Should UK adopt a written constitution considering advantages and disadvantages? , Should we have an EU referendum in 2015 , Brexiters don't like democracy or the law , We've built the EU for generations and I am not leaving! Investigating any wrongdoing relating to the referendum. Direct Democracy Democracy in which power over decision making is but directly in the hands of citizens. There are fundamentally three different types of referendum: An advisory referendum This is a referendum which allows citizens to express their opinion, but it is not binding on the government hence being called advisory. Vernon Bogdanor argues that just as joining the EU fundamentally altered the UK constitution, so Brexit could, by exposing the very nakedness of Britain's uncodified . A London School of Economics and Political Science report examining the financial impact of Brexit, trade and Scottish independence found that "the costs of independence to the Scottish economy . For example, David Cameron called the 2016 Referendum to deal with the electoral threat of UKIP whilst Tony Blair did not call a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, despite indicating he would do so. A referendum is a vote provided to the general public which is determined by the federal government, and is used to help answer a crucial political or constitutional concern to which the public need to vote a simple 'yes' or 'no'. (26 Jun 2012), Experiences of PR open list system? Under what process are referendums carried out? However, although referendums are important for democracy, referendums could be seen to be too complicated for the public to understand. They differ from elections- an election fills an office (so does not directly affect policy), whereas referendums do directly affect policy. This gives the final verdict a greater mandate than that received as the result of a General Election. The referendum device is one of the institutions of direct democracy that claim to measure and express the will of the people better than the institutions of representative democracy. . On 23 June 2016, the UK electorate voted to leave the European Union. . This makes it different to an election, where the electorate vote for a representative, and where the result might change the government. Referendums in the United Kingdom. Therefore, it is not really the exercise in direct democracy. Referendums provide constitutional changes that need the peoples assent. First Past the Post does not give equal voting power across the UK. The Scottish Independence Referendum of 2014 and the Brexit Referendum of 2016 are examples of this. Direct democracy - referendums give the public unmediated and direct control over a policy, making sure that the public's view is clearly articulated, not distorted by those who 'represent' them. PLEASE NOTE: We are currently in the process of updating this chapter and we appreciate your patience whilst this is being completed. Dont know where to start? 5. They are mainly designed to put pressure on a government who may themselves be refusing to offer a referendum. Advantages and disadvantages of FPTP system, Advantages and disadvantages of Two-Round System (TRS), Proportional representation related issues, Advantages and disadvantages of Parallel systems, Advantages & Disadvantages of Limited Vote, Electoral System Tiers and Hybrid Systems, Additional Issues Relevant to Post-conflict and Transitional Elections, Electing a President - First Past The Post, Electing a President - Preferential Voting, Electing a President - Distribution Requirements, Elections for Different Tiers of Governance, Electing Federal/State Assemblies and Autonomous Jurisdictions, Design and Political issues of Referendums, Advantages and disadvantages of the citizens initiative instrument, Advantages and disadvantages of the recall instrument, Cost and Administrative Implications of Electoral Systems, Electoral Systems and the Drawing of Electoral Boundaries, Electoral Systems and the Registration of Voters, Electoral Systems and the Design and Production of Ballot Papers, Electoral Systems and Number of Polling Days, Cost and administrative implications - conclusions, Bolivia: Electoral Reform in Latin America, Brazil: Candidate-Centred PR in a Presidential System, British Columbia: Empowered Citizen Participation, Chile: A System Frozen by Elite Interests. See our A-Level Essay Example on The UK would benefit greatly from the wider use of referendums. Discuss., United Kingdom now at Marked By Teachers. Conversely, in the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum the SNP at least published a White paper to show there were some plans for a potential exit. In 2014, had the population of Scotland voted to leave the UK then primary legislation would have had to have been passed to enable this. Political division in both the UK and Colombia has been markedly intensified by the 2016 campaigns there.. This is unsurprising, as they tend to be on significant issues. Independent schools provide a very positive learning environment for their pupils, with some of the best teacher-pupil ratios in the country, excellent learner support facilities and other resources . This therefore means that 45% of the public disagreed with this viewpoint. There is also an argument that governments . The advantages and disadvantages of different electrical energy sources. Such episodes served to highlight both the seductive attraction and grave perils of referendums for those who decide to hold them. Subsequent events showed that there was a wide dispersity of views on how Britain should leave the EU and what leaving even meant. This suggests that referendums are not usually a true rendering of the particular public wants an result to be. North-East Assembly 2004 rejected the idea of regional assemblies in the UK, with the North-East as the trial assembly. Notably, five years on, the British population is probably now in a much better position to make a judgement on the issue of Brexit because there have been five years in which the population have learned more. Why is the wording of the question so important in a referendum? . EU Withdrawal Act (2018) -Also known as the Great