Representation in the Scottish Parliament

Starter Task

Drawing on your own knowledge, explain in detail how the Scottish Parliament functions. Try to use all of the words/phrases below:

Scottish Parliament, Scottish Government, MSPs, Political Parties, voting, elected, constituencies, debates, bills, laws, founding principles

Representation in the Scottish Parliament

• There are a number of questions you could be asked about in this section, such as…

• Analyse the role of representatives in the decision making process.

• Evaluate the influence of representatives in the decision making process.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of parliamentary representatives in holding the government to account.

• To what extent can representatives influence decision making?

• Evaluate the importance of the executive in decision making in government.

• To what extent can Parliament hold its leader to account?

Representation in the Scottish Parliament

• Essentially, you need to know the ways that MSPs can influence decision-making in the Scottish Parliament and be able to argue about how influential they actually are.

• You need to know about the role of the Scottish Government and the extent to which it has decision-making power in the Scottish Parliament.

• You need to know about the balance of power between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament.

The Basics…Structure of the Parliament

• 129 MSPs elected - 73 Constituency MSPs, 56 regional MSPs• A Scottish First Minister

Current composition of Parliament

SNP-SNP- 65Scottish Labour -38

Scottish Liberal Democrats-5

Scottish Conservatives-15

Scottish Greens-2

Independent – 3Vacant – 1 (following

death of Margo MacDonald

The Scottish Government

• Led by the political leader of Scotland - First Minister.

• Currently Nicola Sturgeon of the SNP.• Head of the Scottish Cabinet• The Scottish Government is usually formed by the

party holding the most seats. • First Minster chooses a cabinet of people called

Ministers - each responsible for a particular area.

Representation in the Scottish Parliament

Think, Pair, Share•Think about all the different things that go on within the Parliament, then discuss in your groups/pairs. •Think back to your work in National 5 Modern Studies.

Work of the Parliament

The Work of the Parliament

First Minister’s Question

Time

First Minister’s Question

Time

CommitteeWork

Passing Bills

Debates

General Question

Time

Work of the First

Minister

Representation in the Scottish Parliament

• Although passing and amending laws is perhaps the most important function of the Parliament, it has many other functions.

• All of these are connected to the principle of representing the people of Scotland.

• The first essay we will look at is about how MSPs can influence decision-making…

How can individual MSPs influence decision-

making?

How can individual MSPs influence decision-

making?• Create a mind-map or bullet point list

of ways you can think of…• Add examples• Get answers from your group

MSPs influencing

decision making

How do MSPs influence decision-

making in SP?

Ask Questions at FMQT or General QT

Propose Bills

Take part in

committees

Propose motions

Vote on government legislation

(MSPs have more power during minority or

coalition governments)

Founding principles and

electoral system (make it easier

for MSPs to have an influence)

First Minister’s Question Time (FMQT) and General Question

Time• Knowledge - Every Thursday at 12pm, MSPs

who are not in the Scottish Government can ask questions of the First Minister during FMQT

• This largely consists of opposition leaders holding the FM to account by asking tough questions. For most of 2013-14, Johann Lamont of Labour, Ruth Davidson of the Conservatives and Willie Rennie of the Liberal Democrats grilled the then FM Alex Salmond each week on a range of issues

• For example, Johann Lamont MSP criticised Alex Salmond and his SNP Government in April 2012 during FMQT over his relationship with the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch

First Minister’s Question Time (FMQT) and General Question

Time• Knowledge – ordinary MSPs can also ask questions of

Government Ministers. For example in February 2015, John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, asked:

• “To ask the Scottish Government what impact the recent Celtic versus Rangers game had on police resources”.

• In addition, MSPs can ask questions to the Government at any time and receive written responses. These are called PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS.

• Analysis – The fact that opposition leaders and ordinary MSPs can question the Scottish Government shows that MSPs can influence decision-making and that they can also get the issues they want to talk about on the political agenda.

First Minister’s Question Time (FMQT) and General Question

Time• Knowledge – however FMQT only lasts 30 minutes

and is dominated by opposition party leaders. For example, at the moment FMQT is mostly a chance for the Labour, Conservative and Lib Dem leaders to grill FM Nicola Sturgeon.

• Analysis – This means that ordinary MSPs have little influence during FMQT as it is really just an opportunity for opposition leaders to embarrass and put pressure on the FM. However, ordinary MSPs can still submit written questions and get prompt responses from the Government and also have the opportunity to question government ministers at general QT.

Member’s Bills

• Knowledge – ordinary MSPs have the right to propose two bills each parliamentary session. This links with the SP’s founding principle of sharing power.

• Analysis – although the bills may not always become laws this shows that ordinary MSPs can exert some influence on the decision-making process.

• Knowledge – for example Patrick Harvie MSP proposed the Offences (Aggravation by Prejudice) Bill which became an Act in 2009. This law is concerned with hate crimes against gay and disabled people.

• However the late Margo MacDonald MSP proposed the End of Life Assistance Bill, which MSPs rejected in 2010.

