Unit 1: Referendum essay

Define Referendums. (5)

Referendums are a form of direct democracy. They may be defined as ballots [either national, regional or local] in which citizens are asked to vote either in favour or against a specific political proposal usually framed in terms of one specific question requiring a ”Yes” or “No” answer. A recent example would be the referendum on electoral reform. The result being a resounding 'no' to change.

Why have referendums been used more widely since 1997? (10)

It has been pointed that many UK citizens have a pessimistic view of UK parliamentary institutions and of individual MPs believing that MPs fail to reflect the views of voters and that they are likely, for a variety of reasons, to operate as so-called lobby fodder simply voting in accordance with the party line. Furthermore the recent MPs expenses scandal may have further eroded public confidence in MPs.

UK referendums have in practice always been used in attempts to resolve constitutional issues. Supporters argue that it is in accordance with democratic principles, that citizens should have a right to express an opinion on any proposal to change the constitutional rules according to which they are to be governed while governments themselves may use the referendum result to emphasise the public acceptability of policies which they wish to introduce in order to resolve difficult political problems. This was certainly the case in relation to the 1998 referendum in Northern Ireland which led to the setting up of a new Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive in Stormont.

Do the advantages of referendums outweight the disadvantages? (25)

The principle of Parliamentary Sovereignty in the UK means that referendums cannot be binding although it would be very difficult for governments to ignore the results of official referendums. Several important arguments have been raised in support of the increased use of referendums.

It is argued that although full direct democracy may be impractical and inefficient in modern, large scale, complex societies the use of referendums is an important mechanism for the provision of some direct democracy which can increase citizens’ active participation in and understanding of political questions.

Once a referendum campaign is underway citizens may be encouraged to take more interest in political issues which they might otherwise have ignored and it can be noted that the increased availability of computer technology greatly facilitates the practical organisation of referendums.

Contrastingly it is said that when citizens vote in General elections they are merely signalling their general support for a political party without committing themselves to specific party policies  so that theses General elections do not provide governments with a mandate to introduce specific party policies. However referendums provide governments with a much clearer mandate because they provide a clear indication of citizens’ views on particular issues.

Following a “Yes” vote governments can claim to be introducing a policy which has the consent of the governed while a “No” vote can prevent the government from introducing policies which are actually unpopular as was the case when N.E. citizens decisively against an elected assembly for the North East and the Labour Government responded by scrapping further planned referendums in the North West and Yorkshire. In general referendums are said to enhance the legitimacy and acceptability of government policy since the policy follows a full discussion of the issues in a referendum campaign and citizens are more likely to respect and conform to decisions which they have made themselves.

Supporters further claim that once the results of a referendum on a constitutional issue are implemented it is unlikely that subsequent governments will reverse the policy so that referendums are seen as providing some necessary long term political stability. For example it is conceivable that a Conservative government could be elected which opposed Scottish and Welsh devolution but such a government would be unlikely to abolish the Scottish Parliament or the Welsh Assembly given the results of the 1997 devolution referenda.

Referendums may sometimes be helpful to political parties when they themselves are divided on a particular issue. For example in 1975 both the Labour government and the Conservative opposition were disunited over continued UK membership of the then EEC. Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson opted for a referendum on the UK’s continued membership of the then EEC as a means of resolving the dispute over Europe which seriously divided his own party. Once the voters decided 2:1 in favour of continued EEC membership Labour opponents of continued EEC membership were much weakened. Wilson did, however, attract considerable criticism of this opportunistic rather than principled use of the referendum.

Opponents have also raised powerful arguments against the use of referendums. They argue that the use of referendums undermines the role of parliamentary representatives [i.e. MPs] by preventing them from using their independent judgement to represent the interests of their constituents. M.Ps independent judgement  is seen as especially important when complex technical issues are involved as in the decision whether or not to remain in the EEC/EU or to join the Single European Currency [Euro] or to ratify the current new European Treaty/Constitution.

Referendum campaigns are open to the criticisms that the referendum result could be influenced by the timing of the campaign which will be determined by the government itself and by the precise wording of the referendum question although this is now unlikely in the UK because the wording must be agreed with the independent Electoral Commission. However the issue of timing suggests that more thought should be given to the development of clear procedures for the triggering of referenda.

Different sides of the campaign may attract different levels of financial and mass media support so that both sides of the argument are unequally represented and there are also dangers that certain sections of the mass media may seek to simplify complex issues unduly and to persuade voters with misleading emotive phrases. [It is certainly true that in 1975 the Pro EEC membership campaign was far better funded than the Anti-EEC campaign.

It is possible that government support for one side rather than the other in a referendum campaign may unduly affect the outcome of the result because voters may cast their vote more as an assessment of overall government popularity and performance than as a verdict on the specific referendum issue. One wonders for example whether Tony Blair could have persuaded the electorate to support membership of the Euro in 1997 when he was still exceptionally powerful. He certainly could not have done so in the summer of 2007.

Critics claim that the increased use of referendums could undermine support for existing representative institutions in that once individuals are given the opportunity to take decisions on their own behalf they may be less willing to rely upon their representatives. This could lead to increased demands for referendums on a whole range of complex moral questions which are currently decided inside parliament. Furthermore it is pointed out that although votes in parliament are usually won by the governing party, government ministers can also protect minority interests at least to some extent whereas the increased use of binding referendums on issues such as abortion or euthanasia could indeed increase the danger of the tyranny of the majority.

It may be recognised that public trust in UK political institutions may well have been eroded but critics of referendums argue that public trust can best be rebuilt via increases in the efficiency and accountability of existing political institutions which will then persuade voters that good government can best be achieved by allowing MPs to exercise their traditional representative function. [However supporters of referendums would argue instead that over-mighty governments do little to protect the interests of minorities and even in some cases of majorities. They might ask for example whether the poll tax would have been introduced or whether the UK would have gone to war in Iraq if referenda were necessary before such policies could be introduced.]

We may conclude that the use of referenda in the UK has contributed favourably to the growth of UK democracy but that the dangers of referenda may suggest that they should be used sparingly. It is essential that mechanisms must be found to increase the effectiveness, accountability and legitimacy of UK political institutions so that citizens have much greater confidence in the abilities and desires of representatives to represent citizens’ interests more effectively. This in itself would be likely to reduce the demand for referendums in circumstances where they are undesirable.