British Government and Politics.ppt

British Government and Politics 制作：黄增辉 何 东 House of parliament I. Overview on British Government Britain is the oldest representative democracy(代议民主制度) in the world. Other countries also have long political histories but these histories are marked by periods of sudden, and often violent, change. Although Britain too has had its periods of politic instability, in contrast to France, the United States, or China, the process of state-building has been one of evolution rather than revolution. This long and unbroken history is still apparent in Britains current political institutions and in its political culture. From this brief history, we can see that British government today is deeply influenced by its long past. Britain is both a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy. While the official head of state is the Queen, her powers are largely traditional and symbolic. The government at national and locals levels is elected by the people and governs according to British constitutional principles. Because of Britains imperial past, when many other corners of the globe were ruled from London, we find similar systems of government in many former colonies. Other countries which are governed according to the principles of British parliamentary democracy are Australia, Canada, New Zealand and India. All but India recognize the Queen as their head of state, and a representative of the Crown, called the Governor-General, is present in such constitutional monarchies in order to fulfill the role of the monarch. II. Monarchy The power was largely derived from the ancient doctrine of the divine right of kings. It was held that the sovereign derived his authority from God, not from his subjects. While the King in theory had God on his side, in practice even in medieval times it was thought that he should not exercise absolute power. Instead, the sovereign should be willing to receive advice from prominent men. The monarchs willingness led to many batt