It is claimed that British MPs are traditionally middle age, middle class, white males (the three Ms) and looking at the figures in parliament; this is certainly true of the majority. However, things are getting better and this ‘three M’s’ theory is becoming less of the norm.
2. a. What does item A tell us about democracy in Britain in the 1830s?
Item A tells us that ‘the people’ were angry with the current government and the so-called democratic system. It also shows the lack of understanding and listening to the people by the government at the time.
Item A shows 6 points of the people’s charter, put together by ‘the people’ that were ignored by the government at the time, but over the years, 5 of the 6 points in the charted were put into practice.
This source therefore shows of the lack of democracy in Britain at the time, due to the lack of equality when voting.
b. Give arguments for and against the view that annual elections (point 6) would strengthen democracy in Britain.
If annual elections were to occur, then parties would have to do more each year to convince ‘the people’ that they should stay in government for the next year. This could be a good thing, as it would mean that the government would have to do more things to please the people.
However, annual elections could also bring about too much change, for example, changing from the pound to the euro one year, and then possibly changing back to the pound the next year.
Changing annually could also not give the government any time to do anything, as sometimes it takes a few years for parties to start on some of the things that they set out to do in their election campaign. So the only way to continue with any unfinished projects would be to get re-elected the next year, but if the initial project was not completed, then they are more unlikely to be re-elected for failing to keep to their election campaign promises.
But on the other hand, annual elections would theoretically reduce bribery, as it would be very hard to buy a different party or the same party) every year, instead of every 4 or 5 years.
3. What do items B and D tell us about the development of democracy in Britain?
Item B shows the increasing democratic systems being implemented throughout the history of British politics, as more people are being allowed to vote e.g. women, each social class, etc…
Item D is a suffragette banner produced in the early 20th century, which shows the views of women, and their annoyance that they were not allowed to vote. The poster shows that women can hold respectable positions in the community, such as a mayor, a nurse, a mother, a doctor or teacher and a factory hand yet they still do not have the right to vote. This is compared to some men, who may be convicts, lunatics or drunkards, but still have the right to vote.
This source is therefore showing the discrimination that women faced during the early 20th century. We therefore can see the development of British politics since then, as women have been allowed to vote (and since they are more then half of population, a woman’s vote is a valuable one).
4. a. Explain why the extension of the franchise, on it’s own, is not sufficient to guarantee democracy. Use Item C in your answer.
Despite the fact that nearly everyone over the age of 18 has the right to vote, it does not necessarily guarantee democracy, as the peoples vote goes to electing the representative for the constituency that they live in. This person will represent their constituency in parliament, but the problem is that the majority of these representatives (MPs) follow the three Ms (middle age, middle class, white men).
As item C rightfully points out, men cannot always represent the best interests of women, and 52 per cent of the population are female, but only 21 per cent of MPs are female. The same is the case with the black population of Britain, who at the moment stand at roughly 4 per cent but there are only about 1 per cent of black MPs.
b. How might the extension of the franchise lead to greater democracy?
The extension of the franchise means that more people have the right to vote, so that more people should theoretically have a greater say in the way the country is run.
The more people that vote means that there will be more views and opinions being expressed by a wider diversity of the British public, so theoretically, the MPs elected reflect the views, opinions and political needs of the constituency.
