The source discusses the view that UK democracy is in crisis, and argues that, in some aspects, there does seem to be evidence to suggest that the UK is experiencing ‘something’ of a participation crisis, due to a decrease in public confidence and a lower voter turnout in the past few decades. On the other hand, the source also suggests that ‘crisis’ is too strong a word to describe the UK’s political participation, as people are not as disengaged with politics, as the statement leads us to believe. The direction of this essay will be to argue that the UK, despite having some aspects of political disinterest, is not experiencing a participation ‘crisis’.
The source claims that ‘electoral turnout has fallen sharply’, particularly since the ‘2001 General Election’. This is a valid argument as this election had an overall turnout of 59% which was a significant decrease from the previous election, which experienced a turnout of around 71%, making it the lowest turnout since the end of WW2. This evidence suggests that, since 2001, less people are deciding to vote, which could imply that there is a participation crisis in the UK, and could mean that modern day citizens do not care about politics as much as past generations did. However, many people argue that it is not possible to compare the turnout of different elections, as many people decide to vote depending on the current circumstances, as certain situations can affect political awareness and interest. Electoral turnout can also depend heavily on the importance of the election, if an election has significant importance, more people are likely to vote, which was evident in the European Union Referendum, which experienced a turnout of 72%. The source also correctly states that ‘people do not seem more disengaged from the political system’ as ‘participation outside the ballot box has increased’. This is a convincing argument, as party membership has risen steadily since 2013, with Labour having 480,000 members. This suggests that, not only has electoral turnout not yet led to a ‘crisis’, with the number of people voting increasing each year, but people are also not disengaged with politics, as the number of party memberships is still extremely high.
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The source also claims that ‘the introduction of new political institutions since 1997.. Have had little impact’. This may be correct as the number of people belonging to trade unions throughout the UK is significantly lower than it was several decades ago, where it was then suggested that political participation was at its peak. However, this may not be representative of the UK’s political participation, as during those decades there was a need for trade unions to represent the rights of workers in the UK, which is no longer as prominent today. Instead, there has been an increase in those belonging to pressure groups in order to raise awareness for their views. This has seen a significant increase in those applying to be members of organisations such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, which boasts a membership equivalent to double the membership of the Liberal Democrats, Labour and Conservative parties put together. This increase in pressure group membership suggests that ‘levels of political interest have not fallen, and people remain confident in their own ability to engage with the political process’ albeit not by being members of political parties. This also contradicts the view that political institutions have not had ‘little impact in restoring people’s trust and confidence’ as people are confident in the ability of institutions such as RSPB to represent their political and environmental interests.
Lastly, the source arguably claims that ‘levels of trust in government, and confidence in the political system are lower than they were little more than a decade ago’. This is a significant claim as public trust and confidence in both the government and the political system is paramount to the state of democracy, and public participation in the UK. There has been a slight decrease in public trust in the government, particularly in the last few years, due to circumstances such as Brexit, which has divided many politicians, and members of the public. However, as the source states, this can be seen as a ‘short-term’ problem, rather than a ‘long-term’ one, as circumstances can easily change, meaning that public trust and confidence can be easily restored, depending on the incumbent government’s successes. Therefore, this argument cannot be used to support the idea that the ‘UK democracy is in crisis’.
In conclusion, I believe that the view that the ‘UK democracy is in crisis’ is weak as, although there has been a slight decline in the number of people voting since 2001 and the level of trust in the government has fallen, this can not be referred to as a ‘crisis’ as there is still evidence in people taking an interest in the political system, through an increased membership in pressure groups and certain political parties.
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