1.
Lord Temporal
–
This article is about the secular members of the British House of Lords. For the fictional lords of time, see Time Lords, in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the Lords Temporal are secular members of the House of Lords. Before the enactment of the House of Lords Act 1999, all peers were members of the House of Lords, membership of the Lords is now limited to life peers and a number of elected hereditary peers. The Lords Temporal are all members of the Peerage, formerly, they were all hereditary peers. A similar arrangement was made in respect of the Kingdom of Ireland when that nation merged with Great Britain in January 1801 to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. However, when most of Ireland left the United Kingdom as the Irish Free State in December 1922, by the Peerage Act 1963, the election of Scottish representative peers also ended, and all Scottish peers were granted the right to sit in Parliament. Under the House of Lords Act 1999, only life peerages automatically entitle their holders to seats in the House of Lords. Of the hereditary peers, only 92 – the Earl Marshal, the Lord Great Chamberlain and 90 elected by other peers – retain their seats in the House
2.
Boundary commissions (United Kingdom)
–
The Speaker of the House of Commons is ex officio chairman of each of the boundary commissions. The Speaker however does not play any part in proceedings, with a boundary commission having a Justice being appointed as Deputy Chairman Commissioner. The commissions are currently established under the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986, most recently amended by the Parliamentary Voting System and they were first established as permanent bodies under the House of Commons Act 1944. The 1944 Act was amended in 1947 and then replaced by the House of Commons Act 1949, the 1949 Act was amended in 1958 and 1979 and replaced by the 1986 Act, changes in legislation from 1944 to 1986 were generally incremental in nature. The 2011 Act under the Con-LibDem coalition government made substantial changes to the legislation governing constituency boundary reviews, the Sixth Review would have resulted in 600 constituencies for the United Kingdom Parliament, a reduction from the 650 constituencies in existence at the General Election of 2010. The number of constituencies in each of the four home nations is calculated in proportion to the using a formula set out by legislation. For the Sixth Review, the formula specified 502 constituencies in England,16 constituencies in Northern Ireland,52 constituencies in Scotland, each Commission is required by law to conduct subsequent reviews of all constituencies in its respective part of the United Kingdom at least every five years. The boundary commissions are required to apply a set series of rules when devising constituencies, firstly, each proposed constituency has to comply with two numerical limits, the electorate of each constituency must be within 5% of the United Kingdom electoral quota. The area of a constituency must be no more than 13,000 square kilometres and it is evident that the other factors can to an extent be mutually contradictory, and therefore each commission has discretion on how it applies them. In so doing, each commission aims for a consistent approach within a review and it has been normal practice for local government electoral wards to be used as building blocks for constituencies, although there is no legislative requirement to do so. The law specifies that the electorate used during a review is the electorate at the time of the start of the review. Customarily, each conducted a complete review of all constituencies in its part of the United Kingdom every eight to twelve years. In between these general reviews, the commissions were able to conduct reviews of part of their area of responsibility. The interim reviews usually did not yield drastic changes in boundaries, the most recent general review in Scotland was given effect in 2005, and the resulting constituencies were used in the May 2005 general election. Under the previous rules, the number of constituencies in Great Britain had to not be greater or less than 613. The City of London was not to be partitioned and was to be included in a seat that referred to it by name, the Orkney and Shetland Islands were not to be combined with any other areas. Northern Ireland had to have 16-18 constituencies, at the 2010 general election there were 533 constituencies in England,40 constituencies in Wales,59 constituencies in Scotland and 18 constituencies in Northern Ireland providing a total of 650. The boundary commissions are also responsible for reviews of boundaries for devolved parliaments, the procedure for reviews of constituencies and regions for the Scottish Parliament is set down by the Scotland Act 1998
3.
United Kingdom
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
4.
