Brush up your knowledge about British system of government and compare it with the American system.
BRITAIN The USA
has the Queen and a Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister is a Member of Parliament.
Each political party chooses a leader.
The leader of the party, which wins the election, becomes Prime Minister.
has a President.
The President is separated from Congress.
The people choose their President in an election.
6 In groups, speak on the following questions.
1 What kind of political system does Ukraine have?
2 How is the power of Ukraine organised?
3 How often are elections held?
4 Who is the head of the state?
5 What questions are discussed at parliamentary sittings?
6 What are the national symbols of Ukraine?
7 a) Look at some facts about British political system and discuss the question after them in groups.
The House of Commons
650 MPs (Members of Parliament), each elected by voters.
Voters are in 650 'constituencies'
(towns or areas in the UK).
The House of Lords
There are no elections for the House of Lords.
The 'Lords' are dukes, barons, earls, marquesses , viscounts and religious leaders.
More than 1,000 members; but
only 100 usually attend.
The House of Lords has very little real power. The members of the House of Lords discuss new laws but can only suggest changes .
The Prime Minister and the Cabinet
The Prime Minister chooses
about 20 MPs to be in the Cabinet. These are the heads of the departments of Employment,
Defense, Industry, Health, etc.
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The 'Government' = The Prime
Minister and the Cabinet.
b) List the things which are the same in Ukraine and the things which are different into two columns.
Is the political system in Ukraine like the one in Britain? Or is it more like the American system?
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READING
8 Read the text about the Declaration on Sovereignty below and say which article of it states that:
the territory of Ukraine is inviolable within the existing borders;
all citizens of Ukraine are equal irrespective of their origin, social and property status, political and religious views;
Ukraine takes measures for environmental protection;
Ukraine has the right to possession utilisation and managing of all the national wealth;
national rights and dignity of all the people of Ukraine are respected;
the Declaration considers the will of all people of Ukraine to create a democratic state.
THE DECLARATION OF STATE OF SOVEREIGNTY OF UKRAINE
On June, 1990, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted
the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine.
The Declaration has 10 Articles:
1 Self-determination 6 Economic independence. of the Ukrainian nation. 7 Ecological security.
2 State sovereignty. 8 Cultural development.
3 Government by the people. 9 External and domestic
4 Citizenship of Ukraine. security.
5 Territorial supremacl. 10 International r lations.
These truths are hold to prove that people of all nationalities including the Ukrainian nation are created equal. So they should build their relationships on the principles of equality, mutual respect
and non-interference in each other's internal affairs.
The Declaration guarantees to all citizens the rights endowed2 by their creator: among these are life, liberty, equality
and security. The Declaration is the basis for the laws of Ukraine.
9 In groups, design a questionnaire to find out people's attitudes towards sovereignty of Ukraine - both positive and negative. Use the questionnaire to collect information from as
many people as you can, then present your findings to the whole class. You may start your questions like this:
1 a plan of action, a set of ideas that is used as a basis for making decisions, especially in politics, economics or business:
- policy on immigration
- home I domestic policy
- school's policy
- to develop a policy
- to pursue a policy
Honesty is the best policy.
politics
1 singular political affairs or life:
- local politics
- to go into politics
- to talk about politics Politics is very important in the modern world.
2 plural person's beliefs about
how government should work: His politics are becoming more conservative.
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join
join or unite?
unite
1 to become a member of an organisation or a group of similar people:
- to join the firm
- to join the army
- to join the unemployed
2 to come together with other people
- to join somebody for dinner
3 to connect two things (also join up)
- to join the pipes together
1 to join together to achieve a particular goal or to work together:
- a policy that unites people
- to unite behind the queen
1 Complete the sentences. Use 1oin' or 'unite' in the right tense form.
1 Mike dreams to ... the army after he leaves school.
2 Children, stand in a circle and ... your hands!
3 It took some time to ... the two halves of the bridge.
4 We agreed that Jane would ... us at King's Cross.
5 We need an idea that can ... us.
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VOCABU ARY
2 Match the words with their definitions.
1 democracy aa formal set of rules that provides rights for all
2 republic citizens, and stops governments from using
3 constitution power unfairly
4 totalitarian ba country in which everyone can vote to
5 oppressive choose the government
6 to govern c a kind of a country or system of government
7 to run is one, in which the government controls every part of people's lives and there is no freedom
dto control a country use this especially about
a powerful person or group that controls a country but has not been elected
eif a political party or group governs a country,
its members make all the important decisions about laws, taxes, relations with other countries, etc.
fa government of this kind treats people in a
cruel way, using military force to prevent any kind of opposition
ga country whose leader is a president, not a
king or queen
1 senator
2 politician
3 the administration
4 ruler
5 president
6 prime minister
7 queen
athe executive branch of a government
bsomeone who works in politics, especially a member of a parliament
c a member of the US Senate or a similar
institution
dthe official leader of a country that does not have a king or queen
e the elected leader of the government in a country that has a parliament
fa woman who is the official leader of a country because she is a member of a royal family, or a woman who is the wife of a king
someone, such as a king or queen or a military leader, who has the power to run the government of a country
VOCABULARY
3 Look at the pairs of the words below. There is a word you know in each pair. Read the sentences and phrases after them and guess what the other word in each pair means.