In today's guest blog, Professor Peter Edge takes a quick look at the history of second chambers around the world...
The House of Lords (Credit: UK Parliament)
Bicameralism is where a legislature is divided into two separate chambers, rather than having all legislators sitting, and voting, together in a single chamber. It is to be found in legislatures across the world. Probably the examples most people will be familiar with are the House of Lords in the United Kingdom and the Senate in the United States.
Bicameralism is very much more common in larger democracies than in small democracies; and uncommon in small, non-sovereign, democracies like the Isle of Man.
Bicameralism is very much more common in larger democracies than in small democracies; and uncommon in small, non-sovereign, democracies like the Isle of Man. A little over 40% of sovereign states have a bicameral legislature, as opposed to under 20% for dependent territories. We find bicameralism only in the Isle of Man, Bermuda, and three territories within the United States’ empire – Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Northern Marina Islands. Why?
Many other small legislatures operate with only a single chamber. Pictured: The National Council of Monaco. (Credit: Ricky, Flickr)
To think this through, we need to take a step back and think about why a democracy might choose bicameralism. Meg Russell, in her exceptional study of the House of Lords, suggests two functions of bicameralism. The representation function brings members into the legislature on a basis different from the lower chamber – for instance, the representation of individual States in the US Senate. The
redundancy function ensures legislation is looked at twice, with delays allowing issues to be reflected on and discussed more broadly in the nation – for instance, the discussion of the Rwanda Bill.
Taking these as the reasons for bicameralism, a small democracy may decide that the benefits do not justify the costs of a second chamber. It may be that these benefits are not seen as benefits at all – the redundancy function, for instance, can be recast as a hindrance to effective governance. Where they are, we can identify mechanisms unicameral legislatures use to get some of these benefits without having a second chamber.
Drawing on theoretical and comparative insights gives us a foundation for constitutional questioning. When we meet, I will sketch out the fundamental questions facing a democracy in designing a legislature: Parliamentary or Presidential? Unicameral or bicameral? If bicameral, what is the relationship between the two chambers, and how is the second chamber composed?
You can hear more about the role of second chambers in Professor Edge's upcoming lecture on 24 May 2024 in Douglas City Hall. The event will also feature a panel discussion. The event is free but will be ticketed. Tickets can be reserved through Fienta at this link.
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