Labour Party (UK)
–
The Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Labour later served in the coalition from 1940 to 1945. Labour was also in government from 1964 to 1970 under Harold Wilson and from 1974 to 1979, first under Wilson and then James Callaghan. The Labour Party was last in government from 1997 to 2010 under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, beginning with a majority of 179. Having won 232 seats in the 2015 general election, the party is the Official Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the party also organises in Northern Ireland, but does not contest elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly. The Labour Party is a member of the Party of European Socialists and Progressive Alliance. In September 2015, Jeremy Corbyn was elected Leader of the Labour Party, the first Lib–Lab candidate to stand was George Odger in the Southwark by-election of 1870. In addition, several small socialist groups had formed around this time, among these were the Independent Labour Party, the intellectual and largely middle-class Fabian Society, the Marxist Social Democratic Federation and the Scottish Labour Party. In the 1895 general election, the Independent Labour Party put up 28 candidates, Keir Hardie, the leader of the party, believed that to obtain success in parliamentary elections, it would be necessary to join with other left-wing groups. Hardies roots as a lay preacher contributed to an ethos in the party led to the comment by 1950s General Secretary Morgan Phillips that Socialism in Britain owed more to Methodism than Marx. The motion was passed at all stages by the TUC, the meeting was attended by a broad spectrum of working-class and left-wing organisations—trades unions represented about one third of the membership of the TUC delegates. This created an association called the Labour Representation Committee, meant to coordinate attempts to support MPs sponsored by trade unions and it had no single leader, and in the absence of one, the Independent Labour Party nominee Ramsay MacDonald was elected as Secretary. He had the task of keeping the various strands of opinions in the LRC united. The October 1900 Khaki election came too soon for the new party to campaign effectively, only 15 candidatures were sponsored, but two were successful, Keir Hardie in Merthyr Tydfil and Richard Bell in Derby. Support for the LRC was boosted by the 1901 Taff Vale Case, the judgement effectively made strikes illegal since employers could recoup the cost of lost business from the unions. In their first meeting after the election the groups Members of Parliament decided to adopt the name The Labour Party formally, the Fabian Society provided much of the intellectual stimulus for the party. One of the first acts of the new Liberal Government was to reverse the Taff Vale judgement, the Peoples History Museum in Manchester holds the minutes of the first Labour Party meeting in 1906 and has them on display in the Main Galleries. Also within the museum is the Labour History Archive and Study Centre, the governing Liberals were unwilling to repeal this judicial decision with primary legislation
5.
Scotland
–
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain. It shares a border with England to the south, and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea to the east. In addition to the mainland, the country is made up of more than 790 islands, including the Northern Isles, the Kingdom of Scotland emerged as an independent sovereign state in the Early Middle Ages and continued to exist until 1707. By inheritance in 1603, James VI, King of Scots, became King of England and King of Ireland, Scotland subsequently entered into a political union with the Kingdom of England on 1 May 1707 to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain. The union also created a new Parliament of Great Britain, which succeeded both the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England. Within Scotland, the monarchy of the United Kingdom has continued to use a variety of styles, titles, the legal system within Scotland has also remained separate from those of England and Wales and Northern Ireland, Scotland constitutes a distinct jurisdiction in both public and private law. Glasgow, Scotlands largest city, was one of the worlds leading industrial cities. Other major urban areas are Aberdeen and Dundee, Scottish waters consist of a large sector of the North Atlantic and the North Sea, containing the largest oil reserves in the European Union. This has given Aberdeen, the third-largest city in Scotland, the title of Europes oil capital, following a referendum in 1997, a Scottish Parliament was re-established, in the form of a devolved unicameral legislature comprising 129 members, having authority over many areas of domestic policy. Scotland is represented in the UK Parliament by 59 MPs and in the European Parliament by 6 MEPs, Scotland is also a member nation of the British–Irish Council, and the British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly. Scotland comes from Scoti, the Latin name for the Gaels, the Late Latin word Scotia was initially used to refer to Ireland. By the 11th century at the latest, Scotia was being used to refer to Scotland north of the River Forth, alongside Albania or Albany, the use of the words Scots and Scotland to encompass all of what is now Scotland became common in the Late Middle Ages. Repeated glaciations, which covered the land mass of modern Scotland. It is believed the first post-glacial groups of hunter-gatherers arrived in Scotland around 12,800 years ago, the groups of settlers began building the first known permanent houses on Scottish soil around 9,500 years ago, and the first villages around 6,000 years ago. The well-preserved village of Skara Brae on the mainland of Orkney dates from this period and it contains the remains of an early Bronze Age ruler laid out on white quartz pebbles and birch bark. It was also discovered for the first time that early Bronze Age people placed flowers in their graves, in the winter of 1850, a severe storm hit Scotland, causing widespread damage and over 200 deaths. In the Bay of Skaill, the storm stripped the earth from a large irregular knoll, when the storm cleared, local villagers found the outline of a village, consisting of a number of small houses without roofs. William Watt of Skaill, the laird, began an amateur excavation of the site, but after uncovering four houses
6.
