Understand Politics
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Greenstein, F. The Presidential Difference: Leadership Style from FDR to George W. Bush, 2nd edition, 2004, Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press
James, S. British Cabinet Government, 2nd edition, 1999, London: Routledge
Kavanagh, D. and Seldon, A. The Powers Behind the Prime Minister: The Hidden Influence of Number 10, 2001, London: HarperCollins
Rhodes, R. and Dunleavy, P. (Editors) Prime Minister, Cabinet and Core Executive, 1995, Basingstoke: Macmillan/Palgrave
Roper, J. The American Presidents, 2001, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press
The president of America has a website located at www.whitehouse.gov. In the UK, up-to-date information concerning the Prime Minister’s Office can be found on the 10 Downing Street website at www.number-10.gov.uk.
Chapter 10
This chapter considered the role played by the civil service, and in particular examined the argument that civil servants exert a considerable role in the formulation of public policy in liberal democracies. A useful general work discussing bureaucracy is:
du Gay, P. The Values of Bureaucracy, 2005, Oxford: Oxford University Press
A more detailed examination of the role of the civil service in the United Kingdom and the process of administrative reform can be obtained from:
Barberis, P. (Editor) The Whitehall Reader, 1996, Milton Keynes: Open University Press
Barberis, P. The Elite of the Elite, 1996, Aldershot: Dartmouth
Page, E. and Jenkins, B. Policy Bureaucracy: Government with a Cast of Thousands, 2005, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Chapter 11
This chapter examined the role performed by law-making bodies in liberal democracies. More detailed accounts are provided in:
Foley, M. and Owen, J. Congress and the Presidency: Institutional Politics in a Separated System, 1996, Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996. Considers the relationship between legislatures and executives in connection with America.
Loewenberg, G. et al. (Editors), Legislatures: Comparative Perspectives on Representative Assemblies, 2002, Michigan: University of Michigan Press
Norton, P. Legislatures, 1990, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Additionally, the Journal of Legislative Studies provides useful up-to-date material on legislatures throughout the world.
The legislatures of many countries now televise their proceedings and these provide us with an interesting insight into how these bodies operate. In the UK, debates in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords are to be found on the BBC’s Parliamentary Channel. Additionally, the House of Commons website (www.parliament.uk) provides the full text of bills and debates which take place in the House of Commons.
Chapter 12
This chapter discussed the process of law enforcement and the role performed by judges and the courts in liberal democracies. Particular attention was devoted to the politics of the judiciary. Greater consideration of this issue can be found in:
Hodder-Williams, R. Judges and Politics in the Contemporary Age, 1996, London: Bowerdean. Contains comparative discussion based on the United Kingdom and America.
Griffith, J. The Politics of the Judiciary, 5th revised edition, 1997, London: Fontana Press
Russell, P. and O’Brien, D. Judicial Independence in the Age of Democracy: Critical Perspectives from around the World, 2001, Virginia: University of Virginia Press
Stevens, R. The Independence of the Judiciary, 1997, Oxford: Clarendon
Further information concerning the process of reform affecting the judiciary in the UK can be found at the website of the Ministry of Justice, www.justice.gov.uk.
Chapter 13
This chapter examined the concept of federalism and discussed the role performed by local government in liberal democratic systems of government.
Further accounts of federalism can be found in:
Davies, P. and Waldstein, F. (Editors) Political Issues in America Today: The 1990s Revisited, revised edition, 1996, Manchester: Manchester University Press
Steiner, J. European Democracies, 5th edition, 2006, Harlow: Longman
Watts, D. Understanding American Government and Politics, 2nd edition, 2006, Manchester: Manchester University Press
A useful account of the development of local government in Britain is provided by:
Stevens, A. Politico’s Guide to Local Government, 2nd revised edition, 2006, London: Politico’s Publishing
Information on current policies affecting local government can be obtained from the Local Government Association at 1st Floor, Local Government House, Smith Square, London SW1P 3HZ (www.lga.gov.uk).
Chapter 14
This chapter focused on politics beyond the nation state and considered the extent to which national sovereignty is a meaningful concept in the twenty-first century.
Globalization is an important consideration when discussing national sovereignty. More detailed information on this topic can be found in:
Axford, B. The Global System – Economics, Politics and Culture, 1995, Cambridge: Polity Press
The special relationship between the UK and USA is thoroughly explored in:
Dumbrell, J. A Special Relationship: Anglo-American Relations from the Cold War to Iraq, 2nd edition, 2006, Basingstoke: Macmillan/Palgrave
There are many books which consider the development and operations of the European Union. These include.
Bache, I. and George, S. Politics in the European Union, 2nd edition, 2006, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Cini, M. European Union Politics, 3rd edition, 2009, Oxford: Oxford University Press
McCormick, J. The EU: Politics and Policies, 4th edition, 2007, Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press
Nugent, N. The Government and Politics of the EU, 6th edition, 2006, Basingstoke: Macmillan/Palgrave
Wallace, H. and W. Policy-Making in the European Union, 4th revised edition, 2000, Oxford: Oxford University Press
The EU is constantly undergoing change and development and summaries of contemporary developments can be found at the EU’s website: www.europa.eu.
