The Principles of Government

Partly as a result of the electoral system, Britain, unlike much of Western Europe, normally has a ‘single-party government’. In other words, all members of the government in Britain whose members were drawn from a variety of different parties (this is known as ‘coalition government’).

The habit of a ‘single-party government’ has helped to establish the tradition known as collective responsibility. That is, every member of the government shares the responsibility for every policy made by the government. Since the Second World War, all governments have been formed either by the Labour Party or the Conservative Party. Members of the same party are likely to agree on a programme of policies. Having won the election, they will also have the support of the majority of MPs in the House of Commons. This will enable them to put their policies into practice. Of course, individual government members may hold different opinions, but they are expected to keep these private. By convention, no member of the government can criticize government policy in public. Any member who does so must resign.

Another principle of the Cabinet’s work, the doctrine of ministerial responsibility, demands that a Minister should accept a full administrative responsibility for the administration of his/her department. A minister’s resignation is the only publicly acceptable course of action if grievous errors of judgement, significant mistakes, or miscarriages of justice occur. The doctrine provides direct and effective political accountability for the actions of the executive. It is one of the central components of the doctrine of the separation of powers which is itself a cornerstone of any democratic and responsible government.

TASK 5. Find in the text above the English equivalents for the following key words and expressions:

1. доктрина политической ответственности министров
2. доктрина коллективной ответственности министров
3. доктрина разделения властей
4. однопартийное правительство
5. коалиционное правительство
6. судебная ошибка
7. нести общую ответственность
8. проводить в жизнь политику
9. придерживаться различных мнений

TASK 6. Complete the following text with the words and phrases from the box:

Parliament; failure in administration; ministerial responsibility; Departmental Ministers; Government’s policy; House of Commons; collective responsibility

The doctrine of _______ ________ means that the Cabinet acts unanimously even when Cabinet Ministers do not all agree on a subject. The policy of ________ ________ must be consistent with the policy of the Government as a whole. Once the _________ __________ on a matter has been decided, each minister is expected to support it or resign.

The doctrine of ________ ________ means that ministers are answerable to ________ for all their departments’ activities. They bear the consequences of any ________ __ _________, any injustice to an individual or any aspect of policy which may be criticized in Parliament, whether personally responsible or not. Since most ministers are members of the ________ __ ________, they must answer questions and defend themselves against criticism in person.

TASK 7. Read the text and be ready to speak on the functions of the key Government Departments: