1 MONARCHY AND PARLAMIENTARY SYTEMThe United Kingdom MONARCHY AND PARLAMIENTARY SYTEM
2 1. THE UNITED KINGDOM SOME BASIC DATA
3 1.a. The United Kingdom of the Great Britain and Northern IrelandThat’s the real name of this nation. The UK is made up of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The UK has been member of the EU since 1973* and it is the founding member of the Commonwealth, heir of the old British Empire. * The election for Brexit was held in June 2016 with a result of 52% of votes in favor of leaving the EU. This will not come into force until the UK Government invokes the Article 50 of the Treaty on EU by the end of March If this procedure is applied the UK could stop being a full member of the EU by March 2019.
4 1.b. UK IN NUMBERS 243,610 Square Kilometres Capital city: LondonCurrency: Sterling Pound £, equivalen to 1 €uro and twenty – five cents, approximately.
5 2. GOVERNMENT and MONARCHY
6 2.a. ORGANIZATION The United Kingdom is a Constitutional Monarchy with two Legislative Houses: House of Lords: made up of 1,189 members. House of Commons: made up of 650 members. Chief of State: her Royal Majesty Queen Elisabeth II, by the Grace of God. Head of Government: Prime Minister, Theresa May ( Conservative )
7 2.b. THE CONSTITUTION Does the UK have a written constitution? No, it doesn’t!! So, how does it work? There are some important documents which serve as a Constitution. Magna Carta, which was written in 1215 and limited the powers of the King. The Bill of Rights, written in 1688. The Act of Settlement, written in 1700. The Parliament Acts, from 1911 and 1949. The Parliament is actually made up of the Monarch and the Houses of Lords and Commons. It is called King-in-Parliament, and they can modify any law at any time with just a simple Act.
8 2.c. THE MONARCHY The British Monarchy or Mountbatten-Windsor Monarchy. This surname is applied to the descendands of Queen Elisabeth II and Prince Phillip, Duke of Edimburgh. They have their roots in the Monarchy of Hannover, of German descendence. The Hannover monarchs succeded the Stuarts in the throne in 1714, a bit after the Act of Union of 1707, which formed the United Kingdom.
9 2.c.1) QUEEN ELISABETH’S TITLESQueen of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland by the Grace of God. Queen of Her other realms* and territories. Head of the Commonwealth. Defender of Faith Commander in Chief of the Armed forces. She makes treaties and declares war and peace. The Queen and the Crown are a symbol of the Unity of State. * realm: dominio
10 2.c.2) Functions of the QueenIn spite of all of her titles she is actually powerless. These are her real functions: She accomplishes diplomatic functions. Receives reports from cabinet meetings by the Prime Minister. She can give opinions and express attitudes, for instance, in the Christmas message. She makes State Visits abroad. As Head of the Commonwealth she may receive foreign ambassadors and she may act upon Commonwealth ministers in appropriate circumstances.
11 2.c.3) Sucession to the ThroneIt is regulated by the Act of Settlement. All heirs must be Anglican – Protestant. The throne passes to the eldest son. If there are females only, the eldest succeeds.
12 3. THE THREE POWERS
13 3.a. LEGISLATIVE POWER THE PARLIAMENTAs we have said before it is made up of two different houses: THE HOUSE OF COMMONS THE HOUSE OF LORDS
14 3.a.1) The House of Commons This chamber is made up 650 MPs, thus means, Members of Parliament. They are elected democratically and they represent the nation. This chamber occupies the north side of the Palace of Westminster. It’s a rectangular room. At one of the ends we find the Speaker’s chair. There are five rows of seats on the right side of the speaker and other five rows on the left side of the speaker, so they are facing each other. One side is the Government and the other is the oposition.
15 3.a.2 The House of Lords It’s made up of 1000 members, who are not elected democratically. It is a reminiscence of the old system. They are divided into two types: Lord Spiritual: the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, and 21 other bishops Lord Temporal : peers*1 and peeresses, whose peerage may be hereditary or temporal. The head of this chamber is the Lord Chancellor. The Lord Chancelor and 9 life peers make a committee whose function is a court of appeal. Actually is the last Court of Appeal in the nation. *1 Peer= lord or cargo vitalicio ( colega, igual, compañero or mirar in other contexts )
16 3.a.3 ) Functions of Parliament- Organization of Budget - Legislation - Controlling the Government All of this is done through: Question time daily in the House of Commons Debates
17 3.a.4) How does Legislation work?So that an Act of Parliament can become into a Law, it must be approved by both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and also by the Queen. Before these steps are accomplished and Act of Law is called a bill. Actually the fact that a bill is approved by the monarch is now just a formal matter. Bills can be introduced in any House, but in reality it is the House of Commons, under the responsibility of the Government the one that introduces a bill. The only thing the Lords could do is delaying the passing of a bill. Bills are of two kinds: PRIVATE – deal with local or personal matters - AND PUBLIC – deal with matters of public importance.
