British Politics

In Tony Wright's British Politics, he speaks about the notion that English people are relatively unconcerned with their democracy, quoting Hugo Young as writing, "The British do not passionately care about democracy (14)." It seems that the British people have given Parliament a good deal of performance legitimacy- "As long as they get a vote every few years and the children don't starve, they are prepared to put up with almost anything (14)." Wright describes the strong central government of Britain in great detail, a government whose strength, to my mind, is born out of it's peoples laissez-faire attitude towards its Parliament. This in turn contributes towards the long-standing stability of their government- the MP are more than happy to maintain their heavily centralized government and the power it provides the Parliament so long as the people will support it. It even extends to their lack of a truly centralized constitution- there is no motivation to codify their numerous laws and edicts unless the people demand a clear outlining of their rights. It creates a cyclical relationship where both lawmakers and citizens are given what they desire, the citizens being provided a safe, stable society and the lawmakers the power to enact the policies they see fit. Such a system could never work in a country like the United States where rights and regulations were clearly stated from the conception of the nation. One must consider, however, whether the British system is more preferable in today's society. It allows the government a great deal of fluidity that the heavily codified American government cannot hope to simulate. In a time when quick, decisive action is all the more necessary and prevalent, it seems the British government has a governmental leg up on our own.