UK Democracy Bulletin, 6th June 2023
Fortnightly news, jobs, grants and gossip from across the democracy sector, brought to you by James Moulding, Louise Dunmore and Max Roche of the UK Democracy Network. Read by 400+ democracy organisations. We read everyone’s newsletters & research so you don’t have to. If you want us to cover yours, let us know: hello@democracynetwork.org.uk
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Highlights
- Sort the System hundreds descend on Westminster for equal votes lobby
- Protest rights new restrictions proposed, joint manifesto efforts
- Open Government Network submit your ideas for the National Action Plan
- Public Interest News Foundation launch their 2023 Index
- Involve call for citizens’ juries to set new rules for MPs
Thanks to our contributors
Thanks to everyone who joined us last week for our Democracy Check-In. We were joined by Kevin Keith — Open Government Network, Jessica Townsend — MP Watch, Ashok Viswanathan — PeoplePower, Calum Green — Involve, Joe Mitchell — Public Interest News Foundation, Grace Barnett — Unlock Democracy, Shima Langan — Shout Out UK, Pip Eldridge — Voice of the Listener & Viewer, Natasha Kaeda — 50:50 Parliament, Myf Nixon — mySociety, Nancy Platts — Politics for the Many and Lara Parizotto — Migrant Democracy Project.
Opportunities to Collaborate
Democracy Coworking
Spend a day working alongside other organisations working on UK democratic reform:
Launch of the Collaboration for Democratic Change Toolkit, 13th June 5.30pm — hybrid event
Join the UK Democracy Network on Tuesday 13th June for the launch of the new academic and practitioners toolkit. Hosted by the University of Westminster’s Centre for the Study of Democracy, the evening will feature a panel discussion and roundtable discussions amongst practitioners, academics and funders exploring the challenges and opportunities for collaboration — Sign up now.
How to: AI & Democracy Workshop, June 29th 2.30pm
Join us on Thursday June 29th at 2.30pm for a special Zoom workshop focusing on how you can use new AI tools to supercharge your democracy work and campaigns — register now!
PeoplePower running pilot constituency panels
Ashok Viswanathan of PeoplePower is setting up four constituency panels across the UK, in Islington North, Leeds East, Oldham & East Saddleworth and Uxbridge & South Ruislip. They are working to get endorsements on the pilot from MPs and similarly minded organisations, can you help?
Upcoming Legislation
Urgent call out for signatories against further restrictions to protest
The Public Order Act 1986 (Serious Disruption to the Life of the Community) Regulations 2023 will be voted on by peers on the 13th June, next week. Not only is this notable as another attempt to even further tighten the restrictions on protest, but also as unconstitutional in the way it is being brought forward, Dave Timms of Friends of the Earth argues, as these measures were already dismissed by peers during the passage of the Act, and are now being reintroduced through secondary legislation. Read the Liberty briefing here — Sign the open letter to Peers now — deadline 8 June. Contact Dave Timms for more details.
DCMS launches pre-legislative scrutiny on the Draft Media Bill
The Media Bill will be the first time that the Communications Act has been updated since 2003. The deadline for pre-legislative scrutiny evidence closed 17 May. Pip Eldridge and the team at Voice of the Listener & Viewer have just submitted scrutiny evidence to the Committee.
Government forced into concessions on Retained EU Law Bill
The UK Government has been forced into a number of concessions on the Retained EU Law Bill. The first amendment requires a schedule of any law that may be revoked to be referred to a Joint Committee of both Houses so that any possible revocation is debated and voted on by each House. A new clause has also been added to allow Parliament to prevent the revocation of any particular retained EU rights, powers and liabilities that are due to be revoked automatically at the end of 2023.
Spotlight on Corruption dismayed at Government win on foreign donation law amendment
The government has voted down an amendment to the National Security Bill which could have tightened laws around foreign financing of political parties. Spotlight on Corruption say the move was a ‘badly missed opportunity to protect the next election from malign influences’ and is calling on parties to adopt their ‘Know Your Donor Policy’ to improve financial transparency.
