Political System of Great Britain

Here you can get some information about Political System of Great Britain andd some useful links

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a constitutional monarchy. It means that the sovereign reigns but does not rule.

Britain does not have a written constitution, but a set of laws.

Parliament is the most important authority in Britain. Technically Parliament is made up of three parts: the Monarch, the House of Lords; and the House of Commons. In reality the House of Commons is the only one of the three which has true power.

The monarch serves formally as head of state. But the monarch is expected to be politically neutral and should not make political decisions. 

The present sovereign is Queen Elizabeth II. She was crowned in Westminster Abbey in 1953.

The House of Commons consists of Members of Parliament. There are 650 of them in the House of Commons. They are elected by secret ballot. General elections are held every five years. The country is divided into 650 constituencies. All citizens, aged 18 and registered in a constituency, have the right to vote. But voting is not compulsory in Britain. Only persons convicted of corrupt and certain mentally ill patients don't take part in voting.

There are few political parties in Britain thanks to the British electoral system. The main ones are: the Conservative Party, the Labour Party and the Liberal / Social Democratic Alliance.

Each political party puts up one candidate for each constituency. The one who wins the most votes is elected MP for that area.

The party which wins the most seats in Parliament forms the Government. Its leader becomes the Prime Minister. His first job is to choose his Cabinet. The Prime Minister usually takes policy decisions with the agreement of the Cabinet.

The functions of the House of Commons are legislation and scrutiny of government activities. The House of Commons is presided over by the Speaker. The Speaker is appointed by the Government.

The House of Lords comprises about 1,200 peers. It is presided by the Lord Chancellor. The House of Lords has no real power. It acts rather as an advisory council.
It's in the House of Commons that new bills are introduced and debated. If the majority of the members are in favour of a bill, it goes to the House of Lords to be debated. The House of Lords has the right to reject a new bill twice.

But after two rejections they are obliged to accept it. And finally a bill goes to the monarch to be signed. Only then it becomes law.

Parliament is responsible for British national policy. Local governments are responsible for organizing of education, police and many others.

Links: 
House of Commons site click here 
BBC live broadcasting of Commons proceedings click here

House of Lords site click here 
BBC live broadcasting of Lords proceedings click here

Prime Minister click here

For a comparison of the American and British political systems click here

For guides to the political systems of other nations click here 

A letter

Letter - a written message addressed to a person or organization, company or an institution. It could be a formal letter or a informal or friendly letter.

Read a part of the letter:


... You know that I am a student. Last summer I passed my entrance exams at Moscow University and became a part-time student of the law department. So I am very busy now.

In the morning from 10 a.m. till 7 p.m. I work as a secretary at the same district court where my friend is a judge. When I come to the court I study documents, speak with the people who ask for help and discuss the order of the day with a judge.

In the evening four times a week the students of our department attend lectures and tutorials in the Theory of the State and Law, the History of Russia and other subjects.

Once a week, on Friday, we have classes in English. Last Friday I had my first test in English. The teacher told us to read and translate a new text. It was rather long and it took me an hour to do this. Then for a quarter of an hour I answered the teacher’s questions in English about my life and work. My answers were good and I was very glad to get a four for my first test in English...

WHAT LETTER IT IS?

WHAT PARTS OF THE LETTER ARE MISSED TO YOUR MIND? (Date, Salutation, Body, Conclusion, Closing, Signature)

Comment below, please

The English language

English is a world language. English is spoken by more than 350 million people. Geographically, it is the most widespread language on earth, second only to Chinese in the number of people who speak it.
It is the language of progressive science, technology and cultural relations. Without a doubt, English is the most advantageous and accepted language for world-wide business. It is also the major language of diplomacy.
Learning a foreign language is not an easy thing. Learning English is like learning to swim or to play ball. We learn to swim by swimming, to play ball by playing ball and to speak English by speaking English. Nobody can learn to swim or play ball for you. Nobody can learn English for you. It is long and slow process that takes a lot of time and patience.
But to know English today is absolutely necessary for every good specialist, for your career in particular, as the specialist who can speak in the appropriate tongue will gain the advantage today. And you will learn it if you really want to.
Language is not to be taught, language is to be learnt.

Watch The world's English mania by Jay Walker

Can you comment now these questions:

1. What did Jay Walker say was the world's newest mania?

2. How many people are trying to learn English around the world?

Can you complete now these statsments:

1. "If you are a Chinese student, you start learning English in the 3rd grade. That's why China will become the world's ________."

2. Jay Walker says that music is the language of ________.

What do you think about this?

Look though this list of words

What are yours?
Please comment

Hello!

I am glad to meet you here on pages of my Educational Blog for Law Students!
Hope we will have fun together! :)