Parliaments Representative function

What is Parliament at the heart of?

UK’s representative democracy

Why is the HOC responsible for being representative?

Because it is the elected chamber

How many MPs represent a constituency?

All 650

What do most MPs hold in their constituencies

Surgeries where people can ask for help and talk about local issues

What are the 2 models of representation that MPs can chose to follow

Trustee model

Delegate model

What is the trustee model

MPs make decisions based on their own opinion

What is the Delegate model?

MPs make judgements based on their constituencies judgements

Also known as mandate

What are the two ways to judge how representative parliament is

Social ( descriptive ) representation

Political representation

What is social representation

How well parliament represents the make up of the United Kingdom in terms of gender ethnicity class etc

What is political representation

How far MPs and peers decisions reflect the wants and needs of the public

What is a strength of social representation in the UK for gender?

In 2024 women made up 41% of the HOC

What was the % of women in the HOC in 2005

under 20%

What is a strength of social representation sexuality?

In 2024 Parliament has 64 LGBTQ representatives

highest in the world

What is a strength for social representation ethnicity

2024 14% of MPs came from ethnic minority

What was the 2001 ethnic representative %

under 2%

However what was the % of peers who were ethnic minority in 2019

6%

What % of MPs in 2019 were graduates?

87%

What % of UK population had an undergraduate degree in 2023

54%

What % of MPs elected in 2024 went to private school?

23%

What % of the population went to private schools in 2024

7%

What do an overwhelming amount of constituents believe?

MPs are detached from the real life experience of their constituency because they do not represent them

What are there different views on?

How politically representative parliament is

How many non party affiliated members does the UK legislature have

over 200

What does a large amount of non affiliated members mean for political representation

it reduced the fact that partisanship dominates Political representation

What is Parliament in the world

Second largest legislature

What does parliament being second largest legislature in the world mean for political representation?

There is plenty of scope for minority interests to be represented

How do referendums show political representation?

Parliament has enacted them and because it is direct democracy it is representative of what the people want

Why may Parliament not be representative by the HOL

Hereditary peers who gained merit based on their blood line

What % were hereditary peers more likely to mention their own business interests compared to life peers in Lords debates

60% from 2016-2021

How many MPs were suspended from the HOC between 2019 and 2024

20

What do MPs being suspended show for political representation?

they clearly fail to uphold the expected standard

What have their been a number of?

High profile lobbying scandals

What does a high number of lobbying scandals show for political representation?

MPs and Peers prioritise their own financial interests