Read Text D and answer the questions.

1) Who runs the UK? 2) What does the term “constitutional monarchy” mean? 3) What are the main political parties in the UK? 4) Is there only one parliament in the UK?

Text D. POLITICS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM

The United Kingdom is a unitary democracy governed within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is the head of state and the Prime Minister is of the UK is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by Her Majesty’s Government, on behalf of and by the consent of the Monarch. Legislative power is vested in the two chambersof the Parliamentof the United Kingdom, the House of Commons and the House of Lords, as well as in the Scottish parliament and Welsh and Northern Ireland assemblies. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The highest national court is the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.

The UK political system is a multi-party system. Since the 1920’s, the two largest political parties have been the Conservative Party and the Labour Party.

The constitution of the UK is made up of constitutional conventions, statutes and other elements such as EU law. This system of government, known as the Westminster system, has been adopted by other countries, especially those that were formerly parts of the British Empire.

Study the words and word combinations from Text D and give Russian equivalents. Then translate the text.

To govern, executive power, on behalf of, legislative power, legislature, judiciary, to be vested in, chamber, the House of Commons, the House of Lords, the Supreme Court, multi-party system, law, to adopt.

Look at the highlighted words and word combinations and use some of them in the sentences of your own to describe the political system of Russian Federation.

15. Complete Text E with the appropriate word from the list:powerful, hereditary, important, govern, laws, residents, queen, job, state, Prime Minister, the House of Commons, Church of England, appointed, chosen.

Text E.

The UK is a parliamentary democracy based on a constitutional and (1)… monarchy. Elizabeth II is the (2)… of the UK and is the head of (3) …. Even though she is the head of state, she does not actually (4) … the country. The government, led by the (5)…, governs the country and decides policy.

Parliament is where (6)… and decisions are made. It has three parts: (7)…, the House of Lords and the Queen. The House of Commons is the most (8)… part. It is where Members of Parliament sit. The Commons is the most (9)… place for discussing policies and making laws. The House of Commons has 650 members (MPs) who have been elected by local (10)… to represent an area (constituency) of the country in Parliament. The people who sit in the House of Lords are called peers: they are not (11)… by the people. Most peers are now (12)… by the government. There are some who are hereditary peers (their fathers were peers); and a few others, such as certain bishops in the established (13)…, and the Judiciary (Law Lords). The main (14)… of the House of Lords is to 'double check' new laws to make sure they are fair and will work.

16. Read the text below and decide if the following sentences are True or False, according to the information given in the text.

A. General Elections to Parliament are held annually.

B. The Government is different from Parliament.

C. The leader of the party in power becomes the Prime Minister.

D. The Cabinet is appointed by Parliament.

E. There are 100 Secretaries of State in the UK government.

Parliamentary elections are held once every five years, or less.The leader of the political party with the most MPs in the House of Commons is asked by the Queen to become Prime Minister and to form a government that will manage the country.

The new Prime Minister chooses a team of people from Parliament who will run the country with him. There are normally about 100 people in a UK government. The Prime Minister heads the Government and appointsMinisters, who head individual Government departments. The most important ministers are called Secretaries of State and they form the Cabinet.

The Secretaries of State are in charge of a Government Department (a ministry). Each minister is responsible for his/her department, and makes sure that the department applies the policy of the government.

The most important Secretaries of State are: The Chancellor of the Exchequer (finance); The Foreign Secretary (international affairs); The Home Secretary (internal affairs); The Lord Chancellor (the legal system); The Secretary of State for Education; The Secretary of State for Transport and the Environment.

Every week the Prime Minister appears before the House of Commons and must answer questions put to him or her by the members of Parliament. Traditionally, the official residence of the Prime Minister is at Number 10 Downing Street.

Date: 2016-03-03; view: 2381