A dozen points about democracy

As seen by a lay person in the midst of the Untied Kingdom’s constitutional crisis

Image from Economist Intelligence Unit (2010)

1. Democracy is not a single process (like a vote). It is a set of processes, practices, rules. It is a SYSTEM.
2. Using a poorly drafted referendum process is not de facto an exercise in democracy.
3. Declaring after the fact — because you agree with the overall result — that a non-binding result is a DECISION is not democracy.
4. True democracy does not roll a two-sided die on questions as profound as the rights of residency of UK citizens it excludes from voting.
5. True democracy doesn’t drive voting decisions using falsehoods known to people who approved or allowed the adverts to run.
6. The constitution of a true democracy — whether written or not — is not a “loop hole”. The separate powers of Government and Parliament are constitutionally defined.
7. Under the British constitution, the Government has the power to act on foreign affairs. There is no sensible description of #Brexit as only foreign affairs.
8. If you want a parliamentary democracy with referendums, then may I suggest three things?
9. First, write them well. Clearly state whether it’s a sentiment test or a poll on a planned course of action. Being unclear helps no one vote well.
10. Second, make voting mandatory. Demand 100% turnout, and accept 90%. Define in advance the % that constitutes a majority. Slim majorities should not be taken as decisive.
11. Criminalise misleading campaigns, falsehoods. Block adverts paid for by special interests. Demand transparency and penalise campaigns that aren’t.
12. Do these things & then, yeah, let’s talk about democracy. It’s a demanding form of government. Citizens have to step up. Whips have to shut up.

I first tweeted these points from @kate_hammer on July 8, 2016. I’ve tweaked some so they make better sense. Below are things I knew about or have since learned that relate or illustrate or explain these dozen.

Re #2. I think it’s fair to say the Act constructing the referendum was poorly structured. For an in-depth view of how I formed this view, please see the longform piece I wrote on July 4, here on Medium. For a snappier view, see this post written on July 7.

My open letter did not mention the timing of the referendum: just before school summer holidays, and after university terms had ended. This is not simply a question of convenience or even, willpower. Students would need to have registered to vote in the constitutency where they would be residing during the summer….ahead of a June 7th deadline. The BBC raised this as a concern on May 20.

Please add a comment in the sidebar if you can point readers to articles or discussions about what uplift in voter turnout amongst 18–24 year olds a university term-time poll might have delivered.

Re: #3. The overall result is the total of number of votes accrued for each option. There were other results, like the distribution of votes in Scotland and Northern Ireland. It only makes sense to speak of results, not a result. The plural is contained in the remarks on 28 Jun 2016 made by Donald Tusk, President of the European Council. This was highlighted by David Allen Green, a neutral commentator who writes on law and policy for the FT.

Re #4:

First, the matter of exclusion: UK nationals living lawfully as EU citizens in EU countries for more than 15 years were excluded from voting in the Referendum. The challenge failed at the Supreme Court. This left an estimated 2 milllion UK citizens disenfrachised. The uncertainty in status following #Brexit that they face is disproportionate.

Second, the matter of a binary choice: on July 12, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney was questoined by Jacob Rees Mogg. Listen out for the reply at 0:48. It’s about the binary choice mentioned in #4.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak6gCe9Fuzk

The binary choice was in the construction of a sentiment test with only two options. The reality of the campaigning leaves two choices expressing (at least) four sentiments:

The binary choice created ambiguity.

Re #6: David Allen Green (see Notes on #3 above) wrote a post “Five Things About David Cameron and Sovereignty” in March 2016 about how this Government (like previous ones) has undermined Parliament. He’s making this statement as a non-partisan law expert.

Re: #11. Nigel Farage committing EU membership money to British communities. And then denying he ever said so. Published by The Independent June 25, 2016.

Re: #12 “Whips have to shut up” was my logical conclusion.

It’s the whips who deliver party loyalty. Party loyalty is the enemy of independent thinking. On the importance of independent thinking during this constitutional crisis, please see my post here.

Turns out there is both a popular name and a political science term for the problem this would solve. “Elective dictatorship” is the phrase used by former Lord Chancellor Lord Hailsham in his 1976 Richard Dimbleby Lecture at the BBC and referenced in Green’s March 2016 blog post. In political science, this is also known as “executive dominance”.

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