Parliament and democracy in the 21st century: Parliament as the pinnacle of accountability.

• Author: Williams, John (American clergyman)
• Position: Guest Editorial

We have all heard Abraham Lincoln's definition of democratic government "government of the people, by the people, for the people": but on what basis can people be governed by themselves for the benefit of their own society?

Over the last 800 years, starting with the Magna Carta signed in Runnymede in 1215, societies have been learning how to govern themselves in a democratic way. The Magna Carta was forced on King John by a revolt of the aristocracy of England who had enough of being taxed by the autocratic King without any say about how much they had to pay and what the money was to be used for. The Magna Carta in essence stated, "if you want to tax us, you must ask for permission first". By forcing the King to sign the Magna Carta, the aristocracy was able to demonstrate that the King's powers were limited and could only be used with the consent of others.

A hundred or so years later, the common people in England started to exercise their will by saying to the King "if you want us to go and fight battles for your benefit, then you will ask us first". So began the evolution of the institution, which came to be known as the House of Commons. These democratic stirrings created the institution of accountability for the monarch, which has come to be known as Parliament.

As the institution grew and evolved, its capacity to hold the monarch accountable became its fundamental responsibility. Over time, parliamentary approval became necessary in order to enact legislation, while Parliament already had control over taxation and gained control over spending (estimates). In addition to these three responsibilities, Parliament became increasingly involved in demanding that the monarch report to Parliament, and that the monarch listened to what Parliament had to say. That evolution, which required the monarch to obtain Parliamentary approval for its actions, and required that the monarch reported and listened to Parliament, formed what we have come to know as a democratic government. A democratic government is one that is held accountable for its actions by Parliament and is in turn held accountable by the people.

The simple theory of accountability has become lost in the partisan debate. Yes, Parliament is about the debate of ideas; 'your' concepts versus 'my' concepts, 'your' vision for the country versus 'my' vision. But Parliament is much more than the debate of ideas, it is also about the exercise of authority mentioned above, approval of...