Repeal Act this repealed the European Communities Act (1972). There is also an argument that governments need a specific popular mandate for any transcendental changes that were not part of the original platform on which they campaigned. This can be seen in how Boris Johnson tried to approach Brexit upon becoming PM in July 2019 when he was willing (or at least appeared to be willing) to risk a No-Deal Brexit in the name of representing the 52% of the UK who voted to leave. The Scots referendum saw high levels of engagement in complex economic and constitutional issues. The only real advantage in an uncodified constitution is that it avoids all the problems involved in achieving a codified one. In this referendum 16-year-olds could vote. Brexit became incredibly emotionalised and was not a referendum in which facts seemed to mean for very much. Arguably, this makes the UK more democratic as the general public have a direct say on the decisions that the government makes and although they are not lawfully binding, they successfully require the federal government and parliament to adhere to the publics outcome. Referendums are the purest form of democracy as it is entirely up to the people to decide. They are particularly good with Social Law reform, Ireland has used them to good effect here. Take for instance, in Nigeria there is the 1999 . To what extent do the advantages of referendums outweigh the disadvantages? However, a clause in the bill said that 40% of the whole electorate had to vote yes and only 32.8% did so, Whether Britain should remain or leave the EEC, 67.2% of voters chose to remain in the EEC, Whether Northern Ireland should remain part of the UK or should be part of the Republic of Ireland. Whilst 52% of voters opted to leave the EU in the referendum, around 60% of MPs wanted to remain. Citizens are protected from an over-powerful government. This has happened a number of times, for example the Welsh Legislative Powers Referendum in 2011. One of the major advantages of a written constitution is the fact that it can be easily consulted. They are an example of direct democracy and contrast with the representative democracy that usually dominates politics in liberal democracies. In most elections this does not happen (especially under a proportional system) however in a referendum there is one winning side and one losing side. Referendums allow the people to participate in politics. The decision being put to the people meant it was legitimised. 4. (23 Jul 2013), Changes to electoral systems/voting from abroad? At least 22 francs per hour (18 euros, or $25) for each worker: This is the minimum wage proposal that the Swiss voted down on Sunday in a referendum.. . Students looking for free, top-notch essay and term paper samples on various topics. Energy and the environment. An example of this the Scottish referendum 2014, which saw 55% of the Scottish people vote no to independence. Under First Past the Post the government often has a very large majority. There are three reasons for this. However, there was little discussion on what leaving would mean and how Britain might leave the EU. View Do the advantages of referendums outweigh the disadvantages from MC 527 at Jackson State University. Advantages of referendums in regard to constitutional changes. Moreover, even when looking at the people who did vote and the outcome which was achieved, referendums can never truly represent everyone and meet societys needs as a whole. What are the Mechanisms for Reform and Amendment? A referendum on 5 May 2011 will ask UK voters whether they would like to replace the country's first past the post system with the alternative vote, or AV, method. Because if you dont, the political costs for both the leaders responsible and the country at large are often vast. Additionally, referendums can be used to educate the public and raise citizens' awareness of political issues. an academic expert within 3 minutes. Representative Democracy Democracy in which power over decision making is given to elected representatives. Advantages and Disadvantages of Brexit Introduction: This paper discusses about Pros and Cons of Brexit and Impact of Brexit on UK Economy. Several arguments are advanced in support of and in opposition to referendums. This is because electors lack the expertise to vote on complicated issues like Brexit. On June 23 rd, referendum was announced from European Union.It was perhaps a better decision at state level that why would their country be . Indeed, thats how I put it to my fellow European leaders: this is my strategy for keeping Britain in Europe. Several arguments are advanced in support of and in opposition to referendums. Referendums have to reduce complex issues to simple questions. Referendums can challenge parliamentary sovereignty and representative democracy. The question is usually designed to receive a 'yes' or 'no' answer. This infers that they can help to entrench constitutional change in a system which has an uncodified, flexible constitution and enables the public to shape the path in which Britain is heading. Get Revising is one of the trading names of The Student Room Group Ltd. Register Number: 04666380 (England and Wales), VAT No. Political division in both the UK and Colombia has been markedly intensified by the 2016 campaigns there. The UK's decision to leave the EU has left everyone wondering how it will affect people associated with business. (03 Mar 2014), Electoral reforms made by specific assemblies Depending on the precise rules adopted, referendums and initiatives What are the different types of referendums? The older term for a referendum is a PLEBISCITE . Now is the time for a peoples vote on the final deal.. The Tyranny of the Majority refers to a situation in which the winning side can claim all of the authority. The chaos seen after the Brexit Referendum result can in part be attributed to the failure to adequately plan for both potential scenarios. However, experts in Switzerland (where a number of direct democracy votes take place each year) believe that, although turnout at referendums is around 45%, more than 45% of electors participate in direct democracy, since different voters