How Does Parliament Lack Democratic Accountability
There is an element of truth in the given statement and this essay will seek to explain UK’s Parliament today does, to a certain degree, lack democratic accountability, and this can be shown in dominance of the (i) Executive, (ii) Unrepresentative, and its (iii) Detachment from citizens.
Democratic Accountability
One of the core functions of a constitution is to ensure the accountable and responsible exercise of power by those entrusted with it, and that they are called to account when they are not. Through elections, Parliament is elected through a public and democratic procedure, and it is only imperative that they are held accountable in a similar approach.
Democratic accountability through Parliament results in it holding the executive and itself accountable for policy decisions and implementations. Parliament represents …show more content…
. With a total of 23 exemptions, it might be seen as a means for the executive to exercise substantial control over information and restrict the extent it is obliged to offer justifications, the crux of accountability. 33% of resolvable requests had exemptions applied in Q3 2015. This undermines the Act’s purported purpose, with Austin stating it only ‘provides an illusion… but little substance’. All this is subject to ministerial power of veto allowing ministers to refuse disclosure, enabling the executive to have the final word and subverting any credibility of legally enforceable rights of access. The Act’s utility was put to the test during the MP expenses scandal. While information in question was eventually disclosed, it was heavily redacted and incomplete, with the full extent of the scandal only exposed after a newspaper publication. This raises questions over the Act’s utility; is a newspaper more effective in holding government to account than the Act
Democratic Accountability
One of the core functions of a constitution is to ensure the accountable and responsible exercise of power by those entrusted with it, and that they are called to account when they are not. Through elections, Parliament is elected through a public and democratic procedure, and it is only imperative that they are held accountable in a similar approach.
Democratic accountability through Parliament results in it holding the executive and itself accountable for policy decisions and implementations. Parliament represents …show more content…
. With a total of 23 exemptions, it might be seen as a means for the executive to exercise substantial control over information and restrict the extent it is obliged to offer justifications, the crux of accountability. 33% of resolvable requests had exemptions applied in Q3 2015. This undermines the Act’s purported purpose, with Austin stating it only ‘provides an illusion… but little substance’. All this is subject to ministerial power of veto allowing ministers to refuse disclosure, enabling the executive to have the final word and subverting any credibility of legally enforceable rights of access. The Act’s utility was put to the test during the MP expenses scandal. While information in question was eventually disclosed, it was heavily redacted and incomplete, with the full extent of the scandal only exposed after a newspaper publication. This raises questions over the Act’s utility; is a newspaper more effective in holding government to account than the Act