Mephedrone Outlawed

Home secretary Alan Johnson says in a recent BBC article that he will out law Mephedrone, turning it into a Class B drug, similar to cannabis. this would be an increase in the legal action taken against those who use and those who distribute the drug. Importation has already been banned and they are seizing all shipments. This comes from the Liberal Democrats, oddly the shadow cabinet completely approves, bu they took the opportunity to say that they would make the Law even harsher announcing how they could do it more effectively. This shows the use of the shadow party in Britain, the general public policy of England and the countries move towards Conservatives. there have been no deaths in the UK due to Mephedrone.
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MPs Subject to New Expense Rules

In the light of past MP spending scandals the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority is levying new restrictions on MP spending, deatils the BBC article "MPs to lose right to claim second home expenses". MPs will now not be able to claim funds for the purchase of a second home unless their seat is more than 20 miles or an hour from Westminster. Those falling under that distinction will be able to claim rent up to 1,450 a month - equivalent to a one-bed flat. Another limit will be put on employment operations, from now on MPs will only be able to hire one relative and will have to report a precise salary for that person every year. The news rules will reduce annual maximum accomodation and office claims by 16000 a year for those inside of London, and 14,000 for those in other areas of the nation. MPs who already own second homes will be able to hold onto them until August 2012 at which point profits will be recouped.

This act increases the legitamacy of the MPs in parliament because with these new rules the people of the UK can be assured that they are not abusing their privieges. This also shows how swiftly the government can run in the UK because the response to these spending claims was dealt with quickly, cleanly, and efficiently.

Local Politics in Glasgow

The article "Heartland Attack: the Death and Messy Rebirth of Labour in Glasgow" published March 25 in the Economist discusses the loss of support for the labour party in a city it has dominated for 30 years. The article describes the labour presence in Glasgow as a "formidable political power machine." In previous years labour was doing poorly if it won 70 out of the 79 council seats. Now they hold only 45, with the Scottish Nationalists posing fierce competition.

There are many reasons for this decline in support. The once popular Labour leader of the city council, Steven Purcell, was forced to resign due to drug problems. In the wake of his leaving, the Labour Party has come under allegations of favoratism and pocket lining. A recent restructuring of city government handed over duties previously managed by the council to 11 private businesses. Opponents of the Labour Party are accusing the council of favoring businesses owned by Labour supporters. Glasgow is also facing economic difficulties which the Labour regime is proving unable to cope with. Unemployment is at 8.9%, close to double the Scottish average.

This article relates to change in government and transparency. Support is shifting away from the party that has held power since the 1980s. The Labour party has come under allegations of favoratism and shady economic practices (both of which relate to transparency) and as a result is losing votes.

PM 'Weakness' Blamed for Strikes

In BBC's broadcast "PM 'Weakness' Blamed for Strikes", David Cameron, leader of the Conservative's party, claims that Prime Minister Gordon Brown has failed to take a tough stand against the Unions, like Unite, that have been causing the recent strikes in the UK. The strike mentioned in the broadcast is of the cabin crews for British Airways that are members of the union Unite. The disruption to the flight schedules has seriously affected the number of planes leaving and coming into Heathrow, the airport reporting that 59% of their flights left one day and 63% arrived. A possible rail strike has also been threatened. PM Gordon Brown claims that "we [labour] want them to work, but we also want arbitration and negotiation to be possible within the union's management and work force. One union leader claimed that the strike had nothing to do with the Labour party, but rather that it was simply an industrial dispute between Unite and British Airways.

The strike could not come at a more inconvenient time, as Gordon Brown must decide when to dissolve parliament and call for reelections. Whether or not Labour will stay in power is a question many have, and the strikes cause questioning of their policies. Economic reform may then become an issue of debate during the elections.

Slouching Towards Westminster

The Economist article, "Slouching Towards Westminster: Devolved Scotland Goes its own way," published March 4th, discusses the decline in the Scottish National Party and the reasons why this decline has not led to growth of the conservative party. The reasons for the loss of SNP seats recently are immediately evident. The current SNP administration has been rocked with controversy. The Prime Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, was caught auctioning lunches in the Scottish Parliament in return for campaign contributions. A terrorist who was released from prison out of mercy because he was predicted to only have 3 months left to live is still very much alive more than 3 months later. Ofcom (similar to the US SCC) is investigating the government sponsorship of programs on the television station STV to determine whether such contributions undermine the impartiality of the news.

Given all these events, its no surprise that the Scottish National Party is losing support. What is surprising to British political analysts is that the conservative parties isn't picking any of those seats up. Predictions and polls in the UK all seemed to point towards the current financial crisis as a "winning card" the conservatives could play against labour and the SNP. The lack of conservative support might go back to the Thatcher years, where her anti-union policy hurt Scotland especially bad. There might be a much simpler explanation, however. While conservatives have seen little growth in support, the Labour party is benefiting significantly off the SNP's decline. John Curtice, a professor of politics, argues that, while conservatives are the main alternative to Labour in England and Wales, the SNP is Labour's main opponent.

This article touches on a number of concepts we've studied this year. The recent scandals the SNP has been involved with seems to be leading to a change in government. The article also relates to civil society. Parties and interest groups are an important part of civil society. Here we see realignment with different parties as one loses popularity.

