In 1976 Lord Hailsham coined the term ‘elective dictatorship’ to describe the extent to which the Government controls the Parliament of the day. Essentially, the term implies that in the UK political system, when elected, a government can essentially take whatever actions it wants without effective scrutiny. So why might it be said that elective dictatorship routinely exists in the UK?

There is no doubt that, generally, the elective dictatorship does indeed exist. However, depending on the make-up of Parliament and the circumstances of the day, it can significantly subside in certain circumstances. For example, Theresa May’s premiership, in which she lost two votes on her Withdrawal Agreement, can certainly not be described as ‘elective dictatorship’. Equally, until the General Election of December 2019, her successor was not in control of Parliament. As Prime Minister, Boris Johnson lost his first four divisions (parliamentary votes) and became the first Prime Minister since 1894 to lose their very first parliamentary division. 

Why does the Elective Dictatorship exist?

There are a number of reasons why the Elective Dictatorship exists. These include:

1. The UK Electoral System tends towards firm majorities

The First Past the Post system has the effect of creating a clear two-party system. First Past the Post is also a ‘winner takes all system’, this means that minor parties find it incredibly difficult to establish a presence in Parliament. This is because votes cast for smaller parties in most constituencies are unlikely to topple one of the two major parties. For example, in the 2019 General Election the Conservatives won 365 seats and the Greens won 1 seat. Nationally, it took an average of 38,264 votes for each seat the Conservatives won, but 865, 707 votes led to the Greens winning just one seat. 

The fact that minor parties find it difficult to make an electoral impact means that power swings between the two major parties and the swing between them is usually enough to ensure a majority in Parliament. The average majority in Parliament since 1945 is 58.4 seats with only three hung parliaments in this time. Added to this is the fact that landslide victories are not uncommon in the U.K. system. Some of the biggest are:

Clement Attlee (Labour) – Majority of 147 Seats in 1945

Margaret Thatcher (Conservative) – Majority of 144 in 1983

Tony Blair (Labour) – Majority of 179 in 1997

2. The Government controls the parliamentary agenda

The agenda and activities of the House of Commons are largely controlled by the Government as dictated by Standing Orders (the rules of Parliament). It is Standing Order 14 (1) that outlines that the government usually have control of the parliamentary agenda:

“Save as provided in this order, government business shall have precedence at every sitting.”

Other time allocated in Parliament that is not controlled by the government is limited to:

• 20 Days for Opposition Business 

• 35 Days for Backbench Business

• 13 Fridays for Backbench Private Members Bill

3. Party Loyalty

One of the most important factors that create the impact of ‘elective dictatorship’ is party loyalty. In the UK political system it is exceptionally difficult to become an MP without standing as part of a political party. At the 2019 General Election only one MP was elected as an independent, however, even then Neale Hanvey was on the Ballot Paper as an SNP member, but was suspended just before the election. The last true independent in the U.K. was Sylvia Hermon who was elected as an Independent MP for North Down between 2010 and 2019.

Not only do MPs rely on their parties to be elected, they also rely on their party for their career development. Most MPs want to advance their career, either becoming a Select Committee Member or a Minister or Shadow Minister. To become a Minister or Shadow Minister they have to keep their party onside, whilst becoming a Select Committee Member will be much easier with the support of their parties.

As a result of this, rebellions in the House of Commons are rare. Although there are naturally rebellious MPs (Jeremy Corbyn famously voted against his own party 428 times when he was a backbencher) most MPs ‘toe the party line’ and vote the way that their party whips want them to, enhancing the power of political parties and contributing to the elective dictatorship. Since the 2019 General Election there are 276 MPs who have never once rebelled against their own party.

The fact that Britain has a fusion of powers means that if the executive can keep their own party onside, they will normally be able to carry out most of their agenda.

4. Government rarely lose votes in the House of Commons

As a consequence of these factors, sitting governments very rarely lose votes in the House of Commons. Between 1945 and August 2023, the sitting government has won 99.27% of all divisions in the House of Commons:

Session	Government	No of Divisions	Government Defeats
1945-46	Clement Attlee – 1st Ministry	294	4
1946-47		383
1947-48		278
1948		10
1948-49		310
1950		65
1950-51	Clement Attlee – 2nd Ministry	170
1951-52	Winston Churchill – 3rd Ministry	245	1
1952-53		227
1953-54		241
1954-55		61
1955-56	Anthony Eden	298	0
1956-57	Anthony Eden/Harold Macmillan – 1st Ministry	180
1957-58	Harold Macmillan – 1st Ministry	206
1958-59		177
1959-60	Harold Macmillan – 2nd Ministry	156	0
1960-61		269
1961-62		261
1962-63		183
1963-64	Harold Macmillan – 2nd Ministry/Douglas-Home	148
1964-65	Harold Wilson – 1st Ministry	276	6
1965-66		39
1966-67	Harold Wilson – 2nd Ministry	496
1967-68		312
1968-69		352
1969-70		132
1970-71	Edward Heath	480	6
1971-72		352
1972-73		224
1973-74		47
1974	Harold Wilson – 3rd Ministry	109	25
1974-75	Harold Wilson – 4th Ministry	405
1975-76		432
1976-77	James Callaghan	234	34
1977-78		324
1978-79		110
1979-80	Margaret Thatcher – 1st Ministry	500	4
1980-81		317
1981-82		332
1982-83		146
1983-84	Margaret Thatcher – 2nd Ministry	482
1984-85		307
1985-86		310
1986-87		165
1987-88	Margaret Thatcher – 3rd Ministry	496
1988-89		409
1989-90		345
1990-91	John Major – 1st Ministry	233	6
1991-92		113
1992-93	John Major – 2nd Ministry	401
1993-94		339
1994-95		239
1995-96		216
1996-97		99
1997-98	Tony Blair – 1st Ministry	380	4
1998-99		323
1999-2000		367
2000-01		209
2001-02	Tony Blair – 2nd Ministry	361
2002-03		390
2003-04		340
2004-05		155
2005-06	Tony Blair – 3rd Ministry	343
2006-07		221
2007-08	Tony Blair – 3rd Ministry/Gordon Brown	341
2008-09	Gordon Brown	248	3
2009-10		135
2010-12	David Cameron – 1st Ministry	544	7
2012-13		227
2013-14		280
2014-15		188
2015-16	David Cameron – 2nd Ministry/Theresa May	269	3
2016-17	Theresa May	198	33
2017-19	Theresa May/Boris Johnson	446
2019-19	Boris Johnson	17	12
2019-21	Boris Johnson	283	3
2021-22	Boris Johnson/Liz Truss/Rishi Sunak	270	0
2022-23*	Rishi Sunak	79	0
* Until 25/08/23	Totals:	20549	151

