The Governance of England

"Yes. In contrast to Dicey, Low’s book has been completely forgotten. But it too is beautifully written. It is a kind of sequel to Bagehot's The English Constitution, which is much better known. But I think that it is in some ways even better written than Bagehot’s book. It is particularly fascinating because many of the things we talk about now, such as the excessive power of the Prime Minister and the weakness of the House of Commons, also seemed true in 1904, when The Governance of England was written. These are not new problems, and there probably never was a golden age of parliamentary government. Low asks – if you were to abolish the House of Commons tomorrow, who would notice? He also says that the Prime Minister has much greater power than people imagine, powers sometimes near to those of a dictator. He said that not in 2004 but in 1904! This book provides a historical perspective, which is always valuable. People sometimes talk as if the problems of government are today's problems or yesterday's problems – often they are very old problems. It is a beautifully written book."