The House of Lords

The upper house of parliament is made up of over 1000 non-elected representatives. In 1958 a new system of peerage was introduced, according to which new members became life peers and could not pass on their title. A distinction is also made between the spiritual lords made up of bishops and archbishops of the Anglican Church and the temporal or worldly lords. These include the members of the royal family and the Law Lords. The Law Lords are highly respected judges, who have been knighted and given a seat in the House of Lords. The Law Lords are qualified to take part in judicial business in the House of Lords.

The chairman of the H of L is the Lord Chancellor, who sits on the Woolsack. The Lord Chancellor is not only the Speaker of the House of Lords, but also a member of the Cabinet; In addition, the Lord Chancellor is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales, serving as the President of the Supreme Court of Judicature. Thus, the Lord Chancellor is a part of all three branches of Government: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial. In June 2003, the Blair Government announced its intention to abolish the post of Lord Chancellor

The presiding officer has little power compared to the Speaker of the House of Commons. He only acts as the mouthpiece of the House, announcing the results of votes. The Lord Chancellor or Deputy Speaker cannot determine which members may speak, or discipline members for violating the rules of the House; these measures may be taken only by the House itself. Unlike the politically neutral Speaker of the House of Commons, the Lord Chancellor remains a member of his party, and may participate in debate.

Members of the House of Lords debate a bill after it has been passed by the House of Commons. Changes may be recommended, and agreement between the two Houses is reached by negotiation. The Lords' main power consists of being able to delay non-financial bills for a period of a few months, but they can also introduce certain types of bills. One of the oldest functions of the House of Lords is judicial. It works as the highest and final Court of Appeal. In modern times, the judicial functions of the House of Lords are performed not by the whole House, but by a group of " Lords of Appeal" who are Lords of Parliament, but normally do not vote or speak on political matters.

III. The government

The cabinet, which is collectively responsible to parliament and which the electorate can only sanction afterwards by voting for the opposition, is usually made up entirely of the leaders of a single party.

Critics of the Westminster model point out the lack of counter balances to check the executive's power and the power of the head of government. Supporters of the Westminster model emphasize its efficiency, its ability to make decisions quickly without being blocked by other institutional powers, its not being forced into compromise, which provides voters with clear alternatives, and its internal systems of correction which can force the resignation of the prime minister and early elections. The executive consists of:

The executive consists of:

a) the Government -- Cabinet and other ministers who are responsible for introducing and directing national policy;

b) government departments, which are responsible for national administration;

c) local authorities, which administer and manage many local services;

The government is made up of «the prime minister, «the Cabinet (the group of senior ministers), • junior ministers, • secretaries of state. The composition of the" Government can vary both in the number of ministers and in the titles of some offices.

The composition of the Cabinet is left to the personal discretion of the Prime Minister who is the leader of the majority party and is appointed by the Sovereign. All other ministers are appointed by the Queen on the recommendation of the prime Minister. The majority of ministers are members of the Commons, although the Government is represented by some ministers in the Lords.

The United Kingdom has a complex system and a long tradition of local government. Local government not only provides an exercise in democracy but also provides services in 5 major fields: «protective (fire, police, consumer protection), •environmental, «personal (education, housing), й social (sports, museums), and •trading (markets, transportation). Local government current expenditures are financed by a combination of central government grants and local rates.

Finances are the principal means of central government control over local authorities.

The British Government is answerable to the House of Commons. Parliament controls the executive by passing or rejecting its Bills and by forcing Ministers of the Crown to answer for their actions, either at " Question Time" or during meetings of the parliamentary committees. In both cases, the Ministers are asked questions by members of their Houses, and are obliged to answer. Although the House of Lords may scrutinise the executive through Question Time and through its committees, it cannot bring about the end of a Government. A ministry must, however, always retain the confidence and support of the House of Commons. The Lower House may indicate its lack of support by rejecting a Motion of Confidence or by passing a Motion of No Confidence..

Where a Government has lost the confidence of the House of Commons, the Prime Minister is obliged to either resign, or seek the dissolution of Parliament and a new general election.