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WJEC AS-Level Government and Politics 603-1979-3
The British Constitution
Topic overviewThe nature of the constitution: uncodified, unitary and flexibleStatute law as a source of the constitutionCommon law and works of constitutional authorityConstitutional conventionsParliamentary sovereigntyThe rule of lawParliamentary government and constitutional monarchyConstitutional reform since 1997The debate on a codified constitutionThe UK, the European Union and BrexitThe UK, NATO and the United Nations
The Judiciary and the Supreme Court
Topic overviewThe constitutional role of the Supreme CourtThe Constitutional Reform Act 2005 and the creation of the CourtThe Supreme Court as the highest court of appealThe separation of powers in the UKJudicial independenceJudicial neutrality and the appointment of judgesJudicial review and the doctrine of ultra viresSupreme Court rulings on constitutional mattersA separate legal jurisdiction for Wales
The UK Executive
Topic overviewThe core executiveThe roles of the Prime MinisterThe powers and resources of the Prime MinisterThe royal prerogativeThe composition of the CabinetThe roles and functions of the CabinetCollective ministerial responsibilityIndividual ministerial responsibilityPrime ministerial government and its limitsThe civil service
Parliament and the Accountability of Government
Topic overviewThe composition of the House of CommonsThe House of Lords: composition and powersThe functions of ParliamentThe legislative processPrivate members' bills and delegated legislationSelect committeesQuestions, debates and confidence in the governmentBackbench MPs and peersThe role of the OppositionParliamentary privilegeParliamentary sovereignty in practiceExecutive dominance and where power lies
Government and the Senedd in Wales
Topic overviewThe First Minister of WalesThe Welsh Government and its CabinetCollective and individual ministerial responsibility in WalesThe powers and resources of the Welsh GovernmentThe origins and structure of the SeneddThe composition and election of the SeneddThe legislative competence of the SeneddThe legislative process in the SeneddPlenary and the business of the SeneddSenedd committeesMembers of the Senedd and the OppositionDebates over the effectiveness of the Senedd
Devolution and the United Kingdom
Topic overviewThe nature and forms of devolutionThe origins of devolution in the UKThe Scottish Parliament and Scottish GovernmentThe Northern Ireland Assembly and ExecutiveDevolution in EnglandAsymmetry in the devolution settlementThe West Lothian question and English votes for English lawsFunding devolution and the Barnett formulaDevolution, sovereignty and the unionDebates over the future of the union
Citizenship and Rights
Topic overviewThe meaning of citizenshipGlobal citizenshipFreedom, equality and active citizenshipThe rule of law and protection under the lawThe rights of minoritiesPositive discrimination and positive actionThe sources of rights in the UKEquality legislation on race and genderFreedom of expression, association and religionPrivacy, liberty and the right to a fair trialConflicts between rightsDebates over a British Bill of Rights
The Protection of Human Rights
Topic overviewThe courts and the protection of rightsJudicial review: grounds and remediesJudicial review in practiceThe Universal Declaration of Human RightsThe European Convention on Human RightsThe European Court of Human RightsThe Human Rights Act 1998The Human Rights Act in the courtsEnforcing equality lawOmbudsmen and commissionersPressure and campaigning for rightsDebates over the protection of rights in the UK
Democracy and Participation
Electoral Systems in the UK
Topic overviewThe functions of elections and the language of electoral systemsFirst Past the Post: how it worksFirst Past the Post: advantages and criticismsThe Additional Member System and Senedd electionsThe Single Transferable VoteParty list systemsThe supplementary vote and the alternative voteProportionality, fairness and effects on party systemsCoalition and minority governmentKey elections in WalesReferendums in Wales and the UK
Voting Behaviour in the UK
Topic overviewThe sociological model and social classParty identification and partisan dealignmentThe rational choice modelThe valence model and governing competenceAge, gender, ethnicity and educationRegion, nation and voting in WalesElection campaigns and party leadersThe media and voting behaviourTurnout, tactical voting and volatility
Political Parties in Wales and the UK
Topic overviewThe functions of political partiesThe Labour Party: origins and ideologyThe Conservative Party: origins and ideologyThe Liberal Democrats and the centre groundPlaid Cymru and the Welsh party systemSmaller and minor partiesParty organisation and the role of membersLeadership selection in the main partiesCandidate selection and representationManifestos, platforms and the mandateParty funding, cash for influence and reform
Pressure Groups and Social Movements
Topic overviewPressure groups and how they differ from partiesSectional and promotional groupsInsider and outsider groupsAccess points in Wales and the UKLobbying and direct contact with decision-makersDirect action and public campaigningUsing the media and new technologiesFactors in pressure group successPressure groups and the health of democracySocial movements: nature, membership and methodsThe women's movement and the environmental movement
Pressure Groups and Social Movements
- 11 subtopics
- 33 things to know
- AS Unit 2
What Pressure Groups and Social Movements covers
Pressure Groups and Social Movements is examined in AS Unit 2, Living and participating in a democracy — parties, pressure groups and movements. It covers pressure groups and how they differ from parties, sectional and promotional groups, insider and outsider groups, access points in Wales and the UK, lobbying and direct contact with decision-makers, direct action and public campaigning, using the media and new technologies, factors in pressure group success, pressure groups and the health of democracy, social movements: nature, membership and methods and the women's movement and the environmental movement.
