Democracy SOS

For democracy to function, it must enable citizens to participate meaningfully in shaping their own governance. But for too long, there has been inadequate support or safeguards to connect the public to the making of public policies. People have been hindered by the lack of reliable information, and marginalised by those with far greater financial resources. The electoral system is too easily subverted by those who make lying and incitement their core strategy.

To save democracy from manipulative authoritarians, urgent action needs to be taken. Experts have put forward a range of proposals on what should be done. These are brought together in Democracy SOS, which is being presented to politicians and democratic advocates in the UK as a comprehensive guide to the key reforms. A summary of the 8-point action plan for government bodies to implement is set out below.

[1] Democracy & Learning 

Ignorance is not bliss. People need to know how democracy is meant to work if democracy is going to work. Better support should be given to: citizenship education in schools; university involvement in raising public understanding of political and public policy issues; adult education in democracy and active citizenship; training for politicians and public officials in democratic engagement; and courses on democratic skills run by voluntary and community groups.

[2] Democracy & Information

Disinformation subverts public understanding. People surrounded by lies and distortions cannot appraise policy options reliably. Effective safeguards should be put in place to: restrain the spread of false and unfounded information via online platforms, print and broadcast media; protect public service broadcasters; secure full transparency for the funding of those issuing research findings; and support independent fact-checking and accreditation of reporters.

[3] Democracy & Voting

Every vote ought to count. But in practice many people are held back from or put off voting by obstacles in the system. Action should be taken to: adopt automatic voter registration; replace first-past-the-post by a form of proportional representational system; remove voter photo ID requirements; address issues with boundary reviews; and strengthen the independence and powers of the Electoral Commission.

[4] Democracy & Deliberative Engagement

Division can only be bridged by dialogue. People identify common interests when they are able to share their ideas and concerns together. Investment should be provided to: expand community development capacity in public service; strengthen local government’s role in bringing communities together; support community organising; and increase the use of deliberative engagement techniques.

[5] Democracy & Subsidiarity

Remote decision-makers alienate communities. People want power to be exercised as close and responsive to them as possible. Commitments should be made to: devolve more real powers to all sub-national levels; raise awareness of what those with devolved powers do; strengthen local and neighbourhood democracy; support the voluntary and community sector’s democratic role; and improve public understanding of transnational governance.

[6] Democracy & Economic Inequalities

Disparity in wealth undercuts civic equality. People’s democratic influence diminishes when faced with the power of rich individuals and corporations. Reforms should be introduced to: curtail money’s impact on political decisions; prioritise the needs of deprived areas; tackle tax evasion and loopholes; require those with the most to pay more for the public good; limit the wealthy buying up media control; and establish a universal basic income.

[7] Democracy & Accountability

Those with authority must be answerable to the public. People cannot have confidence in those holding public office who can seemingly act with impunity. Changes should be brought in to: penalise deceptive communications; widen the application of recall procedures; provide a democratic basis for the second chamber; strengthen the independence and powers of the Information Commissioner’s Office; and enhance the accountability for public procurement.

[8] Democracy & Civil Rights

No one can be allowed to override our basic rights. People should respect majority decisions, but only if no one can be arbitrarily harmed or silenced. Protection should be enhanced by: removing any law that may stop people criticising state policies peacefully; curtailing attempts to incite hate and anger against minorities; securing commitment to the rule of law; guaranteeing basic human rights for all; and funding independent non-profit providers of legal advice.

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The above extract is taken from Democracy SOS, published by Citizen Network in association with Unlock Democracy and Compass – © Henry Tam 2025.

For the full text, go to Citizen Network: https://citizen-network.org/library/democracy-sos.html (Democracy SOS brings together proposals relating to the political situation in the UK. Its eight core principles, however, can be applied to democratic development in other countries).

Perceived-Identity Prejudice

There are heated debates about whether or not what some people regard as ‘racism’ is really racism. But why don’t we focus more on what we want to prevent.

Whenever people come across someone with a ‘foreign sounding’ name, certain skin-tone, a non-native accent, an attachment to different customs – and they project an identity with negative features onto that person, we have a objectionable case of perceived-identity prejudice.

A difficulty with the term ‘racism’ is that it carries the connotation that it is essentially about a ‘race’-related problem. But there are no distinct races – no genetic factors that can differentiate any of the so-called ‘racial groups’ from others. Differences such as blood types, physical strengths, intelligence levels are found within each ‘group’ but not across them. The prejudicial distrust, dislike, or hatred even, that is at the heart of racism (as commonly understood) is not in fact connected with any biologically meaningful notion of ‘race’, but with perceived identities which may or may not include skin tones or facial structures.

