Proposed Changes in British Parliamentary Procedure

Parliamentary democracy in Britain has once again to face and solve a problem which in itself is by no means new. It has to find the means of preserving, under the conditions of today and tomorrow, two principles, each of which is fundamental to democratic government, but which tend in times of major change to come into conflict. The one is that Parliament, as the supreme power in the state, shall retain its full and unchallenged control over public policy, both in legislation and in administration; the other, that the public business shall be efficiently conducted—that the right things shall be done at the right time. For in so far as the system fails on the former count, it ceases to be democratic; and to the extent that it fails on the latter count, its repute, and even its very existence, may be endangered.It is commonly admitted that the British parliamentary machine has at times—and in recent years with increasing frequency—been overworked. Changes in the law called for by new situations, by public demand, or by administrative expediency are liable to be postponed from session to session for lack of parliamentary time, until the right moment for decision has passed. Matters which deserved full discussion are liable to be decided in haste under some form of closure of debate. The choice of subjects for legislative projects in any particular session tends, at times, to be determined as much by sectional pressures of one kind or another, public or departmental, as by a considered weighing of the public interest or a general plan of policy.