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1、英语国家概况,1,Guide to English-Speaking Countries,英语国家概况,英语国家概况,The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,英语国家概况,Chapter 3 Government and the Commonwealth,The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,英语国家概况,Political Parties,Constitution,Government,Election,The Commonwealth,CON
2、TENT,Constitution,I,Great Britain (UK) is a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarch as the head of state British Constitution is made up of: Statutory Law (成文法) Common Law (判例法) Conventions (习惯法),1.1 Statutory Law passed by Parliamentexample the Magna Carta (1215)which protects the rig
3、hts of the community against the Crown the Bill of Rights (1689) which extends the powers of Parliament the Reform Act (1832) which reforms the parliamentary electoral system the European Communities Act (1972) the European Communities (Amendment) Act (1986) which defines the relationship between Br
4、itain and the European Community(欧共体）.,Constitution,1.2 Common law （判例法）deduced from custom or legal precedents and interpreted in court cases by judges1.3 Conventions （习惯法）rules and practices which do not exist legally, but are regarded as vital to the working of government .(for example: The monar
5、ch reigns but does not rule. ),1. Constitution,Government,2.1 The Legislature,2.2 The Executive,2.3 The Judiciary,2.1 The Legislature,Basic Structure of UK Central Government,Monarch(non-political),LegislatureParliament,Executive,Judiciary (non-political),House of Commons (political),House of Lords(
6、semi-political),Prime Minister & Cabinet (political),Ministers & Civil service(non-political),House of Lords,Court of Appeal,2.1.1 Parliament,Parliamentthe law-making body of Britain one of the oldest representative assemblies in the world (in the mid-13th century)Strictly speaking, the parliament c
7、onsists of the King or Queen, the House of Lords (上议院), the House of Commons (下议院),Queen Elizabeth IIBorn: April 21, 1926Queen since June 2, 1953 Queen Elizabeth II is a “constitutional monarch” Although she is officially the head of state, the country is actually run by the government and led by th
8、e Prime Minister.,2.1.2 Queen,Buckingham Palace,2.1.2 Queen,Queen Elizabeth II,2.1.2 Queen,She reigns but does not rule! Theoretically, she is the source of all government powers:an integral part of the legislaturehead of the executive, executive and judiciary branchesthe commander-in-chief of all a
9、rmed forces of the Crown “supreme governor” of the Church of England More ,Q. What powers does the Queen have?,2.1.2 Queen,In reality, her role is “ceremonial, unpolitical and symbolic”:State opening of the Parliament(国会开议大典 )Royal assent to new lawMeeting with the Prime Minister at Buckingham Palac
10、ePay state visits to Commonwealth countries as head of state and non-Commonwealth countries on behalf of the British government,2.1.2 Queen,From Buckingham to Westminster,The State Opening of Parliament Wednesday November 26, 2003,2.1.2 Queen,2.1.3 The House of Lords,often referred to as “the Upper
11、House”The Lords Spiritual (上议院神职议员) (archbishops and prominent bishops of the Church of England),The House of Lords in the early 19th century,The Lords Temporal (上议院世俗议员) (hereditary peers and life peers and the Law Lords）上议院高级法官),The Upper House ReformsReduce the number of seats from 705 to 666 (Ma
12、r. 1, 2004)Final court of appealSupreme Court,The House of Lords meets in a lavishly decorated chamber in the Palace of Westminster (also called Red Chamber),2.1.3 The House of Lords,2.1.4 The House of Commons,Often referred to as “the Lower House” (center of parliamentary power)Three major function
13、sto pass laws, bills and acts of Parliamentto scrutinize, criticize and restrain the actions of the government to influence the future government policy,646 Members of Parliament, known as “MPs” for short, who represent the 646 geographical areas / constituencies,2.1.4 The House of Commons,2.2.1 The
14、 Prime Ministerpowerful leaderhead of the governmentthe leader of the majority party in Parliamentcontrols the Parliament2.2.2 The Cabinetsupreme decision-making body in the British government Cabinet members are chosen by the Prime Minister from members of his own party in Parliament.,2.2 The Execu
15、tive,The Cabinet works on the principle of collective responsibility and individual ministerial responsibility Ministers responsible for their particular department(most senior members are the Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary)Collective respons