Member’s Bills

• Analysis – The fact that MSPs can introduce their own bills shows clearly that they can influence decision-making. Although their bills do not always become law they sometimes do and even bills that fail can be placed higher up on the political agenda. For example, following Margo MacDonald’s death, the Green MSP Patrick Harvie has vowed to reintroduce a bill to legalise assisted suicide in Scotland.

Member’s Bills

• Knowledge – However, the vast majority of bills introduced in Parliament are Government bills. About 80% of bills introduced each year come from the Scottish Government. MSPs do have the right to propose bills but it is more difficult for opposition MSPs to have any success with this – many of these bills will fail at committee level.

• Analysis – Since most bills come from the Government and many Member’s bills fail it could be argued that ordinary MSPs do not have a significant impact on decision-making in the SP, particularly during majority governments (as is the case just now).

Committees• Knowledge – Committees are small groups of between 5-

15 MSPs who meet on a regular basis to scrutinise the work of the Scottish Government. This links with the founding principle of accountability.

• There are currently 17 committees in the Scottish Parliament. They usually meet on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday mornings.

• Within these committees, MSPs consider proposed legislation, gather evidence, listen to expert views on topics, conduct inquiries and can also propose bills themselves (committee bills).

• For example, before the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communication Bill became an Act (law) in 2012, the JUSTICE COMMITTEE scrutinised the proposed bill and suggested changes. They invited expert witnesses to the committee meetings to discuss the bill, for example former footballer and current football pundit Pat Nevin was questioned.

Committees

• Analysis – The fact that MSPs in committees have the ability to question and alter legislation, conduct inquiries and also propose their own legislation clearly shows that ordinary MSPs can have a significant influence on decision-making in the Scottish Parliament.

Committees• Knowledge – However, currently because the SNP have a majority

in the SP, most of the current committees are dominated by SNP MSPs. Although some of the Conveners of committees are from other parties such as Labour, the SNP have a majority in most committees meaning that whenever anything comes to a vote, the SNP will get what they want.

• The SNP currently control several committees including the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee and the Justice committee.

• Analysis – this means that MSPs from other parties and also independent MSPs have virtually no influence within committees when there is a majority government. They can raise concerns and suggest ideas but ultimately the final decisions are made by majority vote, allowing the biggest party to dominate. Ordinary MSPs have more of an influence during minority or coalition governments where their votes are more important.

Voting on issues• Knowledge – Ultimately laws passed by

the Scottish Parliament have to be approved by a majority of MSPs. This can give individual MSPs significant influence over decision-making, particularly during minority or coalition governments.

• From 2007-2011, the Scottish Government was an SNP minority. Sometimes when the SNP Government tried to introduce legislation, the MSPs in parliament were able to vote against it and since the SNP did not have a majority proposed Government bills would not become law.

• For example, in 2010, MSPs voted against the Scottish Government bill to introduce minimum pricing of Alcohol

Voting on issues

• Analysis – Since MSPs have the power to vote for or against issues, they can exert significant influence, although only realistically when there is a minority or coalition government.

Voting on issues

• Knowledge – However, currently the SNP have 65 seats out of the 129 giving them majority control. This means that whenever an issue comes to a vote, as long as the SNP vote together they will get what they want.

• Analysis – Currently ordinary MSPs from other parties have virtually no influence on decision-making when it comes to voting on issues as the SNP have a majority in parliament.

Propose Motions• Knowledge – MSPs also have the power to

propose motions in the Scottish Parliament. These are used to initiate debate or to propose a course of action. Motions are discussed in the Debating Chamber and MSPs vote on these motions – i.e. they decide on whether or not a motion deserves further consideration or whether or not a motion proposing a bill deserves further debate.

• For example, in December 2014, the Conservative leader and MSP Ruth Davidson proposed a motion to “End the Drink Ban” at Scottish football games. She argued that this would help smaller clubs that are struggling financially. This led to a discussion of this issue in Parliament and the motion was supported by other MSPs (albeit they were all from the Conservative Party).

Propose Motions

• Analysis – Clearly then, MSPs’ ability to propose motions shows that they can initiate debate in the chamber and put issues on the agenda. This can eventually have an impact on decision-making as issues will gain more attention and eventually MSPs may begin to discuss new policies/bills in relation to these motions.

Propose Motions• Knowledge – However, when MSPs from

smaller parties propose motions it is often the case that nothing will come of them. Although Ruth Davidson MSP raised the issue of allowing alcohol at football games and put forward a motion, it only gained the support of MSPs from her own party and so nothing is likely to come of it.

• Analysis – Therefore, since motions often come to nothing it could be argued that MSPs, particularly independent MSPs or those from smaller parties, have little influence over decision-making, and this is especially the case when there is a majority government.

Founding Principles and Electoral System

• Knowledge - Principles include openness and accountability – this means that individual MSPs have a voice and can influence policy in a number of ways…

• Scottish Parliament electoral system (AMS) means that it is unlikely that one party will dominate. Most likely scenario is coalition or minority government.

• Analysis - Influence of individual MSPs is arguably greater. However, current government is an SNP majority so perhaps influence of individual MSPs has been reduced.

