POLITICAL SYSTEM OF THE UK

GovernmentPolitical PartiesPolicy of the UK

VY_32_INOVACE_14-06

1. ParliamentThe government of the United Kingdom is devided into 3 main branches:

legislative, executive and judicial

the supreme legislative authority = parliament

law – making body, one of the oldest parliaments, established in 1295

seat: Houses of Parliament, Westminster, London

includes: a) the Queen and b) Chambers

The House of Lords – aristocracy, peers = Lords Temporal / life 650, hereditery 89/, Lords Spiritual = 26 bishops, red and gold, limited power /delays laws for 6 months/

The Lord Speaker – head of H.of L.

The House of Commons – 650 elected MPs /523Engl, 38 Wal, 72 Scot, 17 N.Ir./, more power, green and brown, Speaker, debates laws, taxes, passes laws, revises Governm. work

a proposed law = a bill –> H. of Com. –> H. of L. –> Queen –> signs = law = Act of Parliament

Houses of ParliamentAutor: Darina Sikorová

House of Lords Chamber

Autor: UK Parliament, Název: House of Lords chamber - toward throne.jpg

Zdroj: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:House_of_Lords_chamber_-

_toward_throne.jpg

House of Commons Chamber

Autor: UK Parliament, Název: House of Commons.jpgZdroj:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:House_of_Commons.jpg

2. Government the supreme executive authority, responsible to parliament

a single party govern., leader - Prime Minister (PM) - elected from the winning party, 90-100people - H. of L. or H. of Com.

PM - appoints 15-20 ministers = Cabinet, meet once a week seat: 10 Downing St., responsible for all govern. decisions, runs the country

Opposition = Shadow Cabinet

Departments: Foreign Office /F. Secretary/ Home Office / H. Secr./ Minister of Defence, Education., Agric., the Chancellor of the Exchequer

General elections - ev.5 years, winn. party= governm., to choose PM voting – polling day

10 Downing Street

Autor: Prime Minister`s Office, Název: 2010 Official Downing Street pic.jpgZdroj:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2010_Official_Downing_Street_pic.jpg

3. Courts the judicial authority – Supreme Court of the United

Kingdom the highest court to appeal except Scottish criminal cases => Scottland – High Court of Justiciary

12 Law Lords, no Minister of Justice, imprisonment = life sentence = the highest punishment X US – death

penalty 65% people support reintroduction of death penalty for murder

Political Parties Conservative – right, rich, capitalists, no changes

Labour – left, working class + inteligentsia, reformist party, socialists

Liberal Democrats – centre, EU, all classes

other - Communist, Green, nationalists, the Catholic Social Democratic, …

Plaid Cymru – Wales, Unionists - N.I., Scottish National Party – Scotland

history: Whigs and Tories

UK and policy Member of:

NATO UNESCO EU - 1973, laws related to economic and social

matters X driving on the left, old measuring units, its own currency

Changes: Scotland – its own parliament 1999 Welsh Assembly, N.I. Assembly

Scottish Parliament Building

Autor: D. Sikorová

Thank you for your attention.

Autor DUM: Mgr. Darina Sikorová