> Policy summary
That all controversial social and constitutional topics should be put to a compulsory referendum and subsequently enacted.
> Policy explanation
When parliament was set up in the 13th century it took 3 weeks for MPs to travel from their constituencies and it was impossible for them to quickly consult their voters, who had to rely on their judgement. Now with the internet and modern communication it is far easier. There is no reason why important decisions of morality or constitutional or treaty law cannot be made by the electorate as a whole. Indeed there is increasing evidence that MPs as a class are failing to represent their constituents both for Party reasons and because they are different from them in kind - more male, more chattering class, more metropolitan. There is an economic theory called "the wisdom of crowds" that says that crowds i.e. the electorate as a whole are more likely to come up with the right answer than "experts" e.g. MPs.
Social issues e.g. gay marriage, GM foods, hunting, cloning and constitutional issues e.g. English parliament, EU treaties are issues which cut across party lines. Often they are unwhipped. They are issues where the personal opinions of 646 MPs are no more valid than that of their 60 million constituents. They are binary choices of morality or of constitutional importance well within the grasp of the electorate. MPs are elected because of their views on income tax and the NHS, not GM foods. Lords are not elected at all and their views are their own.
The Conservative Party has suffered much over the last 25 years from the media and from special interest group pressure for a social and constitutional agenda that is social democrat and profoundly anti-conservative. This has been promoted ubiquitously in the media and has become the new orthodoxy. To cavil against it has had us described as the nasty party. This proposal allows us to appeal over the heads of the media to the quiet people of England who are much more "small c" conservative. If we lose, at least we know that it is the popular will of the English people and not just the enacted prejudices of a metropolitan elite.
This proposal is that we should enact a law that all these issues should be put to a referendum and then the result enacted. The detail of any law would be left to the government and MPs in the House but as a security, the Law Lords must issue a certificate that the law enacted was in accord with the letter and the spirit of the referendum result before it could take effect. If the government refused to bring in a law, then it would be up to the electorate to punish them at the subsequent GE. Perhaps in the case of a constitutional question, the Queen should have the duty to dissolve parliament and cause a general election, if no law is forthcoming within 24 months of the referendum.
Any political party, which had more than 2m votes in the previous election would be able to suggest 3 referendums over the lifetime of the parliament and any pressure group would be able to ask for a referendum if it could present a petition to parliament with 500000 signatures of voters on the electoral register. Referendums would take place at the next national election i.e. EU or GE so that the electoral admin. and cost were kept to a minimum. In order to stop perpetual referenda on key topics, the Law Lords would have the power to refuse a new referendum on any topic until 10 yrs after the enactment of legislation that they deemed to be on the same topic.
> Political risks and opportunities
The cost of the ballot papers. All campaigning costs would be borne by interested parties.
> Questions for ConservativeHome readers
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