Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy. In theory, the constitution has three branches: Parliament, which makes laws, the government, which «executes» laws, i.e. puts them into effect, and the law courts, which interpret laws. Although the Queen is officially head of all three branches, she has little direct power. Her power is limited by Parliament. The organs of government in the United Kingdom are the legislature, the executive, the judiciary.
Parliament is the supreme legislative body. It exists since 1265 and is the oldest Parliament in the world. It can make or unmake any law. The British Parliament consists of two Houses: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords or the Upper House consists of more than 1000 hereditary peers. The House of Commons is nationwide representative body. It has 630 members. They are elected by a universal adult suffrage.
Of two great political parties – Conservative and Labour – the party which gets the majority of seats in the House of Commons is called the Government, and the other the Opposition. The Government may hold office for five years.
Any member of the House of Commons may introduce a bill. After three readings in the House of Commons it must be approved by the House of Lords. After that the monarch signs the bill and it becomes an Act of Parliament.
The executive power of Great Britain is represented by the Prime-Minister and the Cabinet. The Cabinet includes the ministers in charge of major government departments or ministries. Departments and ministries are run by civil servants, who are permanent officials. Even if the Government changes after an election, the same civil servants are employed. The monarch must act on their advice. Members of the Cabinet are chosen by the Prime-Minister from his own political party in Parliament.
The Prime-Minister’s authority over the Cabinet colleagues has tendency to increase and some decisions are made by the Prime-Minister alone. The Prime-Minister can make decisions without consulting the Cabinet. The Prime-Minister appoints about 25 ministers in the Cabinet and about 50 junior ministers. The Cabinet plans, drafts and passes to Parliament all important bills. The Cabinet is also subject to Parliament as it must defend its policy in debate.
The judiciary is the third branch of the British Government. It is represented by the final appellate court, the House of Lords; the Court of Appeal, the intermediate appellate court and trial courts.
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