Parliament Flashcards
Describe the New Zealand Parliament
The New Zealand parliament is the representative assembly (House of representatives) of elected members of parliament (MPs) together with the governor general.
Is Parliament the supreme law making body?
Yes, Parliament makes the laws, laws made by parliament cannot be unmade by Judges, or the exectuive. Judges cannot strike down Parliament made law.
Can parliament override the Judicary?
Yes, Parliament can pass acts which override the common law (judge made law through precedent)
How are Governments responsible to Parliament?
They draw their support on the largest number of mps and they are held to account by parliament, which provides a representative and democratic forum for the people. Parliament can pass a vote of no confidence, which would cause the Government to be thrown out and a snap election would occur.
Members of Parliament must be held accountable by the public for decisions they make.
What is an MMP?
MMP, or Mixed Member Proportional representation is a mixed electoral system in which voters get two votes: one to decide the representative for their single-seat constituency, and one for a political party.
What is First Past the post?
In a first-past-the-post electoral system, voters cast their vote for a candidate of their choice, and the candidate who receives the most votes wins. FPTP is a plurality voting method, and is primarily used in systems that use single-member electoral divisions.
Why did New Zealand change to MMP, rather than FPTP?
New Zealand changed their electoral ways because a MMP form of electoral is far more representative than an FPTP system. It allows for minority Governments to gain seats in Parliament if they atleast get 5% of the Vote.
It also means that it is harder for the Government in power to push they’re Government bills through Parliament. This is because MMP makes it harder to form a majority in Parliament and therefore, form a Government. Parties will have to join in coalition with each other to form Government. This means that there is more political head clashing as the two parties in coalition may have different opinions on different bills.
This causes political compromise to be made more often, as the Government in power will have to convince the MP’s of their coalition party to vote with them otherwise their bills cannot be passed.
MMP in essence, gives the Government less power, because the Government will not hold a majority in Parliament by default if they are forced to form a colition to actually get into Government.
MMP Allows for more minority representation. Parties such as the Maori Party and the Greens likely would not exist without MMP, as they represent a small portion of the population. Under FPTP, these parties would likely be absorbed by the two big parties and theyre supporters would not be properly represented in Parliament.
Where does New Zealand take its Parliamentary system from?
The Westminster system of the UK.
What is New Zealands form of Government officaly known as.
A constitutional monarchy.
Who makes up New Zealand Parliament?
Elected representatives known as MPs. (Members of Parliament.)
What are the four main functions of parliament?
to provide representation for the people
to pass the legislation (law) by which the country is governed
to scrutinise the activities of the Government
to approve the supply of public funds to the Government.