18 3.a.5) How an Act of Parliament becomes into a Law ( summary )ACT OF PARLIAMENT or ACT OF LAW ( introduced in Parliament ) BILL ( has to go through both Houses and be approved or passed by the Monarch ) LAW COMES INTO FORCE.
19 3.a.6 )The passing of a bill HOUSE OF COMMONS: HOUSE OF LORDSFirst reading: printing of the bill. Second reading: discussion, but no specific amendments. Committee stage: detailed discussion and specific amendments. Report Stage: the House reconsiders any possible amendments. It may be returned to the committee. Third Reading: only verbal alterations can be made. HOUSE OF LORDS - Same steps as in the House of Commons ROYAL ASSENT The Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949 limited the power of the House of Lords
20 3.a.7) The Parliamentary Commmissioner for AdministrationIt is another body of the Legislative power. It was set up by the 1967 as an imitation of the Scandinavian Ombusdam ( Spanish – Defensor del Pueblo )
21 3.b. THE EXECUTIVE POWER CENTRAL EXECUTIVE: - The Privy Council- The Ministry and the Cabinet - The Departments of State LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
22 3.b.1) The Privy Council Last remaining of Council of the King in Norman England. The three powers: legislative, executive and judiciary, originally sprang from here. It is a body of advisors to the British Sovereign. Most of its power has been given to the Ministry and the Cabinet , and to the Judicial Comittee. It is composed by the Lords of Her Majesty’s most honorable Privy Council: Head: Lord President of the Council Its role is now ceremonial.
23 3.b.2) The Ministry and the CabinetThe Ministry is made up of all the Government Ministers, wether they are part or not of the Cabinet . It is also made up of the judges in the Court of Appeal The head is the Prime Minister, who is a leader of the political party which commands a majority in the House of Commons The Cabinet has the power the Privy Council used to have. It is the nucleous of the Government. It is made up of the 20 principal ministers. They are appointed by the Prime Minister in his/her first duty. Most of them are from the Commons, but some are from the Lords. They must support the policy of the Government, regardless of their own point of view. Cabinet ministers become members of the Privy Council. They have the title of Secretary of State, except the minister of finance, Chancellor of the Exequer, and the minister of Justice, Lord Chancellor.
24 3.b.3) The Departments of StateMost of the ministers of the Privy Council and the Cabinet are the Heads of the Most importat Departments of State, also called Government Departments. The head of a department of state is called Secretary of State. Secretaries of State are assisted by a permanent Secretary, who at the same time is assisted by a group of civil servants. The most important Department is the Treasury, headed by the Prime Minister and theChancellor of the Exequer. This department is resposible for developing the Government’s financial and economic policy. - The Prime Minister receives the name First Lord of the Treasury. - The Chancellor of the Exequer , real head of the deparment, receives the name of Under Treasurer.
25 3.b.4) Local Governments They rule a smaller areaThe first were created between 1885 and 1888. In 1974 a few more were created: Avon, Cumbria, Western Isles. Their services deal with education, motorway maintenance, police and fire services. England and Wales are divided into 53 county councils, six of which are called Metropolitan Counties. In Scotland there are 9 regions. Each county council may have different District Councils or Borough Councils. They provide smaller scale services such as refuse collection.
26 3.c. THE JUDICIARY SYSTEM England and Wales have a single system of law and courts. Scotland and N.I. haver a system of their own. It must be said that there is no civil code and no criminal code. The law consists partly of statuses or Acts of Parliament, and part of Common Law, which is made up of particular decissions by judges.
27 3.c.1) Superior Courts The Supreme Court of Judicature, ruled by the Lord Chancellor and made up of 80 Justices of the High Court. High Court of Justice ( Civil ) The Crown Court( Criminal ) The House of Lords, which is the last Court of Appeal The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
28 3.c.2) Inferior Courts The County Courts Magistrate CourtsOther courts: Ecclesiastical, Martial, Industrial, Medical or Commercial Practises.
29 4. THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND THE POLITICAL PARTIES.
