Voting at 16? President or Queen? Should we have Proportional Representation? Over the past six months, events such as the expenses scandal have pushed these questions right to the top of the public agenda. Issues such as how we should elect our politicians and how much power the Prime Minister or the Queen should have are now
UP FOR DEBATE
.
I have recently been elected onto the Parliamentary Reform Committee, which will be forming policies on how politics can be made to work for you in the 21st Century. This gives us a unique opportunity to have the voices of our area heard at a critical time for parliament. The committee is made up from politicians from many parties, working together to improve the current system. I believe that this is too important just to be left to politicians and I want to give people in this constituency a chance to make their views known. Do you think the system is sick? How can we make things better?
Please spare just five minutes of your time to fill in this survey, and feel free to photocopy or scan it if more of your household want to take part. Every household we hear from makes our voice louder when I take the results direct to the Reform Committee. This is your chance to tell parliament how you want it to work for you.
How Government Works
Structure and institutions
1 |
Do you think we should have a Queen or an elected President? |
Queen President |
The House of Lords is the second chamber of Parliament, and complements the work of the House of Commons by making laws and scrutinising the Government.
2 |
There are a number of ways to decide who sits in the House of Lords. Do you think the House of Lords should… A) be fully elected, like the US Senate?B) be partly elected and partly appointed?C) be replaced by people elected by trades and professional groups (e.g. doctors, farmers, miners, lawyers)?D) be appointed or inherit their title, as is the case now?E) be abolished completely? |
A B C D E |
3 |
Should we have fixed-term parliaments (e.g. four or five years) rather than having the Prime Minister decide when to call an election? |
YES NO |
Political Parties are currently funded by members’ fees, donations from businesses, organisations like trade unions and by large gifts from wealthy individuals.
4 |
Should the State fund political parties, leaving taxpayers with the bill, but protecting parties from donors trying to buy political influence? |
YES NO |
5 |
Should we limit spending by political parties (between and during elections) to improve competition? |
YES NO |
Local
County
and District Councils currently set policies and budgets on local matters, and council tax. They cannot change national policies like income tax or immigration.
6 |
Should the powers and role of local councils be increased? |
YES NO |
7 |
There are currently 646 MPs, who represent an average of 92,000 people each. How many MPs should we have? |
Fewer About the same More |
The People
Elections and the people’s voice
8 |
Should we have a Bill of Rights like the United States, clearly saying what our country stands for and defining what rights we have? |
YES NO |
9 |
Do you think voting should be made compulsory? |
YES NO |
10 |
Do you think the voting age should be lowered to 16? |
YES NO |
11 |
Would you be more likely to vote if you could do so over the internet? |
YES NO |
At the moment, politicians can only be removed from office by their party or by parliament.
12 |
Do you think that voters should have the right to force their MP to face an election if they believe they have abused their position? |
YES NO |
13 |
Should governments make greater use of referendums? |
YES NO |
We currently vote using the First Past the Post system of voting, in which politicians are elected by a simple majority of voters per constituency. In Proportional Representation systems, seats are shared out between the parties based on their total national or regional share of the vote.
14 |
Are you satisfied with the current voting system, or would you prefer a different system like Proportional Representation? |
Satisfied Want change Not sure |