$Unique_ID{bob00508} $Pretitle{} $Title{United Kingdom Britain's System of Government} $Subtitle{} $Author{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Affiliation{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Subject{house parliament queen lords government britain members royal state commons} $Date{1990} $Log{} Title: United Kingdom Book: Britain's System of Government Author: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Affiliation: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Date: 1990 Britain's System of Government Government The British constitution, unlike that of most other countries, is not contained in any single document. Formed partly by statute, partly by common law and partly by convention, it can be altered by Act of Parliament, or by general agreement to create, vary or abolish a convention. The constitution thus adapts readily to changing political conditions and ideas. The organs of government are clearly distinguishable, although their functions often intermingle and overlap. The legislature, Parliament, is the supreme authority. The executive consists of: (1) the Government-Cabinet and other ministers who are responsible for initiating and directing national policy; (2) government departments, which are responsible for national administration; (3) local authorities, which administer and manage many local services; and (4) public corporations responsible for operating particular nationalised industries or, for example, a social or cultural service, subject to ministerial control in varying degrees. The judiciary determines common law and interprets statutes, and is independent of both legislature and executive. The Monarchy The British people look to the Queen not only as their head of State, but also as the symbol of their nation's unity. The monarchy is the most ancient secular institution in Britain. During the last thousand years its continuity has only once been broken (by the establishment of a republic which lasted from 1649 to 1660) and, despite interruptions in the direct line of succession, the hereditary principle upon which it was founded has always been preserved. The royal title in Britain is: `Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith'. The form of the royal title is varied for those other member states of the Commonwealth of which the Queen is head of State, to suit the particular circumstances of each. Other member states are republics or have their own monarchies. The seat of the monarchy is in Great Britain. In the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man the Queen is represented by a Lieutenant-Governor. In the other member nations of the Commonwealth of which the Queen is head of State, her representative is the Governor-General, appointed by her on the advice of the ministers of the country concerned and completely in dependent of the British Government. In the British dependencies the Queen is usually represented by governors, who are responsible to the British Government for the good government of the countries concerned. Succession, Accession and Coronation The title to the Crown derives partly from statute and partly from common law rules of descent. Lineal Protestant descendants of a granddaughter of James I of England and VI of Scotland (Princess Sophia, the Electress of Hanover) are alone eligible to succeed, and although succession is not bound to continue in its present line, it can be altered only by common consent of the Commonwealth nations, of which the Queen is Sovereign. The sons of the Sovereign have precedence over the daughters in succeeding to the throne. When a daughter succeeds, she becomes Queen Regnant, and the powers of the Crown are vested in her as though she were a kng. While the consort of a king takes her husband's rank and style, the constitution does not give any special rank or privileges to the husband of a Queen Regnant, although in practice he fills an important role in the life of the nation, as does the Duke of Edinburgh. The Sovereign succeeds to the throne as soon as his or her predecessor dies and there is no interregnum. He or she is at once proclaimed at an Accession Council, to which all members of the Privy Council are summoned. The Lords Spiritual and Temporal (see p 6), the Lord Mayor and Aldermen and other leading citizens of the city of London are also invited. The Sovereign's coronation follows the accession after a convenient interval. It is a ceremony which has remained essentially the same for over a thousand years, even if details have often been modified to conform to the customs of the time. It takes place at Westminster Abbey in London in the presence of representatives of the Houses of Parliament and of all the great public interests of Britain, of the Prime Ministers and leading members of the other Commonwealth nations, and of representatives of other countries. Acts of Government The Queen personifies the State. In law, she is head of the executive, an integral part of the legislature, head of the judiciary, the commander-in-chief of all armed forces of the Crown and the `supreme governor' of the established Church of England, As a result of a long process of evolution, during which the monarchy's absolute power has been progressively reduced, the Queen acts on the advice of her ministers. Britain is governed by Her Majesty's Government in the name of the Queen. Within this framework, and in spite of a trend during the past hundred years towards assigning powers directly to ministers, there are still important acts of government which require the participation of the Queen. These include summoning, proroguing (discontinuing until the next session without dissolution) and dissolving Parliament; and giving Royal Assent to Bills passed by Parliament. The Queen is also involved in appointing many important office holders, including government ministers, judges, officers in the armed forces, governors, diplomats, bishops and some other senior clergy of the Church of England; conferring peerages, knighthoods and other honours; and remitting all or part of the penalty imposed on a person convicted of a crime. An important