Renfrew (district)
–
Renfrew District was one of nineteen local government districts in the Strathclyde region of Scotland, which existed between 1975 and 1996. The remaining parts of the former County of Renfrew where then divided between two districts, Eastwood and Inverclyde. In 1996 Renfrew District was abolished under the provisions of the Local Government etc, most of its area became the unitary council area of Renfrewshire, with the regions - such as Strathclyde - disappearing entirely. Barrhead, Neilston and Uplawmoor were included in the area of East Renfrewshire
7.
Strathclyde
–
Strathclyde was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994. The Strathclyde region had 19 districts, the area was on the west coast of Scotland and stretched from the Highlands in the north to the Southern Uplands in the south. As a local government region, its population, in excess of 2.5 million, was the largest of the regions. The Region was responsible for education, social work, police, fire, sewage, strategic planning, roads, transport - and, therefore, the regional administrative headquarters was in the City of Glasgow and politics were by and large dominated by the Labour Party. The first regional council convener was the Reverend Geoff Shaw, who died in 1978, until April 2013 the area was also used as a police force area, covered by Strathclyde Police and a fire service area, covered by Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Service. Both have now replaced by national single services. The name is still in use as an area, covered by Strathclyde Partnership for Transport. The area covered by SPT however is smaller than the region, as most of Argyll and Bute lies outside its remit. The region was formed by merging the county of the City of Glasgow, the counties of Ayr, Bute, Dunbarton, Lanark, and Renfrew, and parts of the counties of Argyll, and the county of Stirling. Except for Argyll and Bute and the City of Glasgow, the 19 districts were grouped to form sub-regions or divisions, the Argyll and Bute district and the City of Glasgow district were sub-regions in their own right, and Argyll and Bute was named for two former counties. The region was named after the ancient British or Brythonic Damnonii Kingdom of Strathclyde
8.