Republic forging ahead with plan to repeal the 2023 Public Order Act
Republic are working to bring together a coalition of organisations in an effort to get last year’s Public Order Act repealed in the wake of its apparent misuse at the King Charles’ coronation. If you’re interested in collaborating on this project, get in touch.
Democracy Sector
UK has increasing levels of neighbourhood trust, says new KCL report
New research from the The Policy Institute at King’s College London has found that the UK has some of the highest global levels of neighbourhood trust. The report Love Thy Neighbour? found that 84% of the British public said they completely or somewhat trusted people in their neighbourhood — up from 78% in 2005.
Open Government Network want ‘bold ideas’ for new National Action Plan
As part of the plan for their new 6th National Action Plan (NAP), the Open Government Network (OGN) are welcoming civil society input to propose and develop a platform of bold new ideas. These proposals will form the basis of discussions for a process of working alongside government to create new policy commitments ahead of the publication of the NAP at the end of the year. Reach out to Kevin Keith regarding any questions — or submit your ideas here.
50:50 Parliament to host a commemoration of Emmeline Pankhurst 165th birthday
Hosted by Jess Philips at Westminster and run in partnership with Women in Public Affairs, the commemoration event of the suffragette leader will be held on Monday 17th July — stay tuned for more information. In other news, 50:50 are currently working on their GE strategy, to identify seats that could provide an opportunity for women to be selected and elected.
Campaign Development Workshop update
Last week more than 40 member organisations of the UK Democracy Network came together to discuss proposals for joint campaigns on democracy in the UK. Participants considered four different types of campaigns. Look out for a full report in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, take a look at the event pre-read here.
Migrant Democracy Project hiring Event Organiser
It’s full steam ahead at the Migrant Democracy Project, in preparation for a new voter registration programme they’re running with Shout Out UK and the Greater London Authority, they’re hiring a new Event Organiser — apply now. Meanwhile, the team at Migrant Democracy are focusing on trying to get Labour Party National Policy Forum representatives to table an amendment to the NPF paper on Residence-Based Voting Rights.
Autonomy propose Universal Basic Income trial for England
Will Stronge, Director of Research at Autonomy, hopes the proposed pilot will ‘make the case for a national basic income and more comprehensive trials to fully understand the potential of a basic income in the UK’. Grange Big Local in East Finchley and Big Local Central Jarrow have led two years of community consultation to design a basic income pilot in their areas, the pilot would involve a £1,600 payment for two years. Find out more on the proposed pilot — Autonomy is now seeking funding for the research.
Shout Out UK running voter reg public awareness campaign with GLA
Partnering with the Greater London Authority on a large-scale public awareness campaign around voter registration and voter ID, Shout Out UK are currently recruiting focus groups with target demographics ahead of the main campaign.
Joe Mitchell is Public Interest News Foundations’ new Deputy Director
Congratulations to Joe Mitchell, the new Deputy Director at the Public Interest News Foundation. Joe was formerly Head of Impact at PINF. They reflect on their two years of trying to bring about a healthier media culture in the UK, read Joe’s reflections.
Democracy Network are recruiting a campaigns officer
UK Democracy Network are recruiting a new Campaigns & Advocacy Officer (Maternity Cover) — the deadline has been extended for the role, apply by Sunday 11th 5pm.
Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust is recruiting two new directors
The Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust is looking for two new directors to join the organisation and broaden the skills and diversity of the Board. A deep understanding of democracy is essential to the role and campaigning experience would be an added benefit. One of the two new Directors will chair the Trust’s Finance Committee monitoring the overall financial health of the Trust — Apply by June 11.
mySociety run #Democracy2043 panel as part of Festival of Debate
As part of their 20th anniversary year, mySociety ran a fantastic discussion at the Sheffield Festival of Debate focused on looking ahead 20 years ahead to the world that might be, considering — what do we need to put in place now, to ensure a thriving future for all in 2043. Stay tuned for the livestream recording or follow mySociety on YouTube.