Some individuals think that the prejudice against certain type of people is worse/more contemptible than prejudice against other types of people. For example, some have suggested that because of things such as past segregation in the US and recurring incidents of abusive treatment of Black people in the criminal justice system, prejudice against Black people is the most heinous form of racism. Others have pointed to the Holocaust and maintained that antisemitism is the most evil form of prejudice. The vile experiences endured by countless innocent Muslims following the 9/11 terrorist attack testify to the spread and intensity of Islamophobia. And many contemporary equality campaigners would point out that across Europe today Gypsies and Travellers suffer hateful discrimination to an extent not tolerated in relation to any other group of people. 

But should there even be a hierarchy of perceived identity prejudice (with one ranking as the worst of all time, and some dismissed as ‘not really racism’)? Prejudiced attitudes can manifest themselves in different ways, by different people, at different times. One manifestation at a historical moment may rightly be treated as unforgivably cruel. But that does not mean any other manifestation in connection with any group with a different perceived identity must be less serious. 

If we want to track and counter perceived identity prejudice in whatever form it manifests itself, and calibrate our response appropriately in relation to the actual threat, we need to focus on the likely perpetrators and the harm they are poised to inflict.

References to historical events are important reminders of how prejudices can arise and how destructive they can be. But while single events may be more dramatic to recount, the lessons are more powerfully conveyed when we look at issues over time – the treatment of Gypsies, Jews, Blacks, Native Americans, etc., over centuries. 

We also need a wide perspective so we don’t end up forming prejudiced views of the nature of prejudice. At its roots, perceived-identity prejudice is rarely a black or white issue. For example, there are many inter-tribal prejudices across Africa and Asia that fuelled distrust and conflicts; nasty discrimination can be found against people with perceived identities (associated with languages, religions, customs, but not with any ‘racial’ characteristics) in the East as much as the West; and the prejudice-infused atrocities committed by invading armies (the English against the people of Ireland in the 17^th century; Japanese soldiers against Chinese civilians in the 1930s/40s; Serbian forces against Bosnians in the 1990s; and many others). There isn’t one form of racist prejudice that should get the utmost attention for all time. There are many sources of unjustifiable distrust and hate, and we need to tackle them in whatever form they surface here and now.

National Insurance Plus: a policy for jobs

There are two narratives on jobs doing the rounds. One makes some long-term sense but has little appeal for here and now. The other gives false hope to many and risks damaging consequences down the line. In recent decades, people haunted by job insecurity and pay inadequacy have been increasingly desperate for answers, and many elections have been won by ‘populists’ who promise quick fixes which are mostly counter-productive. But will asking people to wait patiently for grand improvements to come help to win their electoral support?

Let us look at the ‘Invest in the Future’ narrative, which basically runs like this: the economy is changing fast as a result of technological, environmental, and geopolitical factors. Some jobs will disappear. Some will not pay so well anymore. But the government will lead the way in getting investment into high-potential sectors which will offer plenty of quality, sustainable, and well-paid jobs in areas such as renewable energy, computer technology, life sciences, healthcare, financial services, construction, creative industries, and advanced manufacturing (involving robotics). These sectors will grow and flourish, and with them, good jobs will follow. But when will all this happen? Who will be suitable to get these jobs? Could it be that one waits for years only to find that one is not qualified for any of them?

The other narrative brushes all this aside. Its core ‘Blame Scapegoats’ messages are: people will have many job opportunities to explore once the obstacles are removed – and what are these obstacles? Immigrants who should not be here to take your jobs; environmental (‘net zero’) legislation that ends so many jobs; ‘red tape’ and unnecessary standards that hold back job creation; ‘high’ levels of benefits that make it difficult for employers to offer jobs with attractive enough pay. In short, get rid of scapegoats and basic support for people to survive hard times, and the jobs will come (with barely subsistent pay, dreadful working conditions, harmful impact on society, or demanding requirements that employers have so far needed to look abroad to find people to meet).

If people are not to be put off by the ‘Invest in the Future’ narrative, or get taken in by the ‘Blame Scapegoats’ snake-oil pitch, something else is needed. And that could be National Insurance Plus, a scheme to give every worker and anyone who joins a recognised paid training programme a NI+membership that entitles them to a lifetime support in taking up and transitioning between jobs.  

NI+ works as an expanded version of national insurance scheme, with contributions from workers and employers, and support provided in return in the form of advice on job opportunities and skills development, arrangements to take on work of value to the community when there is no commercial job offer available, guidance and training for likely jobs that are suitable, and payment to cover living costs until another job has been secured.