Index
accountability, 19–20
governments, 20, 89, 217–18
judicial, 283
and local government, 299–300
of the police, 270–3
of public office holders, 103–4
administrative law, 276–7
adversarial politics, 260
affirmative action, 14–15
American Declaration of Independence, 13
Amsterdam, Treaty of (1997), 326–7
anarchism, 46–7
Australia, 128–9, 153, 287
and the UK monarchy, 209, 210
Austria, 105–6
authoritarian societies, 21–2
authority, 7, 9–10
Belgium, 105, 106, 290
Berlusconi, Silvio, 156, 284
Beveridge, William, 56
Blair, Tony, 99, 199, 337, 338
Bosnia, 316, 318
Britain see United Kingdom
British National Party, 105
Brown, Gordon, 99
bureaucracy, 214–37
civil service, 219–24, 225
Burke, Edmund, 28, 60
Bush, George W., 101, 200, 204, 205, 283, 284, 337
cabinet government, 192–6
Cameron, David, 90, 99
Canada, 84, 254–5, 316
federalism, 290–1
Carter, Jimmy, 201, 204
Catalonia, 298
Catholic Church, 96, 124
Chile, 172
China, 21, 47, 48, 49
Chirac, Jacques, 86, 190, 266
Churchill, Winston, 337
civil law, 274
civil rights, 170–1
civil service, 219–24, 225
reform, 227–33
Clegg, Nick, 90, 99
Clinton, Bill, 54, 142, 201, 203, 283, 339
coalition governments, 88–90, 188
Cold
War, 335–6
collective ministerial responsibility, 178–9, 188
collectivism, 45–6
committees, legislative, 247–9
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), 334
Common Commercial Policy (CCP), 334
common law, 177
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), 293–4
communism, 4, 21, 24, 47–9
community empowerment, 310
confederations, 293–5
conflict, 1, 2
conflictual bicameralism, 254
conservatism, 59–62
Conservative Party (UK), 93, 94, 95, 105, 111
expulsion from, 259
leadership elections, 99
and the media, 156, 157
membership and reforms, 115–16
consociationalism, 294–5
constitutional law, 277–9
constitutions, 165–85
amendments to, 173, 174
codified, 165–7, 173–5
role of, 167–72
UK, 166, 175–7
reform of, 177–84
conventions, 177
corporate states, 139
courts, 2, 274–6
French administrative courts, 276–7
judicial reviews, 174–5, 277–9
criminal law, 274
data protection legislation, 149
Davis, David, 99
Denmark, 299, 305, 326
devolution, 179–81, 275, 296, 297, 316
Diana, Princess of Wales, 147
dictatorships, 8, 9
direct action, 130
discrimination, 13, 14–15, 300
Droop quota, 78
Eastern Europe, 21, 48, 49
economic and monetary union (EMU), 335
elections, 2, 19, 20, 22–6, 31, 66–74
campaigns, 69, 150, 151, 159
and legitimacy, 10
local government, 301–2
non-voting, 67–8
and opinion polls, 33–4, 35
political party leaders, 98–101
timing of, 23–4
electoral systems, 27–8, 74–90
first-past-the-post, 27–8, 74–6, 80–4
proportional representation, 27, 77–80, 85–8
elite theories of politics, 5, 8
Engels, Friedrich, 42, 50
episodic groups, 124
equality, 13–15
ethnic cleansing, 316
European Commission, 331, 333
European Council, 332
European Court of Justice, 333
European law, 176–7
European Parliament, 332–3
European Union (EU), 294, 324–36
Constitutional Treaty referenda, 37, 329
policies, 334–5
and pressure groups, 131–2
and the USA, 335–6
executive branch of government, 2, 186–213
cabinet government, 192–3, 194–6
chief executives, 191–4
bureaucracies, 206–8
power of, 197–206
controls on local government, 303–4
heads of state, 208–12
and legislatures, 257–9
and pressure groups, 124, 125–6
scrutiny by the legislature, 243–4
external sovereignty, 314
threats to, 317–23
extra-parliamentary political action, 30, 31–4, 130
fascism, 21, 43, 62–3
federalism, 287–92, 297, 314
feminism, 51–2
first-past-the-post electoral system, 27–8, 74–6
foreign aid, 322
fourth estate, 143–4
France, 2, 24, 31–2, 33
administrative courts, 276–7
civil service, 219–20
Constitution, 165, 166
constitutional court, 278
electoral system, 75–6, 85–6
executive government, 189–91, 199, 208
legislature, 250–1, 252, 254
assertiveness, 265–6
local government, 299, 301, 303, 305
party system, 259
policing, 271
political parties, 86, 95–6, 97, 105, 106–7, 129
prefectoral system, 305
pressure groups, 125, 128, 129, 132–3, 139
privacy and the media, 147, 148–9
