NationStates Jolt Archive


Community Reps?

Multiland
08-03-2007, 17:22
In my university, there are Student Representatives (Student Reps) who speak to the tutors on behalf of the students on a particular course. The Student Reps seem to be listened to and problems dealt with.

At present, if you want something changed politically, youhave to go find your MP (or phone them) who will then decide, from a massive list of issues (ranging from really important ones such as sentences for serious crimes, to petty ones such as "my neighbour's fence encroaches on my garden by half a centimetre), which issues to put before national government. So would Community Reps make things better?

Community Reps would be elected people (they could be nominated by any ordinary persons - say minimum of 3 - before the candidates are voted for) who would listen to your issues, decide which ones are not worth bothering with, and take serious issues to your MP. They would be unpaid people who want to change their community, and would be for a particular area of a city - eg. for Salford, there would be Broughton Community Reps, Pendleton Community Reps, Irlam Community Reps, etc.

so instead of: person annoyed at something > contacts MP > MP sifts through loads of things > MP takes a few to national government

it would be: person annoyed at something > contacts Community Rep > Community Rep decides whether to bother writing it down > Community Rep takes a few issues to MP > MP doesn't have to sift, takes all issues to national government

Perhaps the Community Reps could also meet up before going to the MP to make sure there are no duplicate requests

What do you all think?
New Burmesia
08-03-2007, 17:32
We already have MPs who have, compared to other countries, an extremely small MP/population ratio, so I don't think that another layer between MPs and the people is necessary. Indeed, MPs are the ones who decide and act on policy policy in Parliament, and so should be the ones to decide, and be held accountable for, which issues are taken on to the national level. In any case, local issues and private members' bills almost never make it through Parliament anyway.

It could also lead to Community Reps ignoring issues for political reasons, and MPs ignoring issues and palming it off on the reps.