16、ibility or resignation,2.2 The Executive,Civil Servants,Members of the Civil Service are called Civil Servants. They staff government departments. Civil Servants are recruited mainly by competitive examination. Civil servants do not belong to any political party. Changes of Government do not involve
17、 changes in departmental staff, There are about 541,800 civil servants in Britain now.A 140B 125C 100D 85E 60,2.2.2 Privy Councila body of advisors (450 members)current and former Cabinet members and important public figures Its main duty is to give advice,2.2 The Executive,2.3 The Judiciary,Proceed
18、ingsAll criminal trials are held in open court because the criminal law presumes the innocence of the accused until he has been approved guilty beyond reasonable doubtIn criminal trials by jury, the judge passes sentence but the jury decides the issue of guilt and innocence.,Two branches of lawCivil
19、 lawdefines and enforces the duties or obligations of persons to one anotherCriminal lawby contrast, defines and enforces the obligations of persons to society as a whole,English Judges,2.3 The Judiciary,The Court System,Civil branch,Criminalbranch,2.3 The Judiciary,Political Parties,3.1 The Conserv
20、ative Party,3.2 The Labor Party,3.3 The Liberal Democrats,3.0 Overall Introduction,3.0 Overall Introduction,The Parliament operates on a two-party system. Political parties originated in the late 17th century.the Whig PartyLiberal Party the Tory PartyConservative Party,3.1 The Conservative Party,the
21、 “Right”landowners and businessmen, the middle and upper-middle class free enterprise and privatization of state-owned firms,Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990)The Iron Lady privatized state-owned industries and promoted a more competitive spirit in Britains economy reduced old age pensions, shortened the
22、 period of unemployment benefits, and cut child benefitscurbed the power of the trade unions,3.1 The Conservative Party,3.2 The Labor Party,the “Left” created by the growing trade union movement at the end of the 19th centuryAfter 1945to establish a welfare statenationalized industriesexercised cont
23、rol over private industries to revive the primary industries,Recent Prime Ministers from the leftTony Blair (1997-2006) “Third Way” made the Bank of England independent (separate politics and economic policy) put an emphasis on the minimum wage and supplementing low incomes,Gordon Brown (June 27, 20
24、07),3.2 The Labor Party,3.3 The Liberal Democrats,An amalgamation of the old Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party (the latter being a breakaway group from the Labor Party, formed in 1981)advocates policies based on freedom of the individualremains a minority party a party of protest rather
25、than a real alternative for government,Election,held every five years in the 646 constituencies (unless a Motion of No Confidence is passed by the House of Commons)candidate who wins in each constituency becomes a Member of Parliament The party which holds the majority of “seats” in Parliament forms
26、 the government, with its party leader becoming the Prime Minister.,The Commonwealth,5.1 The Origin of the Commonwealth,5.2 Characteristics and Functions,5.3 Members of the Commonwealth,5.4 Organizations of the Commonwealth,5.5 Commonwealth Day,5.1 Origin of the Commonwealth,The Commonwealth of Nati
27、ons is the successor of the British Empire. In 1949, “British” was dropped from the title of “Commonwealth”. In 1949, the London Declaration (often considered a milestone in the history of the modern Commonwealth) accepted and recognized Indias continued membership as a republic.From 1960 onwards, n
28、ew members joined the Commonwealth.,5.1 Origin of the Commonwealth,a voluntary association of independent sovereign states to advocate (提倡) democracy, human rights, and to promote economic cooperation and growth of its members,5.2 Characteristics and Functions,an organization composed of 53 states i
29、n 2005a population of approximately 1.8 billion people, some 30 percent of the worlds total population,5.3 Members of the Commonwealth,The headquarters are all located in London.Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) Commonwealth Ministers Meeting held annuallyThe Commonwealth Secretariat
30、The Commonwealth Foundation and other professional associations,5.4 Organizations of the Commonwealth,the second Monday in March every yearan opportunity to promote understanding of global issues, international cooperation and the efforts to improve the lives of its 1.8 billion citizens,5.5 Commonwealth Day,英语国家概况,Thank You !,英语国家概况,
