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OverviewRecent years have seen an intensification of discussion on the issue of Britain's political class. The question of who our politicians are is front and centre. Do they represent us? Are all politicians just in it for themselves? Are they disconnected from the lives of normal people? In The Political Class, Peter Allen argues that our current political class are in many important ways unlike the British people as a whole, and this matters a lot. Our politicians are currently largely drawn from limited sections of society, reflecting patterns of wider social and economic inequality which mean that, for many people, running for political office is almost impossible. This leaves us with a political class that can justifiably be described as uniform in who they are, what they think, and how they behave. Putting the state of British democracy under the microscope, Allen argues that having a more diverse political class would not only better reflect democratic principles of equality, but would also result in more legitimate political outcomes. We need to radically reshape political institutions so that more citizens have a real chance of becoming involved in making the decisions that affect all of our lives. Only by doing this can the gap between the political class and the public be reduced, and British democracy live up to its name. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Peter Allen (Reader in Comparative Politics, University of Bath)Publisher: Oxford University Press Imprint: Oxford University Press Dimensions: Width: 14.20cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 22.10cm Weight: 0.300kg ISBN: 9780198795971ISBN 10: 0198795971 Pages: 176 Publication Date: 26 April 2018 Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Tertiary & Higher Education , Professional & Vocational Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: To order  Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us. Table of ContentsIntroduction 1: Who or What is the Political Class? 2: The Case for the Defence 3: The Case for the Prosecution 4: How to Make the Political Class More Diverse Conclusion Notes IndexReviewsThe Political Class should become a key point of reference for those concerned about why parliament fails to reflect the make-up of the society it governs, and what exactly we can and should do about it. * Michael Kenny, Professor of Public Policy, University of Cambridge * The balanced case for why educating future leaders in a few elite institutions is such a very bad idea. * Danny Dorling, author Do We Need Economic Inequality? * Allen's book, and the current political quagmire, make a convincing case that wholesale electoral reform - a phrase that has rarely quickened a newsroom pulse - should be higher up the agenda. * Daniel Clarke, Times Literary Supplement * A valuable intervention which will provoke many to think about how we can and should make politics 'something that happens here with us and not there with them'. * Lawrence McKay, LSE Review of Books * The balanced case for why educating future leaders in a few elite institutions is such a very bad idea. * Danny Dorling, author Do We Need Economic Inequality? * The Political Class should become a key point of reference for those concerned about why parliament fails to reflect the make-up of the society it governs, and what exactly we can and should do about it. * Michael Kenny, Professor of Public Policy, University of Cambridge * The Political Class should become a key point of reference for those concerned about why parliament fails to reflect the make-up of the society it governs, and what exactly we can and should do about it. * Michael Kenny, Professor of Public Policy, University of Cambridge * The balanced case for why educating future leaders in a few elite institutions is such a very bad idea. * Danny Dorling, author Do We Need Economic Inequality? * A valuable intervention which will provoke many to think about how we can and should make politics 'something that happens here with us and not there with them'. * Lawrence McKay, LSE Review of Books * Allen's book, and the current political quagmire, make a convincing case that wholesale electoral reform - a phrase that has rarely quickened a newsroom pulse - should be higher up the agenda. * Daniel Clarke, Times Literary Supplement * Author InformationPeter Allen is Reader in Comparative Politics at the University of Bath. His research on representation, political behaviour, and gender and politics has been published in a number of academic journals. He is currently an ESRC Future Research Leader and a 2016-7 Kluge Fellow at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. Further information can be found at his website, www.peter-allen.co.uk. This is his first book. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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