function is appointing the Prime Minister and by convention the Queen invites the leader of the political party which commands a majority in the House of Commons to form a government. In international affairs the Queen, as head of State, has the power to declare war and make peace, to recognise foreign states and governments, to conclude treaties and to annex or cede territory. With rare exceptions (as when appointing the Prime Minister), those acts involving the use of `royal prerogative' powers are nowadays performed by government ministers who are responsible to Parliament and can be questioned about a particular policy. It is not necessary to have Parliament's authority to exercise these powers, although Parliament has the power to restrict or abolish a prerogative right. Ministerial responsibility in no way detracts from the importance of the Queen's role in the smooth working of government. She holds meetings of the Privy Council, gives audiences to her ministers and other officials in Britain and overseas, receives accounts of Cabinet decisions, reads dispatches and signs numerous state papers. She must be informed and consulted on every aspect of national life, and she must show complete impartiality. Such is the significance attached to these royal functions that provision has been made to appoint a regent to perform them should the Queen be totally incapacitated. The regent would be the Queen's eldest son, the Prince of Wales, then those in succession to the throne who are of age. In the event of the Queen's partial incapacity or absence abroad, there is provision to appoint Counsellors of State (the Duke of Edinburgh, the four adults next in line of succession, and the Queen Mother) to whom the Queen may delegate certain royal functions. However, Counsellors of State may not, for instance, dissolve Parliament (except on the Queen's express instructions), nor create peers. Ceremonial and Royal Visits Ceremonial has always been associated with British kings and queens, and, in spite of the change in the outlook of both the Sovereign and the people, many traditional customs and ceremonies are retained. Royal marriages and royal funerals are marked by public ceremony, and the Sovereign's birthday is officially celebrated in June by Trooping the Colour on Horse Guards Parade. State banquets take place when a foreign monarch or head of State visits Britain; investitures are held at Buckingham Palace and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Scotland to bestow honours; and royal processions add significance to such occasions as a state opening of Parliament. Each year the Queen and other members of the royal family visit many parts of Britain. Their presence at scientific, artistic, industrial and charitable events of national and local importance attracts nationwide interest and publicity. The Queen pays state visits to foreign governments, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh. She also undertakes lengthy tours in the other countries of the Commonwealth. Other members of the royal family pay official visits overseas, occasionally representing the Queen, and often in connection with an organisation or a cause with which they are associated. Royal Income and Expenditure The expenditure incurred by the Queen in carrying out her public duties is financed from the Civil List and from public departments (which meet the cost of, for example, the royal yacht and the Queen's Flight). All such expenditure is approved by Parliament. About three-quarters of the Queen's Civil List provisions is required to meet the cost of the staff who deal, among other things, with state papers and correspondence, the organisation of state occasions, visits and other public engagements undertaken by the Queen in Britain and overseas. The Queen's private expenditure as Sovereign is met from the Privy Purse, which is financed mainly from the revenue of the Duchy of Lancaster; her personal expenditure as a private individual is met from her own personal resources. Under the Civil List Acts, other members of the royal family also receive parliamentary annual allowances to enable them to carry out their public duties. The Prince of Wales, however, receives no such allowance, since as Duke of Cornwall he is entitled to the net revenue of the estate of the Duchy of Cornwall. (He voluntarily surrenders a quarter of this revenue to the Exchequer.) The Queen pays into the Exchequer a sum equivalent to that provided by Parliament for certain members of the royal family. Civil List payments in 1990 amounted to 6.3 million Pounds. From January 1991 these payments will be fixed at 7.9 million Pounds a year for ten years. Parliament Parliament is the supreme legislative authority. Its three elements, the Queen, the House of Lords and the elected House of Commons, are outwardly separate and are constituted on different principles. They meet together only on occasions of symbolic significance such as the state opening of Parliament, when the Commons are summoned by the Queen to the House of Lords. When Parliament legislates, however, the agreement of each of its component parts is normally required. Parliament can legislate for Britain as a whole, for any of the constituent parts of the country separately, or for any combination of them. It can also legislate for the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, which are Crown dependencies and not part of Britain, having subordinate legislatures which make laws on island affairs. As there are no legal restraints imposed by a written constitution, Parliament is able to legislate as it pleases. It can make, abolish or change any law; and can destroy established conventions or turn a convention into law. It can also prolong its own life beyond the normal period without consulting the electorate. In practice, however, Parliament does not assert its supremacy in this way. Its members bear in mind the common law and have tended to act in accordance with precedent and tradition. The validity of an Act of Parliament which has been duly passed, promulgated and published cannot be disputed in the law courts, but no Parliament would be