Bluffocracy by Ball James; Greenway Andrew;

Author:Ball, James; Greenway, Andrew; [James Ball and Andrew Greenway]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 5523442
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Published: 2018-02-27T16:00:00+00:00

There is one final corner in which experts can reside in politics, and that’s the House of Lords: expert scientists, doctors, academics and others are often appointed to the upper chamber without political affiliation, in theory leaving them able to shape debate and legislation with the benefit of their expertise. The reality leaves a little more to be desired. The group of crossbench peers makes up just 181 out of 799 peers eligible to vote, fewer than either the Conservative or Labour contingents, and on their own are only able to influence or persuade others, rather than shift the law directly.

This impotence is heightened by just how toothless the House of Lords can be: they are ultimately unable to block any legislation that’s in a party’s manifesto, and can only delay legislation by one year in the case of a proper showdown. They’re also unable to vote on money bills – anything deciding where and how public money gets spent – and Prime Ministers have additionally shown themselves willing and able to pack the chamber with new peers to shift the balance in their favour. One of the small nooks in political life better set up to house experts is almost designed to make sure their voice can’t be heard. Still – at least politicians have the expertise of the professional civil service to lean on.

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