What Democracy Means to You

1. Theme 1 | Fair, Free and Honest ElectionsElections are the basis of any democracy. It is essential that people are able to vote without their vote being stolen, that their vote counts, and that the election cannot be bought by wealthy individuals or groups.
2. Theme 2 | Rights, Freedoms and a Written ConstitutionThe UK government has too much unchecked power, inherited from our feudal past. We need to catch up with the rest of the world by adopting a written constitution designed to limit what governments can do in our name. Too often, governments are free to casually compromise our fundamental rights and freedoms. We need stronger safeguards and to entrench the right to redress.
3. Theme 3 | Stronger Parliament and Accountable GovernmentOur parliament is effectively under the control of government whips. Too many decisions are taken out of parliament's hands entirely, to be taken by government ministers and quangos. This has lead to too little scrutiny, bad laws and the emergence of a political class more interested in patronage than accountability.
4. Theme 4 | Bringing Power Closer to the PeoplePower is far too centralised in the UK. We need a radical shift in the balance of power in favour of local government and the people. We need to find new ways of engaging people at both a local and national level in between elections as well as on election day.
5. Theme 5 | A Culture of Informed Political Interest and ResponsibilityDemocracy is ultimately about people, not institutions. Without the informed participation of the people, reforms can only ever have a limited effect. We need to provide people with the tools to engage with politics and a culture where everyone sees that they have a place in the political process.

http://www.votefordemocracy.org.uk