Great Britain and Northern Ireland

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy in form but a parliamentary democracy in substance. The sovereign (Elizabeth II since 1952) is the official head of the state, the head of the legal system, the commander-in-chief of all armed forces and the head of the Church of England. The Queen participates in the summoning of Parliament. Her official approval (so-called royal assent) is needed before any bill (the draft of an Act of Parliament) becomes law. In practice, however, the sovereign reigns but does not rule, for the sovereign is under the law and not above it, ruling only by approval of Parliament and acting only on the advice of her ministers.

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories with the sovereign at its head. The British Parliament is bicameral, with an upper house, the House of Lords, and a lower house, the House of Commons.

The two Houses meet in separate chambers in the Palace of Westminster (commonly known as the "Houses of Parliament") in London.

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords". Membership of the House of Lords was once a right of birth to hereditary peers, but following a series of reforms to make the body more democratic the House now consists almost entirely of appointed members. The number of its members is not fixed. The House of Lords was stripped of most of its power in 1911, and now its main function is to revise legislation.

In reality, the House of Commons is the one of three which has true power playing the major role in law-making. It is a democratically elected body, consisting of 646 members, known as "Members of Parliament" or MPs. Each of them represents an area in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. MPs are elected at a general election. Parliamentary elections are held every 5 years and it is the Prime Minister who decides on the exact day of the election. The minimum voting age is 18. And the voting is taken by secret ballot. The election campaign lasts about 3 weeks. Each session of the House of Commons lasts for 160-175 days. Parliament has intervals during his work. MPs are paid for their parliamentary work and have to attend the sittings.

Each Parliament may during its lifetime make or unmake any law. Parliamentary bills may be introduced by either house, unless they deal with finance or representation; these are always introduced in the Commons, which has ultimate authority for law-making. Bills, passed by both houses, receive the traditional royal assent and become law as Acts of Parliament; no bill has received a royal veto for more than 200 years.

Executive power is vested in the prime minister, who, though nominally appointed by the sovereign, is traditionally the leader of the majority party in Parliament. The prime minister is assisted by ministers, who are chosen from the majority party and mostly from the Commons. The most senior ministers, about 20, compose the cabinet, which meets regularly to decide policy on major issues. Ministers are responsible collectively to Parliament for all cabinet decisions; individual ministers are responsible to Parliament for the work of their departments.

The most important parties in England nowadays are the Conservative Party, Liberal Party and Labour Party.