likely to pass an Act which it knew would receive no public support. The House of Commons is directly responsible to the electorate, and in this century the House of Lords has recognised the priority of the elected chamber. The system of party government helps to ensure that Parliament legislates with its responsibility to the electorate in mind. As a member of the European Community, Britain recognises the various types of Community legislation and wider policies, and sends 81 elected members to the European Parliament. The Functions of Parliament The main functions of Parliament are (1) to pass laws, (2) to provide, by voting taxation, the means of carrying on the work of government, (3) to scrutinise government policy and administration, including proposals for expenditure, and (4) to debate the major political issues of the day. In discharging these functions Parliament helps to bring the relevant facts and issues before the electorate. By custom, Parliament is also informed before the ratification of all important international treaties and agreements. The making of treaties is, however, a royal prerogative exercised on the advice of the Government and is not subject to parliamentary approval. The Meeting of Parliament A Parliament has a maximum duration of five years, but is often dissolved and a general election held before the end of this term. The maximum life has been prolonged by legislation in rare circumstances such as the two world wars. Dissolution and writs for a general election are ordered by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister. The life of a Parliament is divided into sessions. Each usually lasts for one year-beginning and ending most often in October or November. It is interspersed with `adjournments' at night, at weekends, at Christmas, Easter and the late (English) Spring Bank Holiday, and during a long summer recess starting in late July or early August. The average number of `sitting' days in a session is about 170 in the House of Commons and about 160 in the House of Lords. At the start of each session the Queen's speech to Parliament outlines the Government's broad policies and proposed legislative programme. Each session is ended by prorogation. Parliament then `stands prorogued' for about a week until the new session opens. Prorogation terminates nearly all parliamentary business: in particular, Bills which have not been enacted by the end of the session are lost. The House of Lords The House of Lords consists of the Lords Spiritual and the Lords Temporal. The Lords Spiritual are the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Bishops of London, Durham and Winchester, and the 21 next most senior diocesan bishops of the Church of England. The Lords Temporal consist of (1) all hereditary peers and peeresses of England, Scotland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, (2) life peers created to assist the House in its judicial duties (Lords of Appeal or `law lords'), and (3) all other life peers. Hereditary peerages carry a right to sit in the House (subject to certain disqualifications), provided the holder establishes his or her claim and is aged 21 years or over. However, anyone succeeding to a peerage may, within 12 months of succession, disclaim that peerage for his or her lifetime. Disclaimants lose their right to sit in the House but gain the right to vote and to offer themselves as candidates at parliamentary elections. Peerages, both hereditary and life, are conferred by the Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister. They are usually granted in recognition of service in politics or other walks of life or because one of the political parties wishes to have the recipient in the House of Lords. The House provides a place in Parliament for men and women whose advice is useful, but who do not wish to be involved in party politics. In mid-1990 there were 1,189 members of the House of Lords, including the two archbishops and 24 bishops. The Lords Temporal consisted of 764 hereditary peers who had succeeded to their titles, 20 hereditary peers who have had their titles conferred on them (including the Prince of Wales), and 379 life peers, of whom 19 were `law lords'. Of the total, 88 peers were not in receipt of a writ of summons and some 142 peers were on leave of absence from the House. Irish peerages do not entitle their holders to membership of the House of Lords, but some peers of Ireland are entitled to sit in the House of Lords as holders of an English, Scottish, Great Britain or United Kingdom peerage. Not all peers with a right to sit in the House of Lords attend the sittings. Peers who attend the House (the average daily attendance is some 320) receive no salary for their parliamentary work, but can recover expenses incurred in attending the House (for which there are maximum daily rates) and certain travelling expenses. The House is presided over by the Lord Chancellor, who takes his place on the woolsack as ex-officio Speaker of the House. In his absence his place may be taken by a deputy speaker, a deputy chairman or, if neither is present, by a speaker chosen by the Lords present. The first of the deputy speakers is the Chairman of Committees, who is appointed at the beginning of each session and takes the chair in all committees, unless the House decides otherwise. The Chairman and the Principal Deputy Chairman of Committees are Lords, but receive salaries as officers of the House. The permanent officers of the House include the Clerk of the Parliaments, who is responsible for the records of proceedings and for the promulgation of Acts of Parliament. He is the accounting officer for money voted to the House, and is in charge of the administrative staff of the House, known as the Parliament Office. