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From: "Guy Barry" <guy.ba...@blueyonder.co.uk>
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Subject: Re: Iceland replaces Newcastle-upon-Tyne
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"Mike L"  wrote in message 
news:1hp2a8pe2042a70anb5kivg53e85bo1q6j@4ax.com...

> On Mon, 12 Nov 2012 07:24:15 -0000, "Guy Barry"
> <guy.ba...@blueyonder.co.uk> wrote:

> >So that's eleven appointed by direct political patronage, 43 who are
> >supposedly specialists in their fields but actually party nominees, and 
> >six
> >(incredibly) elected by the university vote - which I think this country
> >abolished in 1945.  Why on earth should graduates of certain universities
> >have voting privileges denied to the rest of the population?  Isn't that
> >anti-democratic?

> I didn't say it was democratic. I said it was interesting, and an
> attempt to retain the better features of the House of Lords.

Well, we've never had anything like that in the House of Lords.  Oxford and 
Cambridge graduates each had two seats in the House of Commons from 1603. 
Universities in Ireland, Scotland, London, Wales and "Combined English 
Universities" received representation much later, as described here, until 
all the university seats were abolished in 1950 (not 1945):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_constituency#Summary

It seems to be a mainly British and Irish thing.  Curiously, it appears that 
the practice started in Scotland, and yet Scottish universities didn't 
receive representation in the UK Parliament until 1868.  Apparently King 
James VI of Scotland believed that the universities were often affected by 
the decisions of Parliament and ought therefore to have representation in it 
(though that could apply to many other institutions as well).

-- 
Guy Barry