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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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MOVERS & SHAKERS

DAC Beachcroft—Clare Dewar

DAC Beachcroft—Clare Dewar

DAC Beachcroft strengthens Scottish real estate capabilitywith partner appointment

Womble Bond Dickinson—Brendan Ryan

Womble Bond Dickinson—Brendan Ryan

Womble Bond Dickinson appoints Brendan Ryan as partner in Public Law Projects team

Parklane Plowden Chambers—five appointments

Parklane Plowden Chambers—five appointments

Parklane Plowden Chambers welcomes five new barristers

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