UK Pressure Groups play a vital role within a democracy
Pressure groups are organisations of people who all believe in the same cause. Whether it is a sectional group, campaigning for personal gain, or a cause group, working towards a specific cause, they all possess strongly held views and wish to influence some aspect of society. Pressure groups try to gain public support and sympathy for their cause in the hope that they will influence people's decisions or lives, depending on the issue they are focusing on, usually this is done via the media and especially nowadays, the internet. Other than this, the most common methods they tend to use involve carrying out petitions, distributing leaflets or information, and creating newspaper articles or adverts. Some Pressure groups employ professional lobbyists to speak to MP's on the groups behalf. Often pressure groups employ the heavy responsibility of speaking out for and representing the less privileged in society, they listen to people's problems and try to persuade the Government to solve these issues on their behalf.
For some, pressure groups are a fundamental part of democracy. To others, pressure groups undermine the whole principle of democracy. Democracy is a system of government where decisions are arrived at by majoritarian principles with representatives elected at periodic elections where political equality and political freedom allow the voter an effective choice between competing candidates in a secret ballot.
In the pluralist model of democracy, pressure groups play an essential role. Political parties cannot provide adequate representation for the full range of diverse interests and opinions in a modern democracy because their key function is to aggregate interests into a coherent political entity capable of governing the country. Pressure groups enable particular interests and causes to be heard and to exert influence in public decision and decision-making. Yet it is precisely the representation of specialist interests and of single issues which may give
For some, pressure groups are a fundamental part of democracy. To others, pressure groups undermine the whole principle of democracy. Democracy is a system of government where decisions are arrived at by majoritarian principles with representatives elected at periodic elections where political equality and political freedom allow the voter an effective choice between competing candidates in a secret ballot.
In the pluralist model of democracy, pressure groups play an essential role. Political parties cannot provide adequate representation for the full range of diverse interests and opinions in a modern democracy because their key function is to aggregate interests into a coherent political entity capable of governing the country. Pressure groups enable particular interests and causes to be heard and to exert influence in public decision and decision-making. Yet it is precisely the representation of specialist interests and of single issues which may give