Power to the People
The report of Power: an independent inquiry into Britain’s democracy
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Executive Summary and RecommendationsPower was established to discover what is happening to our democracy. Why has disengagement from formal democratic politics in Britain grown in recent years and how can it be reversed? Although the election of new leaders to the political parties and strategic repositioning has generated some renewed public interest in the drama of Westminster, it is our view that this is unlikely to have more than a cosmetic and short-lived effect. The problems run too deep. The Commission of ten people from different backgrounds and with a variety of political views believes it is vital to re-engage the British people with formal democracy if the following are to be avoided:
This report presents a detailed analysis of why this disengagement has occurred and a series of recommendations to address the problem. This is a broad agenda for major political reform. |
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The Myth of ApathyThree fundamental characteristics of political disengagement in Britain have been particularly influential in Power’s thinking about the causes of the problem. Contrary to much of the public debate around political disengagement, the British public are not apathetic. There is now a great deal of research evidence to show that very large numbers of citizens are engaged in community and charity work outside of politics. There is also clear evidence that involvement in pressure politics —- such as signing petitions, supporting consumer boycotts, joining campaign groups —- has been growing significantly for many years. In addition, research shows that interest in ‘political issues’ is high. The area of decline is in formal politics: turnout for General Elections has declined very significantly since 1997; turnout for other elections has remained stubbornly low for years; party membership and allegiance has declined very severely over the last thirty years; elected representatives are held in very low esteem and widely distrusted. Power’s own research and experience over the last eighteen months has established that the level of alienation felt towards politicians, the main political parties and the key institutions of the political system is extremely high and widespread. The problem of disengagement from formal democracy is not unique to Britain. Nearly all of the established democracies are suffering from similar problems. |
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Red HerringsBased on these three characteristics and its own research, Power placed in doubt some of the analyses it has heard which claim to explain the rise of disengagement. Disengagement is NOT caused by:
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The RealityPower concluded that the following explanations stood-up in the face of the evidence:
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The Rise of New CitizensMany of these problems are hardly new. So why have these factors led to the problem of disengagement now? And why is this a problem across many established democracies? The deeper cause behind these factors is the shift from an industrial to a post-industrial economy. Post-industrialisation has had two major impacts relevant to the issue of disengagement. The first is the creation of a large section of British society which is now better educated, more affluent, expects greater control and choice over many aspects of life, feels no deference towards those in positions of authority, and is not as bound by the traditional bonds of place, class and institution that developed during the industrial era. The second is the creation of permanently marginalised groups in society which live in persistent poverty, with low educational attainment, poor working and living conditions and a multiplicity of other deprivations associated with life on low or very low incomes. However, the British political system is structured as though the lifestyles, expectations and values of the industrial era are still in place. Citizens have changed. This profound shift has caused two major disjunctions between the system and citizens.
This explains why so many British citizens now no longer feel formal democracy offers them the influence, equality and respect they believe is their due and why the main parties are widely regarded as unattractive or irrelevant despite the parties efforts to reinvent themselves. Alienation from politics takes many forms for different groups --- women, black and minority ethnic communities, those on low incomes, young people -- ranging from a general sense that the system is out-of-date to a deep disgust at the fact that politics has failed to bring about fundamental improvements in the lives of the most disadvantaged. Fundamentally, however, all of these alienations are exacerbated by a political system that cannot respond to the diverse and complex values and interests of the individuals which make up our post-industrial society. The response of the political system to post-industrialism and to political disengagement has been either technocratic or self-interested in the sense that the parties have adapted their policies and campaigning simply to win elections. The political strategy of “triangulation”, for example, is democracy by numbers. It is a mathematical equation that secures power but in the end drives down people’s desire to be politically engaged. It hollows out democracy because it inevitably means by-passing party members who want debate and neglects the democratic channels of engagement which might get in the way of the strategy. By contrast, the Power commission has developed a response to disengagement which is democratic. This has drawn on an understanding of democracy which sees the concept as a set of broad principles which can be applied in a variety of ways beyond a simple focus on representative institutions and elections. |
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The Response to the Problem of DisengagementPower has set its recommendations within the context of a changed society. These recommendations primarily aim to create a political system which allows citizens a more direct and focused influence on the political decisions that concern them. It is also an attempt to bring greater flexibility and responsiveness to politics so that new alliances can form and new ways of debating be generated. There have to be real opportunities and spaces where the changing values in our society can be fed into politics. The recommendations are based on three major shifts in political practice:
These three imperatives stand or fall alongside each other. The implementation of only one or two of the three will not create the re-engagement with formal democracy which many people now want. Cherry picking --- a folly repeated time and time again by our political masters -- will not work. |
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Rebalancing PowerThere needs to be a re-balancing of power between the constituent elements of the political system: a shift of power away from the Executive to Parliament and from central to local government. Much greater clarity, transparency and accountability should be introduced into the relationship between the Executive and supra-national bodies, quangos, business, and interest groups. Too much power goes unchecked. The aim here is to allow the freedom for our elected representatives to be the eyes, ears and mouth of British citizens at the heart of government. |
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Real Parties and True ElectionsThe current way of doing politics is killing politics. An electoral and party system which is responsive to the changing values and demands of today’s population should be created. This will allow the development of new political alliances and value systems which will both regenerate existing parties and also stimulate the creation of others. |
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Downloading PowerWe should be creating a culture of political engagement in which it becomes the norm for policy and decision-making to occur with direct input from citizens. This means reform which provides citizens with clear, entitlements and procedures by which to exercise that input — from conception through to implementation of any policy or decision. |
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ConclusionChange of this magnitude cannot be left simply to elected representatives. An alliance for change needs to be built amongst the most clear-sighted MPs, local councillors, MEPs and members of the devolved institutions, but only a sustained campaign for change from outside the democratic assemblies and parliaments of the UK will ensure that meaningful reform occurs. We, the people, have to stake our claim on power. |
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