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represented. The former imbalance could be addressed by the provision
of public funding and assistance to enable those who would otherwise be
excluded to take part in decision-making.
86
With regard to the latter, the
informality of deliberation provides scope for the use of procedural
innovations to ensure that participants, whatever their position in soci-
ety, are given an equivalent opportunity to exercise their democratic
rights.
87
Baber and Bartlett suggest the use of voting rights and allocating
set times for participants to speak as means by which the effect of social
differentials can be lessened in deliberative fora.
88
Jacobs also notes the
important role of a moderator in deliberation as a non-participant whose
responsibility is to oversee the fairness of the process in general, and, as
part of this, to make certain that all participants are able to communicate
their views and to prevent those who would seek to dominate the process
from doing so.
89
Similarly, Smith suggests that effective facilitation or
moderation in participatory processes can be used to ensure
'
that mar-
ginalised voices are heard
'
, and, in the case of deliberative mini-publics,
that
proceedings are not dominated by the politically skilled and
charismatic
'
.
90
Third, the extent to which variance in deliberative capabilities and
attempts by participants to coordinate the process are problematic will
depend on whether outcomes reached are determinative of the issue
under consideration. If the role of deliberation is to feed information
about public opinion, views and values into political decision-making
processes, rather than to reach
'
nal decisions on what should be done,
then positions promoted by vested interests will not bind decision-
makers.
91
They may of course have an effect on the views that they
form, but there are practical means available of reducing the risk that
subsequent decisions will be in
uenced by the preferences of articulate
or forceful citizens where these are manifestly self-advancing. Jacobs
suggests that transcripts could be taken from which attempts to domi-
nate, manipulate and coerce proceedings should be evident to those
basing judgements on them.
92
The overarching point is that concerns over imbalances in power
should not prevent deliberative fora from being used. It is through
86
Baber and Bartlett,
'
Deliberative Environmental Politics
'
,p.180.
87
Smith,
'
Democratic Innovations
'
,pp.21
-
2.
88
Baber and Bartlett,
'
Deliberative Environmental Politics
'
,p.180.
89
Jacobs,
'
Environmental Valuation
'
,p.230.
90
91
Chapter 6,
Section 6.3.3
.
Smith,
'
Democratic Innovations
'
,pp.168
-
9, 197
-
8.
92
Jacobs,
'
Environmental Valuation
'
,p.230.
