Skip to content
New issue

Have a question about this project? Sign up for a free GitHub account to open an issue and contact its maintainers and the community.

By clicking “Sign up for GitHub”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy statement. We’ll occasionally send you account related emails.

Already on GitHub? Sign in to your account

Limited time in office #569

Closed
wants to merge 2 commits into from

Conversation

Motobiman
Copy link

No description provided.

@openpolitics-bot
Copy link
Member

This proposal is open for discussion and voting. If you are a contributor to this repository (and not the proposer), you may vote on whether or not it is accepted.

How to vote

Vote by entering one of the following symbols in a comment on this pull request. Only your last vote will be counted, and you may change your vote at any time until the change is accepted or closed.

vote symbol type this points
Yes :white_check_mark: 1
No :negative_squared_cross_mark: -1
Abstain 🤐 :zipper_mouth_face: 0
Block 🚫 :no_entry_sign: -1000

Proposals will be accepted and merged once they have a total of 2 points when all votes are counted. Votes will be open for a minimum of 7 days, but will be closed if the proposal is not accepted after 90.

Votes are counted automatically here, and results are set in the merge status checks below.

Changes

@Motobiman, if you want to make further changes to this proposal, you can do so by clicking on the pencil icons here. If a change is made to the proposal, no votes cast before that change will be counted, and votes must be recast.

Copy link
Author

@Motobiman Motobiman left a comment

Choose a reason for hiding this comment

The reason will be displayed to describe this comment to others. Learn more.

Spelling correction

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented May 30, 2017

Does that mean that the two terms would have to be non-consecutive?

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented May 30, 2017 via email

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented May 30, 2017

OK - I agree with the principle though we might need to make the wording a bit clearer on that aspect. Perhaps "no more than two consecutive terms, and after that may not stand for re-election within two terms." (suggest change from 10 years because we might lose the fixed-term parliaments act soon)

Vote: ✅

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented May 30, 2017

To pre-empt objections of "but you'll lose all their expertise", most expertise on issues of policy comes from the civil service, researchers, and advisors anyway. We might lose some expertise at playing politics, but I don't think that's a bad thing.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented May 30, 2017 via email

@philipjohn
Copy link
Member

I don't agree with arbitrary limits on all serving politicians. At the moment at least politicians are self-selecting, which means that - locally especially - we would very quickly run out of people willing to stand for election and we'd have a constitutional chaos.

But more than that, this would have the effect of banning those representatives who do a very good job for their constituents, and are repeatedly elected because of that.

Yes there is a problem of "career politicians" but this proposal solves that in a very detrimental way.

Vote: ❎

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented Jun 1, 2017

Dunno @philipjohn, I think there are always enough people willing to do the job - we're never short of people standing for election, after all, and there's always competition to be selected at a party level. I agree that there are some MPs who do a great job at a local level, but I think the perception that it's a "job for life" once you're in in most seats is very bad for the system.

A quick look on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Term_limit and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_term_limits) doesn't show anywhere that does this at the representative level; anyone know of anything already out there?

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 2, 2017 via email

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

And people voting before the debate is another issue but without an answer.

@philipjohn
Copy link
Member

I think there are always enough people willing to do the job - we're never short of people standing for election, after all

That's perhaps true at some levels, but definitely not all. The more local you get, the quicker we run out of people. Take a typical parish or district ward of a few thousand people - we already get co-option a lot (three times in the last 6 months near me alone) because of a lack of candidates, and limiting representatives to two terms will only exacerbate that.

For offices such as mayors, prime ministers or presidents a term limit could be a good way to prevent those offices being held onto by the same person if the controlling party is able to keep them there despite public dissatisfaction. Term limits still address the symptom though, and not the cause, which is ineffective mechanisms for recall or removing an elected representative.

We should instead make sure that elected representatives are not able to cling on to power, or change the rules in their favour whilst in power (see Putin/Morsi) rather than arbitrary limits that may end service of a good representative who has clear public support.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 3, 2017 via email

@philipjohn
Copy link
Member

We are not talking all levels just parliamentary, so that issue does not arise.

Ah - the proposal says "All elected representatives" and thus would apply at all levels. If we can tighten it up a bit, I think we could get to something really good. For example, limiting to mayors, council leaders, prime ministers, first ministers, PCCs.

we do not elect prime ministers and we don't have presidents

Yep, that's right, and so if the problem we're trying to solve is a single person holding such a position for a long time without being explicitly placed there by there by the electorate, perhaps the solution should be to have an elected president instead of party MPs effectively choosing the PM.

The fact is most seats in our elections are safe and that is because party committees put up standing candidates and we have to break that system if we are to move forward to a more representative democracry.

Yes, that is a problem, but that's because we have First Past The Post. Stopping people even standing for election under that system won't stop that system being terrible. Removing FPTP will solve that problem.

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented Jun 4, 2017

Oh, I have an idea @philipjohn, based on what you said. How about if it was all "full-time" positions? i.e. the ones that are paid as if they are full time? That would exclude most councillors but would certainly mean that politics can't be a "career". And if you ban second jobs at the same time (which we do) it should cover it correctly. Would that work?

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 4, 2017 via email

@philipjohn
Copy link
Member

That's a neat idea @Floppy - I'd like that, but I'd like to exclude MPs who aren't government ministers. There are a bunch of MPs who have served for a long time because they've been really good representatives, and I don't think we should force them out. I appreciate there are also plenty who have been in for a long time who are not good representatives, but that problem can be dealt with by changing the electoral system.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 4, 2017 via email

@philipjohn
Copy link
Member

The problem is this;

It is possible for poor quality representatives to remain in office for very many years.

