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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Colin MurrayORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
It has become axiomatic that backbench MPs at Westminster have limited the capacity for independent action under the burdens of constituency business and whipped votes. Even the limited avenues available for such MPs to shine, such as select committees, are often illusory, because parliamentarians have little time to prepare the materials or brief themselves on any but the highest profile witnesses. The political parties have benefited from this state of affairs; docile MPs make for reliable votes. The rise of the ERG as a parliamentary force disrupts this narrative. Galvanised by single-issue opposition to the UK’s involvement in “Europe”, be it the EU or the ECHR, the Group successfully exploited the balance of power in the Commons during the 2017-2019 Parliamentary Session. This article analyses the methods by which the Group’s members magnified their influence over Brexit debates.
Author(s): Murray C, Armstrong M
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Parliamentary Affairs
Year: 2022
Volume: 75
Issue: 3
Pages: 536-557
Print publication date: 01/07/2022
Online publication date: 02/03/2021
Acceptance date: 01/02/2021
Date deposited: 10/02/2021
ISSN (print): 0031-2290
ISSN (electronic): 1460-2482
Publisher: Oxford University Press
URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/pa/gsab004
DOI: 10.1093/pa/gsab004
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