5. The House of Commons dominates the House of Lords

Further to the fact that the Government largely controls the House of Commons, the House of Commons is dominant over the House of Lords. There are a number of reasons for this:

Parliament Acts (1911 & 1949) – The Parliament Acts mean that the House of Lords can no longer block legislation, but merely delay it for one year. If the House of Lords blocks a bill they the House of Commons wants to pass, it can invoke the Parliament Act. This means that if the same bill were passed by the Commons in the subsequent year, it could be forced into law. The Parliament Act has only been invoked four times since 1949 (most recently for the Hunting Act 2005) but the very fact that it exists makes the Lords more reticent to challenge the Commons.

Salisbury Convention – Since the 1940s it has become a well established convention that the House of Lords does not vote against a bill that was clearly a part of the Government’s election manifesto. The reasoning behind this is that if an issue was in the manifesto of the winning party in the election it is fair to infer that the policy has a mandate from the people. For example, the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union featured heavily in the 2019 Conservative Manifesto, as Boris Johnson promised to ‘Get Brexit Done’. Consequently, the bill was not heavily challenged in the House of Lords.

Financial Privilege – By long-standing Convention the House of Lords does not vote against any bill that is raising money, for example a bill to raise taxes or the Government’s Yearly Budget.

6. The existence of Royal Prerogative Powers

In the UK the Government possess a number of Royal Prerogative powers. These are powers that technically belong to the Monarch, but are now exercised by government Ministers, particularly the Prime Minister. These powers include:

• Calling a Snap Election
• Appointing a Cabinet
• Ordering Military Action

Importantly, because these powers are derived from Parliament, they are also beyond parliamentary scrutiny.

What problems does the elective dictatorship present?

There are a number of problems that the concept of elective dictatorship presents in a liberal democracy:

1. There is an erosion of democratic accountability

When the government have such control over Parliament, the government may feel far less accountable for its actions, particularly when it may be another 5 year period before another election is mandated.

2. There is a lack of parliamentary scrutiny

When the government have such complete control of the parliamentary agenda and arithmetic, it is exceptionally difficult for effective scrutiny of the executive to take place.

3. Minority voices can be discounted

An important part of liberal democracy is that minority and not just minority voices are heard. This can lead to policies and decisions that do not adequately protect minorities.

4. There is a lack of political compromise

The fact of elective dictatorship can mean there is little need to compromise on policy. As such, policies are likely to be created that are extremely partisan and lack consensus. Upon a change of government, these are likely to be reversed, leading inconsistency in policy.

5. Civil Liberties can be eroded

Governments who can avoid accountability because of the elective dictatorship are more likely to use their power to limit fundamental civil liberties in their own political interests.

6. Corruption can become endemic

Governments that lack effective accountability can quickly find themselves open to corruption and the abuse of power.

Article Summary

The elective dictatorship is a concept that suggests that Governments in the UK can largely do as they please, with little to limit their power. There are a number of factors that impact this including the First Past the Post electoral system, the power of patronage of the PM, the strong royal prerogative powers and the control of the agenda in the House of Commons.

Key Terms

Elective Dictatorship – A concept developed by Lord Hailsham to explain the fact that in the UK a Government can normally do as it wishes with little constraint.

Royal Prerogative Powers – Powers that technically belong to the monarch but are now exercised by Government Ministers.

Parliament Acts – Acts of Parliament from 1911 and 1949 that limit the legislative powers of the House of Lords. Today, the House of Lords can only delay legislation for two parliamentary sessions (one year).

First Past the Post – The single-member plurality system – the electoral system used for elections to the House of Commons. It creates a clear two-party system and often leads to governments with large majorities.

Standing Order 14 – The Standing Order of the House of Commons that ensures that the Government are in control of most of the business of the House.

Specification Links:
Edexcel: Paper 2 – 4.2 (Relations Between Branches)
AQA: Paper 1 – 3.1.1.3 (The Prime Minister and Cabinet)
WJEC: Paper 1 – 1.2 (The Government of the UK)