British insitutions

The Constitution The Constitution The United Kingdom is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy. However, the constitution is not a single document, as in Italy, and most of it is not even in writing; some written parts come from documents as ancient as Magna Carta (1215), or from laws passed by Parliament, or are judgements given in courts. The unwritten parts include important practices that have developed over the years, and publicly accepted conventions. This set of rules has never been formally codified; therefore it is very flexible and can be modified at any time by an act of Parliament, or by people's acceptance of new usages. Therefore, it can be easily adapted to new political situation. The Monarchy The monarchy in Britain is over 1,000 years old and the crown in handed on by hereditary right. The present sovereign is Queen Elizabeth II, of the house of Windsor, who began her reign in 1952. In the long course of British history the sovereign has lost absolute power and now he or she has only representative functions and simply performs a series of official acts of government decided by Parliament. Besides, by tacit agreement the monarch does not take any active part in politics. The British acknowledge the queen or the King to be: The head of the Nation The Head of the legal system The temporal Head of the Church of England The Head of the Commonwealth The Head of the Executive The supreme legislative authority: all laws must receive the monarch-s assent before becoming effective The command in Chief of the Armed Forces Inoltre il monarca: opens each session of Parliament by giving a speech that is prepared opens each session of Parliament by giving a speech that is prepared by the Government Summons and dissolves Parl. Officially agree to legislation passed by Parl. And can put her veto Appoint the Prime Minister (the leader of the party that wins the election) The monarch reigns but not rule. The Parliament The Parliament is a very old institution, dating to the 13TH century. Over the centuries it has seen its power grow at the expense of the sovereign-s prerogatives, stating in 1215 when King John was forced by barons to accept the Magna Carta. This document was a milestone in the development of the British monarchy into a constitutional monarchy as it gave for the first time a class of citizens, the barons control over some of the sovereign-s power. The assembly of barons slip into two branches (barons and high clergy} start the bicameral system. 1689 The bill of rights 1701 Act of settlement They are two fundamental acts limiting the monarch-s rights concerning the use of the money collected though taxation and succession to the throne. Established parliament-s inalienable rights to freedom of debate and legislation. The House of Lords *Upper House Has approximately 1,000 members nor elected by people and belong to one these groups: Princess of the Royal Family Spiritual Lords *archbishops of Canterbury and York a Continua »