History of Scottish devolution
–
Some have argued for devolution – a Scottish Parliament within the United Kingdom – while others have advocated complete independence. Scottish voters were given the chance to vote Yes on outright independence in a 2014 referendum, in an effort to persuade Scots to remain in the Union, the major UK parties vowed to devolve further powers to Scotland after the referendum. Having agreed to pass the Union with England Act, the Parliament of Scotland adjourned on 25 March 1707, the post of Secretary of State for Scotland existed after 1707 until the Jacobite rising of 1745. Thereafter, responsibility for Scotland lay primarily with the office of the Secretary of State for the Northern Department, the Secretaries of State were reorganised in 1782 and the duties now came under the Secretary of State for the Home Department. 1885 saw the creation of the Scottish Office and the post of Secretary for Scotland, in May 1913 the House of Commons passed the second reading of the Government of Scotland Bill 1913 by 204 votes to 159. The bill was supported by Liberals and opposed by Unionists and it did not proceed further due to the outbreak of the First World War. The Scottish Covenant Association was a political organisation that sought the establishment of a devolved Scottish Assembly. It was formed by John MacCormick who had left the Scottish National Party in 1942 when they decided to support independence for Scotland rather than devolution as had been their position. The Association was responsible for the creation of the Scottish Covenant, members of the organisation were also responsible for the removal of the Stone of Destiny from Westminster Abbey in 1950 that attracted huge publicity for the cause of Scottish home rule. The Scottish referendum of 1979 was a referendum to decide whether there was sufficient support for the Scotland Act 1978 that was to create a deliberative assembly for Scotland. The Act required that for the Act not to be repealed at least 40% of the electorate would have to vote Yes in the referendum, the referendum resulted in a narrow Yes majority but fell short of the 40% requirement. In response to the majority voting for both proposals, the United Kingdom Parliament passed the Scotland Act 1998, creating the Scottish Parliament. The Act was introduced by the Labour government in 1998 after the 1997 referendum, the Act specifically asserts the continued power of the UK Parliament to legislate in respect of Scotland. The Act devolves all powers except over matter it specifies as reserved matters and it further designates a list of statutes which are not amenable to amendment or repeal by the Parliament which includes the Human Rights Act 1998 and many provisions of the Scotland Act itself. The same constraints apply to acts of the Scottish Executive, the formal opening by the Queen took place on 9 October 2004. Enric Miralles, the Spanish architect who designed the building, died before its completion, Office and administrative accommodation in support of the Parliament were provided in buildings leased from the City of Edinburgh Council. The new Scottish Parliament Building brought together these different elements into one purpose built complex, housing 129 MSPs and more than 1,000 staff. A Scottish Executive was created under section 44 of the Scotland Act 1998, following the 2007 Scottish Parliament election, the Scottish Executive was rebranded as the Scottish Government by the new Scottish National Party administration
9.
Paisley and Renfrewshire North
–
Paisley and Renfrewshire North is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 2005 general election, replacing most of Paisley North, the constituency covers the northern portion of Paisley, the smaller towns of Renfrew and Linwood, and rural villages such as Bishopton, Bridge of Weir and Houston. The northern boundary of the constituency is the River Clyde from Braehead in the east to Langbank in the west and this constituency was formed in 2005 from parts of the old Paisley North and Renfrewshire West constituencies. Leigh Rayments Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with P
10.
Jim Sheridan (politician)
–
James Sheridan is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Paisley & Renfrewshire North between 2005 and 2015. He was previously MP for Renfrewshire West from 2001 to 2005, jim Sheridan was born in Glasgow and attended St Sixtus Primary School and St Pius Secondary School on Cally Avenue in Drumchapel, now the home of Drumchapel High School. He also served on Renfrewshire Council from 1999 representing Erskine Central and he was previously MP for Renfrewshire West from the 2001 election until the constituency was abolished in 2005. Sheridan was the promoter of the Bill which successfully led to the Gangmasters Act 2004, following the 2005 election, he was appointed as a Parliamentary Private Secretary in the Ministry of Defence. The football governing bodies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all opposed to a Great Britain team, fearing it would stop them competing as individual nations in future tournaments. The Daily Telegraph reported in 2009 that the Labour MP claimed a 42-inch plasma TV costing £699.99 and he defended his expenses as authorised by the Fees Office and receipts were provided against all claims. They have a son and daughter
11.
