Edexcel A Level Politics (9PL0/01) — UK Politics, Topic 1.1: Democracy and Participation
“Your representative owes you, not his industry only, but his judgement; and he betrays, instead of serving you, if he sacrifices it to your opinion.”
Edmund Burke, Speech to the Electors of Bristol, 3 November 1774
Edmund Burke was the MP for Bristol in the late eighteenth century (a port city that was then one of the largest constituencies in England).
In this speech, delivered just after his election, Burke argued that an MP should not simply do whatever the majority of constituents instructed.
Instead, an MP should use their own judgement about what is genuinely in the national or constituency interest, even where this conflicts with the wishes of the people who elected them.
This is often called the trustee model of representation, and it sits at the heart of representative democracy as it developed in the United Kingdom.
This page tests how far Burke’s claim still describes UK democracy today, given how far direct democracy, in which citizens decide issues themselves rather than leaving the decision to their representatives, has grown since 1974.
What is democracy?
Democracy comes from the Greek words demos (people) and kratos (power or rule), and means, broadly, “rule by the people”.
Beyond that broad idea, however, democracy is what political scientists call a contested concept: there is no single agreed model of how “the people” should actually rule.
The United Kingdom, like most modern democracies, is best understood as a hybrid: overwhelmingly a representative democracy for day-to-day government, but one that has, since 1975, made growing use of direct democracy for a narrow range of major constitutional questions.
| Key terms Democracy: a system of government in which political power ultimately rests with the people, whether exercised directly or through elected representatives. Legitimacy: the extent to which a government, decision or political system is widely accepted by the public as rightful or valid, often because it results from a fair, open process such as an election or referendum. Direct democracy: a system in which citizens make political decisions themselves, most commonly by voting in a referendum, rather than leaving the decision to elected representatives. Representative democracy: a system in which citizens elect representatives (in the UK, Members of Parliament, or MPs) to make political decisions on their behalf between elections. Referendum: a public vote in which the electorate is asked to decide a single issue directly, usually by answering yes or no to a specific question. Mandate: the authority a government or representative gains, typically by winning an election on a manifesto (a public statement of policy intentions), to carry out its stated policies. Trustee model: the view, associated with Edmund Burke, that a representative should use their own judgement to act in what they consider the best interests of their constituents, even against those constituents’ express wishes. Delegate model: the view that a representative should act strictly according to the wishes of those they represent, with little or no room for independent judgement. |
Features of direct democracy
Direct democracy has its roots in Ancient Athens, where, from around the fifth century BCE, male citizens (a minority of the population, since women, slaves and foreigners were excluded) attended the ekklesia (a public assembly held roughly forty times a year) to vote directly on laws and major decisions such as war and peace.
There was no equivalent of an MP: citizens governed themselves in person, taking turns to hold office by lot.
The United Kingdom has no equivalent standing assembly, and no constitutional requirement to hold a referendum on any particular issue: Parliament (which, under the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty, is the supreme legal authority in the UK) decides if, when and on what a referendum is held.
Referendums have therefore been used sparingly, almost always to decide major constitutional questions such as membership of international organisations or the transfer of powers to devolved bodies, rather than everyday policy.
| Year | Referendum | Result | Turnout |
| 1975 | UK membership of the European Economic Community (EEC) | 67.2% Yes (to remain) | 64.0% |
| 1997 | Scottish devolution (a Scottish Parliament, including tax-varying powers) | 74.3% Yes to a Parliament; 63.5% Yes to tax powers | 60.4% |
| 1997 | Welsh devolution (a National Assembly for Wales) | 50.3% Yes | 50.1% |
| 2011 | Voting system for the House of Commons (Alternative Vote) | 67.9% No (32.1% Yes) | 42.0% |
| 2014 | Scottish independence | 55.3% No (44.7% Yes) | 84.6% |
| 2016 | UK membership of the European Union (“Brexit”) | 51.9% Leave | 72.2% |
Figures from the Electoral Commission and House of Commons Library research briefings on each referendum.
| Check your understanding 1. In your own words, define direct democracy and representative democracy. Try to include: who actually makes the decision in each system, and what a citizen does differently in each one. 2. Look carefully at the turnout column in the table above. Compare the 2014 Scottish independence referendum (84.6%) with the 2011 Alternative Vote referendum (42.0%). Suggest two reasons why so many more people voted in 2014 than in 2011. 3. Find the sentence above that explains what “advisory” means for the 2016 EU referendum. In your own words, explain the difference between a referendum being legally binding and being advisory. |
Features of representative democracy
Representative democracy is the dominant model of government in the UK. Rather than voting on individual laws, citizens elect an MP for each of the 650 parliamentary constituencies using First Past the Post (FPTP, a system in which the candidate with the most votes in a constituency wins the seat, even without an overall majority of votes cast).
The party, or parties, able to command a majority in the House of Commons then forms the government and governs on the basis of the mandate it won from its general election manifesto.
