Header Picture – House of Commons, Parliament as it still functions today

Brief summary – domination of the UK had always been vested in the monarchy and an erosion of that power started to occur one thousand years ago. Pivotal points were at the times of Magna Carta when the monarchy was made ‘not above the Law’; and during the time of Oliver Cromwell, when Parliament was put on a sounder footing with increasing control.

Opinion – However one thousand years later, with an almost total transfer of power and control from the Monarchy to Government, parliament has become increasingly manipulated, by wealth and money, unseen vested interests, lacks vision and expertise and has become all-powerful, to the detriment of the nations strength – its exceptional citizens. Government needs to modernise, it is at least one hundred years out of date, it doesn’t have its finger on the button any longer, it needs greater expertise – the Citizens collectively with their feet firmly planted on the ground must be given a greater input – Citizens no longer trust those who believe they can walk on water and lead us to the point of drowning.

Government makes the Law, they are the ‘Lawmakers’ and as was recognised in 1215 that the Monarch was ‘not above the Law’ so should it be that today neither the Lawmakers or the appointed Judiciary are ‘not above the Law’ also.

68 million of us must have greater ongoing influence over the 650 MP’s and 777 Peers. Government at all levels must ‘connect’ with it’s Citizens now, draw on that expertise and the people must prevail in a true Democracy, or this once great nation might well sink below the waves. Government has put itself in a very weak position. Collectively there is a greater likelihood that the position can be redeemed as a ‘United’ Kingdom.

In addition to the more recent 150 years of struggle of the TUC and the Suffragettes in support of our rights, we nowadays have countless ‘Action/Lobby Groups/Think Tanks’ trying to assist, but we are all fragmented and exploited. We need a ‘United Kingdom’ and show strength together – all of us. Change once again in our history must happen now before any ‘snap’ or scheduled election in 2024. In a true Democracy the will of the people must be heard and acted upon. The ratio of existing power must therefore be altered without delay to a greater say in all matters for the Citizens. The historical need for change over the years is shown to be ongoing, there has been much change in power as can be seen below:

1199 – King John was the all-powerful King of England (meaning he was able to do anything) and Lord of Ireland, having inherited England and most of western France; and was more powerful than King Philip II of France. He appointed Barons to help him govern the Kingdom and ensure his instructions were carried out and that the citizens paid the taxes he chose to set without referral.

1204 – King Philip II took Normandy and Anjou from King John. King John wanted to regain his lost territories and needed money to fight King Philip. He raised taxes in England much higher than they had ever been before, causing ‘officials’ to become more and more threatening in the way they collected these taxes. He became increasingly unpopular with the English Barons and citizens.

1214 – King Philip II defeated King John’s Army in Battle at Bouvines. This loss and the hardship that had been inflicted was the cause of mounting opposition and the turning point for the Barons against King John.

1215 – Both King John and the Barons had assembled armies in an attempt to battle with King Phillip, but the Barons turned against King John becoming an opposing force. With the looming prospect of Civil war, this led to a meeting at Runnymede and the signing of the ‘Magna Carta’. John reneged, asking the Pope to declare the ‘Magna Carta’ invalid, which started a civil conflict between the English Barons and the Monarchy.

Following the death of King John, his son Henry III became Monarch at the age of 9 (nine). His age, and the Magna Carta opened up the decision-making process to the Barons and Parliament came into being. The members of this Parliament were chosen by the King until 1265 when Members of Parliament (MP’s) started to be elected from the various shires (counties). These MP’s were known as the “Knights of the Shire”. The population was about 7 million but only a handful of people were allowed to elect these MP’s.

1432 – Almost two hundred years later, parliament passed ‘The Knights of the Shire Act 1432’ the first legislation that confirmed who was entitled to ‘vote’ for the MP’s. The Act gave the right to vote to “Forty Shilling Freeholders”, meaning that only owners of real estate (property) who paid taxes to the Crown of at least 40 shillings per year (roughly £10,000 in today’s money), were able to vote – it excluded all women, and it remained that way for a further 400 years.

1605 – Guy Fawkes attempted to blow-up the Houses of Parliament and in the process King James I, but failed. It was a time of great religious unrest.

1620 – The ‘Mayflower’ set sail from Plymouth for America with 102 passengers who later became known as ‘The Pilgrim Fathers’, landing in ‘New England’. They were looking for a better and less oppressed life, a fresh start. They became a central theme in the history and culture of the United States of America.

1640 – Oliver Cromwell was elected to Parliament. As one of the Generals on the Parliamentary side (Cavaliers) against King Charles I (Roundheads), he played a major role in establishing Parliament; his involvement was a turning point. He was made ‘Lord Protector of the Nation’. The Short Parliament of 1640 lasted 3 weeks and was followed by the Long Parliament. Dissolution was implemented by Cromwell in 1660.

This is what Cromwell said to the Long Parliament when he thought it was no longer fit to conduct the affairs of the nation:

“You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say, and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go”.

1678 – The Tory Party had its origins.

