A People's Parliament/A Citizen Legislature

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Two essays, printed back to back in a single volume, offer complementary solutions to the democratic deficit in Britain and the USA. In his book The Party's Over: Blueprint for a Very English Revolution (2004), Keith Sutherland questioned the role of the party in the post-ideological age and concluded that it would be better for government ministers to be appointed by headhunters and held to account by a people's parliament selected by lot. This completely revised and updated edition includes a study of the recent literature on deliberative polling. The American founders proposed that their legislature should be 'an exact portrait, in miniature, of the people at large’. Whether or not this was true at the time, the exponential growth of the population, skyrocketing campaign funding, the power of pressure groups, the grease of the pork-barrel and the dominance of charisma and demagoguery means that the US Constitution could now better be described as a kleptocracy. This pioneering essay proposes selecting Congressional members by random lot (leaving the Senate and Presidency unchanged) to 'restore a direct, powerful voice in Washington to the whole of America’. Originally published in 1985, this new edition includes an introduction by political scientist Peter Stone.
Source: The Observer

Credit: Tim Luckhurst

"Sutherland's model of citizen’s juries ought to have much greater appeal to progressive Britain."

Source: Tribune

Credit: Graham Allen MP

"An extremely valuable contribution."

Source: Contemporary Political Theory

"A political essay in the best tradition – shrewd, erudite, polemical, partisan, mischievous and highly topical."

Nov 14, 2008

Source: Times Literary Supplement

Credit: Vernon Bogdanor

"Keith Sutherland accurately describes 'A People's Parliament' as a 'rant with footnotes'. Yet it would be a pity if it were to be entirely dismissed. For he has drawn attention to a serious problem that confronts representative democracies everywhere... These books raise important issues for the future of our democracy... Their appearance is a sign that the public philosophy which has for so long governed our political arrangements has become outworn."

Source: Metapsychology

Credit: Robert Cheeks

"[A Citizen Legislature] puts forth substantive proposals that deserve our attention and public debate... [Sutherland's] proposal is unequivocal and straightforward... deserves public debate and consideration."

Source: Political Quarterly

Credit: Andrew Blick

"Well-presented and argued works and I recommend them to anyone with an interest in democratic governance... the use of the lot in the ways discussed in these books merits more careful consideration than it has received to date." (Also reviewing The Athenian Option by Anthony Barnett and Peter Carty.)

Sep 23, 2013

Source: The European Legacy

Credit: Arthur B. Shostak

"This book is a fine example of what the times seem to demand, and it warrants a searching, sustained, and fair consideration. It offers within its (attractive) covers two detailed and well-argued blueprints for very consequential political change."
Paperback
- Publication Date: 01 August 2008
- ISBN-13: 9781845401085
- Extent: Main content page count : 350
- Code: 1845401085
- Dimensions: 15.6 x 23.4 x 2.5 cm
- Weight: 699 grams
- List Price: £14.95
- ONIX Version 2.1, Version 3
Hardcover
- Publication Date: 01 August 2008
- ISBN-13: 9781845401382
- Product Content: Text (eye-readable)
- Extent: Main content page count : 350
- Code: 1845401387
- Dimensions: 15.6 x 23.4 x 2.5 cm
- Weight: 900 grams
- List Price: £30.00
- ONIX Version 2.1, Version 3

Details

Title: A People's Parliament/A Citizen Legislature
Author: Ernest Callenbach, Michael Phillips, Keith Sutherland
Introduction by: Peter Stone
Collection: Sortition and Public Policy
Language: English
Publisher: Imprint Academic
Imprint: Imprint Academic

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Details

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