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13 July 2012 / Stephen Hockman
Issue: 7522 / Categories: Blogs
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Book review: The Politics of Coalition: How the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Government Works

This painstaking approach is a hallmark of the work of the Constitution Unit

Authors: Robert Hazell & Ben Yong
Publisher: Hart Publishing (June 2012)
ISBN: 9781849463102
Price: £19.95

Over the last 250 years, we have seen the evolution of Parliamentary democracy in various forms in the developed and developing world. Superficially, these systems have much in common, but there are also some striking differences. A key issue is effectiveness. The role of government is to act on behalf of citizens collectively to achieve objectives which they cannot hope to achieve, acting individually. But for government to fulfil this purpose requires it to be effective. At the same time there have to be appropriate constraints guaranteeing individual liberty and public participation. For this we rely on legislators and judges.

In some democracies, Parliamentary coalitions are traditional, although this does not necessarily mean that Parliament is unable to subject government to proper control. In other democracies such as our own, coalitions have occurred relatively rarely, though the majority

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NEWS
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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