Renfrewshire
–
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It also shares borders with Glasgow, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, Renfrewshire borders the south-west of Glasgow, lying on the south bank of the River Clyde, and contains many of Glasgows commuter towns and villages, as well as rural areas. Present day Renfrewshire borders the south-west of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgows commuter towns, Renfrewshire also has boundaries with North Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde and West Dunbartonshire. The ancient county of Renfrewshire covered a larger area — including both Inverclyde and East Renfrewshire and this area still exists in the form of a lieutenancy area and registration county, and has a statutory funding board called the Renfrewshire Valuation Joint Board. The county was based around its seat, the Royal Burgh of Renfrew. There was also a district named Renfrew which existed between 1975 and 1996, Renfrewshire Council is the elected local authority for Renfrewshire, which is one of 32 local council areas in Scotland. The council is based at Renfrewshire House in Paisley, Renfrewshire Council recently won more awards than any other council in Scotland at the CoSLA Awards ceremony—winning three gold awards with a further three silver awards. This is the highest number of awards won by a single Scottish council since CoSLA started handing out its awards. Renfrewshire Council is administered by the Scottish Labour Party, the Provost of Renfrewshire is Anne Hall. Each department is headed by a Director, who is also an apolitical, as of 4 May 2012, the composition of the council is as follows, As such, the election resulted in the Scottish Labour Party gaining full control of the Renfrewshire Council. There was no party in control of Renfrewshire Council so therefore a Scottish National Party/Scottish Liberal Democrats coalition was formed to run the council for that four-year period. The electoral system of councils in Scotland is governed by the Local Governance Act 2004. Renfrewshire is represented by three constituencies in the Scottish Parliament, Renfrewshire North and West, Paisley and Renfrewshire South, the two constituencies covering Renfrewshire in the Westminster Parliament are Paisley and Renfrewshire North and Paisley and Renfrewshire South. The constituencies are represented by Gavin Newlands and Mhairi Black respectively and it is served by the M8 motorway, which terminates in the area, just east of Langbank, and is a major artery between northwest and southwest Scotland, via the Erskine Bridge. The presence of the airport and the proximity to Glasgow means that Renfrewshire supports one of the busiest transport infrastructures in Scotland, and is frequently congested. Renfrewshire also has bus links provided by, Mcgills Bus Services. The Braehead Arena in Renfrewshire close to the boundary with Glasgow is home to leading professional team, the Scottish Rocks. The arena was also host to the 2000 Ford World Curling Championships, Renfrewshire has 11 secondary schools,51 primary schools and 3 schools for children with additional support needs
12.
Heriot-Watt University
–
Heriot-Watt University is a public university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the worlds first mechanics institute and it has campuses in the Scottish Borders, Orkney, Dubai, and Putrajaya in Malaysia. The university is ranked among the Worlds Top 500 by both Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings, Heriot-Watt was established as the School of Arts of Edinburgh by Scottish businessman Leonard Horner on 16 October 1821. Having been inspired by Andersons College in Glasgow, Horner established the School to provide knowledge of science. The institution was initially of modest size, giving lectures two nights a week in rented rooms and boasting a small library of around 500 technical works. It was also oversubscribed, with admissions soon closing despite the cost of 15 shillings for an access to lectures. The School was managed by a board of eighteen directors and primarily funded by sponsors from the middle and upper classes including Robert Stevenson and it first became associated with the inventor and engineer James Watt in 1824, as a means of raising funds to secure permanent accommodation. In 1837, the School of Arts moved to leased accommodation on Adam Square, in honour of the purchase, the School changed its name to the Watt Institution and School of Arts in 1852. Heriot-Watts time as the Watt Institution marked a period for the organisation, as its curriculum broadened to include several subjects beyond mathematics. By 1885, the working class were no longer the majority in an institution that had been created explicitly for them. A shifting class make-up was not the demographic change to affect the student body. This move put the Watt Institution some way ahead of Scottish universities, the decision to admit women was made in large part owing to pressure from local campaigner Mary Burton, who later became the Institutions first female director in 1874. In 1870, the Watt Institution was forced to move following the demolition of Adam Square, after a brief period on Roxburgh Place, it relocated to the newly constructed Chambers Street near where its former site had stood. The move caused the Institution severe financial difficulties, which were compounded by a combination of declining funds from subscribers, in 1873, the Directors turned to George Heriots Trust for support, and agreed to a merger of the Trusts endowment with the Institutions own. Accepting these changes, the Watt Institution officially became Heriot-Watt College in 1885, the Watt Club was founded at the Watt Institution on 12 May 1854, and is today the oldest alumni organisation in the UK. Following the unveiling of a statue of James Watt outside the Institution, after the establishment of Heriot-Watt as a technical college, the new management committee set about extending the institutions buildings and strengthening its academic reputation. In its new form the College was one of only three non-university institutions in the UK with the power to appoint professors, and the first of these was appointed in 1887. In 1902 the College became an institution, while in 1904 it introduced awards for graduating students which were similar to university degrees
13.