NI+ does not have to wait for years for its impact to be felt. It can be set up straightaway. It does not divide people into those struggling with their jobs and those who get benefits for not working. It is about people insuring themselves against the vicissitudes of working life. Variations on the requirements for carrying out work of community value can be set in relation to how much/little paid work one has previously done. The training can be tailor-made in light of the sectors receiving the investment for future expansion. Above all, NI+ gives everyone a meaningful guarantee that they will, from this moment on, have a dependable working life.

The Malevolent Seven

What’s the latest big idea changing the world? What new theory should we be checking out? The fascination with something completely different is understandable. But sometimes, knowing the roots of the challenges we face is just as important.

Take the following seven sets of ideas that originated in the 19^th century, they captivated countless people right through to today, and we should not overlook their significance. 

[1] Free Market Individualism

[championed by Herbert Spencer (1820-1903) and William G. Sumner (1840-1910)]

The idea is that businesses left to buy and sell freely without government interference would compete thoroughly so that the ones with the most to offer would get ahead, and the badly run ones would fall by the wayside. Similarly, individuals would thrive or miss out according to their natural ability. 

In practice, there are always businesses that will, in the absence of proper regulation, exploit workers, deceive customers, and get away with selling harmful products or causing damaging side-effects. Meanwhile, individuals are left without enough to live on, and dwindling demands lead to economic crises.

[2] Nationalism

[championed by Heinrich von Treitschke (1834-1896) and Charles Maurras (1868-1952)]

The idea is that one’s country will demonstrate its military strength over others, and everyone can feel proud about belonging to a powerful nation that nobody dares to withhold a due show of deference.

In practice, jingoistic folly leads one’s country to costly military misadventures. Even in cases where one’s army succeeds in defeating others, it foments resentment and resistance, draining resources and wasting lives in deplorable campaigns.

[3] Anarchism

[championed by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809-65) and Mikhail Bakunin (1814-76)]

The idea is that without being restricted by government controls, people will work out by themselves what they should do, how they are to relate to each other, and everyone will share resources and help each other in the best possible way.

In practice, in the absence of any enforceable conflict-resolution mechanism, disagreement descends into chaos. No one wants to step forward lest they are accused of trying to dominate others, and the power vacuum persists until someone by force imposes their will on everyone else.

[4] Communism

[championed by Karl Marx (1818-83) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895)]

The idea is that a revolutionary vanguard will put an end to an inherently unworkable economic system, and set up a new society where the interests of workers will shape all policies and arrangements.

In practice, the vanguard will in the name of the revolution hold on to absolute power, devise economic arrangements which will benefit a minority, and persecute anyone who dares question the new regime.

[5] Amoralism

[championed by Nietzsche (1844-1900)]

The idea is that one should discard all conventional moral codes, ignore what others have to say about good and evil, and one would then be able to strive to become the best possible version of oneself.

In practice, anyone who rejects moral sensibilities will act solely on the basis of what they want for themselves. They dismiss concerns for the suffering of others, refuse to cooperate for any common good (which for them, cannot possibly exist), and respect only their own ego.

 

[6] Technocratic Scientism

[championed by Auguste Comte (1798-1857)]

The idea is that a group of scientific experts can be entrusted with governing society because they have the abilities to work out the solutions to any problem, and how to implement them.

In practice, science is a fallible enterprise, and without objective checks by others, and openness to revisions, a closed group can commit serious errors. Authoritarian regimes have had privileged groups of technocrats with decision-making powers in certain policy areas (eugenics, dam building, etc) with calamitous results.

[7] Religious Fundamentalism

[championed by Charles Hodge (1797-1878), A. C. Dixon (1854-1925) and R. A. Torrey (1856-1928)]

The idea is that a detailed and accurate reading of holy texts will lead one to grasp precisely what God wants people to do, and one can then be absolutely certain that acting on that understanding has God’s total backing.

In practice, people continue to have different interpretations of sacred books, but some who have come to believe that they alone know what God thinks begin to impose their ideas and practices on others regardless of the distress and suffering they cause them.

Public Administration v Business Management

Why are managers in the public and private sectors treated so differently? The former are talked about in terms of layers – all too many layers, they are a drain on precious resources, they are paid too much, they get in the way of the ‘real’ workers, and they are to be blamed for the many things that go wrong in the public sector. The latter are referred to as entrepreneurs, leaders of industry, who must be paid a lot if they are to be attracted to take on any job, they are worth every penny because they have to take tough decisions, and make money for their company.

