Burnet News Club 2018/19 – Issue 4 Democracy in a divided nation

1. DEMOCRACY
DECISIONS

2. A form of government where
everyone gets to have their say
about how the country is run,
usually by voting.
DEMOCRACY

3. Also known as the EU, the European
Union is a kind of club for 28 European
countries. Member countries share
many of the same laws and open their
borders to each other.
EUROPEAN UNION

4. Short for ‘British Exit’.
This word is being used to
describe Britain leaving the EU.
BREXIT

5. A vote on one political issue
which all voters in a specific
country can vote on.
REFERENDUM

6. INDIRECT
DEMOCRACY

7. The UK is broken up into different areas.
Everyone over the age of 18 is allowed to vote for a
member of parliament (a local MP) who will represent their
area. The MP will then go on to make decisions on behalf
of the people they represent.
They are supposed to make decisions that are in your
best interest. For example, your local MP might support
the idea to bring in policies to help lower pollution levels.
This is called INDIRECT DEMOCRACY. It’s a bit like a
parent making decisions on behalf of their children.

8. CAN YOU EXPLAIN
INDIRECT DEMOCRACY
IN YOUR OWN WORDS?

9. DIRECT
DEMOCRACY

10. With certain big decisions that affect everyone in the
country or where it’s a very divided issue, all voters get
to have a direct say.
This is called a referendum. Referendums are an
example of DIRECT DEMOCRACY.
For example, in 2014 Scotland held a referendum on
whether Scotland should become an independent
country or remain part of the UK.

11. CAN YOU EXPLAIN
DIRECT DEMOCRACY
IN YOUR OWN WORDS?

12. BREXIT HAS INVOLVED
BOTH TYPES OF
DEMOCRACY

13. In 2016, everyone was asked to vote on
whether the UK should leave the EU.
This was an example of
DIRECT DEMOCRACY.
You can see how most people in your area voted here:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-36616028

14. ARE YOU SURPRISED BY THE
WAY YOUR AREA VOTED?
WHEN YOU LOOK AT
THE MAPS, IS IT CLEAR
WHO WON?

15. After the vote to leave, the UK returned to
INDIRECT DEMOCRACY.
MPs have been making further decisions
about how UK should leave the EU.
However, lots of people have been
unhappy with the process.

16. CAN YOU SUMMARISE
DEMOCRACY DURING
BREXIT IN
10 WORDS?