participate in the different votes that interest them. Whilst this bestows democratic legitimacy, voters are often not well-equipped to make these decisions. Scottish Devolution 1997 means that it would be extremely hard for a future government to remove their power. The turnout was below that required to make the result legally valid, but the government made it clear it would be taking the result as a mandate for action nevertheless. The pound depreciation as an aftereffect of Brexit. Advantages and disadvantages of the referendum instrument. This took place on both sides of the debate. We are driving innovation with industry and manufacturing partners to transform industries and deliver growth to our economies, thereby helping to improve peoples livelihoods. The levels of populism were a key criticism of the EU referendum in 2016 where both sides were accused of poor campaigning and misuse of facts and figures. But what is AV and how would it . 806 8067 22 2) What are the main a) advantages and b) disadvantages for the UK of an uncodified constitution? The results of referendums have had major consequences. To this end, the alternatives that are likely to fit best to the sides' interests will be . United Kingdom, Languages, Cultures, Art History and Music, Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering, Institute for Gravitational Wave Astronomy, Explore all Engineering and Physical Sciences Research, Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences, Explore all Life and Environmental Sciences Research, Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy, Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research, Explore all Medical and Dental Sciences Research, Histories of a Global University: Exploring Empire at the University of Birmingham, Dr Adam Quinn, Senior Lecturer in International Politics, Language, Cultures, Art History and Music, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, See all schools, departments, research and professional services. (10 Jul 2012), Advantages and disadvantages of sub-municipal wards 98.9% of voters chose to remain in the UK (the referendum was boycotted by nationalists). For many people Brexit was a magnificent exercise in democracy in Britain. The advantages and the disadvantages of referendums 'In the wake of the second world war, during the process of decolonisation, several countries broke free from their erstwhile colonial overlords following successful referendums. A referendum helps to make decisions legitimate and confirms the principle of government by consent. Those who see virtue in the idea of a more direct . In addition, they also had a say on whether . The result of this referendum was 80.7% in favour of independence. Sometimes an MP can be elected on a vote as low as only . It is worth noting that in terms of overall population that only 37% of the UK adult population actually voted for Brexit. PolitiFact | Whats missing from media claims linking Google Trends to Brexit vote, Prime Ministers Questions Highlights 12.10.2022, Whether Britain should remain or leave the EU, 55.3% of voters chose to remain in the UK, Whether the Alternative Vote should replace First Past the Post for UK General Elections, 67.9% of voters chose to retain First Past the Post, Welsh Assembly Legislative Powers Referendum, Whether the Welsh Assembly should be given more legislative powers, 63.5% of voters chose to increase the legislative powers of the Welsh Assembly, Whether the North-East of England should have its own devolved assembly, 77.9% of voters chose to reject the establishment of a North-East Assembly, Whether the Good Friday agreement should be ratified, 71.1% of voters chose to ratify the Good Friday Agreement, Whether devolution should be granted to Greater London, 72% of of voters chose to establish a devolved system for London, Whether devolution should be introduced to Wales, 50.3% of voters chose to devolve powers to Wales, Whether devolution should be introduced to Scotland, 74.3% of voters chose to devolve players to Scotland, 79.7% of voters chose to reject devolution to Wales, 51.6% of voters chose to devolve powers to Scotland. A good example of this is the Good Friday Referendum in 1998 which confirmed the history agreement made in Belfast and set out how devolution would work in Northern Ireland. Advantages and disadvantages of the referendum instrument Several arguments are advanced in support of and in opposition to referendums. Referendums can settle long-standing and controversial issues once and for all. Referendums can often be hijacked by other issues. Referendums can be advisory (where the government does not have to implement the result), or binding (where the government is compelled to enact the result). There are a number of potential strengths of holding referendums within the UK political system: It can be argued that referendums provide a check on the power of the government in the UK, something that is often referred to as the elective dictatorship. They can be seen as advantages for the democracy but also as disadvantages. This protects representatives in the future from some of the political comeback if the decision appears to be misguided. On the other hand, there are two very stark downsides to choosing a referendum as the way to resolve an issue. There is therefore a danger of neverendums. Brexit was . . 5. It says the cost of meeting the 60% carbon reduction goal, based on estimates from models of the energy system and economy, amount to between 0.3% and 1.5% of GDP, or in the range of 1.6bn to 12bn per year. Has sovereignty moved between different branches of government? Free Trade . (25 marks) Referendums are a For more information on this licence see: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0 . Don't use plagiarized sources. Advantages and disadvantages of referendums ----- One of the arguments put forward against referendums is that they tend to simplify complicated problems and reduce them to yes or no answers. Is the Prime Minister Effectively a President? You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the publication, and to remix and adapt it, provided it is only for non-commercial purposes, that you appropriately attribute the publication and that you distribute it under an identical license. We explore what it means to be human in historical and cultural contexts, within ethical and legal norms and through languages and communication. However, since the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 the Conservative Party had been deeply divided by the issue of the European Union. Subsequently, when Brexit was not immediately forthcoming, led to allegations that Parliament had betrayed the people. . Referendums are held only at the discretion of the Government. 