reforms under the coalition 2010-15

Question 1

what was the elected police commissioners act in 2011 about

Answer 1

• led to police commissioners and mayors being elected to oversee budgets and police procedures
• aimed to increase police accountability in local areas but this didn’t actually happen –> terrible turnout 10-20% across England

Question 2

what did the fixed term parliament acts 2011 do

Answer 2

• if the two parties came into conflict it would be easy for parliament to defeat the devolved governments and force a general election
• significant as the power to dissolve parliament and call elections was in the hands of Cameron so he could bully the LibDems into agreement with a vote of no confidence and a new government –> if 2/3rds of the commons agreed for the election

Question 3

recall of MPs 2015

Answer 3

constituencies can recall an MP who had been involved in some kind of misbehaviour –> requires a petition signed by at least 10% of constituents
- if an MP was suspended from parliament, then the constituency could have a by-election

Question 4

what was the West Lothian question, with an example and what did it lead to

Answer 4

an issue was raised in 1977 by the Labour MP for West Lothian, Tam Dalyell, which concerned the problem of MPs sitting in the HoC representing devolved areas such as Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland and being able to vote on matters that would affect only England but English MPs could not vote on those issues that hd been passed to devolved areas such as healthcare and education
- Scottish MPs voting to increase student loan tuition fees to £3000 per year in 2002 despite the fact this would not affect Scottish students since it would be free for them
- led to the passing of EVEL –> English votes for English laws, where if the speaker decides that a bill will only affect England, only English MPs will be able to vote for it

Question 5

what were the HoL reform acts 2014 and 15

Answer 5

• 1998 = reduced size of Lords from 1330—>669
• 2014 –> allowed members to resign or retire or be removed for prolonged non-attendance or expelled for a serious criminal conviction
• 2015 –> lords can remove a peer who has breached the code of conduct
• 105 peers retired or resigned by 2020

Question 6

explain city devolution outside of London with an example

Answer 6

• elected mayors to 12 major cities across England via a referendum to decide if those people wanted a mayor
• Andy Street –> West Midlands –> £1.1billion investment fund for 30 years