1679 – ‘The Exclusion Bill 1680’ crisis ran from 1679 until 1681 in the reign of King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland. Three Exclusion bills sought to exclude the King’s brother and heir presumptive, James, Duke of York, from the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland because he was Roman Catholic. None became law.

1780 – A survey from 1780 revealed that the number of permitted voters amounted to only 3% (only 3 in every 100) of the United Kingdom’s population of circa 7 million. No women could vote.

1832 – The Reform Act 1832 (also known as the Representation of the People Act) was legislation to expand voting rights in the UK. It established that men above the age of 21 who were freeholders of property could vote across all boroughs. However, it specifically stated that only men could vote, laying down a statutory bar disenfranchising the nation’s women.

1834 – The Conservative Party was founded in 1834 from the Tory Party (Tory came into use between 1678 – 1681 during the Irish Exclusion Bill crisis, Tory meaning ‘outlaw’, ‘robber’ from the Irish word ‘torai’, being a derogatory term it was later abandoned by the Party) and was one of two dominant political parties in the 19th century (1834-1899), the other being The Liberal Party (1859-1899).

1859 – The Liberal Party was founded in 1859.

1867 – The Reform Act 1867 enabled householders to vote, expanding the category of eligible voters to include the working classes for the first time.

1868 – Marked the first meeting and founding of ‘The Trades Union Congress’. The first Congress passed a resolution “that it is highly desirable that the trades of the United Kingdom should hold an annual congress, for the purpose of bringing the trades into closer alliance, and to take action in all Parliamentary matters pertaining to the general interests of the working classes”. They also evolved with a core focus of ‘becoming part of the fabric of British political life, consulted by governments on policy, and leading opposition to any attempts to undermine the rights and living standards of working people.’ Over the years the TUC have and continue to make great progress, today they have united 48 Unions who enjoy membership totaling more than 5.5 million citizens.

1884 – The Reform Act 1884 established voting rights for both municipal boroughs and county constituencies, together enabling 6 million citizens to vote.

1900 – The Labour Party was founded in 1900.

1903 – The WSPU (Women’s Social and Political Union) was founded with the motto ‘Deeds not words’, having started in the late 19th Century, becoming known also as the ‘Women’s Suffrage Movement’ – ‘Suffragettes’ and kept political pressure on Parliament through non-violent and violent means. Many were imprisoned for simply proclaiming their rights.

In the UK the ‘Suffragettes’ were to make dramatic strides forward with regard to women’s rights and this continues to stimulate growing numbers of Women’s Rights Movements to this day, and rightly so.

Two of the leading militant exponents were Emmeline Pankhurst, and Emily Wilding Davison who protesting in 1913, threw herself in front of the Kings horse at the Epsom Derby and died later from her injuries. Emmeline Pankhurst died after 40 years of campaigning in 1928, the year that the Suffragettes obtained equal voting rights for women.

1914/1918 – World War 1, during WW1 and WW2 one million UK Citizens lost their lives fighting for the freedom and values of our Citizens.

1918 – The Representation of the People Act 1918 was passed. The Act didn’t enable all women to vote as it still required them to own property, but it removed the requirement for men to own property, giving the right to vote for all men.

1923 – The ‘1922 Committee’ was formed in April 1923 (by MPs who were elected in the 1922 Election). The Committee, collectively, represents the views of the Conservative Party parliamentary rank and file (those subscribing to the Conservative Party) to the party leader, usually also the prime minister of the United Kingdom or leader of the Opposition, and is able to exert considerable influence without involving the Citizens of the UK. The Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) performs a similar function to the 1922 Committee, for the Labour Party.

1926 – The General Strike was embarked upon to protect the rights of working people and was organised by the Trades Union Congress. The TUC over the 150 plus years of its existence has brought about great improvement for all working people. Sadly, yet bravely, it has been forced from time to time by Government to adopt ‘last resort’ measures in order to protect working people.

1928 – The Representation of the People Act 1928 did away with the property requirement for women, finally enabling all persons 21 years of age or older to vote in the UK.

1939/1945 – World War 2, during WW1 and WW2 one million UK Citizens lost their lives fighting for the freedom and values of our Citizens.

1969 – The Representation of the People Act 1969 extended the right to vote to all persons aged 18 to 20.

1988 – Liberal Democrats were founded in 1988.

1990/2020 – Later reforms have affected the election process, establishing the types of elections (for Elections to Parliament and Local Elections), lowering the age for candidates to 18, and more. In 2012, the Scottish Parliament successfully lowered the voting age to 16 for persons voting in Scottish and local elections. Scottish Parliament further enfranchised all foreign nationals living in Scotland to participate in the country’s elections in 2020.

2022 – More recently, less than one half of one percent of the UK population (that’s less than one Citizen in every 200) was involved in choosing recent consecutive Prime Ministers namely – Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. WE the UK Citizens had no say in this, or any of the Cabinet appointments.
Such is the power of the ‘1922 Committee’ that the UK Citizens of today had six times less say in such matters than the Citizens of 1780, 243 years ago.