Written by Brooke Grifiths (Nov 2007)
Introduction
Throughout this essay i will explore the relationships between Members of Parliament, Political parties and Pressure groups in the formation of legislation and how they all have different effects on influencing on each other. I will briefly look into the legislative process and Acts of Parliament. I will also consider the different roles and responsibilities of MP's, Political parties and Pressure groups and asses how these three bodies link in the form of legislation.
How are laws made today?
The main legislative body in the United Kingdom today is Parliament, consisting of the House of Commons, House of Lords and the Monarchy. Although MP's and the House of Lords vote on legislation, members of the public are also able to become involved in particular stages of the Legislative Process.
Legislative Process
Under this procedure, both Houses of Parliament must vote in favour of the Bill before it can become an Act of Parliament. Before an Act is accepted, it is known as a Bill, this Bill has to go through and successfully complete a lengthy process called the Legislative Process. In this process, firstly the Bill is drafted. It will then go to the First reading stage in the House of Commons where the name and aims of the Bill are read out. If the Bill is accepted at this stage then it will proceed to the Second reading (also in the House of Commons). This is the most important stage of the process where the main debate and details of the Bill are discussed by MP's. There will then be another vote in which the majority of MP's must be in favour of the Bill for it to go any further. The Bill will then be passed to the committee stage where a detailed examination of the Bill will take place by a committee between 16 to 50 MP's. At this point, if any amendments (changes) have been made to the Bill then it will be put forward to a report stage. At this stage the committee is able to report back the changes to the relevant House. There will then be a third and final reading where a final vote on the Bill will be made. The Bill then progresses forward for the whole process to be repeated in the House of Lords. Finally, the Bill will be given Royal assent where the monarch approves the Bill, here it will finally become an Act of Parliament which will come into force at midnight of that day.
Members of Parliament and their influences on legislation
A Member of Parliament is elected by local citizens to represent them in the Houses of Parliament. They have many responsibilities within three main groups. These groups are their constituents/constituency (who they are elected to serve) , Parliament and their Political party.
An MP's main role is to suggest new laws which in the end reflect the objectives of their parties manifesto. MP's support their party by voting with the leadership and acting as the representative for their party in the constituency. They are also there to tackle problems and compromise things that arise from the central Government and ensure that their constituencies needs are as closely met as possible. For example, citizens are able to put forward a question to their local MP which they could asked to be put forward in Parliament. If a constituent puts enough pressure on an MP they are able to table a Parliamentary question to the Government, or if it concerns a subject they feel strongly about they can table a 'early day motion', which sometimes leads to a Private members Bill which other members can support. In the Houses of Parliament, MP's examine and debate Bills- as seen in the legislative process, before the bill becomes an Act of Parliament. However, in some cases political parties and MP's can be influenced with their decisions of a Bill by citizens or pressure groups 'lobbying' them. The more pressure groups and individuals put on MP's and political parties, the more likely MP's are going to be influenced when considering a new Bill. This shows the main relationship between MP's and political parties in the formation of legislation.
Another type of Bill is a Private Members Bill also known as a Ballot. An individual MP puts forward this Ballot before Parliament rather than the Government and may be initiated by feedback from individuals or pressure groups. On the other hand, very few private member bills get through the process of legislation. However, every Friday, a Ballot is allowed to take priority over other Government business and is discussed. This gives Backbenchers the opportunity to introduce a Bill within a '10 minute rule'. An example of this type of legislation is the Bail Act 1993.
A whipping system in the UK also has an influence on MP's. A Chief Whip can become involved with a political party to enforce discipline especially when dealing with the organisation of votes. This is an extremely important role within Parliament. In major votes, it is compulsory for the Government and the opposition to maximize a turnout. The Whips role is to ensure that every member from their party gives in a vote. The influence to MP's is that if an MP fails to attend a vote, they are usually seen as a 'rebel voters' and a rebellion against their own party which may result in a disciplinary being put into place such as suspension from a parliamentary party or vote.
