英語國(guó)家概況Chapter 3

1、英語國(guó)家概況英語國(guó)家概況The United The United Kingdom of Great Kingdom of Great Britain and Britain and Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland The United Kingdom of Great The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandBritain and Northern Ireland Political Parties ConstitutionGovernment Election The Commonwe

2、althIIIIIIIVVCONTENT ConstitutionIvGreat Britain (UK) is a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarch vking or queen : the head of state, symbolic power vBritish Constitution is made up of: Statutory Law (成文法，制定法成文法，制定法) Common Law (判例法，普通法判例法，普通法) Conventions (習(xí)慣法，衡平法習(xí)慣法，衡平法) Constitutio

3、nI v1.1 Statutory Lawpassed by Parliamentexample the Magna Carta (1215) the Bill of Rights (1689) the Reform Act (1832) the European Communities Act (1972) the European Communities (Amendment) Act (1986) Constitution v1.2 Common law deduced from custom or legal precedents and interpreted in court ca

4、ses by judgesv1.3 Conventions rules and practices which do not exist legally, but are regarded as vital to the working of government 1. Constitution vDivision of power vLegislature 立法機(jī)關(guān)立法機(jī)關(guān)vExecutive 行政部門行政部門vJudiciary 司法部門司法部門 1. Constitution GovernmentII 2.1 The Legislature 2.2 The Executive 2.3 T

5、he Judiciary 2.1 The LegislatureBasic Structure of UK Central GovernmentMonarch(non-political)LegislatureParliamentExecutive Judiciary (non-political)House of Commons (political)House of Lords(semi-political)Prime Minister & Cabinet (political)Ministers & Civil service(non-political) House o

6、f LordsCourt of Appeal 2.1.1 Parliament vParliamentthe law-making body of Britain one of the oldest representative assemblies in the world Strictly speaking, the parliament consists of the King or Queen, the House of Lords (上議院), the House of Commons (下議院) vQueen Elizabeth IIBorn: April 21, 1926Quee

7、n since June 2, 1953 vQueen Elizabeth II is a “constitutional monarch” Although she is officially the head of state, the country is actually run by the government and led by the Prime Minister.2.1.2 Queen Queen Elizabeth II2.1.2 Queen Buckingham Palace 2.1.2 Queen In reality, her role is “ceremonial

8、, unpolitical and symbolic”:vState opening of the ParliamentvRoyal assent to new lawvMeeting with the Prime Minister at Buckingham PalacevPay state visits to Commonwealth countries as head of state and non-Commonwealth countries on behalf of the British government2.1.2 Queen 2.1.3 The House of Lords

9、 vThe Lords Spiritual (上議院神職議員上議院神職議員) v(archbishops and prominent bishops of the Church of England) vThe Lords Temporal (上議院世俗議員上議院世俗議員) (hereditary peers and life peers and the Law Lords) 2.1.3 The House of LordsvThe main legislative function of the House of Lords:v Examine and revise bills from t

10、he House of CommonsThe House of Lords meets in a lavishly decorated chamber in the Palace of Westminster vThe Upper House ReformsReduce the number of seats from 705 to 666 (Mar. 1, 2004)Final court of appealSupreme Court2.1.3 The House of Lords 2.1.4 The House of Commons vCenter of parliamentary pow

11、ervThree major functionsto pass laws, bills and acts of Parliamentto scrutinize, criticize and restrain the actions of the government to influence the future government policy v646 Members of Parliament, known as “MPs” for short, who represent the 646 geographical areas2.1.4 The House of Commons Gov

12、ernment: Prime Minister, Cabinet ministers2.2.1 The Prime Ministerpowerful leadervthe leader of the majority party in Parliamentvcontrols the Parliament vhead of the government2.2 The Executive 2.2.2 The Cabinetvcenter of political system vsupreme decision-making body in the British government vWeek

13、ly on Thursday at 10 Downing Street vTwo branches of lawCivil lawdefines and enforces the duties or obligations of persons to one anotherCriminal lawby contrast, defines and enforces the obligations of persons to society as a wholeEnglish Judges2.3 The Judiciary 2.3 The JudiciaryvProceedings 訴訟訴訟All

14、 criminal trials are held in open court because the criminal law presumes the innocence of the accused until he has been approved guilty beyond reasonable doubt.In criminal trials by jury, the judge passes sentence but the jury decides the issue of guilt and innocence. Political PartiesIII 3.1 The C

15、onservative Party 3.2 The Labor Party 3.3 The Liberal Democrats 3.0 Overall Introduction 3.0 Overall IntroductionvThe Parliament : a two-party system. vPolitical parties originated in the late 17th century.the Whig PartyLiberal Party(protestant reformer) the Tory PartyConservative Party(support the

16、King or Church of England) The Conservative Party From Tories (a political group which appeared under King Charles II) DevelopmentThe Labor Party By Unionists, liberals, socialists and the Fabian SocietyComparative Description on the two major parties:3.0 Overall Introduction The Conservative Party

17、the middle of the 19th century (old) TimeThe Labor Party in 1900 (young)Comparative Description on the two major parties (cont.):3.0 Overall Introduction The Conservative PartyRight wing party They stand for private enterprise and freedom from state control. CharacteristicsThe Labor Party Left wing

18、party They stand for national and communal growth.Comparative Description on the two major parties (cont.):3.0 Overall Introduction The Conservative Party middle& upper-middle classPeople of higher position SupportersThe Labor Party Working class and common people relatively poor or underprivile

19、gedComparative Description on the two major parties (cont.):3.0 Overall Introduction 3.1 The Conservative Party vthe “Right”landowners and businessmen, the middle and upper-middle class free enterprise and privatization of state-owned firms David Cameron 3.2 The Labor Partyvthe “Left” created by the

20、 growing trade union movement at the end of the 19th centuryAfter 1945to establish a welfare statenationalized industriesexercised control over private industries to revive the primary industries v Recent Prime Ministers from the leftTony Blair (1997-2006) “Third Way” Gordon Brown (June 27, 2007-201

21、0)3.2 The Labor Party 3.3 The Liberal DemocratsvIn 1988 vAn amalgamation of the old Liberal Party and the Social Democratic PartyvMiddle partyvremains a minority party IV ElectionvEvery five years in the 646 constituenciesvcandidate who wins in each constituency becomes a Member of Parliament vThe p

22、arty which holds the majority of “seats” in Parliament forms the government, with its party leader becoming the Prime Minister. The CommonwealthV 5.1 The Origin of the Commonwealth 5.2 Characteristics and Functions 5.3 Members of the Commonwealth 5.4 Organizations of the Commonwealth 5.5 Commonwealt

23、h Day 5.1 Origin of the CommonwealthvThe Commonwealth of Nations is the successor of the British Empire. vFrom 1960 onwards, new members joined the Commonwealth. 5.1 Origin of the Commonwealth va voluntary association of independent sovereign statesv to advocate (提倡提倡) democracy, human rights, and to promote economic cooperation and growth of its members 5.2 Characteristics and Functions van organization composed of 53 s