democracy and participation

what is a pressure group

membership based association whose aim is to influence policy making without seeking power

functions of pressure groups

-represent and promote the interests of certain parts of the community

-protect interests of minority groups

-educate the public about key political issues

-hold gov to account

what are the two types of pressure groups

casual groups

sectional groups

casual groups

an association whose goal is to promote a particular cause, favourable legislation, or bring an issue onto the political agenda

sectional groups

association which has identifiable membership, represents a section of society, mainly concerned with their own interests

insider pressure groups

close links with decision makers

involved with policy making

employ professional lobbyists

testify before parliamentary committees

outsider pressure groups

promotional groups

use of public campaigning

mass strikes

do not need to follow gov standards

methods used by pressure groups

public campaigning

lobbying

media campaigns

direct action

advantages of direct democracy

equal weight to all votes

encourages popular participation in politics

encourages genuine debate and political education

disadvantages of direct democracy

impractical in a large modern state

open to manipulation

minority viewpoints not represented

what technology is used in politics

e petitions

media campaigns

ads and attack ads

fake news and misinformation

diversity in parliament

women make up 41% of commons

ethnic minorities make up 14% of commons

20% LGBTQ+ of commons

when was the human rights act

1998

abu qatada case

ECHR prevented qatada from being deported as the treatment he would face in jordan would breach his human rights

2013 he was eventually deported

took from 2002-2013 for the case to be ended

two examples of social movements

Stop the war coalition

occupy movement

what is extinction rebellion

pressure group that aims to raise awareness about threats to the environment

made up of 1080 national, regional and local groups who believe in non violent direct action

causual, outsider, direct action

what are think tanks

body of experts providing advice and ideas on specific political or economic problems

problems with fptp

favours larger parties with concentrated support

in 2015 skip won 3 mil votes but only awarded one seat

undermines minorities which decreases legitimancy

2024 labour majority on 33% of the vote

advantages of fptp

preferred elctoral system

intoduces strong majority govs and protects minorities

keeps out extremist parties

encourages more stable democracy

voter turnout negative

decline in turnout shows complete apathy 60% in 2024

people feel votes are wasted in fptp

low party membership

weakening of trust and interest in politics

positive voter turnout and political dissoloutionment points

increase in pressure group membership shows people are engaging in democracy in other ways

high turn out at some elections e.g. 80% at scottish independence refferendum

1 mil turnout for 2003 iraq war protest

voter apathy can be seen as dislike of fptp

negative social representation points

some groups are excluded from voting such as u18s, homeless, prisoners, peers serving in HoL

lack of representation in politics

41% women in HoC 2024, still underrepresented

20% of mps privately educated

social representation positive points

devolution meaning decision making is closer to the people

2024 gov has highest proportion of females ever

reforms made to house of lords to reduce hereditary peers

evaluate the extent to which the uk has a democratic defeceit

first past the post

voter turnout and political dissoloutionment

social representation

positive impact of think tanks on democracy

can scrutinise gov plans to ensure effectiveness

promotes a pluralist and well educated society

research and development of ideas

negative impacts of think tanks on democracy

research can be produced to support a particular viewpoint which may not be in public interest

research often supports the demands of their donors

positive impact of lobbyists on democracy

allows people to express their views to people in power

can help improve legislation by offering advice and perspective that may otherwise have been missed

negative impact of lobbyists on democracy

potential danger of byspassing the law and infleuncing large numbers of mps

benefits those with money

undermines confidence in politics

2 mil per year is spent on lobbying by organisations

negative impact of corporations on democracy

great insider influence

able to resist legislation such as tax increases

positive impact of corporations on democracy

type of sectional pressure group

able to lobby the gov

examples of sectional groups

national union of teachers

British medical association

examples of causual groups

amnesty international

greenpeace

example of insider groups

national farmers union

britsih medical association

examples of outsider groups

animal liberation front

plane stupid

pros of representative democracy

repreentatives better informed to make political decisionns

interests and demands of voters can influence policy

public can hold representatives accountable

works in larger states

cons of representative democracy

may lead to inaccurate representation depending on how mandy people vote

representaives may choose to act in their own interests

representaives often come from a narrow class background

methods used by liberty

publicity through social media

legal challenged over rights abuse

protests and public demonstrations

strengths of liberty

august 2020 won a court of appeal against wales police over facial recognition technology

2020 used HRA to pressurise Bournemouth council into removing parts of the public spaces protection act that had been used to criminalise rough sleepers

strengths of amnesty international

write for rights - released a number of people held in prison

campaign to give compensation for farmers in nigeria after a major oil spill which led to shell corporation paying 84 mil in compensation

failures of amnesty international

failed to persuade the vatican to remove its objections to abortion

excessive pay for its top individuals

direct democracy

all individuals express their opinions themsleves and not through representatives

examples of neutral think tanks

chatham house (international affairs)

demos (current political issues)

left wing think tanks

fabian society (social justice)

right wing think tanks

adam smith institute (free market soloutions to economic issues)

centre for policy studies (promoting ideas popular in the thatcher years)

freedom of infrmation act 2000

allows citizens to see information held by public bodies

invalaubel tool for social and political campaigners

equality act 2010

equality is require and discrimination outlawed

collective rights

right of public figures to keep their private lives private

right of community to be prtected from terroism

right of community to freedom of movement

individual rights

freedom of expression

right to privacy

right to press freedom

right to strike

Campbell vs mirror group news case study

2001 mirror nwspaper published pictures of naomi campbell leaving a narcotic addiction clinic

right to privacy vs right to freedom of expression

campell sued the mirror over her right to privacy but the mirror argues they had the freedom to publish what they wanted

law lords ruled that her right to privacy outweighed the mirrors right to freedom of expression

pluralist democracy

gov makes decisions as a result of interplay of various ideas and contrasting arguments from competing groups and organisations