30 4.a. THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND THE POLITICAL PARTIESA LITTLE HISTORY to understand how electoral system works. Britain is/was the first constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy in Europe. Model of peaceful transformation for the rest of Europe. The democratic system in Britain has its roots in the 1215 Carta Magna, which was the consequence of nobles and clergy’s demand for power to King John. The present system has developed from the outcome of Glorious Revolution of The last Stuart, King James II, had ruled without a minister and abused power. He was accused of being a Catholic. He had to run away to France and his daughter Mary, jointly with her husband William from Holland, occupied the throne. The hereditary monardhy was preserved, but full sovereignity was placed in the hands of the Parliament. 1689 Bill of Rights: only a protestant could occupy the throne. Act of Settlement 1701: new laws and taxes could only be approved by the Parliament and the Monarch. King and Queen appointed ministers, at first without reference to Parliament. However, as time went on it became clear that ministers could not work effectively unless they were approved of by the majority in the House of Commons ( the tories or the wighs ) 1721, Robert Walpole ( a wigh ) was the first to be called Prime Minister, as his party held majority. After this all ministers were appointed by the Prime Minister. From that moment ministers can resing themselves or do so because they are asked to by the P.M. Representation of the People Act 1867, enfranchised part of the urban male working class in England and Wales for the first time. 1911 Parliament Act: Bills could become Acts without consent of the House of Lords. 1918 Acr: women over 30 were allowed to vote 1928 Act: women over 21 could vote 1949 Parliament Act: The House of Lords had no power except to delay the passing of a bill from a session of the Parliament to the next. The need to get the Queen’s approval seems to be a worthless safeguard. If she acted alone the government would resing. 1969 Representation of People Act: vote extended to 18 – 20 year old people.
31 4.b) What’s “a Parliament”?The period between the time when Parliament is summoned and its termination is called “a parliament”. Parliaments are summoned and dissolved by Royal Proclamation upon advice of the Prime Minister. The Parliament Act says that a Parliament mustn’t endure more than five years. Each parliament is divided into sessions which usually last for a year. They go from late October to the same date the following year. The beginning of a new session is called “ The State Opening Parliament”. The ceremony takes place in the House of Lords with leading members of the House of Commons. The ceremony starts with the “ Queen’s Speech”, which is prepared by the Government.
32 4.c) The Elections As you have seen the foundations of the electoral system lie in the Middle Ages and in the Acts of Parliament that have been passed through the years. Each community elect their own representative to serve as Member of Parliament ( MPs). If an MP dies or resigns a by-election is held to replace him/her. Each MP represents a Constituency. In the 1970’s there were 635 constituencies, so 635 MPs In 1983 the number was raised to 650. This distribution has to be changed from time to time to prevent the rotten boroughs. The reason is that the population of some constituencies rise while others decline. While the Conservative - Liberal Democrat coalition governing after the 2010 general election had initially planned to reduce the number of MPs and constituencies to 600 during its term of office, Parliament voted in January 2013 to delay the boundary review this change would require. Act 2013 requires that the next review report by October 2018. To be an MP you have to be British and be over 21. Some people such as Civil Servants, Clergy members, Armed forces or insane people can’t. The people of each constituency vote for one MP to represent their interests. The candidate who wins the most votes becomes an MP. The winner gets a place in Parliament. The party with the biggest number of Constituencies is the winner, no matter the number of votes each party has.
33 4.d) Political Parties At one time there were only two parties: Conservative and Liberal. During the first half of the 20th century the Labour Party arouse to represent the interests of the working class. Then, support for the Liberal Party declined. The two main parties are now CONSERVATIVE PARTY ( Tory ) and LABOUR PARTY Labour party has changed a lot since teh 1980’s. In the past they represented working classes. Now two thirds of the population own the house where they live andmany of them have businesses. Most of the working class has become into Middle Class. That is why they decided to moderate their policies. The Social Democratic party and the Liberal party formed an alliance ( LIBERAL DEMOCRATS )before the 1983 election. Although they received nearly a quarter of the country’’s votes in 1983 and in 1987, they only got 3.5 % of seats in Parliament. They wanted to change the present electoral system to a system of proportional representation, which would give small parties more seats in Parliament and make governments more representatives. However the UK elections still work on Constituencies. Other parties are ultra-nationalist UKIP, and environmentally friendly GREEN PARTY Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have their own political parties: Ulster Unionist Party Scottish National Party Plaid Cymru or Welsh National Party
34 BREXIT ( Bricuriosities )