The London Gazette
–
The London Gazette claims to be the oldest surviving English newspaper and the oldest continuously published newspaper in the UK, having been first published on 7 November 1665 as The Oxford Gazette. This claim is made by the Stamford Mercury and Berrows Worcester Journal. It does not have a large circulation, in turn, The London Gazette carries not only notices of UK-wide interest, but also those relating specifically to entities or people in England and Wales. However, certain notices that are only of specific interest to Scotland or Northern Ireland are also required to be published in The London Gazette, the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes are published by TSO on behalf of Her Majestys Stationery Office. They are subject to Crown Copyright, the London Gazette is published each weekday, except for Bank Holidays. The official Gazettes are published by The Stationery Office, the content, apart from insolvency notices, is available in a number of machine-readable formats, including XML and XML/RDFa via Atom feed. The London Gazette was first published as The Oxford Gazette on 7 November 1665. Charles II and the Royal Court had moved to Oxford to escape the Great Plague of London, the Gazette was Published by Authority by Henry Muddiman, and its first publication is noted by Samuel Pepys in his diary. The King returned to London as the plague dissipated, and the Gazette moved too, the Gazette was not a newspaper in the modern sense, it was sent by post to subscribers, not printed for sale to the general public. Her Majestys Stationery Office took over the publication of the Gazette in 1889, publication of the Gazette was transferred to the private sector, under government supervision, in the 1990s, when HMSO was sold and renamed The Stationery Office. In time of war, dispatches from the conflicts are published in The London Gazette. People referred to are said to have mentioned in dispatches. When members of the forces are promoted, and these promotions are published here. Man tally-ho, Miss piano, Wife silk and satin, Boy Greek and Latin, the phrase gazetted fortune hunter is also probably derived from this. Notices of engagement and marriage were also published in the Gazette. Gazettes, modelled on The London Gazette, were issued for most British colonial possessions
14.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
–
It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories. Its head is the Sovereign of the United Kingdom and its seat is the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster, one of the boroughs of the British capital, the parliament is bicameral, consisting of an upper house and a lower house. The Sovereign forms the third component of the legislature, prior to the opening of the Supreme Court in October 2009, the House of Lords also performed a judicial role through the Law Lords. The House of Commons is an elected chamber with elections held at least every five years. The two Houses meet in separate chambers in the Palace of Westminster in London, most cabinet ministers are from the Commons, whilst junior ministers can be from either House. The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Treaty of Union by Acts of Union passed by the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The UK parliament and its institutions have set the pattern for many throughout the world. However, John Bright – who coined the epithet – used it with reference to a rather than a parliament. In theory, the UKs supreme legislative power is vested in the Crown-in-Parliament. However, the Crown normally acts on the advice of the Prime Minister, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was created in 1801, by the merger of the Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland under the Acts of Union. The principle of responsibility to the lower House did not develop until the 19th century—the House of Lords was superior to the House of Commons both in theory and in practice. Members of the House of Commons were elected in an electoral system. Thus, the borough of Old Sarum, with seven voters, many small constituencies, known as pocket or rotten boroughs, were controlled by members of the House of Lords, who could ensure the election of their relatives or supporters. During the reforms of the 19th century, beginning with the Reform Act 1832, No longer dependent on the Lords for their seats, MPs grew more assertive. The supremacy of the British House of Commons was established in the early 20th century, in 1909, the Commons passed the so-called Peoples Budget, which made numerous changes to the taxation system which were detrimental to wealthy landowners. The House of Lords, which consisted mostly of powerful landowners, on the basis of the Budgets popularity and the Lords consequent unpopularity, the Liberal Party narrowly won two general elections in 1910. Using the result as a mandate, the Liberal Prime Minister, Herbert Henry Asquith, introduced the Parliament Bill, in the face of such a threat, the House of Lords narrowly passed the bill. However, regardless of the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949, the Government of Ireland Act 1920 created the parliaments of Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland and reduced the representation of both parts at Westminster
15.
