How Democratic Britian Was by the 1928?
Dilara Kaya
Essay Question: How democratic was Britain by 1928? “Democracy is the government of the people, for the people, by the people” (Abraham Lincoln, President of the USA, 1860-1865)”
For any country to be called democratic, certain conditions have to exist. Firstly, all adults should have the right to vote but the right to vote did not in itself make Britain democratic. Between 1850 and 1928, other features of a democracy were created. These features included a fair system of voting, a choice of who to vote for and access to information to make an informed choice. It should also be possible for people from all backgrounds to become Members of Parliament themselves and parliament should be accountable to the voters. Although the transition from a political system dominated by aristocracy to one of universal suffrage was a long and protracted one by 1928, most of the features of a democracy had been met. Consequently Britain had become more democratic than it was in 1850.
It is no wonder that John Kerr describes Britain as being “nowhere near being democratic in 1850.” The state of democracy in Britain had been set by the Great Reform Act of 1832 which increased the number of men who could vote in a general election and redistributed parliamentary seats so that there was a more equal ratio of MPs to constituents. However Britain was still far from being democratic. The system was not fair as voting took place in hustings meaning there was no secret ballot, making it possible for candidates to bribe and intimidate the voters and general elections were only held every seven years. Another aspect of the British political system that was undemocratic was the unequal distribution of seats and MPs still representing county and borough constituencies with great variations in size of population. Moreover, the Tory dominated House of Lords was unelected and it could stop the elected majority of the House of Commons getting bills though parliament and only wealthy
Essay Question: How democratic was Britain by 1928? “Democracy is the government of the people, for the people, by the people” (Abraham Lincoln, President of the USA, 1860-1865)”
For any country to be called democratic, certain conditions have to exist. Firstly, all adults should have the right to vote but the right to vote did not in itself make Britain democratic. Between 1850 and 1928, other features of a democracy were created. These features included a fair system of voting, a choice of who to vote for and access to information to make an informed choice. It should also be possible for people from all backgrounds to become Members of Parliament themselves and parliament should be accountable to the voters. Although the transition from a political system dominated by aristocracy to one of universal suffrage was a long and protracted one by 1928, most of the features of a democracy had been met. Consequently Britain had become more democratic than it was in 1850.
It is no wonder that John Kerr describes Britain as being “nowhere near being democratic in 1850.” The state of democracy in Britain had been set by the Great Reform Act of 1832 which increased the number of men who could vote in a general election and redistributed parliamentary seats so that there was a more equal ratio of MPs to constituents. However Britain was still far from being democratic. The system was not fair as voting took place in hustings meaning there was no secret ballot, making it possible for candidates to bribe and intimidate the voters and general elections were only held every seven years. Another aspect of the British political system that was undemocratic was the unequal distribution of seats and MPs still representing county and borough constituencies with great variations in size of population. Moreover, the Tory dominated House of Lords was unelected and it could stop the elected majority of the House of Commons getting bills though parliament and only wealthy