The Changing Role of the British State

Leader of the House of Commons, Jack Straw, spoke at an NLGN meeting yesterday.  His speech is reproduced in full here.  I’d skip the first third where he talks history and skip to the parts where he outlines a refreshing apolitical view of the interaction between the governed and the governors.

In summary he tells us:

• what the Lyons Inquiry says we want from Local Democracy (accountability,the capacity to deliver promises and the opportunity to be heard),
• that he wants an amalgam of representative and direct democracy,
• the Lords should consist of both elected members and appointed Members with special expertise and experience. But he doesn’t say who should appoint them.
• that Parliament is looking at procedure for petitions and he is in favour of e-petitions