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Campaign Regulation

Money could flood into British politics under planned law

March 25, 2019

The Overseas Electors Bill, which returned to the Commons last week, has a sound purpose – to end the current...

Put simply, the government is running scared
Citizens' Assembly on Brexit

Local citizens’ assemblies could break our political deadlock – but the government have vetoed them

Last summer, ministers announced genuinely exciting plans for piloting ‘deliberative democracy’ across the UK. The plan was to use a...

House of Lords

These three peers should not be allowed to stand in the way of democracy

March 15, 2019

In a week dominated by Brexit, it’s easy to forget that there are other topics still on the political agenda....

House of Lords
House of Lords

Unelected aristocrats are still trying to call the shots in Parliament. It’s time for change

This week the ballots dropped for the world’s most elitist election. A contest to select a new hereditary Crossbench peer...

Campaign Regulation

Digital political campaigning remains as unregulated as ever – but calls for reform are increasing

March 12, 2019

Over the weekend, Buzzfeed reported that Britain’s Future, an obscure pro-Brexit group, spent almost £350,000 on 2,600 Facebook adverts over...

House of Lords
House of Lords

Once again, the government have ignored the consensus for Lords reform. Enough is enough

The facts surrounding the dire state of the House of Lords are clear. It is grossly oversized – the largest...

We should know what happens at candidate selections
Women in Politics

Political parties need to stand more women candidates to close the political gender gap

There can be no doubt that in order to see more women elected to our political institutions, political parties need...

Campaign Regulation

Tax ‘exiles’ are funnelling money into our political parties. It’s time to close the loophole

March 7, 2019

Here’s a fairly basic democratic principle: those who pour money into our political parties in exchange for influence should –...

Campaign Regulation

ERS in the Press – February 2019

February 28, 2019

Another wild month in politics – from crucial Brexit votes to the apparent disintegration of Britain’s party structures. Throughout, we’ve...

Scotland's councils are too big and too distant
Democracy Max

Scotland needs new institutions to transform our local communities

Can you remember a time you were talking with someone and the response you got back meant that it was...

Campaign Regulation

Moving targets: What is the technical future of political campaigning?

February 20, 2019

Josh Smith, Senior Researcher at the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media, Demos Targeted online advertising has produced a...

Electoral Reform in Westminster

Brexit has drawn back the curtain on Britain’s unwieldy coalitions

February 19, 2019

In one sense, the formation of The Independent Group on Monday came to many as a shock to the system....