This proposal is addressing that by limiting terms in office. My problem is that while it solves the problem, it would also force many good representatives to stop serving their constituents - a situation which would not be good for them.

The root cause of the problem, as stated above, is our electoral system.

So no, they are not separate issues. The point I'm making is that I accept there is a problem, but do not believe this proposal is a solution because it doesn't address the root cause and instead would have a clear negative impact.

I think there is some justification for term limits for some offices. Coupled with a better electoral system would address the problem.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 4, 2017 via email

@Floppy
Copy link
Member

Floppy commented Jun 4, 2017

@Motobiman, I think @philipjohn would be happier if we looked at it with the "full-time" specifier I proposed - what do you think? You can edit the text to add that, if you like it.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 4, 2017 via email

@ghost
Copy link

ghost commented Jun 14, 2017

Career politics isn't necessarily a bad thing if they're doing a good job. If I've trained for 20 years in politics, economics, and climate science, gotten degrees, and worked in the industry, and then get consistently re-elected by my constituents to fight the good fight re: both climate change and representing them, why should I be blocked from doing my job a bit longer.

The issue with someone holding office for a long time is:

  • The representative thinking they can get away with anything, solvable by allowing constituents to trigger a by-election, which is a proposal I'm just about to write, thanks for the inspiration :D

  • The representative being stuck in their ways and refusing to look at new info or consider differing perspectives, solvable via the ballot box, the above no confidence idea, and the transparency measures already set out in the Something New manifesto

  • The representative getting influenced by other jobs or where their political funding comes from, which is already dealt with under current Something New policy

  • The representative actually getting away with doing whatever they want to because people vote for the party, solvable via Something New's policy to introduce STV

Vote: ❎

@ghost
Copy link

ghost commented Jun 14, 2017

If you can provide me with another reason I should object to career politicians I'm all ears

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 14, 2017 via email

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 14, 2017 via email

@ghost
Copy link

ghost commented Jun 14, 2017

Because career politicians often have no life experience outside of the academia

Then make a proposal that mandates candidates publish their CV for the electorate, with no official employment (that is, work that isn't volunteer or illegal, since one isn't necessary if they don't want to include it and the other should appear on their criminal record) left out. Then make it an offence to knowingly lie in said CV.

that knows everything in theory and nothing in practice, are selected as candidates by closed shop, unelected party committees

This has nothing to do with their viability as MPs, if someone from a party wants to run in that constituency, they can, if they don't they don't, if they stay or are kicked from their party for doing so or otherwise is a matter for them, since they chose to join the org. These rules only matter in elections if the people who'd otherwise run don't want to leave the org, and that's their choice, so it's not really a downside.

and as they are largely unemployable outside politics, will say anything and do anything to keep their jobs.

Then they'll be seen as liars and removed from power. It's not the existence of parties, or politicians seeking a career in parliament, that causes MPs to be unskilled, and that's on the presumption that your statement about these MPs being unemployable is actually the case.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 14, 2017 via email

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 14, 2017 via email

@ghost
Copy link

ghost commented Jun 14, 2017

Look at just one thing, taxation. Let's see you defend the abortion that is the tax system.

Firstly, I see no reason why I should defend a tax system created by a government that I fundamentally disagree with, and that isn't caused by career politics but by the special interests that fund them (I'm talking about the Tories if you haven't caught on).

Secondly, I don't see how your obvious opposition to career politics has anything to do with me needing to defend the tax system for some unstated reason.

make membership of a party grounds for refusing a candidates application to stand

So you'd leave parliament to the rich and privileged? If everyone's indie then how do they get funding to run a campaign? You'll have the people rich enough to get TV spots and the people who aren't, and unlike our current system where the small parties get left in the dirt, you'll have a worse system where everyone running other than rich people get left in the dirt.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Jun 14, 2017 via email

@RobertWootton
Copy link

It seems to me from this debate that a Constitutional Convention Is called for. An organisation has recently been formed called Independent Constitutionalists UK; website is ICUK.life. My personal view is that all people elected to Public Office should be paid a wage and classed as a Public Sole Trader and required to publish annual audited accounts just as a PLC has to do. Expenses claimed should be "wholly and necessarily" incurred for the running of their office. Perhaps 10% of their income could be an allowed expense towards the party of which they are a member.

@RobertWootton
Copy link

To stand for election, a person must already be a committee member or a volunteer with a charitable organisation, e.g. a Food Bank, W.I., Citizen's Advice Bureau, etc. Such a person would have experience of the social problems people face and hopefully be better placed to find solutions.

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Aug 23, 2017 via email

@RobertWootton
Copy link

RobertWootton commented Aug 23, 2017 via email

@RobertWootton
Copy link

So the Green Party is undemocratic as is UKIP?

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Aug 23, 2017 via email

@Motobiman
Copy link
Author

Motobiman commented Aug 23, 2017 via email

@openpolitics-bot
Copy link
Member

Closed automatically: maximum age exceeded. Please feel free to resubmit this as a new proposal, but remember you will need to base any new proposal on the current policy text.

Sign up for free to join this conversation on GitHub. Already have an account? Sign in to comment
Labels
None yet
Projects
None yet
Development

Successfully merging this pull request may close these issues.

5 participants