Elections
Unlock Democracy are tracking party manifesto development processes
Introduced by Tom Brake at the Democracy Network’s General Election Working Group, Unlock Democracy’s live document provides insight on the most recent intelligence and manifesto process from various parties — contact Tom Brake to view and access the document. Contact Democracy Network if you would like to join the General Election Working Group — the next GE Working Group meeting will be 26th June at 3pm on Zoom.
Senior Tory suggests voter ID scheme was a deliberative attempt to gerrymander elections
At the National Conservative Conference, Jacob Rees-Mogg suggested that voter ID was a ‘clever scheme’ by the party to swing voters in their favour. Rees-Mogg said ‘parties that try and gerrymander end up finding their clever scheme comes back to bite them, as dare I say we found by insisting on voter ID for elections’. Labour MP, Dawn Butler, is now calling for a parliamentary inquiry and possibly a police investigation to ascertain whether the scheme was indeed a deliberate and illegal way to swing votes. The Parliamentary Standards Commissioner noted that chamber conversations are not included in their inquiries and the Electoral Commission emphasised that policy decisions are not the responsibility of Parliament.
Local elections highlight failings of First Past the Post, say Electoral Reform Society
The Electoral Reform Society has unearthed a series of local councils with significant discrepancies between the vote share and final seat share. In Broxbourne, for example, the Conservatives gained 90% control of the council despite attaining just 50.3% of the vote. ERS said the First Past the Post system is ‘failing voters and failing communities’, reiterating the need to introduce Proportional Representation.
Voter ID chaos must not overshadow important electoral system reforms, says Institute for Government
Although voter ID grabbed most headlines in May, Peter Hourston at the Institute for Government highlights that these elections were the first in which the council mayor, metro mayor and police and crimes commissioner were elected via First Past The Post. Check out their blog for a range of local election takeaways that went unreported in the wider media.
MP Watch prepares for new campaign in Lee Anderson’s constituency
Jessica Townsend and the team at MP Watch are currently recceing Lee Anderson MP’s constituency for a new campaign targeting the climate denialist MP, using similar methods to their well-known campaign Steve Baker Watch, in the constituency of the MP of the same name last year. They’re aiming for 100 of these campaigns by next year’s General Election. Contact Jessica to find out more.
Democratic Reform & Innovation
Hundreds descend on Westminster as part of mass lobby for equal votes
People joined the mass lobby from all over the country from Carmarthen to Cornwall, before joining Klina Jordan, Clive Lewis MP, Zack Polanski and others at a rally in the Emmanuel Centre. On the day of the mass lobby, a new poll found overwhelming support for changing the voting system, with only 1 in 5 Brits saying the system works well.
Starmer hints at lowering the national voting age to include 16 and 17 year olds
Last month Keir Starmer made several comments hinting at possible expansions of the electoral franchise were Labour to win the next General Election. The Labour leader said it ‘does not pass the common sense test’ that EU nationals who have lived in the UK long-term can’t vote in general elections. He also remarked that allowing 16 and 17 year olds to vote was ‘not such an outlandish idea’, confirming that Labour is ‘looking at’ the option.
Lord Rennard calls for change in party finance regulation
Lib Dem Peer Lord Rennard highlights the growing arms race between the major parties over election campaign spend, as well as the corrupting influence of large donations — find out more.
Politics for the Many building the campaign for PR amongst the trade union grassroots
Politics for the Many is the trade union campaign for electoral reform and democratic rights. Nancy Platts and the team are collating a comprehensive list of trade union branches across the country to write to their members, invite them to events and involve them in the trade union campaign for proportional representation.
