Parliamentary Affairs - current issue

CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE

2008-04-01

The Effect of Increased Women's Representation in Parliament: The Case of Rwanda

Devlin, C., Elgie, R. — 2008-04-01

There is an increasing amount of work on whether a higher level of women's representation in parliament leads to a different style of parliamentary politics. To date, most studies have focused on Western cases, and the results have been mixed. Women add new dimensions to the policy agenda, but there is little evidence that increased women's representation changes policy outputs. The little work that has been conducted outside the Western context confirms the mixed nature of these findings. In sub-Saharan Africa, women have added issues such as HIV/AIDS and property rights to the policy agenda, but there is little evidence to suggest that increased women's representation has altered policy outcomes. In this article, we examine the case of Rwanda, which now has the highest level of women's representation in parliament in the world at 48.75 per cent. Based on face-to-face interviews with women representatives in the Rwandan parliament, we confirm that the Western-based work has validity in a developing world context. In Rwanda, women representatives considered themselves to have a greater concern with grassroots politics, although there was also some divergence of views on the matter; there has been no change in the working hours or calendar of parliament. In terms of the policy agenda, women's issues are now raised more easily and more often than before, and there has been a strong advocacy of ‘international feminism’ by many deputies. However, increased women's representation has had little effect on policy outputs.

Building Democratic and Responsible Global Governance: The Role of International Parliamentary Institutions

Sabic, Z. — 2008-04-01

The emergence and growth of international parliamentary institutions (IPIs) is a phenomenon that needs a comprehensive evaluation. Their members, parliamentarians, are increasingly interested in participating in these institutions, which explains the dynamic growth of IPIs over the last few decades. IPIs also have a long history. The first among them, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, was founded in 1889. As IPIs have the potential to establish themselves as a contributor to a more democratic and transparent global governance, the enthusiasm for creating them is puzzling, because parliamentarians are primarily expected to follow the local, rather than international agenda. Other problems may have a negative impact on activities of IPIs, such as the lack of continuity, institutional memory and funding. What, then, is the rationale behind the creation of IPIs? What are the returns that justify the investment of parliamentarians' time and energy in these institutions?

Devolved Governance and the Substantive Representation of Women: The Second Term of the National Assembly for Wales, 2003-2007

Chaney, P. — 2008-04-01

The UK's devolution programme in the 1990s was, in part, predicated upon ideas of ‘inclusiveness’ and overturning the traditional male domination of politics. Whilst attention has tended to focus on the increase in the numbers of women elected representatives, comparatively less focus has been placed upon the impact of devolution on women's substantive representation—or the situation whereby women's needs and concerns are reflected in public policy. This paper examines the case of the National Assembly for Wales. It concludes that while the link between women's presence as elected representatives and substantive representation is complex and mediated by a range of factors, probabilistically women are more likely than their male counterparts to use the institutional mechanisms of devolved governance in order to promote gender equality in policy and law.

Consigning its Past to History? David Cameron and the Conservative Party

Evans, S. — 2008-04-01

During his campaign for the party leadership in 2005, David Cameron argued that if the Conservatives wanted to win the next election, then they would have to change and convince the electorate that they had done so. The Conservative Party has certainly begun to change since Cameron became leader and he has worked to reposition it in the centre ground of politics. There are, however, a number of constraints upon Cameron's freedom of action which could prevent him from achieving his goals in the future, not least the latent power of his party's right-wing. Cameron has also combined his desire to change the Conservative Party with an equally potent desire to preserve his inheritance, and his ‘inner Thatcherite’ could yet triumph over his reforming self.

A Code of Conduct for Indonesia: Problems and Perspectives

Pelizzo, R., Ang, B. — 2008-04-01

Previous analyses have shown that the success of ethics reforms such as the adoption of codes of ethics and codes of conduct depends on whether legislators have homogeneous ethical standards. In this paper, we discuss why the DPD (upper chamber) and the DPR (lower chamber) of the Indonesian legislature have decided to enact a code of conduct. The paper also presents the results of a survey that we conducted in the Indonesian legislature. Data analysis reveals that the ethical standards of Indonesian legislators are far from being homogeneous. In the final section of the paper we suggest some of the steps that could be taken to homogenise their ethical views before drafting and implementing the code of conduct.

Blair and Howard: Predominant Prime Ministers Compared

Bennister, M. — 2008-04-01

Political leaders matter again. The study of political leaders, particularly prime ministers, has been an under-researched area, yet the leadership discourse is back on the agenda. This article puts prime ministerial predominance into this context using comparative analysis to examine prime ministerial leadership in Australia and the UK and evidence from the tenures of Tony Blair and John Howard. The article contends that similar centralising tendencies, personal projection and autonomy from established structures were evident in the tenures of these two prime ministers. Ultimately, this created dislocation (of varying degrees) between the leaders, followers and the wider electorate.

Government and Information: Scientific Research and Policy Agenda in Congress

Wu, C.-L. — 2008-04-01

The relationship between scientific knowledge and public policy-making is an issue that is still unfolding. Working from the conventional wisdom that scientific knowledge plays a primary role in formulating public policy, this article first presents the problem of the influence of scientific research on policy-making in the US Congress. It then examines some of the reasons why the original paradigm, in which scientific research has a direct effect on the congressional policy agenda, has proven to be untenable. Subsequently, it addresses the conception of the influence of scientific analysis on congressional policy-making. In this conception, the knowledge generated by epistemic communities does not dominate public policy with compelling empirical evidence; instead, it influences the policy agenda by shaping the conceptual vocabulary of members of Congress and their staffs.

The Ombudsman and Individual Rights

Abraham, A. — 2008-04-01

Observing the English and Scottish 2007 e-elections

Kitcat, J., Brown, I. — 2008-04-01

Elections held during May 2007 in England and Scotland for the first time allowed accredited observers access to polling stations and counts. This provided an opportunity for detailed scrutiny of the use of e-voting and e-counting equipment in these elections. This article assesses the use of these technologies using observations from 10 constituencies and data obtained using Freedom of Information Act requests, interviews with officials, candidates and parties and reports on previous trials. It finds that inadequate time was available during the procurement process for cross-party consensus to be built around the English e-voting trials or for systems to be fully tested. Design errors meant that a very large number of Scottish ballots were spoiled, while problems with ballot papers required a large number of votes to be counted manually. Votes initially missed due to an over-wide Excel spreadsheet changed the result in the Highlands and Islands and handed control of the Scottish Parliament from the Labour party to the Scottish National Party.

Hung-up over Nothing? The Impact of a Hung Parliament on British Politics

Kalitowski, S. — 2008-04-01

Debating Nationhood and Governance in Britain, 1885-1939 * Reinventing Britain: Constitutional Change under New Labour * Public Matters: The Renewal of the Public Realm

Bogdanor, V. — 2008-04-01

Devolution in Wales: Claims and Responses, 1937-1979

Deacon, R. — 2008-04-01