A better world is possible - Global Commons Institute

Copyright Bruce Nixon 2010. All rights reserved. This electronic copy is provided free for personal, non-commercial use only.
www.brucenixon.com
These are Unlock Democracy’s proposals:
Electoral Reform for the House of Commons and House of Lords Unlock Democracy wants all UK elections to
offer real choice and fairness. They want a proportional system that broadly reflects the votes cast for each
party in an election. Several electoral systems satisfy these requirements, including the Single Transferable
Vote (STV) and various open list systems. One of the issues is how to provide a constituency link with a local
MP. For readers who want an explanation of the different PR systems, their advantages and disadvantages,
an excellent summary is provided by the Electoral Reform Society. Unlock Democracy have summarised the
policies of the main political parties. The Coalition plans a referendum on AV on the 5 th May 2011. AV would
not produce as representative results as Single Transferable Vote (STV) or open lists.
A Written Constitution - a Bill of Rights
The following is an edited summary of “Unlock Democracy evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights
inquiry into a British Bill of Rights” obtainable from Unlock Democracy.
Charter 88 played a leading role in making the case for the Human Rights Act, for the first time incorporating
the European Convention of Human Rights into UK law. Unlock Democracy, has campaigned for a written
constitution, setting out the limits of what governments may and may not do in our name. They argue that a
written constitution must contain a Bill of Rights, thereby granting every citizen a legal remedy, should they
need it, if their rights are infringed by the State.
Unlock Democracy seek a written constitution that serves and protects the people. That constitution would
define the roles of, and relationships between, the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. It would determine
how, and to what extent, power is shared between representatives at local, national and United Kingdom
levels, and with international organisations. It would enshrine basic liberties and human rights for all.
Bill of Rights
1. To Check the power of the Executive The need for citizens to have the power to limit the actions of
government is as great now as it has ever been. Until now, experience of politics is a House of Commons
dominated by one political party and that ensures government gets its legislation through the Commons.
The House of Lords, fatally weakened by the lack of any democratic legitimacy, is browbeaten into
accepting this legislation and the Crown automatically gives assent. Far too often, therefore, the checks
and balances on the powers of the Executive are too weak to be effective. That leaves citizens out of the
picture vulnerable to repressive legislation e.g. limits placed on the right to silence by previous
Conservative Governments, restrictions on trial by jury and detention without charge of alleged terror
suspects.
2. To Create a New Britain Constitutional changes since 1997 make the need for a Citizens' Constitution
even more urgent. New Labour continued the process of centralisation. Many features once characterise
of the British constitution have either been removed or irreparably damaged:
we no longer have a unitary state;
the sovereignty of Parliament has been undermined by the Human Rights Act;
Cabinet government is no more than a convenient fiction;
politicisation of key sections of the civil service has continued;
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