But isn’t this all a mirage to give the impression that the private sector is somehow superior to the public sector? Think about it. 

At the most basic level, all organisations – private or public – need managers, otherwise there would be no overall planning, no coordination, no strategic adjustment in response to disparate feedback. Too many layers of command and control would – again in the private or public sector – be counter-productive, but lack of management support means that operational staff have to set aside time to do the planning and coordination, only less well because they can neither focus on organising everyone else nor concentrate on carrying out their own work.

As for pay, managers in the public sector are generally paid less well than their counterparts in the private sector. Some try to argue that this must be down to public sector managers not being ‘good enough’ to get private sector jobs, or they simply haven’t got the ‘go-getter’ mentality to work for businesses. This trite observation overlooks two factors. Firstly, pay structures in the public sector are on the whole bound by a greater degree of equity, and both the gaps in pay across the different ranks and comparable rates of pay increase are kept in check. In the private sector, the higher one goes in the management chain, the more one tends to be able to secure much higher pay and pay rises than people lower down. Secondly, and this might be difficult for people who can think of little beyond monetary self-interest to understand, there are many people who are motivated by the ethos of public service, and do not consider salary level the be-all-and-end-all in career planning.

Leaving aside the fact that private sector managers may play only a minor part in their company’s profit-making (which could be mostly down to the hard work of operational staff who get just a tiny share of it), or barely breaking even, it should be noted that their public sector counterparts have to deal with pressures that are of a whole different order.

Public administrators – responsible for policy development, strategic planning, service delivery – have to constantly balance competing demands and interests. There is no such thing as ‘this is not our business’ because everything in the public domain connects with each other, and the politicians in charge rightly want to address any issue that is impacted by the activity any public administrator is handling. Different people have different views and expectations; housing decisions affect community safety; environmental arrangements affect public health; and one has to strike a sensitive and effective balance if one is not to end up upsetting everyone.

In the private sector, good management can generate higher revenue and thus more resources to do one’s work. In the public sector, good management can improve services which lead to higher demands with no corresponding increase in funding, and one has to come up with constant innovations as well as the good old ‘efficiency’ cuts to keep things going.

Finally, there is the public accountability and intense scrutiny that places public administrators directly under the microscope of political oversight. There is no hiding behind commercial confidentiality, a manager working for a government body has to be prepared to answer questions – raised in any quarters – about any aspect of their work.

There are public-spirited managers in the private sector who have made a move to the public sector, but some have moved back to the business world not because of pay, but because managing in the public domain – for those who have never experienced it – is surprisingly challenging.

A Right Slippery Slope

The Republican Party in the US has become a vehicle for the cult of Trump. It does whatever Trump wants, even though all Trump wants is more money and power for himself. Some people, especially former Republican supporters, could not understand how this has happened. Around the world, alarm bells are ringing as more budding autocrats are looking to copy Trump’s playbook to gain power and start their own reign of egocracy. 

To make sense of all this – and how it could take place in other countries – we need to go back towards the end of the 19^th century when the Republican, William McKinley, won the presidency (1897-1901) with the support of millionaire businessman, Mark Hanna, on a broad economic platform. McKinley backed protective tariffs (because businesses at the time wanted them, not despite their opposition as it is the case with Trump), and put forward policies favourable to farmers, industrial workers, and immigrants to the cities. 

When Theodore Roosevelt succeeded McKinley as the next Republican President (1901-1909), he continued to focus on the economic interests of the country, which led him to tackle monopolistic and other harmful business practices which dampen competition and deprive the public of reliable goods and services. He promoted a form of responsible capitalism – to enable businesses to thrive but also ensure they do not hurt the interests of workers and consumers, and that taxes contribute to building national resources and amenities for everyone.

Theodore Roosevelt’s progressive approach came to be rejected by the Republican Party when big business interests increasingly dominated its policy thinking. From 1921 to 1933, three successive Republican presidents – Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and Herbert Hoover – steered the party firmly towards serving the wealthy corporate elite. Tax cuts for the rich, low wages and job insecurity for the poor, leading to lack of demand for goods produced, factory closures, banks endangered by debts, collapse of share prices, and the Great Depression.

The Democrats under Presidents F. D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman (1933-1953) responded to the mass unemployment and poverty afflicting the US with a three-prong strategy: the New Deal safety net for all Americans, sustained investment in vital infrastructure for the country, and regulatory safeguards to curtail irresponsible business behaviour.