Because elections are held infrequently, at most every five years, representative democracy in the UK has developed several further mechanisms that allow voters some ongoing influence over their representatives between elections, without going as far as a full referendum on every issue.
| Mechanism | How it works | Example |
| General elections | Voters elect an MP for their constituency using FPTP; the governing party’s manifesto forms its mandate to govern. | Elections must be held at least every five years under the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022; the next is due by 15 August 2029. |
| Recall of MPs Act 2015 | Allows constituents to sign a recall petition if their MP is suspended from the Commons for 10 or more sitting days, or convicted of an offence; a by-election follows if at least 10% of the electorate sign. | Margaret Ferrier (Rutherglen and Hamilton West) was recalled in 2023 after 14.7% of constituents signed the petition, following a breach of Covid-19 rules; Peter Bone (Wellingborough) was recalled the same year after 13.2% signed, following a suspension for bullying and sexual misconduct. |
| E-petitions | Petitions on the UK Parliament and government website reaching 10,000 signatures receive a government response; those reaching 100,000 are considered for a Commons debate by the Petitions Committee. | The Petitions Committee continued to schedule debates on petitions that passed the 100,000 threshold into 2026. |
| Select committees | Cross-party groups of backbench MPs scrutinise a government department, questioning ministers and civil servants and publishing reports. | For example, the Treasury Committee questions the Chancellor of the Exchequer following each Budget. |
Figures from the House of Commons Library, the Electoral Commission and the UK Parliament Petitions Committee.
| Check your understanding 1. Explain, in your own words, the difference between the trustee model and the delegate model of representation. Hint: think about whose judgement counts most, the MP’s or the constituents’. 2. Using the table above, pick two mechanisms (for example the Recall of MPs Act 2015 and e-petitions) and describe, in one sentence each, how they let voters influence their MP between general elections. 3. Look at the paragraph just above the table. Explain, in your own words, why representative democracy in the UK is based on “periodic” elections rather than continuous voting. |
Comparing direct and representative democracy
Direct democracy and representative democracy are often presented as opposites, but the two sections above show that the UK actually combines elements of both. Before looking at what separates them, it is worth being clear about what they have in common.
Similarities
Both systems ultimately claim their legitimacy from popular consent: a representative’s mandate comes from being elected by the people, while a referendum result claims to be the direct, unmediated expression of the people’s will. Both currently operate side by side in the UK, rather than as rivals, since it is always an elected, representative Parliament that decides whether and when a referendum takes place. Both also depend on the same practical machinery to function: the same electoral register, polling stations and vote count used at a general election are reused whenever a referendum is held.
Differences
Beyond these similarities, direct democracy and representative democracy differ sharply in how they work in practice, and in their respective strengths and weaknesses.
| Criterion | Direct democracy | Representative democracy |
| Legitimacy of the decision | Very high for the specific issue decided: the outcome is the unmediated will of the people, e.g. the 2016 referendum result was treated as a decisive mandate for Brexit despite a majority of MPs favouring Remain. | Legitimacy comes from the whole package of policies in a mandate, renewed only periodically, at most every five years. |
| Practicality in a large modern state | Impractical for day-to-day government: most citizens lack the time or specialist information to vote on every issue facing a state of tens of millions of people. | Practical: a relatively small number of full-time representatives can specialise, scrutinise detailed legislation and respond quickly. |
| Protection of minorities | Risk of the tyranny of the majority (a phrase associated with the philosopher John Stuart Mill, describing the danger that a simple majority can override minority interests), since a binary yes/no question leaves no room for compromise. | Representatives can build coalitions, amend legislation and take minority interests into account during debate and committee scrutiny. |
| Participation and turnout | Highly variable: from 84.6% (Scottish independence, 2014) to 42.0% (Alternative Vote, 2011), depending on how salient the question is. | More consistent, though declining over time: 59.7% at the 2024 general election, the lowest turnout since 2001. |
| Quality of decision-making | Voters decide a simplified binary choice, sometimes on a technical issue, such as the specific voting system offered in 2011. | Representatives can take expert advice, hold inquiries and amend proposals in detail before deciding. |
Turnout figures from the Electoral Commission and the House of Commons Library.
- Direct democracy generates strong legitimacy for a single decision, but the 42.0% turnout at the 2011 Alternative Vote referendum shows that a referendum does not automatically produce higher participation than a general election.
- Representative democracy protects minorities and allows for detailed, expert scrutiny of legislation in a way a binary referendum question cannot, but the falling turnout at general elections, 59.7% in 2024, raises questions about how strong its own claim to legitimacy still is.
- The most persuasive referendums, judged by turnout, have been on existential constitutional questions (Scottish independence, EU membership) rather than on technical process questions (the Alternative Vote), suggesting direct democracy works best when an issue genuinely divides public opinion and feels significant to voters.
On balance, the evidence suggests the UK operates a predominantly representative democracy that borrows selectively from direct democracy at moments of high constitutional significance.
