A new report has been launched proposing the creation of a green ‘super jury’ of ordinary people to act as guardians for the country’s future.
The ‘Guardians of the Future’ report by University of East Anglia philosopher Dr Rupert Read calls for radical constitutional reform to safeguard the basic needs of future generations.
He proposes that a council of randomly picked members of the public, like a jury, should be placed above the House of Lords to oversee all government decisions – with the power of veto to stop legislation which threatens the interests of future generations.
Dr Read’s ‘super-jury’ would also be charged with the power to force a review of existing legislation which is likely to have negative effects for society in future.
The report will be published by Green House – a think tank set up to lead the development of green thinking in the UK. It sets out proposals for how the guardians could be chosen, how many should sit on the council and how long they would serve for.
Dr Read believes his radical idea would stop us bequeathing a damaged and dangerous country to our descendants.
He said: “This report is meant to stimulate debate about how we can represent the interests of future generations within our existing parliamentary democracy.
“The kind of care that we take towards our own children needs to be extended en masse to cover all children, their children’s children, and so on, on a society-wide level.
“Society exists over time and decisions taken today can have significant consequences for people yet to be born. This report argues that the interests of future generations should be formally represented within our existing parliamentary democracy. In other words, future people should be included among 'the people'.
“Obviously future generations can’t be given a vote, but I propose that we give them the closest equivalent by creating a council of Guardians of Future Generations – a third legislative house. They would have the power to scrutinise and if necessary veto proposals that they judge would impact negatively on future people’s basic rights.
“The members of this body would be selected by sortition, as is current practice for jury service, to ensure independence from present-day party political interests. They would be free from party pressure, and the pressures of short term electoral cycles, so they would represent a more genuine ‘us’.
“Random selection would also emphasise that we all share responsibility for future generations – and that none of us, and all of us, are qualified to do this.
“It sounds radical, but many radical ideas throughout history have come to be accepted as the norm, after at first seeming to be ‘too extreme’ to many people. A good example is recycling – when Greens first called for this, in the 70s and 80s, they were laughed at, but now we all take recycling for granted.”
Dr Read’s idea builds on the Hungarian precedent for a ‘Parliamentary Commissioner for Future Generations’ – an elected ombudsman role created in 2008.
The Guardians for Future Generations report will be launched at the House of Commons on Tuesday, January 10, at 5pm, at a meeting hosted by Caroline Lucas MP, leader of the Green Party, and addressed by Liberal Democrat minister Norman Baker MP and Labour's Jon Cruddas MP.
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