Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh

)

Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh

)

If the majority of the members are in favour of a bill it goes to the House of Lords to be debated and finally to the monarch to be signed. Only then it becomes law. Although a bill must be supported by all three bodies, the House of Lords only has limited powers, and the monarch has not refused to sign one since the modern political system began over 200 years ago.

References

^!the Commonwealth ['lomanwelO] - Содружество (политическое и экономическое объединение, центром которого является Великобритания. Включает 54 независимых государства. В Содружество входят также зависимые территории Великобритании, Австралии и Новой Зеландии)

² chamber ['tjeimba] - палата парламента

'the House of Commons [,haus 9V 'кэтэпг] - палата общин (нижняя палата парламента: играет главную роль в осуществлении его законодательных функции)

⁴the House of Lords [,haus 8V 'iDidz] - палата лордов (iверхняя палата парламента; невыборное учреждение;

участвует в осуществлении законодательных функций парламента; является высшей апелляционной инстанцией)

⁵ bill - билль, законопроект

The British Parliament and the Electoral System

The British Parliament consists of the House of Lords, the House of Commons and the Sovereign as its head.

The House of Commons plays the major role in law-making. It consists of Members of Parliament (called MPs for short), each of whom represents an area in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. MPs are elected either at a general election³, or at a by-election⁴ following the death or retirement of an MP.

Parliamentary elections must be held every five years, but the Prime Minister can decide on the exact date within those five years. The minimum voting age is 18, and the voting is taken by secret ballot⁵.

Britain is divided into parliamentary constituencies. Each constituency is a geographical area: the voters who live in the area select one person to serve as a member of the House of Commons. The simple majority system of voting is used in parliamentary elections. This means that the candidate with the largest number of votes in each constituency is elected, although he or she may not necessarily have received more than half the votes cast. Voting is by secret ballot. The following people may vote: all British citizens over the age of 18; citizens of other Commonwealth countries and the Irish Republic who are resident in Britain. British citizens living abroad may vote. Members of the House of Lords, foreigners, mentally ill people in hospitals, prisoners and convicted people may not vote.

The election campaign lasts about three weeks. The election is decided on a simple majority - the candidate with most votes wins. An MP who wins by a small number of votes may have more

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