Political System in the United Kingdom

What is the political system? Constitutional Monarchy A king or queen is head of state Ability to make legislation lies with the parliament Prime minister is head of government

Constitution? Unwritten in one document An “uncodified” constitution Comes from a variety of sources Statute Law Magna Carta Human Rights Act 1998 Devolution establishing Scottish Parliament Rule of Law

Magna Carta video

Constitution? Comes from variety of sources Common Law EU Laws Decisions made by judges EU Laws International laws

The Role of the Queen No real political or executive role Opens parliament with a speech Serves as symbol of national unity, stability “Royal assent”

Parliament Bicameral Role House of Commons House of Lords Making laws Checking government Debating current issues

House of Commons Publicly elected After 2010 General Election 650 MPs were elected Party with largest number of members forms government Party leader becomes Prime Minister Sole responsibility for decisions on financial bills

House of Lords “Upper House” Members are appointed by the Queen on advice of the PM Essentially works to “double check” new laws Can’t stop a new law but can delay it Currently 760 members who are eligible to take part in discussions etc.

How does a bill become law? 1. A bill (or proposed law) begins in the House of Commons First reading which is a formal stage Second reading + debate 2. Committee Detailed examination of bill In Commons, outside evidence is presented Bill is amended

How does a bill become law? 3. Report stage Bill is returned to the floor of the House of Commons All MPs can suggest changes etc. 4. Third Reading Right after report stage Debate is limited to what is actually in the Bill Vote 5. Goes to House of Lords All steps happen again

How does a bill become law? 6. If amended by House of Lords, returns to House of Commons to be considered Both Houses must agree on wording! ‘Ping Pong’ A Bill may go back and forth until all amendments are agreed upon 7. Royal Assent Monarch’s agreement to make the Bill into an Act

General Elections Every 5 years in May Parties and candidates campaign to win votes UK divided into 650 constituencies 1 MP represents each First-past-the-post Political party with most MPs is invited by the Queen to form a government

Hung Parliament: What happens? A hung parliament is when no party wins a majority in the House of Commons To form Government, party must have the most seats 326 seats Options Build a coalition Govern with a minority Election in 2010 Hung parliament

2010 election In 2010 election The Conservative party won 306 seats Labour Party won 258 Liberal Democrats 57 Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats form a coalition government

The Government/Executive The Government is responsible for enacting policy The Government is lead by who? The Prime Minister!

Prime Minister What does he do? Head of Government Oversees Civil service and government agencies Appoints members of government MP in House of Commons

The Government

Ministerial Departments Ex: Education, Environment, Transport, Health, Treasury, Justice, Defense Non-ministerial Departments Run by Senior Civil Servants Regulatory or Inspection role Ex: Charity Commission, Food Standards Agency, Serious Fraud Office -

Agencies and public bodies 4 types of Non-departmental public bodies Executive Work for government in specific area Advisory Independent, provide advice Tribunal Part of justice system Independent monitoring boards Run prisons

Civil Service Does the practical and administrative government work Paying benefits Running prisons Running employment services Prime Minister is Minister for the Civil Service

Judicial System Different types of cases dealt with in different courts Ex: Criminal cases start in Magistrates court More serious may go to Crown Court Tribunals deal with government decisions and public body decisions Supreme Court Hears appeals Just like the constitution etc. etc. the court system is complicated, has been around for a long time Supreme court cannot overturn legislation, can declare legislation is incompatible with European Convention of Human Rights, points of law of general importance

Political Parties in the UK 3 main parties Conservative party Currently leads Government in coalition with Liberal Democrats Beliefs Individuals should own and control businesses No government interference in economy Low taxes Monarchy and House of Lords are important EU less important

Political Parties Labour Party Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) Support government helping poor Schools and hospitals should receive public funds Taxes higher for richer UK should taking leading role in EU Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) Somewhere between Labour and Conservatives Free healthcare No government interference in business Role in EU should be decided by the people