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod, who is also Serjeant-at-arms in attendance upon the Lord Chancellor, is responsible for security, accommodation and services in the House of Lords' part of the Palace of Westminster. The Yeoman Usher is Deputy Serjeant-at-Arms and assists Black Rod in his duties. The House of Commons The House of Commons is elected by universal adult suffrage and consists of 650 Members of Parliament (MPs). At present there are 43 women, one Asian and three black MPs. Of the 650 seats, 523 are for England, 38 for Wales, 72 for Scotland, and 17 for Northern Ireland. General elections are held after a Parliament has been dissolved and a new one summoned by the Queen. When an MP dies or resigns or is given a peerage, a by-election takes place. Members are paid an annual salary of 26,701 Pounds (from January 1990) and an office costs allowance of up to 24,903 Pounds. There are also a number of other allowances, including travel allowances, a supplement for London members and, for provincial members, subsistence allowances and allowances for second homes. (For ministers' salaries, see p 19.) The chief officer of the House of Commons is the Speaker, elected by MPs to preside over the House. Other officers are the Chairman of Ways and Means and two deputy chairmen, who act as Deputy Speakers, elected by the House on the nomination of the Government but drawn from the Opposition as well as the government party. They, like the Speaker, neither speak nor vote other than in their official capacity. Overall responsibility for the staffing, budget and administration of the House rests with the House of Commons Commission, a statutory body chaired by the Speaker. Permanent officers (who are not MPs) include the Clerk of the House of Commons, who is the principal adviser to the Speaker on its privileges and procedures. His department has responsibilities relating to the conduct of the business of the House and its many committees. The Clerk is also accounting officer for the House. The Serjeant-at-Arms, who waits upon the Speaker, carries out certain orders of the House, is the official housekeeper of the Commons' part of the building, and is responsible for its security. Other officers serve the House in the Library, the Department of the Official Report (Hansard), the Administration Department and the Refreshment Department. Parliamentary Electoral System For electoral purposes Britain is divided into constituencies, each of which returns one member to the House of Commons. To ensure equitable representation four permanent Parliamentary Boundary Commissions, one each for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, make periodic reviews of constituencies and recommend any adjustment of seats that may seem necessary in the light of population movements or other changes. Elections are by secret ballot. British citizens, together with citizens of other Commonwealth countries and citizens of the Irish Republic resident in Britain, may vote provided they are aged 18 or over, registered in the annual register of electors for the constituency and not subject to any disqualification. People not entitled to vote include members of the House of Lords, patients detained under mental health legislation, sentenced prisoners and people convicted within the previous five years of corrupt or illegal election practices. Service voters (members of the armed forces and their spouses, Crown servants and staff of the British Council employed overseas, together with their wives or husbands if accompanying them) may be registered for an address in a constituency where they would live but for their service. The Representation of the People Act 1989 extended the right to vote for British citizens living abroad by increasing from 5 to 20 years the period during which they may apply to be registered to vote. Each elector may cast one vote, normally in person at a polling station. Anyone who is entitled to an absent vote may vote by post or by proxy, but their postal ballot papers cannot be sent to addresses outside Britain. Service voters, overseas electors, electors who are physically incapacitated or unable to vote in person because of the nature of their work may vote by post (unless they are abroad at the time of the election) or by proxy for an indefinite period. Under the 1989 Act, any elector whose circumstances on polling day are such that he or she cannot reasonably be expected to vote in person at his or her allotted polling station-for example, an elector away on holiday-may apply for an absent vote. Voting is not compulsory; 74.6 per cent of a total electorate of 43.6 million people voted in the general election in June 1987. The simple majority system of voting is used. A candidate is elected if he or she has a majority of votes over the next candidate (although not necessarily an absolute majority over all other candidates.) British citizens and citizens of other Commonwealth countries, together with citizens of the Irish Republic, may stand and be elected as MPs provided they are aged 21 or over and are not subject to any disqualification. Those disqualified include undischarged bankrupts; people sentenced to more than one year's imprisonment; clergy of the Church of England, Church of Scotland, Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic Church; peers; and holders of certain offices listed in the House of Commons DisqualificationAct 1975. The latter include holders of judicial office, civil servants, some local government officers, members of the regular armed forces, or the police service, some members of public corporations and government commissions, and also British members of the legislature of any country or territory outside the Commonwealth. A candidate's nomination for election must be signed by two electors as proposer and seconder, and by eight other electors registered in the constituency. He or she does not require any party backing. A candidate must also deposit 500 Pounds, which is forfeited if his or her votes do not exceed 5 per cent of those validly cast. The maximum sum a candidate may spend on a general election campaign is 3,648 Pounds plus 3.1 pence for each elector in a borough constituency or 4.1 pence for each elector in a county constituency. A candidate may post an election address to each elector in the constituency, free of charge. All election expenses, apart from the candidate's personal expenses, are subject to the statutory limit. A review of candidates' election expenses is in progress.