Category: Politics

Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) began as a concession to elderly Prime Ministers. In 1881, when PM Gladstone was seventy-one, it was decided that he should only field questions at the end of each day’s Parliamentary schedule. Then in 1953, this was reduced to just Tuesdays and Thursdays for the seventy-eight-year-old PM Churchill.

In 1961, a 15-minute time limit was set for mid-afternoon, but in 1997 PM Blair scrapped that for the single 12.00-12.30pm time-slot on Wednesdays that we have today. As well as these changes, the event itself has gradually taken on the characteristics of a cross between a piece of theatre and a school gang confrontation. Although it can be a showcase of a PM’s and Opposition Leader’s debating skills and wit, it often subsides into snide point-scoring and general rowdiness.

Questions are submitted beforehand and picked at random. It is normal for an MP to submit a standard question on the PM’s list of engagements for that day, which can then be followed up by a supplementary question (the real question), for which the PM has had no notice. Since this is outwardly the most exciting part of the Parliamentary week, tickets to sit in the public gallery are in high demand.

(Top image: Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0)

Newspapers and TV focus heavily on just two political parties ~ Conservative and Labour ~ but there are currently almost four hundred registered parties in the UK. These are regulated by the Electoral Commission, which assesses applications, checks annual accounts and monitors compliance with the law.

The application process is quite easy. A group of like-minded people must choose a unique name and logo for their party; write a constitution, procedures and policies; produce a financial plan; choose in which parts of the UK to stand; submit headquarters details; appoint a leader and other officials; sign a commitment to stand in at least one election; and pay the £150 application fee. It is then for the Electoral Commission to decide whether to grant registration.

Once a party has ceased being active, it must de-register. Nearly a thousand such parties are on the Commission’s website, dating only from 1999. The oldest political party in the UK was the Whig party, founded in 1678 and disbanded in 1868, and the newest, at the time of writing, is called Londependence (make London an independent state), which almost certainly stands no chance of matching the Whigs’ longevity.

(Image: MariSmithPix at pixabay.com)

The UK was one of the original twelve members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) when it was formed in 1949. Its aim was to keep the peace in western Europe by diplomacy and by the potential military threat of the twelve countries acting together, the most powerful by far being the USA. If one country were to come under attack, the others might rush to its defence, if they saw fit.

The UK, as a founder member, sees itself as having a major role, behind the USA. Our membership comes under the remit of the Department for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs and it is described as being of fundamental importance to our national security. However, after 70 years of NATO, much has changed and there are many commentators who say that it creates more problems than it solves, and that it should be disbanded or at least reformed.

There are twenty-nine member countries today, vastly over-stretching NATO’s reach. Most of these do not spend the pledged 2% of GDP on their own defence, unlike the UK, which participates in all NATO operations and is “Europe’s largest defence power” (see video below).

(Top image of British soldiers in Estonia: NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organisation at Flickr.com / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

‘Suffrage’ is the right to vote. ‘Suffragists’ were those who were campaigning for women’s suffrage in the late 1800s. They lobbied MPs and had a lot of support, but the majority Liberals obstructed the matter. The Women’s Social & Political Union was formed in 1903 to force change by less peaceful means. They gained the name ‘Suffragettes‘, when a newspaper used it as a derogatory term in 1906.

Although their civil disruption and vandalism brought publicity, it probably hindered their cause, as the government could not appear to be influenced by subversive action. The Suffragettes held marches but also smashed windows, set fire to and bombed municipal buildings, theatres, shops, sports grounds, churches, railways, houses, hotels, telegraph poles and postboxes, and sent letter bombs. Many were jailed and went on hunger strike. One Suffragette died after walking out in front of a galloping horse at the Epsom Derby.

World War 1 was the turning point for the women’s suffrage movement, as it showed the capabilities of women in the absence of men. The first granting of the vote was given immediately after it, albeit only to women over 30 with property. Ten years later there was equality with men, when all women over 18 could vote.

(Image of statue of Emmeline Pankhurst, leader of the Suffragettes: David Dixon at geograph.org.uk / CC BY-SA 2.0)

Lord John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946) was born in Cambridge, where his father taught economics at the University. An extremely bright and self-assured child, he went to Eton before attending Cambridge University as a student. After one economics exam in which, for a change, he did not gain top marks, he maintained that it showed he knew more than the examiner!

With a career in finance, the gifted but restless Keynes started to publish books and essays setting out his ideas. He produced ‘The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money’ in 1936 in the midst of the Great Depression. It argued against the free market hands-off policy that allowed cycles of boom and bust. Instead, Keynes advocated proactive government intervention ~ borrow, lower taxes and interest rates and spend in a recession, and do the opposite once the economy has recovered.

This became known as Keynesian economics and for forty years it helped governments across the world to steady and gradually improve their nations’ economies. Keynes was against fat-cat salaries, speculating to over-accumulate and hoarding money away, as this does not help the cycle that connects spending to earning for the whole population. His ideas saw a resurgence in the financial collapse of 2008.

(Image from 1933: Wikimedia Commons / Public domain)

The role of the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the Treasury) is to raise revenue by taxation, duties and borrowing, control how that is spent and set the government’s  monetary policies. Such a big responsibility requires a big personality, able to withstand criticism and the stress of continual requests for funding from the other government departments and a multitude of lobbyists. Many Chancellors are sacked or resign under the pressure.

The Chancellor’s official residence is at 11 Downing Street, next door to the Prime Minister, with connecting doors to number 10 on each floor. It is highly desirable that there is a good relationship between these two neighbours, as their decisions must be supported by each other. The correct financial and economic policies are major factors in how successful a government is judged to be.

