Referendums and how they are used (ES 3.2)

Question 1

What is a referendum?

Answer 1

A vote on a particular issue, requiring a binary choice of yes/no.

Question 2

In what circumstances are referendums held?

Answer 2

Legitimising a major government initiative
Getting a government out of a difficult situation
A result of a deal between politices parties
In response to pressure to hold a referendum

Question 3

What type of democracy is a referendum?

Answer 3

Direct democracy, within the representative democratic system of the UK.

Question 4

What are the key features of a referendum, in terms of who calls them, what they are usually about and whether or not the results are binding?

Answer 4

• Callied by government but other parties and pressure groups can encourage one
• Usually on an issue of constitutional importance
• Results are not binding in the UK

Question 5

What are some examples of a referendum being held to legitimise a major government initiative?

Answer 5

Has become the accepted practice to secure a demonstration of public support before embarking on important, and possibly irreversible constitutional changes
> 1997 referendums on devolution (Scotland and Wales)
> Northern Ireland, 1998 Good Friday Agreement

Question 5

What are some examples of a referendum being held as a result of a deal between political parties?

Answer 5

Cameron agreed to hold a vote on changing the electoral system for Wesminster as this was a demand of the LibDems, as part of the coalition agreement in 2010.

Question 5

What are some examples of a referendum being held in response to pressure to hold a referendum?

Answer 5

Cameron did not want to hold an EU referendum, yet due to fears over Conservative voters turning to UKIP, he promised a referendum if re-elected in 2015.
> Made good on his promise, yet was defeated, bringing about his resignation in 2016.

Question 5

What are some examples of a referendum being held to get a government out of a difficult situation?

Answer 5

Can happen when a government faces serious internal disagreement
> 1975 EU membership referendum, as Labour as split between pro and anti-European factions

Question 6

What is the fundamental difference between an election and a referendum?

Answer 6

Elections must be held every five years.
Referendums have no legal or constiutional requirement - it is a political choice, on major issues, on a question proposed by the government (exact wording approved by the neutral EC)

Question 6

What was the turnout, result and impact of the 1997 Scottish devolution referendum?

Answer 6

60% turnout
74% voted yes; 26% voted no
Established a Scottish Parliament, with tax-varying powers (the second clause recieving a lower % for ‘yes’)

Question 7

What are the three UK-wide referendums to date?

Answer 7

1975 EU membership referendum
2011 AV Electoral Reform referendum
2016 EU membership referendum

Question 8

What was the turnout, result and impact of the 1997 Welsh devolution referendum?

Answer 8

50% turnout
50.3% voted yes; 49.7% voted no
Established a Welsh Assembly, furthering devolution.

Question 8

What was the turnout, result and impact of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum?

Answer 8

84.6% turnout
44.7% voted yes; 55.3% voted no
Important as it had significant turnout (allowed 16-17 year olds to vote); damaged the Scottish nationalist movement (SNP)

Question 9

What was the turnout, result and impact of the 2016 EU membership referendum?

Answer 9

72.2% turnout
48.1% voted yes; 51.9% voted no
Profound implications on Britain’s relationship with the EU, internal politics; divisive topic.

Question 9

What was the turnout, result and impact of the 2011 AV electoral reform referendum?

Answer 9

42.2% turnout
32.1% voted yes; 67.9% voted no
2011 gave the government a mandate not to reform the FPTP electoral system

Question 10

What are the advantages of referendums?

Answer 10

• Pure form of democracy; voice of the people and verdict of the majority
• Can settle conflicts which are proven to be divisive in society and in politics, and within political parties
• Referendums can entrench constitutional reform, preventing them from a future overturning

Question 11

What are the disadvantages of referendums?

Answer 11

• Tyranny of the majority
• Reduces complex issues to a “binary” yes/no question
• Voters may be easily persuaded by charismatic, populist leaders or misinformation and malinformation

Question 12

What is the “tyranny of the majority”?

Answer 12

The minority opinion being disregarded; even with a close split (like in the 1997 Welsh devolution referendum, or the 2016 EU membership referendum), the majority opinion will win
> Minority will feel suppressed/oppressed by the majority opinion

Question 13

How did the 2016 Brexit referendum divide the UK, in terms of class?

Answer 13

AB primarily voted to remain (43% voted leave)
C1 primarily voted to leave, yet this was split (51%)
C2 overwhelmingly voted to leave (middle-ground voters, targeted by the Leave campaign) and DE (disgruntled people who are poor) - 64%

Question 14

How did the 2016 Brexit referendum divide the UK, in terms of age?

Answer 14

Those under 44 primarily voted to Remain, with those between 18-25 largely voting to Remain (73%)
THose above 45 primarily voted to Leave, with those 66+ largely voting to Leave (60%)

Question 15

How did the 2016 Brexit referendum divide the UK, in terms of nations?

