Checking the power of a parliamentary majority
Colin May responds to Parliamentary expert Peter Russell: My quibble with Peter Russell can be summed up as follows: "Never confuse parliamentary democracy with democracy." Apparently if a party has a majority of seats but a minority of votes: It's OK to withhold information that helps the members make a decision, if the members of the majority party vote to refuse to provide the information. And it's OK to withhold the Afghan detainee files or any information required by the minority of the members because the Russell doctrine of Parliamentary Supremacy overrides the democratic rights of the majority of the citizenry. Mr. Russell's fears...