unitary state, 288
franchise, 25
freedom, 57–8
of information, 234–5
of political expression, 23–5
free markets/trade, 56, 57–8, 61
French Revolution, 60
functional representation, 252–5
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), 321
Germany, 24, 26, 54, 63
coalition governments, 90
Constitution, 167, 170
constitutional court, 278
electoral system, 86, 87–8
executive government, 187, 188, 193, 207–8
federalism, 287, 292
legislature, 249, 250, 252, 264
lobbying, 137
political parties, 93, 95, 107, 108
Giddens, Anthony, 54
global economy, 319–22
globalization, 131, 317, 320
Gore, Al, 206, 228
governments, 143, 169–72
bureaucracy, 214–36
national control of policing, 270–1
political parties and support for, 102–3
power, authority and legitimacy of, 6–11
separation of powers, 168–9
Greece, 305
Guatemala, 322
Hitler, Adolf, 9, 62, 63
Hobbes, Thomas, 56
home rule, 297
House of Lords (UK), 183–84, 275
Hulne, Chris, 99
human rights, 182–3
UK legislation, 149–50, 181–2
hyper-pluralism, 140
immigration, 3–4
individualism, 44–5, 56
intergovernmental cooperation, 318
internal sovereignty, 314
International Monetary Fund, 322, 323
international relations, 313, 315
international trade, 321–2
internet, 142–3, 320
Iran, 22
Iraq war, 336, 338
Ireland, Republic of, 37, 124
civil service, 227
Constitution, 167, 174
electoral system, 76, 88
head of state, 208, 209
judiciary, 285
legislature, 246–7, 250, 252–3
local government, 304
policing, 271
political parties, 93, 96
regional administration, 296
Israel, 89, 166, 189
Italy, 24, 33, 89, 156, 208
Constitution, 167
constitutional law, 278
judiciary, 284
legislature, 264
local government, 299, 305
political parties, 94, 95, 96, 105, 107
regionalism, 296–7
Japan, 94
Johnson, Lyndon, 204
judges, 281–4, 285
judicial functions of the legislature, 245–6
judiciary, 273–85, 286
control of local government, 305
judicial interpretation, 279–81
judicial reviews, 174–5, 277–9
the judicial system, 273–9
and pressure groups, 124, 128–9
Juppé, Alain, 199
juries, trial by, 275–6
Kagan, Robert, 336
Kennedy, John F., 152
Keynes, John Maynard, 53, 56
Labour governments (UK)
civil service reform, 229
constitutional reform, 179–84
legislature assertiveness, 265
and local government, 307, 309
Labour
Party (UK), 105, 109, 111
leadership elections, 98–9
and the media, 156–7, 158
membership and reforms, 112, 115, 116
and trade unions, 129
law enforcement, 269–73
law making, 238–43, 256–7, 286
judicial, 279–81
law, rule of, 11–12
left-wing political ideologies, 43, 46–52
legislatures, 2, 20, 238–67
authority of, 259–63
decline of, 264–7
functional representation, 252–5
functions of, 238–47
operations of, 247–50
power of, 255–9
and pressure groups, 124, 126–8
and public opinion, 26–30
and referenda, 37–8
types of, 250–2, 253–5
legitimacy, 5, 10–11
Lenin, V.I., 49
liberal democracies, 4, 6, 8, 10, 17–20
and direct action, 130
electoral procedures, 22–6
legislatures and public opinion, 26–30
the media in, 142–4, 151
opinion polls, 32–5
and political parties, 92–3
political systems, 18–19
populist politics in, 64
power and authority in, 8, 10
and pressure groups, 139
public involvement in policy making, 30–5
and the rule of law, 12
and terrorism, 339–40
see also elections
liberalism, 3, 5, 52, 55–8
Liberal Party/Liberal Democrats (UK), 45, 83, 90
leadership elections, 99
membership, 116
Lijphart, Arend, 294
Lisbon Treaty (2009), 37, 329–30
lobbying, 126–8, 137–8
local government, 298–310
control of policing, 271–2
elections, 301–2
performance of, 302–3
reform in the UK, 306–10
Locke, John, 56
Lukes, Stephen, 7–8
Maastricht Treaty (1993), 37, 325–6, 327, 330, 332, 335
Major, John, 94, 196
Maoism, 49
marginalization, 300–1
Marx, Karl, 21, 47, 49, 50
Marxism, 3, 5, 12, 47
and ideology, 42
and legitimacy, 10
Marxism–Leninism, 48–9
media, 142–64, 257
and the conduct of politics, 150–5
criticisms of, 144–6
cross-media ownership, 159–62
freedom of the press, 146
mergers and consolidation, 162–3
political influence of, 155–9
privacy and media regulation, 146–50
role in liberal democracies, 142–4