ABSTRACT

This work remains of interest to anyone concerned with Britain’s political institutions and how they might be reformed. Laski was strongly in favour of utilising Britain’s capacity for decisive government to drive through great social reforms. He was still confident that there was a majority will for such change and quite unable to imagine the kind of centralisation that was later to take place in the UK. If Laski is still important it is more for his pluralist views which counsel against such developments, but these lectures are still of interest in showing how a radical reformer could accept and defend established institutions like the House of Commons.

part 1|85 pages

The House of Commons

chapter 1|4 pages

Contemporary Criticisms of Parliament

chapter 3|8 pages

The Quality of the House of Commons

chapter 4|37 pages

A Reply to Major Criticisms of Parliament

chapter 5|15 pages

The Place of the Back-Bencher

chapter 7|2 pages

Conclusion

part 2|66 pages

The Cabinet

chapter 8|25 pages

The Cabinet and the Prime Minister

chapter 10|9 pages

An Alternative Structure

part 3|52 pages

The Civil Service

chapter 11|11 pages

The Civil Service in the Twentieth Century

chapter 12|16 pages

The Administrative Class

chapter 14|9 pages

The Scientist in the Civil Service