Big business leaders unhappy with the Democrats’ approach poured funds into strategists and advocacy groups to come up with ways to turn the table. Their core concern was removing regulatory restraints so they could maximise their profits at the expense of consumers, workers, and the environment; having to pay less tax; and reducing public provisions so that people would be more dependent on private enterprise. The corporations most drawn to this project were those engaged in business activities that required the closest public scrutiny – guns and other weapons, fossil fuels and other pollutants, pharmaceuticals and private health insurance, gambling and other harmful addictive offers, speculative financial deals, etc. But the Republican Party could hardly present itself as the party to help the wealthy few get even richer. What can it do?

In the 1960s and 1970s, a series of events gave Republican leaders a chance to reposition the party. The liberation culture favouring gender equality and more relaxed attitudes towards sex-related matters provoked a clamouring for ‘traditional’ values. The determination by Democratic President Lyndon Johnson to advance civil rights for all led to a backlash which handed the hitherto solidly Democrat-dominated South to the Republicans. The protest against and eventual American withdrawal from the Vietnam War stirred up fervent anti-Communist feelings that backed heavy defence spending and military intervention. The oil crises of the 1970s caused economic problems which provided the excuse for bringing in the ‘free market’ alternative.

With the help of William F. Buckley, goaded by Pat Buchanan, and steered by Milton Friedman and others, the Republican Party under Presidents Ronald Regan and the two Bushes moved ever closer to invoking God to ‘uphold the values’ of a ‘traditional, Christian, essentially white America’, while favouring the rich and leaving the poor ever more vulnerable. But while they still felt that they must be careful in not going too far in turning everyday prejudice into fanaticism, for Donald Trump nothing would be too far so long as it would provide cover for him to secure gifts, favours, and money for him and his closest allies. And the Republican Party today is with him all the way. Basic rights are trampled on, discrimination endorsed, judicial rulings are ignored, convicted criminals who stormed the Capitol are pardoned, and innocent people are arrested and deported without trial. 

Anyone who thinks it’s OK to follow the Republicans’ lead, should be under no illusion what is at the end of that slippery slope.

The ‘Sleight of Vote’

One of the most deviously potent lines in politics is “That’s what the people voted for” – which seems to silence even seasoned interviewers, as though nothing more can be said if the ‘people’s vote’ card has been played.

But let’s rewind and watch carefully how we have gone from the casting of votes to what is actually being done thereafter. There are three types of trick which might be at work here.

[1] The Blank Cheque trick:

‘Populist’ dictators would claim that a single electoral victory is enough to instigate arbitrary rule. But in a real democracy, election results only ever confer strictly limited powers to carry out legitimate policy commitments. There is no blank cheque. For example, those who have obtained public office cannot go on to imprison people on the basis of their ethnicity, collaborate with tax evaders to leave citizens to die from hunger and disease, torture people for the way they pray, cancel all future elections, or close all schools and media except for those that will praise the new leader. Only fascists pretend that winning an election means they can do whatever they want thereafter. Democracy only works if people are assured that whoever wins power through the vote, their own basic wellbeing would not be capriciously violated.

[2] The Deceived Offer trick:

Another trick is to entice voters with one set of promise, knowing that victory will enable them to do something quite different. Famously, Brexit advocates insisted in many public forums that leaving the EU would NOT mean leaving the Single Market, that millions saved would be handed to the NHS, and the economy would thrive from the overall increase in trade. When the Brexit vote was won, these same advocates claimed that voters had given them the mandate to pull the UK out of the Single Market, resulting in the country losing out in trade and revenue, with nothing diverted to help the NHS which many of the most vocal Brexiters actually plotted to end through privatisation. To try to push through what was not actually promised is not having a democratic mandate at all.

[3] The Manipulated Vote trick

Last but not least, the voting process itself might not be valid if it has been undermined by partisan manipulation. Consider the following tactics: make it more difficult for those likely to vote against one to register to vote, or target them with contrived barriers (like ID cards, or distorted checking arrangements) to stop them voting on the day; redraw boundaries so unfavourable votes are pulled away to minimise their impact; send out false information about when or what vote is taking place; tamper with electronic voting machines; ensure one’s plutocratic backers can spend immeasurably more than one’s opponents to distract voters from the issues being voted on. Outcomes of manipulated votes are not representative of what citizens – informed and unhindered – would have supported, and therefore lack real legitimacy.

By a ‘sleight of vote’, contemporary authoritarians seek to emulate their forerunners in the 1930s and win by all dubious means enough votes to claim electoral victory. Thereafter, their plan is to brush aside the rule of law, rescind any promise of moderation they might have previously made, and plough ahead with their ruthless seizure of wealth and power. It is a plan that must be exposed and halted.