Picture courtesy of The Economist

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Business Leaders Demand Reform

The March 8th BBC article, Business Leaders urge faster action on UK's 178bn debt, leaders of two important employer groups, the CBI and Institute of Directors, have shown that they are concerned with the governments current actions regarding economic reform. These two groups believ that the government should cut spending as soon as possible to reduce the nations deficit. The current administrations plan is to balance the budget by the 2017-2018 period while the CBI believes that, with the correct moves now, it can be done by 2015-2016. Taking advantage of this reaction with the upcoming election, were the Tories. The Tory leaders from David Cameron to shadow chancellor George Osbourne have said that they plan to do exactly what these groups are asking for.

This article calls into question the Legitimacy of the current administration and with the upcoming election this does not bode well for Gordon Brown and the Labour Party. This also shows the influence of civil society in the UK that two important employer groups are being influencial in politics.

Photocredit: The article.

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No Surrender

Cutting the BBC

In a recent Economist article it discusses the recent voluntary cut by the BBC to its budget. Considered, " the world's first, and mightiest, national public broadcaster" it is shocking to commercial media firms. although critics have claimed that it is not a really cutting very much, just limiting its already exponential expansion. 98% of all Britons use the BBC in some form weekly. And about of third of Britons go to their website daily. OF course many people call the BBC's power "chilling" but according to a recent poll 63% of Britons trust the BBC, this is more than most politicians, other media sources and journalists. This effects legitimacy of the BBC, it displays the effects of the world wide recession. It also shows an interesting blend of a governmental controlled organization competing with free market media.

grade this post. 3/7/10

Civil Servants to Strike

According to the BBC article 270,000 civil servants to join 48 hour strike, many of the Public and Commercial Services Union workers will partake in a strike due to the loss of up to a third of their entitlements. Members of government departments, museums, the Royal Court of Justice, as well as workers in Parliament are all expect to join in on the strike. Many Britons fear that this strike will affect their everyday lifes, as the jobs held by these civil servants help run day to day operations. The reason for the strike comes from the tearing up of contracts with low paid civil and public service workers, while contracts with bankers and other wealthier groups continued to be honored.

This article is relevant to the nature of the British class system, easily its most obvious social cleavage. Does the government respect the "higher class" more than it does the workers who keep society running smoothly? Those on the short end of the deal could possibly be questioning the legitimacy of any government contracts at all since theirs were not honored and kept, as promised.

Grade this post. 3/7/2010.

Picture credits to BBC.

Cameron Claims He Can "Turn Britain Around"

In the BBC article David Cameron Tells Tories He Can Turn Britain Around, Cameron claims the the UK is a "complete and utter mess". The conservatives have outlined six key themes for the upcoming election campaign: dealing with the deficit; boosting enterprise; shoring up families; backing the NHS; raising standards in schools; and cleaning up politics. Cameron promises there is a light at the end of the dark tunnel of the UK's problems. Many of the opposition parties claim that Cameron's optimistic speech was sparked by the fall in poll ratings to just two points ahead of Labour. A recent poll suggest that at the moment, the population would currently vote 37% Torie, 35% Labour, and 17% Liberal Democrat.

In relation to the themes of sovereignty, authority, and liberal democracies, the United Kingdom is an exemplary example of each theme. The country has always been known for its fair elections, and the outcome of the elections will determine whether the Labour party will continue to hold the power of the government or if once again the Conservatives will regain authority.

Grade this post. Picture credits to flickr.

2/28/2010

Al-Shabaab Banned in UK

According to a recent Economist article, "Alan Johnson bans Somali 'terrorist' group Al-Shabaab," the Home Secretary of the UK has officially designated Al-Shabaab a terrorist group and has banned it in the UK. Al-Shabaab is a radical Islamic organization based in Somalia, where it has considerable influence. The UK ban is in response to a statement by the group that linked it with Al-Qaeda.

"Banning" Al-Shabaab makes it illegal for the group to openly operate in the UK. It also makes it illegal for UK citizens to become members.

Alan Johnson recently banned another Muslim group, Islam4UK, which was trying to march through Wootton Bassett Wiltshire.

The article is important because it highlights social cleavages in the UK. Politics in the UK are strongly anti-immigration, and there are racial overtones to the rhetoric used by British politicians. Al-Shabaab is clearly a terrorist organization, and warrants the ban. However, there seems to be a general distrust of minorities, particularly Muslims, in the UK.

The article also demonstrates a piece of UK foreign policy. Al-Shabaab is extremely influential in Southern Somalia. By banning the group in the UK, Mr. Johnson is sending a message to Somalia as a whole.

Photo Courtesy of the Economist

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Conservatives announce Education Reform Plans

In the BBC article, Tories to create more academies, posted on February 28th the Tory government outlined their education reform plans that they would put into effect after an upcoming election victory. Shadow education secretary Michael Gove told that a new education bill would be brought in days after a Tory election victory that would exempt the best schools from Ofsted inspections and allow them to focus on problem schools. Mr. Gove also detailed that, "We need a new generation of independent state schools run by teachers who know your child's name, not by politicians." Party Leader David Cameron is obviously on board with these reforms, saying that schools would gain a multitude of benefits such as direct money flow, more in-school control, and admissions authority. Another part of the reforms would be to pledge money to help cut school class sizes, get better teachers, and provide more one-to-one tuition.

This article relates to Public Policy and Political Institutions. If the Tories win the upcoming election as expected they will most surely pass an education reform bill that would be continuing Britain's current trend of devolution, or the moving away from a centralized system. While the shadow cabinet is an informal "institution" in the UK this article shows the power and influence that it can have.

Photo credit: The Telegraph

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