The 11 subtopics
Each one has its own page. WJEC AS Government and Politics students sit this topic in the first year.
- Pressure groups and how they differ from partiesPressure group, single-issue group and peak or umbrella organisation.Open →
- Sectional and promotional groupsSectional pressure group, promotional or cause group and two farming organisations that lobby on behalf of Welsh agriculture.Open →
- Insider and outsider groupsInsider pressure group, outsider pressure group and ideological outsider group.Open →
- Access points in Wales and the UKAccess point and cross-party group in the Senedd.Open →
- Lobbying and direct contact with decision-makersRevolving door, cash for questions affair and four of the Seven Principles of Public Life.Open →
- Direct action and public campaigningDirect action and two changes campaigners for the Welsh language have secured.Open →
- Using the media and new technologiesMedia stunt, online petition and how new technology has changed the organisation of campaigns.Open →
- Factors in pressure group successFive factors that make a pressure group successful, sanctions in the context of pressure group power and how devolution has affected the success of Welsh campaigns.Open →
- Pressure groups and the health of democracyTyranny of the minority in this debate, criticism that pressure groups lack internal democracy and argument that pressure groups improve the quality of legislation.Open →
- Social movements: nature, membership and methodsSocial movement and movements that spread across borders.Open →
- The women's movement and the environmental movementGreenham Common women's peace camp, welsh origin of the Greenham Common protest and fourth wave of the women's movement.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
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Evaluation
Give two arguments that lobbying distorts democracy.
Key term
Define a pressure group.
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What is a sectional pressure group?
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Define an insider pressure group.
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What is meant by an access point?
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Why do pressure groups seek media coverage?
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State five factors that make a pressure group successful.
Evaluation
Give three arguments that pressure groups weaken democracy.
Key term
Define a social movement.
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Which two Acts extended the parliamentary franchise to women in the UK?
Key term
State three differences between pressure groups and political parties.
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Give three examples of sectional groups.
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Define an outsider pressure group.
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List five access points available to a pressure group in the UK.
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Define lobbying.
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What is direct action?
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What is a media stunt, and why do groups use them?
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Why do financial resources matter to a group's influence?
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How does the pluralist case rest on pressure groups?
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What is meant by a new social movement?
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Which two Acts of the 1970s resulted from the women's movement's campaigning?
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Why is the distinction between a party and a pressure group sometimes blurred?
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Give three examples of promotional groups.
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Which academic developed the insider and outsider classification?
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Why is a government department often the most valuable access point?
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Distinguish in-house lobbying from consultant lobbying.
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Distinguish lawful protest from civil disobedience.
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Give one risk of relying on stunts.
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Why is size not the same as influence?
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How do elitists interpret pressure group activity?
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Give four methods typical of social movements.
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Which 1968 industrial dispute is associated with the campaign for equal pay?
Take Pressure Groups and Social Movements further
The same content, four other ways.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Define a pressure group.
Model answer
A pressure group is an organised body that seeks to influence the decisions of government without itself seeking to form a government.
- 2
State three similarities between pressure groups and political parties.
Model answer
Both are organised, both seek to shape public policy, and both mobilise supporters and try to win public opinion to their side.
- 3
State three differences between pressure groups and political parties.
Model answer
Parties seek office while groups seek influence, parties must cover the whole range of policy while groups usually concentrate on a field, and parties are accountable to voters at elections while groups are not.
- 4
Why is the distinction between a party and a pressure group sometimes blurred?
Model answer
Some groups stand candidates to publicise a cause without expecting to govern, and some small parties campaign on a single issue much as a group would.
- 5
Give one example of a group that became a party, and explain why.
Model answer
The environmental movement in Britain generated the Green Party, whose founders judged that contesting elections would give their cause a hearing that campaigning alone had not.
- 6
What is meant by a single-issue group?
Model answer
A single-issue group campaigns on one narrow question, often intending to disband once that question is settled.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Pressure Groups and Social Movements revision questions
- Is Pressure Groups and Social Movements examined at AS in WJEC Government and Politics?
- Yes. It sits in AS Unit 2, which you take in the first year, so it is on the AS paper as well as counting towards the full A level.
- What does Pressure Groups and Social Movements cover in WJEC AS-Level Government and Politics?
- 11 subtopics: pressure groups and how they differ from parties, sectional and promotional groups, insider and outsider groups, access points in wales and the uk, lobbying and direct contact with decision-makers, direct action and public campaigning, using the media and new technologies, factors in pressure group success, pressure groups and the health of democracy, social movements: nature, membership and methods and the women's movement and the environmental movement. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Pressure Groups and Social Movements organised?
- By the WJEC 603-1979-3 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Pressure Groups and Social Movements, on a schedule.
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