Backbench specialization in the House of Commons : a study of organization and representative theories.

In view of the general lack of theoretical works on Parliament one of the
major objectives of the thesis is to contribute to the understanding of
legislative activity through an examination of organization and
representative theories. In Part One the mutual interaction of these
two diverse strands of theory is examined. In Chapter 2 the concept of
specialization is studied through an analysis of theories concerned with
societal and organizational division of labour. However, unlike most
formal organizations studied by organization theorists legislatures are
exceptional by virtue of their representative functions. The second
strand of theory, examined in Chapter 3, therefore is representative
theory. In the light of the examination of these theories a model of
legislative specialization is developed and outlined in Part One.
Part Two of the thesis represents the first systematic attempt to
establish the extent of backbench specialization in the House of Commons
and to identify the key independent variables influencing the level of
specialization. Chapter 5 looks at the informal dimension of
specialization through an analysis of backbench activity in Debates,
Questions and Early Day Motions. Chapter 6 supplements this
quantitative analysis by considering the perceptions of M.P.s of their
individual patterns of specialization and the general division of labour
on the backbenches. The pattern of specialization at the mezzo-level
of parliamentary organization in the 'unofficial' committees of the
House is examined in Chapter 7. Finally, the pattern of formal
specialization in committee is analyzed in Chapter 8.
The profile of specialization, wlilst pronouced, is yet still closely
circumscribed in the House of Commons, with the linkage between informal
and formal subject specialisms being loose and fragmented. The
contention of the thesis is that this pattern of specialization is a
product of the specific mix of representative and political elements in
the proximate environment of the House.