Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation
The general elections of 2017 and 2010 produced hung parliaments in which no single party could command an overall majority; in May 2015 the UK only narrowly avoided that outcome. When a parliament is hung, more than one potential government can be viable, and the constitutional rules that determine...
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| Format: | Journal article |
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John Wiley & Sons Ltd
2017
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| _version_ | 1826258062509342720 |
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| author | Schleiter, P Belu, V Hazell, R |
| author_facet | Schleiter, P Belu, V Hazell, R |
| author_sort | Schleiter, P |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | The general elections of 2017 and 2010 produced hung parliaments in which no single party could command an overall majority; in May 2015 the UK only narrowly avoided that outcome. When a parliament is hung, more than one potential government can be viable, and the constitutional rules that determine who has the first right to form the government can thus have a decisive influence on which government forms. In the past, the UK has applied several potentially contradictory rules (based on conventions and principles), which do not all follow an equally democratic logic. This status quo is problematic because it can generate political controversy and uncertainty, in addition to jeopardising the Monarch's role in the government formation process. A reform that enables parliament to elect the leader who will be tasked with the formation of the next government would resolve these problems and provide constitutional clarity. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T18:28:05Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:08ac4367-d71c-4f12-a081-e9d58a34d389 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T18:28:05Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | John Wiley & Sons Ltd |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:08ac4367-d71c-4f12-a081-e9d58a34d3892022-03-26T09:14:11ZHung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formationJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:08ac4367-d71c-4f12-a081-e9d58a34d389Symplectic Elements at OxfordJohn Wiley & Sons Ltd2017Schleiter, PBelu, VHazell, RThe general elections of 2017 and 2010 produced hung parliaments in which no single party could command an overall majority; in May 2015 the UK only narrowly avoided that outcome. When a parliament is hung, more than one potential government can be viable, and the constitutional rules that determine who has the first right to form the government can thus have a decisive influence on which government forms. In the past, the UK has applied several potentially contradictory rules (based on conventions and principles), which do not all follow an equally democratic logic. This status quo is problematic because it can generate political controversy and uncertainty, in addition to jeopardising the Monarch's role in the government formation process. A reform that enables parliament to elect the leader who will be tasked with the formation of the next government would resolve these problems and provide constitutional clarity. |
| spellingShingle | Schleiter, P Belu, V Hazell, R Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title | Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title_full | Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title_fullStr | Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title_short | Hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| title_sort | hung parliaments and the need for clearer rules of government formation |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT schleiterp hungparliamentsandtheneedforclearerrulesofgovernmentformation AT beluv hungparliamentsandtheneedforclearerrulesofgovernmentformation AT hazellr hungparliamentsandtheneedforclearerrulesofgovernmentformation |