parliament Flashcards
who is the executive and what do they do?
government and they propose the law
who is the legislative and what do they do?
parliament and they make the law
who is the judiciary and what do they do?
judges and they enforce the law
what did the french 18th century philosopher Montesquieu say about separation of powers
all powers of the state could be divided into 3 types and in order for a state to be successful, they must have separate roles and duties so not one branch becomes too powerful.
what are the 3 parts to parliament
the monarch, house of commons and the house of lords
how many members of parliament are elected from constituencies throughout the uk at least once every five years
650
why does the house of commons have more power now than the house of lords
because they are democratically elected
what is the role of the house of commons
to scrutinise proposals before making them law or statute
how many ministers does the government consist of
100
how many leading ministers will sit in the cabinet
20 or so
what is the governments job
to suggest policies that it believes will improve the way the country functions to parliament.
how many peers are in the house of lords
750
true or false the peer that sit in the house of lords elected
false
who selects the peers for the house of lords
the prime minister
who appoints the peers for the house of lords
the queen
what limited powers do the lords have
- power to veto a bill is only for one year- parliament act 1949
- no powers over money bills
what is the lords job
to scrutinise bills as thoroughly as possible and use delaying powers to make the commons think again
on what 4 occasions have the house of lords voted against a bill
- war crimes act 1991
- European parliamentary elections act 1999
- sexual offences (amendment) act 2000
- hunting act 2004
explain the case of R( jackson and others) v attorney general 2005
F: challenge that the hunting act was constitutionally invalid
H: parliament act 1949 merely places limits on the power of the unelected house of lords and did not increase the power of the commons (therefore the hunting act 2004 had been validly enacted)
when was the last time a monarch refused to sign a bill passed by parliament and who was it
1707 queen anne
list the 4 influences on parliament
political parties
public opinion
pressure groups
lobbyists
how do political parties influence parliament
parties publish a list of reforms they would carry out if they were elected as the next government, government have a major say on what new laws will be put before the house of lords for debate, the queens speech announces its plans for new laws in that session
how does public opinion influence parliament
strong public opinion about a change to the law, the government may bow to such opinion this is mostly towards the end of a term of government wants to remain popular with the majority of people. the media play a large role in bringing public opinion to the government’s attention. where an issue is given a high profile on tv and news then this also brings it to the attention of other members of the public and may add to the weight of public opinion
how do pressure groups influence parliament
an organisation which seeks to influence policy or protect or advance a particular cause of interest they seek to exercise power from the outside rather than to win or exercise governmental power the members of pressure groups are united by shared beliefs or a common goal.
what are sectional pressure groups
they aim to protect the interest of their members, represent a section of society, memberships are usually select
what are cause pressure groups
membership isnt exclusive theyre open to everyone who shares some ideology, promote issues and policies which dont exclusively benefit their members wide variety of methods used.
how do lobbyists influence parliament
people try to persuade individual members of parliament to support their cause this is called lobbying any individual can lobby but most is done by professionals by charities, businesses or trade associations and has a significant influence on legislation usually to persuade an MP who has won a place in the ballot to promote a bill on the issues that concern the lobbyist.
list some advantages to political influences
+each political party has its proposals for reform ready so that if they are elected as the government they and the electorate know what they wish to do
+government has a majority in the house of commons which means that virtually every law it proposes will be passed in this way the government is reflecting the majority of the electorate
list some disadvantages to political influences
- if a different party is elected at the next general election they may repeat or alter some f the law that the previous government passed which can be costly and open to criticism
- if government is a small majority may be restricted in what laws it can propose coalition government is where 2 parties have to combine in order to have the majority of MPS there will be a compromise on what policies are followed
list some advantages to public opinion
+affected by specific events and these may also play a role in formulating the law
+the uk has a free pass advantage as members of the press are able to criticise government policy or bring another issue to the attention of the government
+social media allows government to consider a law while it is fresh in the public consciousness
list some disadvantages to public opinion
- government may respond too quickly to high profile incidents this can lead to law being created too quickly and not thought through so it is poorly drafted
- media can manipulate the news and create public opinion
list some advantages of pressure groups
+large memberships that can exceed those of political parties can raise an issue of concern to a large number of people
+pressure groups often raise important issues environmental groups have made the government much more aware of the damage being done to our environment by greenhouse gases, fuels and other pollutants.
list some disadvantages to pressure groups
- seeking to impose their ideas even where the majority of the public don’t support their views
- opposing views
list some advantages of lobbyists
bring issues to attention of mps this may lead to a debate in parliament, publicity for the issue and even to a change in the law. professional lobbyists particularly those used by pressure groups are good at presenting the issues in the best way and making a case for the issue. it’s a system that can be used by anyone individuals and large organisation there are procedures to allow individuals to have access to their mp for the purpose of lobbying both at parliament and at local constituency level
list some disadvantages of lobbyists
using professional lobbyists can lead to an abuse of the process this was especially seen when mps were paid to ask questions it means that financially successful business or other organisations have more influence then ordinary members of the public
explain the government bill
introduced by the government e.g. coroners and justice act 2009
explain he private members bill
introduced by back bench mps ballot and 10 minute rule e.g. abortion act 1967 and bail (amendment) act 1993
explain the public bill
aimed at the public as a whole e.g. legal aid sentencing and punishment act 2012 - limited who can claim legal aid
explain private bills
only affect individual people or corporations e.g. faversham oyster fishery company act 2017- changes to the way to company was run
explain hybrid bills
cross between public and private bills introduced by the government but will only affect a particular person
what are the two distinct stages in the life of a bill
the whitehall stage and the westminster stage
explain what the whitehall stage is
the stage where the idea for the bill is being discussed and the early planning is done. often involves consultations with interested parties and it is here that pressure groups will hope to have influence as once the bill has been written it is much more difficult to influence it
explain the west minister stage
where the bill is presented to parliament so that it can be turned into an act of parliament
what is a green paper
a consultative document issued by the minister on a topic in which the governments view is put forward with online reform proposals
true or false interested parties are invited to send comments to the relevant government department so that a full consideration of all views can be made and necessary changes made to the government’s proposals.
true
what is a white paper
a white paper may be published with it’s firm proposals of new law or will go ahead with draft legislation. sometimes a white paper may be issued instead of a green paper setting out the governments firm proposals for new law before issuing legislation.
what type of opportunity will there be to comment on proposals in a white paper
limited
what happens after the white paper stage
parliamentary counsel draft the bill using precise language
explain the westminster stage through the house of commons
1st reading 2nd reading committee stage report stage third reading
explain the westminster stage through the house of lords
1st reading 2nd reading committee stage report stage 3rd reading
what happens in the westminster stage after the house of lords and commons
amendments are considered and the royal assent
what are the advantages of the legislative process
+democratic
+full reform
+broad policy
+consultation
what are the disadvantages of the legislative process
- parliament has little time or political will to consider every reform proposed
- judges using precedent can only rule on the point of law in the case they are deciding
- there are so many detailed rules needed that it isnt always possible to include them all in an act of parliament
- parliament leave little time for private members bills
