Category: Blog

Categories
Blog

Age and the politics of presence

Please note that this blog piece was originally published on the ILC-UK Blog on 25 March 2014.

By Philip Cowley

All the mainstream British political parties are – to varying degrees – now signed up to the underlying principle that political institutions should broadly reflect the social characteristics of the people they represent.  David Cameron’s very first speech as party leader in 2005 contained the claim that ‘We will change the way we look’. Ed Miliband has made several speeches on the same theme.  The idea that what Anne Phillips called ‘the politics of presence’ is important is now a widely, if not wholly, accepted part of political discourse in the UK.

Continue reading “Age and the politics of presence”
Categories
Blog

Studies of the Scottish Parliament and Constitutional Change: once favoured, now forgotten?

By Paul Cairney

The Scottish Parliament is an important focus for academic study, not least because most of the early work has produced broad brush strokes. There is still an important role for in-depth, case study based, research on particular bills, time periods, and periods of minority/ majority or single-party/ coalition rule. There is much work to be done to compare the Scottish Parliament with others, from the current focus on comparisons with Westminster and, at times, Nordic parliaments, to the well-established broader work on classifying legislatures. In each case, the new Scottish experience has something to add to ‘Westminster family’ discussions, comparisons based on similar size or functions, and studies of non-majority rule. There are also important but small literatures on the role of the Scottish Parliament as a hub for deliberative and participative democracies, and on microcosmic representation and its effect on parliamentary practices.

Continue reading “Studies of the Scottish Parliament and Constitutional Change: once favoured, now forgotten?”
Categories
Blog

Welcome to the Parliaments and Legislatures Blog

Our blog aims to promote the study and understanding of parliaments and related issues. We welcome contributions from UK and international academics or research students within the field of legislative studies and related areas. We also accept submissions from outside academia, including parliamentary practitioners, charities and other organizations working with parliament.

We accept two types of blog; short blogs discussing topical issues and longer blogs which provide an overview of a particular Parliament. All submissions should be free from unnecessary jargon and suitable for a wide audience.

If you are interested in writing for the blog please see our submission guidelines here.