Answer 15

England primarily voted to Leave (53%)
Wales primarily voted to Leave (53%)

Scotland overwhelmingly voted to Remain (62%), and so did Northern Ireland (55%); arguments arose over Scottish and Northern Irish independence once again - shows the issues over the tyranny of the majority (even though Scotland and NI did not want to leave, they were forced to)

Question 16

How did the 2016 Brexit referendum divide the UK, in terms of the government and politics?

Answer 16

2016 Brexit referendum largely divided political parties and the spectrum
> Conservatives were split between remain and leave (Cameron and the government on one side, leading the ‘Britain Stronger in Europe’ campaign, with Johnson, Gove and Cummings on the other, leading the official Vote Leave campaign, with effective campaigning, i.e. £350m Brexit Bus)
> Labour led a feeble campaign as Corbyn largely wanted to leave the EU, yet his party didn’t
> LibDems were too weak to pose a challenge
> UKIP ran the unofficial Leave.EU campaign, with polarising campaigning (Turkey)

Question 17

What was the problem with the 2016 Brexit referendum being a binary remain/leave decision?

Answer 17

European Union as an institution i svery complex
> Relationship was not outlined in the question, as well as important and complex issues (like immigration and sovereignty)

Question 17

Why can one argue that the 2016 Brexit referendum represents the ‘tyranny of the minority’?

Answer 17

51.9% of the vote share
> Only 37.5% of the entire country (whole electorate) actually voted to Leave the EU

Question 18

In what ways was the 2014 Scottish independence referendum a more positive experience for British democracy, compared to the 2016 Brexit referendum?

Answer 18

- Result was more decisive (45-55 split) - Results were more evenly spread across age, class and regions - 84.6% turnout, compared to 72.2% - Large youth voting numbers, as 16-17 year olds were allowed to vote in the referendum

Question 19

In what ways was the 2014 Scottish independence referendum a negative experience for British democracy?

Answer 19

- "No to Independence" ran an ineffective, negative campaign (could have been more decisive) - Exposed how divided the Scottish people are over the issue of independence - Did not settle the issue, especially post-2016 (as 62% of Scots were pro-EU in the referendum)

Question 20

What is the argument for referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of the 'elective dictatorship'?

Answer 20

The holding of referendums between general elections gives the people an opportunity to have their say more frequently, and prevents the government from becoming remote or unaccountable. > Prevents a government from rushing through a change without consulting the people.

Question 20

In what ways was the 2011 AV referendum a positive experience for British democracy?

Answer 20

- Result was decisive and the issue was settled - Did not divide the country (firm 68% of people voted No) - Debate was relatively balanced and rational

Question 21

In what ways was the 2011 AV referendum a negative experience for British democracy?

Answer 21

- System chosen for reform, AV, was complex and hard to understand; also sometimes less proportional than FPTP; people also struggled to understand the consequences of change - Outcome discriminated against small parties who could not afford to run campaigns - Referendum was held as a result of a deal between parties rather than the interests of better democracy

Question 22

What is the argument for referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of enhancing democracy?

Answer 22

Involves the people directly in decision-making on important issues.

Question 23

What is the argument for referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of raising political awareness?

Answer 23

2014 Scottish independence referendum has been praised for giving an opportunity to air a wide range of issues, including the likely economic impact, future of nuclear deterrent and the relationship with the EU.

Question 24

What is the argument for referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of regulation?

Answer 24

Electoral Commission has indepedently supervised the conduct of referendums since 2000 > Reduces that chance that a referendum will be skewed due to unfair influence, as expenditure is limited and wording of the referendum is subject to review.

Question 24

What is an 'elective dictatorship'?

Answer 24

A government with a strong majority in the House of Commons can effectively dominate the political system, facing little effective opposition or constraints.

Question 25

What is the argument against referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of confusion within the public?

Answer 25

Popular participation may be low if arguments are not explained clearly > Factor in the 2011 AV referendum.

Question 25

What is the argument against referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of parliamentary sovereignty?

Answer 25

Undermines parliamentary sovereignty and the 'trustee' MP model > Ordinary people lack the expertise to make decisions on complex decisions (i.e. Britain joining the Euro)

Question 26

What is the argument against referendums in a representative democracy, in terms of governmental authority over when a referendum is called?

Answer 26

Governments choose when to call referendums > Blair and Brown did not hold a referendum on the 2007 Lisbon Treaty, which extended the process of European integration (caused outrage in opposition, who argued voters had been denied a chance to vote on a significant issue)

Question 27

What are the main arguments for whether referendums haven't enhanced representative democracy?

Answer 27

Have undermined representative democracy, parliamentary sovereignty and the 'trustee' model Have led to incredibly polarising and divisive campaigns, splitting the country Turnout can be poor Misinformation and malinformation can be rampant; ill-informed campaigns distorted by inaccurate claims and media bias

Question 27

What are the main arguments for whether referendums have enhanced representative democracy?

Answer 27

Have introduced a direct democratic element into UK politics, arguably enhancing democracy Have checked the power of the government, preventing an 'elective dictatorship' Have enhanced political participation and voter turnout, compared to general elections Have educated people on key issues Have legitimised important constitutional reform, such as devolution