Hi everyone,

This week's Politics Explained Newsletter includes examples on Sue Gray, Employment Rights, Devolution and Elon Musk! Also take our free quiz to test your knowledge of A Level Politics and help year 13s revise what they learned last year!

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Politics Explained Weekly Quiz

In this week's quiz, test you knowledge with 5 questions on each of Electoral Systems, Pressure Groups and the UK Supreme Court!

UK Politics Examples

The Labour Party

Labour’s Proposed Employment Rights Bill:

• The Labour Government announced a few details yesterday about the Employment Rights Bill they will almost certainly pass through Parliament in the next few months. Though some of the details still need to be fleshed out, the bill is set to make sweeping changes to employment rights in the UK and improve pay for those on the minimum wage. 

  • This clearly shows that the Labour Party seeks to promote the interests of workers in the UK and that some Old Labour principles remain in the party despite the shift to the centre under Starmer.

• The proposed reforms include:

  • Ending exploitative zero-hour contracts.

  • Increasing the minimum wage to account for the increased Cost of Living.

  • Strengthening statutory sick pay and making it available even if you’ve just started a job or are on low hours.

  • Making bereavement and parental leave a right from day one of starting a new job

  • Making flexible/hybrid working the default where possible.

The Media (and US Government and Politics)

Elon Musk’s Political Support For Trump and Media Bias:

• When talking about media bias, we often refer to newspapers which take a particular editorial stance and seek to influence their readers. By contrast, social media was often presented as a more democratised platform that allowed for varied perspectives and for anyone to have a say.

  • Though this arguably remains true for much of social media, Elon Musk’s control of Twitter (now X) and his recent strong political support for Donald Trump questions this narrative and potentially poses problems for democracy.

• Musk used to be a Democrat but has recently undergone a major political transformation, shifting significantly to the right. He has come out in support of Trump in the 2024 election, speaking with him on stage and even paying people to get others to register to vote.

  • This clearly supports his financial interests as the owner of Tesla, with Trump promising huge tariffs on Chinese electric cars, however it does also seem like he’s genuinely become very right wing.

  • He has strongly criticised Keir Starmer for what he called ‘two-tier policing’ where white protesters during the riots were treated more harshly than minorities; a popular far right conspiracy theory.

• Crucially, this calls into question whether social media threatens democracy, with such a powerful person having almost total control over twitter and potentially over its algorithm too, he could use it to benefit Donald Trump and seek to influence users by changing the political information they read.

  • You can use this as an example in essays on the media in A Level Politics.

UK Government Examples

Devolution

Examples Of Cooperation Between The UK Government And Devolved Bodies:

• In October 2024, Prime Minister Keir Starmer chaired the first meeting of the new Council Of The Nations And Regions. The council was created to tackle the challenges of power sharing, and consists of the leaders of all the devolved governments as well as the metro-mayors.

  • This is notable as under previous administrations, power sharing has caused tensions and fractious relations. In 2023 Rishi Sunak used a Section 35 Order to block the SNP Governments Gender Recognition Bill, and the previous Government also used the Internal Market Act to block a Scottish Bottle Deposit scheme.

• As part of his “Devolution Revolution” Starmer has promised a reset of relations. Within the meeting leaders discussed £24 billion of private investments in renewable energy UK wide, and the First Minister of Northern Ireland pushed the PM for a fairer funding model.

  • This highlights how the Council can be used to coordinate between devolved governments - reducing confusion over where responsibility lies and allowing open communication (something which broke down under Johnson). This shows how Devolution doesn't necessarily threaten the unity of the UK and cause separatism.

Prime Minister and the Cabinet

Sue Gray Resigns As Chief Of Staff And Is Replaced By Morgan McSweeney:

• After only 100 days in Government, Sue Gray stood down as Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Chief of Staff, to be replaced by Morgan McSweeney.

  • Special Advisors (SPADs) have become prominent features of recent premierships, including high profile chiefs of staff such as Dominic Cummings under Boris Johnson.

• Sue Gray was previously a senior civil servant and Keir Starmer was subject to significant scrutiny for hiring her.

• The appointment of McSweeney is said to “shake up” the Government and change its direction. This highlights the extensive influence unelected advisors have, despite having no electoral mandate or any accountability.

  • McSweeney has a long working relationship with Starmer and will enjoy unparalleled access to the Prime Minister, and may hold more power than cabinet ministers over the policy programme of Government.

US Government and Politics Examples

The Presidency - Executive Orders

The Biden-Harris Executive Order on Combating Emerging Firearms Threats and Improving School-Based Active Shooter Drills:

• On the 26th of September 2024, the Biden-Harris administration signed a new executive order aimed at tackling gun violence. The Order establishes a task force to “crack down on emerging firearm threats” - especially machine gun conversion devices and the threat of 3D printed guns.

• The order also directs federal agencies to develop guidance for schools to minimise psychological harm during active-shooter drills. 

  • Increasing gun control is one of Biden’s main agendas, and the administration has announced more executive actions to reduce gun violence than any other administration.

• Executive Orders are a key informal power of the Presidency - they are instructions given to federal agencies to take certain actions. They have the effect of law, however do not require any Congressional approval and are not explicitly mentioned in the constitution.

  • This demonstrates how Biden has been able to utilise the power of the presidency to bypass Congress and act on gun violence. This is especially notable due to the scarcity of gun control legislation, with the failure of bills including the Manchin-Toomey Bill.