British Institutions

Parliament

Parliament is the most important authority in Britain. Parliament first met in the 13th century and its powers developed gradually. Bri­tain does not have a written constitution, but a set of laws.

  1215: the nobles forced King John to accept Magna Charta;

  1264: the first parliament of nobles met,

1689: Declaration of Rights. Mary I and William III became the first constitutional monarchs. They could rule only with the support of the Parliament; since then the power of Parliament has grown under a number of Acts of Parliament. Technically Parliament is made up of three parts: The Monarch, the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

The Monarchy

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy which means that the sovereign reigns but does not rule. The continuity of the English monarchy has been interrupted only once from 1649-1659 during the Cromwell republic. Succession to the throne is hereditary but only for Protestants in the direct line of descent. The monarch has a number of roles and serves formally as head of state, head of the executive, head of the judiciary, head of the legislature, com­mander-in-chief of the armed farces, and "supreme governor” of the Church of England. The monarch is expected to be politically neutral, and should not make political decisions, and in fact, he acts only on the advice of political ministers and cannot make laws, im­pose taxes, spend public money or act unilaterally. In this sense con­temporary Britain is governed by Her Majesty Government in the name of the Queen. Nevertheless the monarch still performs some important executive and legislative duties including opening and dis­solving Parliament, signing bills which have been passed by both Houses ( the Royal Assent), holding audiences with the Prime Mi­nister and fulfilling international duties as head of the state.

The monarch is a permanent part of the British political system, unlike temporary politicians, and therefore often has a greater know­ledge of domestic and international politics. The present sovereign is Queen Elizabeth II who was crowned in Westminster abbey in 1953. Arguments against the monarchy as a continuing institution in British life maintain that it is out-of-date, too expensive and nondemocratic, while arguments in favour suggest that it has developed and adapted to modern requirements and that it demonstrates stability, is not sub­ject to political manipulation and performs an important ambassado­rial function in Britain and overseas. The British public in general shows considerable affection for the Royal Family over and above its representative role.