As we have outlined, some people are more likely than others to take part in democratic activities such as voting, signing an e-petition, or trying to influence political decision-making. Those less likely to participate include women, people from lower socio-economic groups, young people and the less educated.
The Commission sees the potential of digital technology to increase public participation with Parliament and the democratic process. However, it is important to ensure that it does not simply make it easier for those who are already engaged to have more of a say. Professor Charles Pattie outlined the risk:
“Those already politically engaged are quick to adopt web technologies as yet further ways of engaging. By and large, those who are politically marginalised just do not. Far from being a potential ‘weapon of the weak’ or even just a leveller of the participatory playing field, it seems, web technologies in practice are far more likely to entrench existing inequalities in political access.”
If Parliament is to avoid simply giving a louder voice to the politically engaged and tech-savvy, it must complement its digital engagement opportunities with strategies to reach out to groups who are less likely to engage. This will involve looking at the barriers to involvement and helping people to overcome them. We have already set out how it might go some way towards doing this by helping to improve people’s understanding of Parliament and its activities. Some people also suggested that Parliament should present information in a more dynamic way, rather than sounding “as dull as ditchwater” if it wanted to engage with new audiences.
The Commission understands that most people will not want to participate in parliamentary activities on a frequent basis, but we are convinced that people will be interested in getting involved when Parliament is considering issues that they care about if they think their involvement can make a difference. As one of the people we spoke to put it:
“A citizen’s relationship with Parliament might not be one they have all the time, but one they dip in and out of depending on what issues are being discussed and are affecting them.”
The DDC also notes the importance of face-to-face interaction. Digital has the potential to widen participation on a large scale, but people are more likely to get involved when they are asked to do so in person. One group suggested that democracy cafés—public spaces where people could go to talk about politics in a safe space and get help with going online—might be one way of encouraging people to get involved.
12. As part of its new, professional communications strategy the House of Commons should, in 2015-16, pilot and test new online activities, working with national and local partners, to target and engage specific groups who are not currently engaged in democratic processes. These target groups could include, for example: 18-25 year olds not at university, people with learning difficulties, homeless people and people living in communities with very low voter turnout.
The Commission is particularly interested in the role of young people in our democracy. We are aware that 18 to 24-year-olds are less likely to vote than other age groups. We also share the concerns of the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee that “there will be severe and long-lasting effects for turnout at UK elections, with consequent implications for the health of democracy in the UK” if a generation of young people continue not to vote as they get older. Some of the young people we spoke to also share this concern. One group felt there was a vicious circle:
“Young people are not listened to because they are not voting in sufficient numbers, therefore their concerns are not perceived as important election winning manifesto items; politicians represent those from whom they are likely to garner votes.”
There is a perception that young people are apathetic about politics, but that has not been our experience from our interactions with young people. Many of the young people we spoke to were interested in political issues, and some were also involved with local community groups and initiatives. The evidence we have seen suggests that young people are interested in issues that affect their lives, but they feel that party politics and Parliament are not relevant to them. Kenny Imafidon, who has written about youth engagement with politics and Parliament, told us:
“Young people are not apathetic to politics they are just apathetic to party politics. Whenever young people are given the genuine opportunity to engage or influence decision-makers they always take it."
Brian Loader of York University told us that young people are “absolutely disillusioned and fed up with traditional mainstream politics”, and we saw some evidence of this. One group we spoke to at a British Youth Council convention in Birmingham said that they were interested in engaging in political activities but felt that MPs and Parliament were inaccessible and were not interested in hearing from them. Another group said they associated politicians with ‘Punch and Judy’ politics, and that the white, middle-class politicians they saw on television were not representative of the society they lived in.
Perhaps the biggest barrier to engaging with Parliament and politics that young people experience is a lack of knowledge about political and parliamentary processes. That is why we are recommending that political education should be improved. The way that information about Parliament is presented is also important. Kenny Imafidon told us that “the political system is presented in such a complex and boring way that it becomes a waste of time and energy to try and get to grips with”, and that, “engaging with Parliament and politicians feels impossible to most young people." We have already outlined how the use of video and bite-sized content could help to make information about Parliament and political issues more accessible. It was also suggested that ambassadors such as youth organisations, respected celebrities, vloggers and young leaders could help to connect young people with Parliament and political activity.
Social media and other digital channels were seen as a good way of connecting with young people because many of them spend a lot of time on these platforms. Brian Loader outlined four key issues for politicians to consider when using social media to connect with young people:
- “Top-down one-way communication channels between Parliament and citizens need to be re-assessed…Young people use social media to connect to each other and not to governments…or other traditional institutions. Communication channels therefore need to be co-constructed together with citizens if they are to be effective.
- Young citizens can no longer be regarded as dutiful citizens…They are far less likely to be deferential and far more likely to be critical citizens whose respect and trust needs to be earned.
- Neither should young people be regarded as a homogenous group. Their experiences as citizens are shaped by a range of factors including social class, gender, race, sexuality, geography and the like.
- Increased use of social media for surveillance means that young citizens are increasingly sceptical about new media and the state.”
Whichever channels are used, it is important that when Parliament and MPs engage with young people, they reinforce a positive message that Parliament is relevant to their lives and that their opinions are valued. One way of doing this would be by helping young people to see that they can have an impact on what Parliament does and on political decision-making.
E-petitions can be a quick and easy way of participating in a democratic process that may have a political impact. We think that Parliament should collaborate with schools, colleges and youth organisations to increase awareness of this avenue of campaigning and connecting with Parliament and politics. Later in this chapter, we look at e-petitions in more detail and discuss forthcoming changes to the system that might increase their impact.
We also see potential to strengthen links between Parliament’s day-to-day activities and some of its engagement work through competitions such as Lights, Camera, Parliament!
More debates of this kind, linking issues that young people are interested in to Parliament’s work, would help young people to see how Parliament is relevant to them.
13. The House of Commons should take further steps to improve active involvement by young people. This might include:
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 See section 2 for more on political education.
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