Like presidents, modern prime ministers can generate different political resources through these different roles and the techniques required by them. At the same time and in similar fashion to presidential politics, prime ministers are increasingly monitored and assessed according to criteria that are quite different to those experienced by senior colleagues, also like Presidents a modern day prime minister is often voted in due to factors that have nothing/ little to do with their political agendas, for example in 1997 Tony Blair
Due to the increasing presidential style of recent prime ministers and the party loyalty of the executive one can consider Parliament’s control of executive power minimal. However, due to the development of independent bodies surrounding Select Committees and the delaying of legislation by the House of Lords it can still be argued to be effective. The government usually has an overall majority. This is due to our voting system of FPTP which gives preference to the two main parties, normally giving them majorities (and increasingly large ones) as opposed to coalitions and minority governments which are produced through other voting systems such as AV in Scotland and Wales. Although we are currently in a coalition the government still has a majority through the combination of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.
Is Cabinet Government Dead? Cabinet government is a system of government in which executive power is concentrated in the cabinet, which is made up of heads of government departments, who exercise collective responsibility. Traditionally, within government the Prime Minister is ‘primus inter pares’ or ‘first among equals’ which reinsures the fact that he is a minister, not a president, of which some Prime Ministers may seem to appear. The cabinet fulfils many functions, these may have changed overtime but the principle functions include making policy decisions. Overtime, the role of the cabinet may have increasingly been seen to be less and this may have changed peoples’ perception on the system of government used in the UK.
To What Extent Are Backbench MPs Lobby Fodder? We’re led to believe that the MPs we elect to form Parliament actively participate in the governing of our country. Yet in reality, most of the power lies with the executive and the influence of a backbencher is thus lessened. Are they a loyal party drone? Do they represent the constituents effectively?
However it could be argued that Wilhelm II’s aims to crush socialism in response to Caprivi’s tolerance for Socialism in his years as chancellor disagree with this view as it suggests he is aiming for more of an autocratic state where he holds state control. Another notable factor which suggests Germany was a parliamentary democracy is Wilhelm II could ignore the views of the centre party; failed attempts to previously dismiss them such as the Kulturkampf were a failure because the party’s strong political views are extremely influential, and they have always had a substantial amount of seats in the party. This in turn meant the government was influenced by the parliament. However, there were many events which demonstrate the Kaiser
In 1974 the Labour government had been divided but after the referendum was passed and the public elected to stay in the EEC it united the Labour government, thus, making the executive a strong one. They believe that all these prose prove that referendums are useful in the UK and should be used more widely in Great Britain However, there are many people who disagree with referendums, saying they shouldn’t be used more widely throughout the UK. Some would argue that the
Although different in nature, congress and the President of the United States both hold positions of upmost power and unequivocally important decision-making for the American people. However, the argument always stands: who has more power? The power problem as it stands “...is the need to grant government enough power to effectively address the problems that people expect government to solve, while also limiting power so that it can be held accountable” (Katznelson, Kesselman, Draper, p.42). Far from perfect, the political system in place attempts to grant both Congress and The President exclusive and shared responsibilities to provide an equal spread of power. Upon founding of the United States government, not all three branches were to share the same amount of power.
Practice of liberal democracy ------------------------------------------------- “In the USA the executive dominates foreign policy but is powerless on the domestic front. In the UK, the executive dominates everything” Explain and discuss. The executive branch of any government is generally seen as the most important and dominant branch in most existing societies, the USA and the UK included. The executives take important decisions, represent the nation on a global scale and are responsible for the legislative process. However the executive power can and has to be constrained to ensure a more democratic system of governance.
How did Cromwell help to develop a Tudor state? Thomas Cromwell, the chief minister for Henry VIII from 1533 to 1540 was a ruthless politician, who some historians believe to have caused a ‘revolution in government.’ However, other historians believe that the developments of the Tudor state were not due to Cromwell’s farsighted planning, but other factors. To answer the question, we first must identify the components of the Tudor state, and how Cromwell influenced and changed these areas. Perhaps the foremost part of the Tudor State, the Government, underwent a significant change, mostly due to the Royal Supremacy over Church carried out by Cromwell. He was familiar with Lutheran and humanist ideals, and as a lawyer he had the capabilities to carry out his ideological reforms in Parliament.
With reference to the source, describe two limitations on prime ministerial power. (5 marks) Prime ministerial power has strengths as well as limitations. One of the limitations to prime ministerial power is that the members of cabinet may turn against the Prime Minister, as happened in 1990 to Margaret Thatcher. The cabinet’s support for the prime minister is conditional on the prime minister being popular and successful. If he is not successful or popular, he will not have the cabinet’s support, making it harder for him to control the cabinet, therefore making his job as prime minister harder.