Topic 1: Parliament

Question 1

Parliament (7)

Answer 1

• Made up of monarchy, Commons and Lords
• Only popularly elected institution in UK central government
• Indirect link between government and people
• Representative and responsible government
• Achieved by elections to Commons
• Deliberative
• Supreme law making body

Question 2

The Westminster Model (3)

Answer 2

• Fusion of power between executive and legislature
• Concentrate government decision making in one body
• Main battle between government and opposition

Question 3

Representative and Responsible Government (3)

Answer 3

• Government must be accountable/answerable to an elected body and through that the people
• Achieved through select committees and existence of ‘vote of no confidence’
• Representative as it’s drawn from elected representatives and formed as a result of strong party representation in parliamentary elections

Question 4

Parliamentary Government (8)

Answer 4

• Gov governs through Parliament
• Fusion of legislature and executive
• CHEIF FEATURES:
  
  • Gov formed after getting strong representation in Parliamentary elections
  • Personnel of gov drawn from Parliament
  • Gov responsible to Parliament (‘vote of no confidence’)
  • Gov can dissolve Parliament
  • Cabinet government
  • PM = head of gov, not head of state

Question 5

Presidential Government (7)

Answer 5

• Separation of executive and legislature
• Separate elections
• Separation of personnel
• Legislature can’t remove government
• Fixed-term elections
• Presidentialism
• President = head of gov and head of state

Question 6

Fusion/Separation of Powers (4, 2)

Answer 6

FUSION
- Legislature and executive fused
- Same elections
- Gov drawn from legislature
- PM controls through majority
SEPARATION 
- Separate elections 
- Separate personnel

Question 7

Bicameralism (3)

Answer 7

• Breaking up legislature into two chambers
• Partial bicameralism = chambers are unequal due to reduced power/popular authority e.g UK
• Full bicameralism = co-equal, check each other e.g Congress

Question 8

Accountability (4)

Answer 8

• Ensuring government and representatives are answerable to the people
• Limits their powers by ensuring they act for the people and don’t do what they want
• Indirectly accountable through Parliament e.g PMQs, select committees
• Directly accountable through regular, fair elections - can be deselected