why is it not compulsary for MP's to ask their constituents before they vote in parliament?

Question

Surely my MP should ask me, or a selection of the local community, whether we want a law to be passed. At the moment it seems like they just vote for what benefits them, not us.

Are their any rules on having to ask people in their constituency, or do they actually just vote as they like?

Answer 1

It was the constituants who voted in the Mp to act on their behalf. How long do you think it would take to ask every person in the country a question? We all have an Mp dont we? Millions of people questioned every time a Law needs amending just doesnt work. Mick

Answer 2

What you're asking for is a min-referendum. There is nothing in our ad-hoc constitution to mandate this, although the MP could have an opinion pole if he wanted to. Mostly they rely on their constituents being pro-active and writing in with their views and requests. Sometimes they take action on these.

Remember that the MPs are our Representatives not our Delegates. There is a huge difference. A Delegate is there to do what we tell them to do, a Representative is there to act on our behalf according to their own judgement. Also, strictly speaking, Ministers act on behalf of the Crown not the public (that's a technical feature which doesn't stop them acting for themselves).

In contrast you will note that Trade Union conferences are attended mostly by Delegates, who are supposed to take with them motions proposed by the local members who elected them. That's a significant difference from how Parliament operates.

In practice the biggest failing with our so-called Parliamentary Democracy is in the Houses of Parliament itself. Very few MPs (or Peers) ever attend debates so they haven't a clue what the arguments pro and con are. Yet when the Division is called hundreds of them emerge and vote.

They don't often vote "as they like", rather they vote according to Party Lines and the Whip regardless of the merits of the debate. Then they're seen as good party members.

You will note how rare a "back bench rebellion" is and how they almost never come to anything more than a token gesture. I suspect most of these are ordered by the "front bench" in order to give a superficial semblance of democracy.

That is what makes the government effectively an "elected dictatorship" and, over several decades since the disasters of the 1970's eventualy led to the presidential style of Mr A Blair & Co.

In fairness to the MPs, I suspect that most of the "lobby fodder" entered politics in the first place because they really belived that they could "make a difference". They soon learn that the only way to advance a political career is by toeing the Party Line whether they agree or not.

If you want a fine example of all this at work just look at the former militant Young Liberal known as Peter Hain.
Over the years he has turned into a toadying, syrup spouting, Labour Party animal who will suck up to whoever is the Leader just to hope for an important Cabinet post. As far as the country is concerned he's a complete waste of space and money but as long as he has an uncritical electorate who keep returning him to Parliament his career will soar.

Answer 3

Actually most MPs vote along the Party Line, thats is when you vote you vote more or less for what your Party tells you too, unless the Candidate is a Independent. When you vote for a candidate in an election from a political party, you essentially are voting for their party since all legislation that goes to parliament will be voted on based on the persons party, and rarely in what would be the individuals best interest for his riding. So if the PM decides he wants his party to vote Yes on a certain bill, the Party will tell all the MPs to vote yes, and if they dont, they generally will recieve some sort of fine or penalty from the party, and in rare cases can be kicked from the Party. This is done generally to speed up the process of passing legislation into law. If MPs were to consult with there ridings, it would slow the political process, especially to MPs whos ridings are further away from the capitol.

Answer 4

The whole point of having a member of parliament is for him/her to act as a representative of their constituents. They are elected on the basis of their party's policy manifiesto, which let's the voter's know which way they are likely to go on any given vote.
If there is an issue which you feel you would like to discuss with your MP either before or after a particular vote, write to him/her.

Answer 5

Well, our unitary system means that as we elect the MP's we are allowing them to make decisions on our behalf. Unfortunately in the UK, MP's are more accountable to the party than the constituents unlike the USA. It would be impossible to continuously ask us everytime they made a decision, especially with such an apathetic electorate. I know you're a little angry but just think, you elected him or her because of several reasons, one of which being that you trust them to represent your voice in Parliament. Hard as it may be, we have to trust that they are making the correct decisions.....no system is perfect.

Answer 6

Every m.p. in the country will tell you he is there to represent you and thats the biggest lie in politics ,his opinion [or her] is always superior to yours [so he wont say]then theres the party line which ignores everyone except the party ,then there are the votes that give him more money ,expenses claims ,second jobs and jobs for wives girlfriend boyfriends [sometimes both ]and most important of all the vote to keep all this a secret as the public dont need to know this under the freedom of information act.

Answer 7

The people we elect to Parliament are there in pursuance of their party manifesto. We elect them to make decisions on our behalf. Since only one MP is elected per constituency it follows that there will always be a section of that community who disagree with any particular decision, but that's democracy!

Answer 8

They ask people at elections to vote for them to represent you in Parliament. It his them up to them and their conscience. Which way they vote on issues. Most MPs can be contacted on-line or on visits to constituency's, to hear local views on issues.

Answer 9

I'm assuming this is England, and I'm American, so I'm not sure.

But, it sounds like you want your representative to ask you if you want it passed or not before voting for it...

The idea behind Parliament is that you vote for a person to represent you, and they vote on laws. Majority (in most cases) wins but the minority is heard, just sometimes disregarded.

Answer 10

It all comes down to the party whips.Don't kid yourself that these ruthlessly ambitious careerists care what you think.Vote for an independent or if there isnt one then stand yourself.There is virtually no constituency consultation these days.