How Westminster Works . . . and Why It Doesn't

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Dunt describes how the lack of expertise among Ministers has been exacerbated by the fact that, increasingly in recent decades, MPs have become professional politicians—sometimes former “spads” (as special advisors became known) like Ed Miliband and David Cameron—rather than experienced professionals, lawyers, or businessmen, as was once normal. Then, Dunt states, the press focused less on policy more on “the daily Westminster frenzy,” encouraged by the rapidly changing 24-h news cycle that emerged on TV and on-line as formerly print newspapers moved to digital. Bills used to be scrutinized, and when necessary re-drafted, by the Attorney-General, but since Suella Braverman held the role, briefly, in 2020–2022 it has become “a mouthpiece for government policy,” no longer providing objective advice. The power of PMs and party leaders to appoint peers should be curbed to achieve 50/50 crossbenchers and party appointments, in place of the current one-third/two-thirds.

Along the way, an “Interlude” details another disaster, the delays and failures in the evacuation of Afghanistan, 2021. This makes the book all the more powerful because of the breadth of its target audience - it is unlikely to offend anyone regardless of whether they are from the centre, the right or the left. Turnover has increased, faster than in the many countries where reshuffles require coalition agreement. Our political and financial system is cloaked in secrecy, archaic terminology, ancient custom and impenetrable technical jargon. I would not share ID's political views, far from it, but he has not really demonstrated the sort of content one will find in his twitter account.

Only government can make it happen, but he believes that new governments are receptive to new ideas in their first 2–3 years, so ideas for reform should be put to them. He also appointed a committee under Lord Fulton, a former university Vice Chancellor who had held a number of public offices, to advise on reform of the civil service, to improve its expertise.

Learn nine essential ways to detox your mindset, feel lighter and more energised, to live a happier and more fulfilling life. His final sentence is: “Change will not come from the generosity of those who benefit from the existing state of affairs. Thankfully, it turns out that new administrations sometimes feel positive about constitutional changes that limit their power. As Dunt describes, with a strong majority government it is hard to amend legislation at any stage of its passage through the House of Commons. This deeply personal and supportive series offers listeners an honest and relatable insight into how some the UK's best-known celebrities have coped with mental health difficulties, ranging from OCD to insomnia, addiction to grief, and depression to anxiety.

Above all, Dunt concludes, we need to fix “our own approach to politics which has led us to where we are now” and insist on “scrutiny, knowledge, restraint of power and full exchange of ideas” (pp. Nor is it dry and dull, but lively and entertaining, whilst being absolutely rage-inducing at the same time (or maybe that last part is just me! It reveals the inadequacy of the system in alarming detail that will leave you furious and frustrated. Its actions are normally cautious because the House of Commons could overhaul it, and there are limits to its powers: it can’t kill a bill, just delay it for one session. Life Peerages were introduced in 1958, allowing women peers for the first time, as Dunt does not point out.

There is almost no political coverage about the impact of Universal Credit, say, or the privatization of probation or the decline of the homelessness unit” (p. This is an absolutely excoriating insight into the failures - both intentionally designed and through institutional sloth - of the UK's political system.Also, unlike many other countries in Europe and elsewhere, there is little devolution of powers to regions in England. In recent years we have seen elected representatives taking over a year to form a government (Belgium), nations modifying their constitutions as a result of the weakness inherent in PR (Israel) and back in the post war years a series of weak and unstable governments severely damaging the progress of the country (France). Then, as the second chapter explains, once in parliament MPs are strictly controlled by their parties, especially though the aptly named whips, who apparently even tell them what to say in their maiden speeches. The author illustrates the depth of these problems through a combination of choice historical (recent

There are also lovely accounts of some problems such as the I'm practicalities of Downing Street as a modern workplace. The third chapter describes how, especially since the 1980s, PMs have increased control over their parties and government institutions. Access to the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, audiobooks and podcasts, including exclusive series. Not all is bad in Westminster - the standing committee system works well and encourages cooperation across parties, with chairs being elected by the committees themselves and thus serving more as moderators and consensus builders with genuine interests in the subject matter. Boris Johnson, with Dominic Cummings, his Chief Advisor, a former spad, controlled them as never before, making or vetoing their appointments.states Dunt, pointing out that a succession of PMs have used it to reward party loyalists and donors, Boris Johnson most blatantly. It cannot stop legislation included in the manifesto of the winning party or any bill concerning finance.