Involve launch call to use citizens’ juries to help set new rules for MPs
Calum Green, Director of Advocacy and Communications at Involve, reports that they are calling for new reforms to embed citizens’ juries at the heart of our democratic system, starting with juries to help set and evaluate new rules for MPs. Commissioning citizens’ juries to set these rules, check they work and even play a role in judging potential wrongdoing — as part of a wider effort — would help to rebuild trust in politics, they say, and it would appear economist Martin Wolf agrees.
Unlock Democracy launch new report on UK democratic backsliding, 26th June
Written by Professor Toby James of the University of East Anglia for Unlock Democracy, A New Charter to Renew Democracy: How Can We Reverse Democratic Backsliding in the UK? will document democratic backsliding in the UK since 2019, proposing a ten-point charter for how we might reverse this trend. Join the launch event online on 26th June at 6pm — Register now.
Devolved Democracy / Local Democracy
Centre for Governance and Scrutiny publish their ‘first look’ at the new Devolution Accountability Framework
The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny has taken a ‘first look’ at the English Devolution Accountability Framework, published by the government in March. The Accountability Framework has been anticipated since the issuing of the Levelling Up White Paper. This key contribution from CfGS takes a look at the framework’s key themes and components, outlining their impact on officials working in local and combined authorities.
Institute for Government explores the impact of devolution on regional growth
The Institute for Government has published a new report How can devolution deliver regional growth in England? looking at the link between devolution and economic performance. The report suggests the devolution of key economic policies — such as transport and skills — is a good start, but calls for an extension of the ‘trailblazer devolution’ deals agreed with Greater Manchester and the West Midlands to other combined authorities.
Fiscal devolution is moving out of the wilderness, reports New Local
In an exciting turn of events for devolution wonks, Jessica Studdert’s new report talks fiscal devolution and how it is finally making a show after its long exile as being seen as too radical for the UK. Recently Leeds City Council Chief Exec Tom Riordan said fiscal devolution ‘isn’t about a zero-sum game of who raises the tax, it’s actually about doing it better and raising it more effectively’.
Integrity & Transparency
Parliamentary scrutiny is becoming increasingly difficult, says the Institute for Government
‘Legislating at speed’ during the Brexit and Covid crises has become a regular feature of government, Dr Alice Lilly from the Institute for Government writes in an article for PoliticsHome. Far more ‘skeleton legislation’ is now being introduced to parliament with limited time for MPs and Peers to effectively scrutinise and amend new bills, says Dr Lilly.
Labour Party bars sitting directly elected mayor from re-selection
The party leadership has blocked sitting directly elected North of Tyne Mayor Jamie Driscoll from the long list for next year’s elections. The move has caused consternation amongst key party figures and union leaders, with Driscoll considering legal action against the Party. Labour justified the action on the grounds of anti-semitism.
Government ignored official warnings on overseas donations to political parties, openDemocracy reveals
Security Minister, Tom Tugendhat MP, ignored explicit written warnings from the Electoral Commission regarding election law loopholes that could be allowing backdoor donations from foreign actors to British political parties. A letter from the Chair of the Electoral Commission, obtained by openDemocracy through an FOI request, highlighted the need for stronger controls on donations to ‘address the risk of foreign interference in UK political campaigns’, but received no reply from Tugendhat.
Coronation policing is an everyday experience for marginalised groups, say campaigners
The outcry over the Public Order Act and the policing of the coronation protests is long overdue, say campaigners. Zita Holbourne, human rights campaigner at African, Caribbean and Asian Lawyers for Justice, said minority groups face ‘heavy handed’ and ‘dispproportionate’ policing in everyday life, not just at protests. The civil society and media response to the use of the new laws is another reminder that some voices in society matter and are listened to more than others, they said.
Tory MP demands action to address sexual harassment in Parliament
In light of the suspension of Labour MP Geraint Davies and Julian Knight MP (now restored), Caroline Nokes, Conservative Chair of the Women and Equalities Commission, has reiterated the need for a formal mechanism to address sexual harassment in parliament. An Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme does exist to allow staff to report misconduct, but Nokes wants MPs to sign a Code of Conduct committing them to losing the whip if they are found guilty of harassment.
