Advantages and Disadvantages of Bicameralism

Bicameral literally means 'two-Chamber'.

A bicameral parliament is one that contains two separate assemblies who must both agree when new laws are made.

The UK Parliament is bicameral because both the House of Commons and the House of Lords are involved in making legislation.

Parliaments with only one Chamber are described as unicameral.

• Advantages:

  • Provides a system of checks and balances on the first chamber

    • Ensures that legislation is thoroughly reviewed before becoming law

  • Effectively check the executive

  • Allows for thorough scrutiny of legislation

    • Provides more time for careful examinations of bills

  • Encourages debate and discussion

    • Leads to more comprehensive and representative laws

  • Allows for a diversity of opinions and interests to be represented in the legislative process

    • Especially in federal states by giving representation to the regions

      • Leads to more equitable and balanced policy-making that takes into account the unique needs of different areas

  • Constitutional safeguard

    • Ability to delay the passage of bills until they’ve been debated enough

• Disadvantages:

  • Unnecessarily costly

  • Doesn’t necessarily represent the electorate as is often conservative

  • Delays legislation

    • This slows down the task of govt, making it harder to address urgent issues and respond effectively to the needs of the populace

  • Can lead to gridlock, where the two chambers disagree and fail to pass legislation

    • This can be as one party dominates one chamber and one party dominates the other

  • May result in increased complexity and inefficiency in the law-making process

    • As it performs no useful role that cannot be covered by a streamlined lower house

  • Potential for duplication of efforts and resources between the two chambers