Westminster System Essay

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Compare and contrast the Westminster system as it obtains in Britain and in Swaziland Introduction According to Centrist , the Westminster system is a democratic system of government modeled after that of the United Kingdom, as used in the Palace of Westminster, the location of the UK parliament. The system is a series of conventions and procedures for operating a legislature. According to Carpenter , the term “Westminster system” is used for that system which developed in Britain and which has been exported, in various forms, to those states which were formerly British colonies. Therefore, Swaziland, a former British Protectorate, after independence in 1968, had its first constitution drafted at Westminster and thus reflected aspects of the British parliamentary system of government. Even now under the new constitutional dispensation, the new constitution has not changed much from the Westminster model, which is why it is referred to as “an export model of the Westminster constitution”. It therefore provides for a parliamentary system of government, which is based on the Westminster model. A description of the Westminster system in Britain and Swaziland According to Boule , the Westminster system is characterized by many aspects: Under the Westminster system, the Head of State is different from the head of government. The Head of State (Monarchy of Britain) is a politically neutral figure-head, a symbol of national unity, who may possess reserve powers in theory but virtually none in practice, since he is obliged by convention to act on the advice of his ministers or Prime Minister. He has no discretion to act according to his own inclination. This aspect is similar to our system in Swaziland as the King and iNgwenyama is the Head of State as stated in Section 4 (1) of the constitution . It further states in section 4(2), that the King and iNgwenyama is a
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