Solving the problem of social background in the UK ‘political class’: Do parties do things differently in Westminster, devolved and European elections?

Abstract

It is now commonplace to criticise the failings of Westminster's 'political class'. One part of this criticism regards the limited extent to which Westminster politicians reflect the social background of the voting population. Each party has addressed the problem in different ways, with Labour more likely to focus on the representation of women and the Conservatives on people with 'proper jobs' before election.i Devolved and European elections have provided new opportunities for parties:Labour's push for more elected women has been relatively effective in the Scottish, Welsh and European elections; and, before UKIP made significant gains in European Parliament elections in 2014, it promised candidates who were 'not career politicians'. Yet, overall, new levels of elected representation have not produced a distinctive 'political class'. There is still a common pattern of professionalization across devolved, Westminster and European parliaments, in which elected politicians have often similar kinds of education and employment background, and generally struggle to mirror the social background of their populations.

The Scottish Parliament Election 2016: Another Momentous Event but Dull Campaign

“…The number of women in the Scottish Parliament used to depend strongly on the fate of Scottish Labour: the high point of 40% in 2003 was on the back of 28 Labour MSPs representing 56% of its group and accounting for 55% of women MSPs (Cairney and McGarvey, 2013: 106;Cairney et al, 2015a). At the time, it was the only party to 'twin' constituencies and alternate women/men candidates on the regional list (Mackay and Kenny, 2007: 86-7).…”

Feminising Politics to Close the Evidence‐Policy Gap: The Case of Social Policy in Scotland

“…Of 129 Scottish Parliament seats, women secured 37% in 1999, 40% in 2003, 33% in 2007, and 35% in 2011 and 2016 (Cairney ). Devolution initially doubled women's representation (women secured 18% of Westminster seats in 1997) before major convergence by 2015 (29%) (Cairney et al : 7). Women's increased political representation does not lead per se to an increased policy focus on women's issues, but some evidence suggests that women Scottish politicians see themselves as ‘feminising politics’ (Lovenduski ): acting for women, taking on women's concerns, and making a difference to women's lives.…”

Exiting the political stage: exploring the impact on representative democracy

“…The term, 'political class' has often been used loosely since it was introduced by Mosca at the end of the 19 th century (Cairney et al, 2016;Allen and Cairney, 2017). Mosca used the term to mean how politicians had moved away from representing voters and providing the essential link between citizens and state, and instead had begun to represent themselves (Oborne, 2007).…”

“…In the 2015 UK General Election, there was a further narrowing of the occupational background of candidates with an increasing proportion from politically relevant (for example, special advisers or journalism) backgrounds (Lamprinakou et al, 2017). Nor is the picture significantly different across the devolved and European parliaments (Cairney et al, 2016). Despite a significant increase in the number of women and people from a black and minority ethnic background, a trend confirmed from the 2017 General Election (Channel 4 News, 11 June 2017), the Westminster Parliament remains overwhelmingly white, male, and privileged.…”