Transparency International UK working with Labour on ethics commitments
Transparency International report that they are working with the Labour Party shadow team to influence Labour’s integrity and ethics commission commitment, with a view to engaging with parliamentary candidates on these areas in future.
Growing concerns over facial recognition surveillance, argue Big Brother Watch
Biometric Britain: The Expansion of Facial Recognition Surveillance, a new report from Big Brother Watch, demonstrates the proliferation of facial recognition technology in the UK without democratic approval or oversight. The research details how law enforcement, businesses, technology companies, and even some schools are investing heavily in this intrusive technology.
Culture of harassment and mishandling of complaints is producing surge in unionisation of MP’s staff, says GMB Union
Union membership amongst MP’s staff working in Parliament has increased by 1000% since the GMB Members’ Staff branch was relaunched in 2020. Jenny Symmons, chair of the branch, said the increase is due to a culture of harassment in parliament and the inadequate response to complaints from parliamentary authorities and political parties.
New report unpicks the challenges and renewed importance of regulating political finance
As part of their review of the UK constitution, the Institute for Government and the Bennett Institute have published a report exploring political financing, which until the year 2000 was effectively unregulated. The Regulation of Political Finance: Choppier Waters Ahead? looks at the challenges presented by technological change, internationalisation and the growth of non-party actors, as well as how the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act can be updated to meet the changing landscape.
Funding Democracy
Civic Power Fund reflects on how grassroots community funding can be improved
Last month the Civic Power Fund and Joseph Rowntree Foundation came together with Martha Awojobi and JMB Consulting to discuss how funders can better support grassroots organisations working to shift the balance of power in society. Check out some of the reflections from Martha Mckenzie, Executive Director of Civic Power Fund, on how the funding process can be modernised with beneficiaries in mind.
Democracy & Media
Public Interest News Foundation launch State of the Sector Report — Index 2023
PINF have launched their 2023 report on the state of the UK independent media sector based on over 100 responses from small publishers across the country — read it here. But that’s not all — they’ll soon be launching their new UK Local News Map. In development since 2022, the Map outlines the independent news sector, listing more than 2,000 small news publishers across the UK. Stay tuned!
Hack the Press is back — join the hackathon, 24 & 25th June
Hack the Press (HTP) is a community of technologists and journalists working together to create a healthier media landscape in the UK. This will be their first hackathon since before the pandemic — Take a closer look.
Two-thirds of the British public believe the press acts unlawfully
A new poll from Omnisis has revealed that 63% of the public does not think the British press act within the law. This deep public mistrust was shared across the political divide, with all age groups, aside from those over 75, registering a concerning lack of trust in the mainstream British media.
Progressive media outlets refused entry to National Conservative Conference
A number of left-leaning media outlets including openDemocracy, Novara Media and the Byline Times were refused entry to the NatCon Conference earlier this month. Despite applying in advance for press passes, the organisations were denied access due to ‘high demand and limited space’ — although openDemocracy later discovered other outlets were granted entry despite applying just days before the conference began.
UK anti-SLAPP coalition launches their website
The UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition is an informal working group researching and documenting the use of SLAPPs as well as advocating for reforms to prevent their use. On the 24th of May they launched their website which will serve as a repository for everything related to SLAPPs, including the model UK anti-SLAPP law, case studies of SLAPPs, a resource library, and practical advice for those targeted with SLAPPs.
Featured Upcoming Events
The UK Democracy Network maintains a full database of events from across the democracy sector.
View the database here — Have we missed something? Add it here!
Featured Job Listings across the Democracy Sector
View the full database of upcoming job listings here — have we missed any? Add them via this form.
We are making some changes to the Democracy Map, Jobs, Events and Funding Airtable lists over the next month, whilst those changes are underway, the jobs and events lists may appear out of date, apologies for the inconvenience.
See you next time, add to your calendar
James, Max, Louise and the UK Democracy Network team
