Political system of Great Britain

The United Kingdom is a constitutional or parliamentary monarchy. It is known as the land of law and order. The British Constitution is unwritten and is not contained in any single document. It is based on Acts of Parliament (laws). The Queen is the head of the state. The monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who succeeded to the throne in 1952, is officially head of all three branches of power. Everything is done in the queen’s name. It is her government, her law courts, her armed forces and so on. She appoints all the Ministers, including the Prime Minister. But according to the Constitution, power in the country belongs to Parliament, which is responsible for the national policy. Everything is done on the advice of the elected government, and the monarch takes no part in the decision-making process. So it is often said that the Queen reigns (царствует) but doesn't rule.

The remaining powers of the monarch are basically:

▪ to open and close the Parliament;

▪ to approve the appointment of the Prime Minister, government ministers, officers of the armed forces, governors and diplomats;

▪ to appoint bishops and judges;

▪ to give Royal Assent to legislation;

▪ to give honours such as peerages, knighthoods and medals;

▪ to give mercy, remit sentences (смягчать приговоры) passed on convicted criminals.

The system of state power includes 3 branches: Parliament, which makes laws (the legislative branch); the Government, which puts laws into effect (the executive power); and the law courts, which interpret Acts of Parliament (the judicial branch).

The British Parliament consists of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, which is the main law-making body.

The House of Commons consists of 659 members known as Members of Parliament (MPs for short). Each of them represents an area in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. MPs are elected by the adult population at a general election every five years. The Head of the Commons is the Speaker.

The House of Lords consists of more than 1,000 hereditary (наследственный) and life peers, including the law lords appointed to undertake the judicial duties of the House. But only about 250 take an active part in the work of the house, including the Lords Spiritual (26 bishops of the Church of England) and the Lords Temporal (светский), who undertake the judicial duties. The chairman of the House of Lords is Lord Chancellor, who sits on a special seat called The Woolsack (a symbol of British welfare). The monarch’s throne is in the Lords. The Queen sits on it once to make her speech at the opening of a new session of Parliament.

Parliament and the monarch have different roles and they only meet together on symbolic occasions such as the coronation of a new monarch or the traditional annual opening of the Parliament. Parliament is known as “Westminster”. Since it is housed in the Palace of Westminster, once the home of the monarch. Like the monarchy, Parliament is an ancient institution, dating from 1265. It is the oldest Parliament in the world that’s why Great Britain is known as Mother of Parliaments.

Parliament’s functions today are to raise money for government through taxation; to examine government policy, administration and spending; to discuss important political questions. But the main function is making laws. A bill (a proposal for a new law) may be introduced by any Member of Parliament. But in practice most bills are proposed by the government. When both Houses agree on a text after debating, the bill is sent to the Queen for her Royal Assent (королевская санкция), at which point it becomes an Act of Parliament. A bill which has been passed by the House of Commons is almost certain to become law, and about 50 bills become Acts each year. The Royal Assent is a formality: no monarch has refused a bill since 1707.

The present British monarch is Queen Elizabeth (since 1952) and the next in line to the throne is her son, Charles, the Prince of Wales and then his son, Prince William. The monarch always acts on the advice of the Prime Minister. At present the Prime Minister of Britain is Tony Blair, the leader of the Labour Party. The Prime Minister has considerable individual power to introduce and control policies, to represent the nation in political matters, to run the government, to appoint Cabinet of Ministers and to change the Cabinet. The Prime Minister also continues to lead the majority party.

Britain is a democracy. Men and women over 18 have the right to vote (голосовать). There are two parties in GB - the Conservative and the Labour Parties. That party which obtains the majority of seats in the House of Commons is called the Government; the leader of this party becomes Prime Minister.

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