To what extent is it reasonable to describe modern British prime ministers as presidents in all but name? Few, if any, now doubt that the office of prime minister dominates the British political system. As long as the holder of that office is not faced by too many limiting factors, such as a small parliamentary majority or a divided party, the British system has moved away from the traditional ‘cabinet government’ model to a ‘prime ministerial’ model. We argue that the system has now become ‘presidential’. * PMs perform most of the functions of a head of state: The prime minister has come to be, effectively though not legally, the head of State, the leader of the nation, irrespective of party allegiance.
The traditional doctrine of Parliamentary Sovereignty can no longer be regarded as an immutable part of UK Constitutional law. Discuss. Under parliamentary sovereignty, a legislative body has absolute sovereignty. This means that is it supreme to all other government institutions and can change or repeal any prior legislative acts. Parliament in Britain is generally regarded as making laws that apply to the entire population but there is no universal agreement that it should have unlimited power to make laws of whatever kind.
The importance of the cabinet could begin to be question right from the selection process as the Prime Minister also known as ‘primus inter pares’ which means first among equals, selects the ministers and could be dismissed at anytime as was seen in the cabinet reshuffle under Tony Blair in 2006 which saw Charles Clarke dismissed, therefore suggesting that the cabinet ministers would show some form of loyalty to the Prime minister and could be likely to support the Prime minister in order to keep their job and could have no major impact on any policy or action. The cabinet ministers’ importance is further undermined by the fact that they are bound by the principle of collective responsibility meaning that they must all take public responsibility for all policies of the government, even if they disagree privately or had nothing to do with the formulation of the policy. This suggests that the cabinet have limitations to the ability to impact the policy as if they don’t take collective responsibility are expected to resign or face rapid dismissal this could
It has been argued though, that we now have Prime Ministerial Government as opposed to Cabinet Government, due to the shift in power towards the Prime Minister over the years from Thatcher to Blair. More important than head of the Cabinet, the Prime Minister is the leader of the
Hereditary members are those who inherit their status as from their family, non-hereditary members are chosen by the prime minister in recognition to their expertise to become life peers. In order to fully understand the purpose which the rules that govern the legislative powers of the Lords are set to achieve and other relevant aspects one must look back in history and consider how the House of Lords has changed since its creation and the reasons behind those changes. The process started during the reign of the Normans when king used to call the Magnum Concilium and the Curia Regis to discuss national affairs. The Greater council was made up of ecclesiastics, noblemen and representatives of the counties. Its main function was to approve taxes proposed by the Crown; it developed legislative powers as those who were taxed gained representation gradually.
equally important is the election of the president at the time of the assembly election. The head of the government is head of state: Whereas in pre-parliamentary monarchies the head of state was also the head of the government, in the presidential system it is the head of the government who becomes at the same time head of state. The president appoints heads of departments who are his subordinates: In parliamentarism the prime minister appoints his colleagues who together with him form the government. In presidential systems the president appoints secretaries, who are heads of his executive departments. The
Unlike the American version, heads of government departments are not usually experts in their fields. Hence they are surrounded by experts from the Civil Service and what are referred to as 'special advisors'. The role of the cabinet is to discuss issues relevant to the country, registering and ratifying decision taken elsewhere in the cabinet system, discusses various points of view, weighs up arguments concerning whatever is being discussed and comes to a decision that is backed by the majority of the Cabinet. As such it becomes government policy, if supported in the House of Commons, and has the legitimacy of majority Cabinet support behind it. This means that decisions have collective responsibility behind them - all Cabinet members would be expected to publicly support and defend such policies.
In this essay I want to demonstrate that The President of the United States has a major role in the executive branch of government.In the first part of my essay I will talk about the duties of the President.In the second part I will focus on the limitations which he encounters during his mandate.In the last part I want to demonstrate the Head of State can manage to have a great career and that he is able to influence what happens in his country. The President of the United States is the only nationally elected politician who has the responsability of speaking for its country as a whole and of representing the national interest both in foreign policy and domestic affairs.The President has various political roles which he must execute in order to lead the country properly. One role of the President is that of Head of State.He is busy with the administration of the country and he must stand for the highest values and ideals of the country.As the Chief Executive he decides how the laws of the United States are to be enforced and chooses officials and advisers to help run the Executive Branch.He is also a Chief Diplomat and decides what American diplomats and ambassadors shall say to foreign governments and with the help of advisers,he makes the foreign policy of the United States.The President is in charge of the U.S. armed forces like the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines as a Commander-in-Chief.He decides where troops shall be stationed, where ships shall be sent,how weapons shall be used and all military generals and admirals take their orders from the President.The fifth role of the President is that of Chief Legislator and due to the Constitution he has the power to influence Congress in its lawmaking although only Congress has the actual power to make laws.As Head of Party he "exercises great influence over the party's national organisation and can play a major
Those studying Comparative Politics have always been keen on finding out whether the presidential or parliamentary form of government is more conducive to a stable government and democracy. This essay aims to discuss which system is more suitable to new democracies. Presidentialism A presidential system is a system of government in which an executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislature. The executive branch is not accountable to the legislative branch and the legislature cannot dismiss the president except in rare cases. In a presidential system, the president is both the head of the state as well as that of a government.
Discuss the sources of prime ministerial power and explain in what ways it can be limited (25 marks) The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is customarily the leader of the party with a majority in the House of Commons or, as is currently the case, the leader of the largest party in a coalition and therefore is the leader of Her Majesty's Government. The sources of prime ministerial power are Royal Prerogative, the individual abilities, qualities and circumstances of, or pertaining to, the Prime Minister, and that of the office of Prime Minister. Royal Prerogative is a series of powers and responsibilities which initially (and legally still) belonged to the Monarch but after the Glorious Revolution of 1688, placing the powers to declare war, form treaties and bestow patronage, such as appointing Peers to the House of Lords and promoting and demoting Civil Servants. Each Prime Minister wields a set of powers unique to themselves, based upon their charisma, personality, intelligence and popular mandate or lack thereof. Tony Blair was a charismatic man, a clever ‘spin doctor’ and after each election he also possessed a large mandate which allowed him to dominate his cabinet for some time.