Pressure Groups and their influences on MP's
A Pressure group is any group of people who aim to influence a decision made politically. They often attempt to do this by marches, protests or public speeches.The main aim of most pressure groups is to influence the people who actually hold the political power to make and change decisions. Pressure groups do not necessarily want to gain this power but seek to influence decisions of those who do hold political power. Often pressure groups compete against each other, but sometimes, they work together to achieve the same aims. They also enable normal citizens the power to influence issues which they feel strongly about.
In todays society, there are a higher population within pressure groups than political parties. Trade Unions are perhaps the largest pressure group currently in the UK and represent most people. The main objectives and activities of the Trade Union relate to political issues therefore, it could be argued that MP's pay great attention to the Trade Union due to the fear of losing sponsorship and votes. This is because the Trade Union can often promote Delegated Legislation in a positive way towards the interests of their members or workers.
The main relationship between the pressure groups, political parties and MP's is that they are sometimes able to gather sufficient evidence to force (such as 'lobbying') Government to amend or get rid of legislation. An example of this was seen in March 1998 where around 300,000 citizens protested in London about the Government's policies in the 'Countryside March'. The Government reacted by announcing new plans for public life, issued a white paper on rural life and set up a Ministry of Rural Affairs. It can be seen that there is a provision within the white paper process for pressure groups to influence law making.
Pressure groups are also able to influence MP's and the process of Bills is different ways. They can write letters to MP's expressing their opinions whether positive or negative about a particular subject that they feel strongly about. The MP then feels pressured to take action and replies due to the fact that the pressure group may feel ignored and decide to protest or march about the way that they have been treated. This could provide a bad image for the certain MP especially if the pressure group attracts media attention which is usually the case. This may persuade an MP to take relevant action so that they are always portrayed in a positive way to the public.
Before a General election takes place, MP's will take particular notice of pressure groups. This is because they wish to keep pressure groups and all of the constituents that they represent on their side hoping for their vote at the election.
Pressure groups can also act as a sense of expert knowledge, and often have access to detailed information which is highly valued by MP's and decision makers. This can be seen in such groups as MENCAP and MIND groups which campaign for people with mental disabilities. These type of pressure groups are often invited to give Government briefings. In return, these groups are allowed to have an input with decision making of a Bill and are also able to sometimes receive financial contributions from the Government.
Political Parties and their influences
A political party is a 'political organisation that seeks to attain political power within a government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns'. In the United Kingdom there are three major political parties in the House of Commons. These are the Labour party, the Liberal Demorcrates and the Conservative party. A Political party either seeks power, or some power. To be able to achieve this power it must win or share control main aspects of Government.
Political Parties are sometimes and often the subject of criticism. This is mainly because not all of the public agree with proposals or decisions that are made. Also, if Political parties try to handle the media, via Spin Doctors, to their advantage so as to portray a good reputation which can have a large influence on the popularity of the party. They use Spin Doctors to sensationalise issues and steer media coverage to the area that the party wants. Sometimes, this gives a one-sided account and therefore the relationship between MP's and Political Parties can result in misrepresentation or certain political issues.
However, Political Parties are extremely important. A reason for this is that they act as a link between an ordinary citizen and Parliament. A party is one device which makes it possible for a citizen to influence policies of Government by methods such as lobbying. Before General elections, each party will produce a manifesto setting out its aims and ideas should they be elected. These manifesto's will be positive and more persuasive than usual to try and gain votes for their party.
A Political party can have very strong influences especially before elections such as if a political party stands for the legal age for drinking alcohol to be increased to 21, you would expect them to raise the legal drinking age when they are elected. However, after they become elected some parties do not keep their promises given in their manifesto.
MP's have a close and important relationship with political parties as they are its members. MP's are accountable to their political parties and cannot easily act on their own judgement and do not have much power without the support of their party.
Conclusion
Overall, it can been seen that there are different relationships and influences intertwined with the three major bodies. Whether it is positive or negative views, it is still important that all points are considered when thinking about how our law is made.