the strucutre + role of parliment Flashcards
which two historical events influenced the development of parliament
the magna carta and the first government
when was the first parliament
1707
How is parliament structured
The house of commons
the house of lords
the monarch
how is the government kept to account
pmqs
select committee
the speaker
define bicameral
two houses
How much do peers in the house of lords earn a day
£350 if they sign the register
What is the function of the house of lords
Make and change laws
scrutinise laws that come through the chamber
How many seats are reserved for the church
26 seats for bishops of the “lords spiritual’ church of england
What is a crossbencher
Do not affiliate with a party
4 types of people in the house of lords
retired politicians
members of the church
life peers
hereditary peers
How many lords
785 sitting members
3 ways the house of lords hold government to account
scrutinse government, press government for action, debate and investigate
role of the house of commons
pass legislation
change taxes
manage public services
role of the house of lords
allow or deny certain bills to be passed by analysing government work and pressing the government for action
how do you gain membership to the house of commons
voted in by your constituency
how do you gain membership to the house of lords
selected life peers, peer ship by the church, hereditary peer
role of the speaker
keeps parliament in order to allow parliamentary debates to take place
powers given to the speaker based on convention
chosen who to speak
can invoke suspension of parliment
not allowed to use the word “liar”
highest authority can defy bills in line with rules and conventions
doesn’t vote unless a tie in this case would vote against in line with convention
what is the ‘hansard’
every single word spoken in parliament narrated and stored
what is ‘the shuffle’ in parliment
questions for the pm chosen at random
what is a ‘whip’
members of the house of lords appointed by each party in parliment to help organise the party’s contribution to parliamentary business
what is a ‘whips’ main business
to make sure the maximum number of their party vote in line with their party’s agenda
who is the speaker
Sir Linsey Hoyle
example of Lindsay hoyle exercising his power to exert members from the chamber
24 may 2023 Conservative MP Paul Bristow removed for disorderly conduct when he interrupted Leader of the Opposition Kier Starmer during PMQS
example of Lindsay hoyle exercising his power to exert members from the chamber
24 may 2023 Conservative MP Paul Bristow removed for disorderly conduct when he interrupted Leader of the Opposition Kier Starmer during PMQS
What are other duties of whips
act as tellers (counting votes)
manage the paring system whereby members of opposing parties act both agree to not vote when other business prevents them from being at the vote
What is “The Whip”
A weekly circular that details the upcoming parliamentary business, specifically votes (divisions) with the number of underlines beneath implying the importance of turning up for the vote
what is a ‘three line whip’
An important vote outlined in ‘the whip’ three times, this signals the importance of the vote usually applying to the second reading of major bills.
what happens if you defy or don’t turn up to a ‘three line whip’
You could face serious disciplinary actions and can be expelled from your party ( have your whip removed) and forced to sit independently
Examples of a three line whip
The vote of no confidence in Liz Truss in October 2022 that was actually a vote on a Labour motion to ban fracking, conservative members were instead told it was a vote of no confidence by conservative deputy chief whip Craig Whittaker
role of the leader of the house
organising government business in the commons, does this by working closely with chief whips
who is leader of the house
penny mordant (june 24)
Three roles of the leader of the house
Scheduling business: every thursday they tell the commons about the business scheduled for the next week and provisional for the week after
Committee membership: They chair one cabinet committee, the parliamentary business and legislation committee
Deputising for the prime minister: The leader can deputise at PMqs or any formal visits
4 main functions of parliment
deliberate
legislative, pass legislation
scrutiny
represent
what is a backbencher
doesn’t have a specific role in parliment
