The House of Commons: Its Functions, Symbols, and Significance, Appunti di Inglese

Scarica The House of Commons: Its Functions, Symbols, and Significance e più Appunti in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! THE HOUSE OF COMMONS - It was formed in 1332. - As the time passed by, the rights of the citizens increased and, as a consequence, the king and the nobility became less powerful. The balance of power swung eventually to the Commons. - It has 437 seats for 650 members, each of them representing a dierent area of the Uk. - The members of the House of Commons are publicly elected every 5 years. To become a member you must be 18, not in prison and not a lord or the Monarch. - Remember that the Monarch isn’t allowed to enter the House of Commons. - The Prime Minister is the leader of the party with the most Mps elected. - Whenever the Government wants to raise taxes or make new laws, the House of Commons has to agree. Otherwise the bill, which is like the idea of a new law, will return to the member of parliament who proposed it. The bill must be approved by both Houses, and then the Monarch gives his formal approval, and the bill becomes law. ➔ What does the House of Commons do? It has 4 main functions: - To debate important issues; - To make and revise the laws; - To represent the public; - To hold the government to account: Every week for 30 minutes the Prime Minister comes to the House of Commons to answer questions made by the other members of Parliament. There are also Select Committees : MPs spend time to review the policy and the spending of the government: that is what it’s called scrutiny. The MPs speak with experts to understand how the laws could aect everyday life. ➔ How is the chamber laid out? - There are 2 sides. On one side there is the government which runs the country by introducing ideas for new laws, and on the other side there is the Opposition, who keep an eye on what the government is doing and challenges it . - The Commons’ Speaker sits at the head of the room to keep the order by chairing the debates. - The Prime Minister is the one who leads the government and appoints the ministers to create a cabinet, which sits in the bench. The members of the cabinet coordinate the work of dierent government departments. ➔ Symbols - When the House of Commons is sitting, a mace is placed on the table of the House. When the House is in committee, it rests on two brackets underneath the table. It represents the royal authority. - In front of each set of benches a red line is drawn. The MPs are traditionally not allowed to cross it during debates. They stand 2 swords and 1 inch- length apart, this is because they allude to the Middle Age, when the MPs carried swords. It’s also a reminder to seek resolutions by peaceful means. - Color green represents life.