Thursday Seminars by Cristina Leston-Bandeira

Are parliaments at risk of becoming irrelevant?

Abstract

Parliaments have been conceptualised as a core institution of our representative democracies – they are meant to embody the link between public and governance. However, in a context of declining levels of trust, increased polarisation and misinformation, are they increasingly becoming irrelevant in people’s imaginary? Parliaments drive their legitimacy from the representative link, but this has become increasingly at odds with 21^st century societal expectations towards communication and politics. Over the past couple of decades, we have seen an extraordinary development of public engagement activities and services by parliaments, in an attempt to redress mistrust. But has this been meaningful? In this lecture, I will reflect on the efforts parliaments have undertaken to breach the gap with citizens and consider the extent to which this has strengthened the relationship between public and institution. Drawing in particular from the recent suite of 8 Guides on Citizen Engagement for Parliaments, I will identify the key challenges that institutions such as parliaments face in keeping their relevance and the main areas that still require development. Finishing on a positive note, I will identify best practice in parliamentary efforts towards ensuring their work stays relevant to the public.

Bio

Cristina Leston-Bandeira is Professor of Politics at the University of Leeds, UK, and the Chair and co-founder of the pioneering International Parliament Engagement Network (IPEN). She is a leading scholar on parliaments and public engagement and was awarded the UK Political Studies Association 2025 Sir Isaiah Berlin Prize for her outstanding professional contributions to political studies.