1 pressure groups Flashcards by coal vxu

What is the difference between a pressure group and a movement?

Pressure Group - Formal Organisation and Structure

Movement - Loosely organised, more of an idea than an organisation. Wider goals (The Occupy Movement is widely anti-capitalist as an idea)

They are still similar however, as pressure groups can evolve from social movements.

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What are main classifications of pressure groups?

Sectional groups
Cause Groups
Social Movements

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What do cause or promotional groups seek to do?

Promote issues of interest to its members and supporters in relation to a particular topic.

Greenpeace - Promotes environmental issues.

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What do sectional or interest groups seek to do?

Seek to protect the interest of members.

CBI - Represents interests of business leaders and entrepreneurs.

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What do single cause groups seek to do?

Have a solid focus on a singular issue.

CND - Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

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What do multi-cause groups seek to do?

Focus their attention on a wider range of issues under a generalised heading.

Trade Unions - Influence policy in relation to workers: pensions, insurance etc.

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What is an insider group?

Groups that the government may choose to consult. They will listen to their opinions.

NFU (National Farmer’s Union) are queried on food prices etc.

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What is an outsider group?

Groups that cannot be seen to be influencing the government.

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Why do some pressure groups have more influence than others?

Some groups have more leverage than others. (i.e. holding the economy hostage) (road hauliers and farmers spearheading a movement to blockade oil refineries, so tax on fuel would fall.)

Resources Available - Volunteers, people donating money to the cause etc.
Tactics / Leadership - RSPCA secured the ban on hunting dogs in 2004 by collaborating with two similar groups.
Public Support - If the public are aligned with the cause, it becomes much easier to influence government as a result.
Government Attitudes - Insider contacts with government ministers and civil servants allow a major key to success for pressure groups.

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What is a think tank?

Their sole job is to devise policy suggestions, with most therefore having a political leaning.

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What is an example of a very successful single cause group?

ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) - added the labelling to cigarette packaging and lobbied for bans on smoking in cars (with children present) and tubes etc.

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example of pressure group - Liberty

est 1934
Founded to challenge government measures to restrict freedoms in the UK
eg recent legal challenge to lockdown restrictions
2020 - legally removed parts of the public spaces protection order that criminalised the homeless and beggars.

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example of pressure group - Amnesty International

est 1961
founded by an english barrister who was inspired by the account of 2 portugese students who were sentenced to 7 years for toasting to liberty.
7 MILLION MEMBERS
‘write for rights’ campaign -> release of Yecenia Armenta (Mexico, 2016) who was jailed on a confession after 15 hours of torture.

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PETA objective

to prevent animal suffering and advocate for the rights of animals

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PETA methods

undercover investigations
customer boycotts
protests and demonstrations

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PETA general info
finance
type
members

funded through individual donations
outsider pressure group
9 million members

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success x1 of PETA

ended forced swim tests which major pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer carried out

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shelter aim

a response to the UK’s housing crisis

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shelter general info
finance
type x2
finance

donations 54% of funding
cause group, insider group as it lobbies government and local authorities for new laws
raised £48.2 mil pounds in 2020

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CBI aims

to maintain british industry as a world player

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CBI general
type
type

insider pressure group, mainly converse with govt
a sectional interest group

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CBI success x1

gina miller challenged the government on the withdrawal agreement of Brexit, she was a member of the CBI

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just stop oil aim

to convince the british govt to commit to ending new fossil fuel licensing and production

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Just stop oil general
type
methods x3

Study These Flashcards

outsider group
methods - civil resistance, direct action, vandalism

examples of just stop oil protests

disrupting BBC proms concert at the Royal Albert Hall and Wimbledon Shutting down major roads such as the M25

Kill the Bill aim

in respisne to the proposed Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in 2021 which restricted the right to protest, with anyone refusing to follow police direction at a protest would be fined aims to stop the bill and protect civil liberties

methods of Kill the Bill

protests and demonstrations social media campaigns - started off as #killthebill

Kill the Bill funding

primarily through internet crowdfunding

Kill the Bill type of organisation x3

cause group social movement outsider group

what do outsider groups rely on

public demonstrations etc to exert pressure

example of a killthebill success

protests in london in april 2021

british medical association purpose

represents, supports and negotiates on behalf of all UK doctors. fight for best conditions

methods of the BMA

lobbying as well as campaigning

what is the BMA general

- trade union - core-insider group

success of BMA

2001 gained government recognition over the recruitment crisis in general practice as a result of lobbying. created the Strike Fund in Motion which distributed money to striking workers.

BMA finance

annual membership fees which = £50 million

example of lobbying

BMA 2016 lobbied to force government to withdraw a new contract for junior hospital doctors

collecting information and offering specialised knowledge to policy-makers example

Action on smoking and health (ASH) conducts and shares research with the govrenment and public to stop harmful effects of smoking

email campaigns ecample

Friends of the Earth mobilised supporters by urging them to contact their MPs

Demonstrations example x2

Extinction Rebellion blocked major roads eg Oxford circus to persuade the govt to take immediate again against climate change Stop the War Coalition - 1 million people took to the streets to protest in 2003

publicity stunts example

just stop oil disruption of BBC Proms M25 shut down disruption of Wimbledon

media campaigns example

used #killthebill to protest the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill

strike action example

BMA supporting the strike by distributing money through the Strike Fund in Motion

Violent demonstrations x2

Animal liberation Front - to end mink farming for fur they released captive minks Green Peace - destroyed genetically modified crops to publicise the dangers

factors affecting success of a pressure group x5

- size - funding - public opintion - government attitude - stragetic position of group (in society)

pressure groups **enhance democracy** x5

- disperse power more widely - educate the public and policymakers - enable people to participate without a large sacrifice - protect minorities - call govt to account

pressure groups threaten democracy x5

- can be elitist and tend to concentrate power especially in the **Westminster Bubble** - may distort information in their own interests - internally undemocratic - funding largely influences success - illegal actions

example of educating the public and policymakers x1

ASH

example of enabling more people to participate x1

1 in 10 adults are involved in an environmental group

example of protecting minorities x1.5

BLM Stonewall - helped get gay marriage and legal recognition of same-sex couples as parents

example of call govt to account x1

gina miller in her legal challenge with parliament over brexit, held theresa may's govt to account and ensured everything was going through parliament

example of funding largely influences success x1

think tank Centre for Policy Studying employed David Cameron in 2018. needed lots of funding to do so

example of illegal actions (threaten democracy x3

- just stop oil - greenpeace - Animal liberation front.

example of think tanks directly influencing government policy x1

Under Johnson, the Legatum Institute and the Institute for Economic Affairs was known to guide Brexit policy

example of think tanks giving new ideas x1

Adam Smith Institute argued to give British Citizenship to people from Hong Kong. the policy was introduced in 2021

example of politicians who were in think tanks before politics x4 ppl

Patel, Truss, Kwarteng and Raab all previously worked for the Institute for Economic Affairs

think tanks bad x2 plus example each

unelected and unaccountable eg 2019 the Centre for Policy Studies co-authored the Conservative Manifesto the institute for Public Policy Research contributed to the Labour Manifesto - their work is rarely transparent. able to hold private discussions with ministers and PM Liz Truss held meetings with the Institute for Economic Affairs.

think tanks good tho x2 no example

- employ academics = provide government with high quality evidence. - represent a whole range of political viewpoints. this enhances democracy by increasing the range of ideas that are discussed.

1 pressure groups Flashcards

(58 cards)