3. List of the Pros of Referendums. Reproduced by permission of International IDEA from Electoral System Design: The New International IDEA Handbook 2005 International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance The electronic version of this publication is made available under a Creative Commons Attribute-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) licence. Now is the time for leadership, not followship. The first UK-wide referendum was held in __1975 __on the United Kingdoms continued membership of the European Community (European Union). First is their intrinsic worth as an exercise in direct democracy. They also claim that, since in many countries turnout at referendums is lower than at national elections, the argument that referendums increase the legitimacy of political decisions does not stand up. Referendum A general vote by the population on a single issue. Supporters of the use of referendums argue that, in the context of increasing voter apathy and disenchantment with traditional forms of democracy, direct democracy can help to re-engage voters with politics and democracy. Unreliable views - referendums provide a gauge of public opinion at a given time, therefore being an unreliable guide to public interest and an inappropriate means of approving constitutional decisions that will have far-reaching, long-term implications. Ill-informed decisions - the general public are less informed than elected politicians, and have no political experience. -provides a clear answer to a specific question. Following the results of the Brexit referendum, the pound dropped 16.5% against the US dollar until the end of 2016, the lowest level of the pound in 31 years, due to high uncertainty in the world economy caused by Britain's decision to leave the EU. (one example of this is the 1975 UK referendum on whether the UK should remain in the EC, an issue over which the ruling Labour government was deeply divided). The public's interests are therefore best protected by 'government by politicians' rather than self-government. Revise the impact of the Brexit referendum of 2016 in which the UK voted to leave the European Union, as part of Bitesize Higher Modern Studies (10 Apr 2012), Paramount chieftaincy as a system of local government As a response to the seeming public mood At times there may be circumstances in which there is a suggestion that the public mood on an issue deserves to be tested. However, referendums counteract this problem. For example, Good Friday Agreement . The contribute demonstrate in eleven main reasons why the turnout requirement should be abolished: the vote should be free and decisive, meaning that citizens who participate in a referendum . Those who see virtue in the idea of a more direct link between the popular will and the levers of power therefore admire them as an instrument of empowerment for the too-often neglected people. Advantages. Those votes cast in marginal seats have much weight than those in safe seats where a vote is very unlikely to make a difference. As a result of the legitimacy that a direct vote bestows, they can have an enormous impact in settling controversial issues. Referendums are used to ensure that the public are happy with the decisions in which the government makes. Some did so, others could not. So why is this and what might the advantages and disadvantages of referendums be? The scenario changed since 2013 when the British Prime Minister David Cameron put forward the plan of holding a referendum on continuation of their membership with European Union. They therefore become dominated by populism. This would allow him to lead a yes campaign. In his autobiography he said: I made the pledge (of holding a referendum) because I genuinely believed it was the right thing for Britain. Many people felt that their voices were heard where they had not been before. On Thursday 23 June 2016 a referendum was held in order to come to a decision if the UK should remain a member of EU and more than 30 million people have voted. 806 8067 22, Registered office: International House, Queens Road, Brighton, BN1 3XE, Advantages and Disadvantages of Referendum, See all Government & Politics resources , Can someone please give me feedback on my A-Level Politics essay? (28 May 2019), "Head of list" election model It highlighted some advantages and disadvantages of putting decisions directly in the hands of citizens. China: Village Committee Elections: First Steps on a Long March? Referendums and consultations are a form of political education for the general population. Second, many technology firms rely on inventors from all . Many prominent figures in British Politics had openly spoken out about the potential use of referendums in the UK: I could not consent to the introduction into our national life of a device so alien to all our traditions as the referendum which has only too often been the instrument of Nazism and fascism Clement Attlee, The late Lord Attlee was right when he said that the referendum was a device of dictators and demagogues Margaret Thatcher. Constitutional issues. Secondary Legislation Legislation that is delegated to Ministers or another body. Reserved Power Powers that are kept by the Westminster Government and not devolved, for example Defence. Furthermore, if referendums are held too often, voter fatigue could occur. For example, an individual might not understand the significance of their vote to a political question, and that it can have long term effects that they may not take into considerationwhilst voting. 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