The 84.6% turnout in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, nearly 25 percentage points above the 2024 general election turnout of 59.7%, shows that direct democracy can generate a level of legitimacy and engagement that representative democracy currently struggles to match, but only when the question is one voters see as genuinely decisive for their future, which is precisely why referendums remain the exception rather than the rule in the UK.
| Check your understanding 1. Give two similarities between direct democracy and representative democracy, using the “Similarities” paragraph above to help you. 2. Choose one row from the comparison table (for example “Practicality in a large modern state”) and explain, in your own words, what it tells you about a strength of representative democracy. 3. Using the figures in the table, describe how turnout in referendums compares with turnout in general elections. Use at least one figure from the table to support your answer. |
The case for reform
Even though the UK operates a stable hybrid of direct and representative democracy, critics argue that the current balance leaves a democratic deficit, meaning many voters feel they have too little real influence over decisions taken in their name between elections. Concerns often cited include falling general election turnout, only 59.7% in 2024, the lowest since 2001, and the narrow, infrequent way referendums are used. These concerns have produced a range of reform proposals, some aiming to extend direct democracy further, others aiming to strengthen representative democracy itself.
| Key term Democratic deficit: a perceived shortfall in the legitimacy or accountability of a political system, often used to describe concerns that citizens have too little real influence over decisions between elections. |
| Reform proposal | What it would involve | Example or evidence |
| Citizen-initiated or binding referendums | Allowing referendums to be triggered directly by a large public petition, and/or making results legally binding rather than advisory, closer to the Swiss model of direct democracy. | An e-petition campaign (petition 738118 on the UK Parliament petitions site) has called for citizens to be able to call binding referendums directly, rather than relying on Parliament to decide when a referendum happens. |
| Reforming how referendums are run | Stricter, clearer rules on referendum campaign spending and online campaigning, so that referendum campaigns are run more fairly. | The Independent Commission on Referendums (UCL Constitution Unit, 2018) made almost 70 recommendations for reform after reviewing the 2016 EU referendum, arguing that referendums should be more clearly embedded within representative democracy rather than treated as a rival to it. |
| Citizens’ assemblies (deliberative democracy) | A group of randomly selected citizens, reflecting the make-up of the wider population, meets over several weeks to be briefed by experts and reach recommendations on a single issue. | Climate Assembly UK (2020) brought together 108 randomly selected citizens, commissioned by six House of Commons select committees, to recommend how the UK should reach net zero. |
| Widening and modernising the representative franchise | Lowering the voting age and modernising voter registration, so more citizens have a say in choosing their representatives. | The Representation of the People Bill, introduced in February 2026, proposes extending the vote to around 1.7 million 16- and 17-year-olds and introducing automatic voter registration. |
Sources: UK Parliament Petitions website; UCL Constitution Unit; UK Parliament; House of Commons Library.
| Check your understanding 1. Name two reform proposals from the table above that would give citizens more direct control over decisions, and one that instead reforms representative democracy. 2. Explain, in your own words, what is meant by a citizens’ assembly. Use Climate Assembly UK as your example. 3. Explain, in your own words, why the Independent Commission on Referendums recommended that referendums be more closely embedded within representative democracy, rather than treated as a completely separate system. |
Returning to Burke
Burke’s claim in 1774, that a representative owes constituents judgement rather than obedience, remains broadly true of the UK constitution in 2026.
Parliament alone decides whether and when to hold a referendum, and no petition, however large, can change the law without MPs voting for it.
What has changed since Burke’s time is the density of mechanisms, from the Recall of MPs Act 2015 to the 100,000-signature threshold for a Commons debate, that keep an MP’s judgement under closer and more continuous public scrutiny than the five-yearly election Burke himself faced.
Reform proposals such as citizen-initiated referendums and citizens’ assemblies would push the UK further still towards the delegate model, but, as the Independent Commission on Referendums itself concluded, most current proposals still work by embedding direct democracy more closely within representative democracy, rather than replacing it.
The result is not a shift from representative to direct democracy, but a representative democracy that has, gradually and unevenly since 1975, opened narrow but real channels for the direct democracy Burke’s Bristol electors did not have.
How the USA’s system of state-level ballot initiatives and referenda compares with the UK’s more restricted, Parliament-controlled approach is developed further in the Component 3A comparative materials on histpology.co.uk.
| Check your understanding 1. In your own words, summarise Burke’s argument about how a representative should behave. Use the quote at the very start of this section to help you. 2. Identify one feature covered in this section that moves the UK towards the delegate model, and one feature that keeps the UK a predominantly representative democracy. 3. Write a short paragraph (around 4–5 sentences) summarising, in your own words, the difference between direct democracy and representative democracy in the UK. Use at least two examples from this section. |
Sources
Recall of MPs Act 2015
Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022
Referendums (Scotland and Wales) Act 1997
Electoral Commission, Results and turnout at the EU referendum
House of Commons Library, research briefings on the 1975, 1997, 2011, 2014 and 2016 referendums
House of Commons Library, General election 2024: turnout
UK Parliament Petitions Committee, decisions on e-petitions, 2026
Electoral Commission, Report on the 2023 recall petition in Rutherglen and Hamilton West
BBC News, reporting on the Margaret Ferrier and Peter Bone recall petitions, 2023–24
UCL Constitution Unit, Report of the Independent Commission on Referendums, 2018
UK Parliament, Climate Assembly UK: final report, September 2020
House of Commons Library, Representation of the People Bill: progress of the bill
UK Parliament Petitions website, petition 738118