Once a year the Chancellor presents The Budget to Parliament, which can take hours and is the only time alcoholic drinks are permitted for someone making a speech! It includes an assessment of current fiscal health and plans for the next twelve months, some of which can take effect immediately. It is a Chancellor’s spot in the limelight and inevitably determines his level of popularity with the public.

(Image: Foreign & Commonwealth Office at Flickr.com / CC BY 2.0)

Members of Parliament (MPs) are expected to be available to meet individual members of their constituency to advise and assist where possible. For many MPs this is weekly, for an hour or two on a Friday at a library or a community centre, and this will be publicised on the MP’s website or in the local newspapers.

These sessions are called ‘MPs’ surgeries‘, in a parallel with a doctor being available for consultation. It is often necessary to make an appointment for a 10-minute slot, but less high-profile MPs may decide to skip this. Some MPs have strict rules on attendance at surgeries (especially after the brutal murder of MP Sir David Amess at his surgery in 2021) ~ bags and briefcases may be banned and full details of the discussion point may be requested beforehand to allow the MP to prepare.

Appropriate issues to raise are matters of perceived unfair treatment by the law or the government’s policies, or putting forward a policy suggestion that would benefit others. An MP may take up a case if they feel it is warranted, via their privileged access, or they may be able to write a pertinent letter to an organisation on your behalf.

(Image: pxhere.com)

Baroness Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013) was a force for change in the UK throughout the 1980s, such that the term ‘Thatcherism’ is applied to her political legacy. Born in Lincolnshire, Margaret Thatcher attended Oxford University and became a research chemist, then a tax barrister, before being elected as a Conservative Member of Parliament in 1959. Twenty years later, she became the UK’s first female Prime Minister.

Due to her self-assured leadership style she was dubbed ‘the Iron Lady’, a term which she used to her advantage. She was a deep thinker and took great care in reaching an informed opinion. She was Prime Minister for three consecutive terms from 1979 to 1990, the longest period for any PM in the 20th century.

Under her premiership, the UK experienced the privatisation of state-owned utilities, the sale of council houses, the Falklands Conflict, the closure of coal mines, the saving of grammar schools and deregulation of the financial sector. Her stand against a European Union ~ a federal Europe ~ and a European currency eventually saw her resign, but her arguments still resonate today:-

“What is the point of trying to get elected to Parliament only to hand over Sterling and the powers of this House to Europe?”

(Image: Levan Ramishvili at Flickr.com / Public domain)

The kingdom of Scotland had its own government institution for more than four centuries prior to 1707, when it became part of Britain. It was then governed from London until 1999. Since then, the Scottish Parliament and government jointly have responsibility for policy areas such as law, healthcare, immigration, consumer rights, energy, employment and industrial legislation in Scotland.

There are 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and the Scottish government is made up of the political party with the most MSPs. The Scottish election procedure is similar to the one for the Welsh Assembly ~ one vote for the local constituency MSP (there are 73 of those) and one for the regional MSP (the other 56), the aim of which is to bring more balance.

The monarch’s approval must be obtained for the appointment of all Scottish Ministers. The leader is called the First Minister. The Scottish Parliament Building was constructed next to Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh and was completed in 2004. Its Spanish architect is said to have strewn twigs and leaves on the table in order to represent his design concept. The finished building received many awards but at a price ~ some £414,400,000.

(Image of one façade of Scottish Parliament Building: Tim Hallam at geograph.org.uk / CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Prime Minister, other senior Ministers and various key parliamentary personnel must keep in close contact on a weekly basis if the country’s political system is to run smoothly. The Cabinet is a rather apt name for this group of decision-makers, since they must meet in private, behind closed doors.

Their meeting room is at 10 Downing Street and the most senior civil servant takes the role of Cabinet Secretary. Members of the Cabinet are chosen by the Prime Minister and while they are usually MPs, other people can be selected in order to fill a gap in a policy area. The Prime Minister sometimes conducts a ‘Cabinet re-shuffle’ in which the members may be moved to different Departments, or be replaced altogether.

The main opposition party has a ‘Shadow Cabinet’ consisting of their own MPs, which gives their critical opinion on the policies and decisions of the main Cabinet. In both Cabinets, agreed decisions must always be publicly supported and voted for by the members, even if they do not personally agree with them.

(Image: Number 10 at Flickr.com CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

King John (1166-1216) has two claims to fame: as the usurping Prince John of the Robin Hood legend; and, as King, putting his seal on the parchment copies of Magna Carta Libertatum (‘the Great Charter of Liberties’) of 1215, held up as the foundation of modern democracy. In fact, King John only agreed to Magna Carta under duress and almost immediately had it annulled by the Pope, who considered England part of his papal territory.

King John was facing rebellion by the English Barons, who were fed up with him seizing their lands and demanding ever higher taxes for disastrous wars in France and his brother Richard’s Crusading exploits. Magna Carta made little difference to King John’s conduct, but it placated the Barons for a few weeks.

Magna Carta was re-issued by successive monarchs who took it a little more seriously. A copy of the 1297 version is held in the National Archives in the USA and another in Parliament House in Australia. The 1215 version can be seen at the British Library, Salisbury Cathedral and Lincoln Castle. As a contract with the people, it is outside of Parliament’s remit and cannot be repealed.

(Image of statue at Runnymede: Colin Smith at geograph.org.uk / CC BY-SA 2.0)