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What is an Early Day Motion?

The Early Day Motion (EDM) is a little-known but quietly critical part of Westminster. Here’s a quick guide on some of the key features of an Early Day Motion: An EDM is a motion submitted...

Posted 13 Oct 2022

One of the most important aspects of British democracy is the Select Committee. Select Committees are groups of parliamentarians chosen by their colleagues to conduct scrutiny of the government. Here’s a quick explanation of some...

Posted 06 Oct 2022

What is an All Party Parliamentary Group or APPG?

One of the lesser-known institutions of Westminster is the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG). Here’s a quick overview on some of the key features of an APPG: An APPG is a group of MPs and Peers...

Posted 29 Sep 2022

What is a Westminster Hall debate?

You may not know, but there are Parliamentary debates that occur outside of the Commons or Lords and these occur in Westminster Hall. Here’s a quick primer on some of the key features of a...

Posted 22 Sep 2022

How are English local councils funded?

While you might think that local councils are wholly funded by council tax, in fact, local government in England is funded by a combination of central government grants and local taxes. What are the problems...

Posted 30 Mar 2022

The UK has one of the most centralised local government funding systems

What is a combined authority and what is a metro mayor?

Local government in England comes in many different formats, unitary, district and county councils all cover different parts of the country. In recent years, mayoral combined authorities have become an established part of the English...

Posted 24 Mar 2022

41 percent of England’s population now live in areas with some form of mayoral devolution deal

How is local government organised in England?

England’s local government can sometimes be quite confusing. The history of devolution within England is one of ad hoc, piecemeal, top-down reforms united in their lack of a clear vision. This has left different areas...

Posted 16 Mar 2022

A product of a history of ad hoc piecemeal top-down reforms

Duvager’s law – more guidelines than actual rules?

Wherever there are two dominant political parties, there is a steady stream of new parties hoping to break the system. Britain has had several over the years and America’s latest is the Forward Party of...

Posted 09 Mar 2022

Duverger’s Law is one of the oldest so-called ‘laws’ in political science

Does proportional representation lead to higher turnout?

A healthy democracy requires healthy levels of democratic participation – the most crucial element of which is turnout at general elections. But Britain has one of the lowest turnout rates in the west – a...

Posted 10 Feb 2022

More people will bother voting if they feel that their vote won't be wasted

How are the members of upper houses chosen around the world?

Many countries use a bicameral political system – meaning that they have two chambers in their parliament. These parliaments are comprised of a lower house where the government is formed and day-to-day politics is carried...

Posted 27 Jan 2022