ABSTRACT
Citizens in the different states of western Europe go to the polls at regular intervals to elect the members of their national parliaments. The primary but not exclusive focus of this volume is the elected chamber and the relationship between that body and the citizens that elect it. The dominance of the party limits the extent to which the chamber can act as an independent scrutineer of government. Party has served to ensure or to confirm that parliaments in western Europe are usually reactive, or policy influencing, bodies rather than active, or policy making, bodies. This chapter identifies the relationship between parliaments and citizens. The exercise is important for seeing parliaments in the round, for exploring how they relate to the different elements of the polity. Communications from parliamentarians on behalf of citizens may also serve as something of a barometer of the intensity of feeling on particular issues. In district-based systems constituency service may also help inform ministerial deliberations.