• Knowledge - Previous SNP minority Government (2007-2011) had to rely on support from other parties to pass legislation and didn’t always get it. Defeated over trams, minimum alcohol pricing and plans to replace Council Tax with Local Income Tax. Had to drop plans for a Referendum Bill. Past difficulties in passing Finance Bills (Budgets): Conservative MSPs able to secure a commitment to extra police officers in return for them voting yes to SNP policies.

• Analysis – Overall, the founding principles of the SP and the AMS voting system used mean that MSPs have a greater influence over decision-making, although more so if minority or coalition governments exist. The current SNP majority government means that MSPs from other parties have little influence over decision-making.

Overall…to what extent can MSPs influence decision-making?

• This is a matter of opinion and you should try to get your argument across throughout an essay on this topic.

• In general it is clear that ordinary MSPs do have some influence and can exert this influence by asking questions, taking part in committees etc. The AMS electoral system and founding principles of the SP make it easier for non-government MSPs to exert influence.

• However, during a majority government (as is the case today) it is very hard for opposition MSPs and backbench MSPs to have any real influence as the biggest party essentially dictate policy.

Analyse Question

•Analyse the role of parliamentary representatives in holding the government to account. (12)

MSPs can hold the government to account in many ways. This essay will discuss the ways that MSPs can hold the SG to account.

One way that MSPs can hold the SG to account is by asking questions during FMQT. This takes place on Thursday afternoons and MSPs that are not in the SG have the opportunity to hold the SG to account by asking questions (K). For much of 2014, the Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont and the Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson held First Minister Alex Salmond to account by asking him tough questions at FMQT. For example, Johann Lamont questioned the FM on his relationship with the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch (K). It is clear that MSPs can effectively hold the SG to account by posing difficult questions and ensuring that the SG can justify its policies and decisions. However, since FMQT is only on for 30 minutes per week and is dominated by opposition party leaders, it could be argued that it is difficult for ordinary backbench MSPs to have any influence during this time (A). On the other hand, MSPs do have more of a chance of getting to ask Cabinet Secretaries questions during Minister’s Question Time. Furthermore, MSPs can submit written questions to the SG and are guaranteed to receive a response within a reasonable time. For example, in 2014 Paul Martin MSP submitted a written question asking the SG what it is doing to tackle antisocial behaviour (K). Clearly then by asking questions during FMQT, Minister’s QT or by submitting written questions, MSPs are able to effectively hold the SG to account although perhaps it is more difficult at times for backbench MSPs to have a huge influence, particularly during FMQT as this is dominated by party leaders (A).

Homework task - research

Research to find your own examples of the following:1.Questions asked by MSPs at FMQT2.Motions proposed by MSPs3.Bills proposed by MSPs that went on to become Acts of the SP4.MSPs holding Government to account – recent examples (this may be attacks/criticisms of Scottish Government)

Homework task - essay

• Use your notes from research as well as studying the model paragraphs.

• Write your own answer to the essay question…

• Evaluate the effectiveness of parliamentary representatives in holding the government to account. (12 marks)

Was I successful? • I will work as part of a group

to prepare a list on the work of the Scottish Parliament.

• I will be able to outline the different types of bills.

Different Types of Bill • Traditionally, the ruling government is responsible

for making new laws or amending laws for a country.• However, when the Scottish Parliament was set up

one of the key founding principles was the sharing of power.

• This was to avoid a situation where the government could dominate the legislative process completely and to allow smaller parties or individuals a realistic chance of influencing new laws.

• It was decided that individual MSPs should have the right to introduce legislation as well as the Government, committees, and

Different Types of Bills

Member’s Bills

Government

Bills

Committee

Bills

Private Bills

Different Types of

Bills

Government Bills

• These are Bills introduced by the Scottish Government and account for the majority of legislation after the 2007 election. Examples include:

• Community Care and Health Act 2002

• Alcohol Etc (Scotland) Act 2010

•This is legislation initiated by a committee. Examples of committee bills include:•Protection from Abuse (Scotland) Act 2001 •Children's Commissioner for Scotland Act 2003

Committee Bills

Member’s Bills • Each MSP has the right

to introduce two Bills during one Parliamentary session. Individual MSPs must get cross party support before they can introduce their bill.  

• Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 introduced by Christine Grahame

Private Bills •A Private Bill is introduced by a ‘promoter’. A promoter can be an individual, a group or a company. A private bill is aimed at allowing the promoter to obtain powers or benefits that are in addition to or in conflict with the general law.

The majority of bills introduced and passed are Government Bills. Most parties use a ‘whip system’ to ensure party unity in voting, apart from on matters of conscience or moral issues

The Party Whip •The term comes from Westminster

parliamentary practice, for the enforcement of parliamentary party discipline and for those who

enforce such discipline on behalf of a party or group.

•Whip is used as a colloquial term for the party business managers and others who fulfil this task

in the Parliament. •The SNP's stance for the last 30 years has been to oppose Nato, the defence alliance involving the US, UK and other countries. However, the SNP decided that an independent Scotland should become a member of the pro-nuclear weapons organisation. •Two MSPs resigned over this as they were not willing to follow the party whip.