Site, 2010 This lack of constitution is therefore considered to be highly undemocratic and to be merely a faade constitution. Barendt 1997 The British Political system has three arms- the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary. Her Majestys Government in the United Kingdom is the Executive branch of the government, consisting of the Monarch, the Crown, the Privy Council, the cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister, and Her Majestys Civil Services.

The executive is responsible for the daily administration of the state. The legislative, i.e. the Parliament, in the United Kingdom, is bicameral in nature. There is a House of Commons, the lower house of the parliament, which is democratically elected, through the first-past-the-post system. The members of this house serve a five year term. The House of Lords, which is the upper house of the parliament, originally consisting of only hereditary peers, is now also open to citizens of England and Ireland. The legislative also consists of the Sovereign, and Her Majestys Loyal Opposition. The judiciary of the United Kingdom consists of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, which is the apex court in the country, the courts of England and Wales, court of Scotland and the court of Northern Ireland. This separation of powers of the government into independent executive, legislative and judiciary bodies is an important aspect of democracy in Britain. However, there are many who feel that there is an overlap in the powers, and that there is need for clearer distribution of powers. For example, the Prime minister, who is a leading member of the executive, is also an active member of the legislature and the Lord Chancellor, who is a member of the cabinet, is also the Head of the Judiciary. This overlap of jurisdiction has been criticized by those who believe that this is undemocratic. Their opponents, however, believe that this is essential for the flexibility of the government, relying on democratic and political principles rather than on rules and procedure. LLRX, 2010 The United Kingdom, has historically, had only two major political parties- the liberals and the conservatives, who are traditionally centre-right. The Labour party, which is centre-left, emerged in the early part of the 20th century, while the liberals, after a collapse, went on to become the Social Democrats, who are centrist libertarians in the 1980s. Other than the few minor parties that also contest elections, the only other major parties are the Scottish National Party and the Plaid Cymru. This two-party system gives the voter very little choice, and often reduces representation. Currently, there are six electoral systems in Britain- First Past the Post, Single Transferable Vote, Multi-Member Plurality System, Additional Member System, and Party List and Supplementary vote system. However, the electoral system itself has many flaws, and is believed to not completely represent the needs of the people. There have been many calls for Electoral reform in Britain, many suggesting that instead of first past-the-post, a system of proportional representation be introduced. Proponents of reform believe that it will be more representative, votes will not be wasted, and voter choice will increase. The large majorities that many parties enjoy will reduce and coalition politics will increase the representation of the variety of views of the public.

Elections in the UK have also very poor voter turnouts, which is a concern for many political parties. In order to increase public participation, which is low as reflected in the public apathy towards voting, public meetings, consultation documents, cooption to council committees, opinion polls, surveys, and citizen panels are encouraged by governments. Wilson, 2010 Public participation, essential to government, is considered by some to be extremely important for the progress of democracy and for the proper implementation of people-friendly policies. However, this public participation is very often fruitless, with views going unheard, and plans rarely implemented. Scrutiny of the Government, an important aspect of democracy, is also required in order to maintain checks and balances. It comes in various forms, through the media, opposition political parties, pressure groups, as well as citizens. In order to ensure that the government does not become autocratic, to reduce corruption, increase efficiency of government bodies and to prevent violation of rights, scrutiny of the government is encouraged. At the same time, this scrutiny of every action of the government slows down the administration, increases paperwork and red tape, and can divert attention from more important issues. Trade unions form a very important part of the British political system. While trade unions protect worker rights by negotiating wages, workplace safety policies, employment policies, complaint procedures and the firing, hiring and promotion of workers Webb  Webb, 1920, they also disrupt economic activity, increase unemployment rates by raising labour prices, and cause inflation. Friedman  Friedman, 1979 Many trade unions have also been criticized for having racist and anti-immigrant policies. While analyzing a democracy, it is also important to consider rights given to citizens, especially human rights.

The development of human rights has been very slow, with slavery being abolished as late as the 19th century. Many from disadvantaged groups in UK continue to struggle to enjoy equality in terms of right to work, housing and health. One of the major criticisms of democratic Britain is its participation in an undemocratic EU. Many feel that the lack of legitimacy in the EUs institutions and the lack of participation of its citizens undermine the EU. There have been a lot of protests within Britain regarding its participation in an undemocratic organization. Many feel that as long as Britain is part of the EU, it will never be completely democratic.