Hansard
–
Hansard is the traditional name of the transcripts of Parliamentary Debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard, a London printer and publisher, though the history of the Hansard began in the British parliament, each of Britains colonies developed a separate and distinctive history. Before 1771, the British Parliament had long been a highly secretive body, the official record of the actions of the House was publicly available, but there was no record of the debates. The publication of remarks made in the House became a breach of Parliamentary privilege, as the populace became interested in parliamentary debates, more independent newspapers began publishing unofficial accounts of them. Several editors used the device of veiling parliamentary debates as debates of fictitious societies or bodies, the names under which parliamentary debates were published include Proceedings of the Lower Room of the Robin Hood Society and Debates of the Senate of Magna Lilliputia. The Senate of Magna Lilliputia was printed in Edward Caves The Gentlemans Magazine, the names of the speakers were carefully filleted, for example, Sir Robert Walpole was thinly disguised as Sr. R―t W―le. In 1771 Brass Crosby, who was Lord Mayor of the City of London, had brought him a printer by the name of John Miller who dared publish reports of Parliamentary proceedings. He released the man, but was ordered to appear before the House to explain his actions. Crosby was committed to the Tower of London, but when he was brought to trial, several judges refused to hear the case and after protests from the public, Crosby was released. Parliament ceased to punish the publishing of its debates as harshly, partly due to the campaigns of John Wilkes on behalf of free speech, there then began several attempts to publish reports of debates. Among the early successes, the Parliamentary Register published by John Almon and John Debrett began in 1775, cobbetts avocation for the freedom of the press was severely punished by the British Government. On June 5,1810 William Cobbett stood trial for libel for an article he wrote against the British Government which was published by Thomas Curson Hansard. Cobbett was found guilty, upon the fullest and most satisfactory evidence, the sentence was described by J. C Trewin as vindictive. Cobbetts Parliamentary Debates became Hansard Parliamentary Debates, abbreviated over time to the now familiar Hansard, from 1829 the name Hansard appeared on the title page of each issue. Neither Cobbett nor Hansard ever employed anyone to take notes of the debates. For this reason, early editions of Hansard are not to be relied upon as a guide to everything discussed in Parliament. The last attempt at a rival was The Times which published debates in the 1880s. In 1878 a subsidy was granted to the Hansard press and at that point reporters were employed, despite hiring contract reporters there were still widespread complaints about the accuracy of the debates
16.
The Guardian
–
The Guardian is a British daily newspaper, known from 1821 until 1959 as the Manchester Guardian. Along with its sister papers The Observer and The Guardian Weekly, The Guardian is part of the Guardian Media Group, the Scott Trust became a limited company in 2008, with a constitution to maintain the same protections for The Guardian. Profits are reinvested in journalism rather than to the benefit of an owner or shareholders, the Guardian is edited by Katharine Viner, who succeeded Alan Rusbridger in 2015. In 2016, The Guardians print edition had a daily circulation of roughly 162,000 copies in the country, behind The Daily Telegraph. The newspaper has an online UK edition as well as two international websites, Guardian Australia and Guardian US, the newspapers online edition was the fifth most widely read in the world in October 2014, with over 42.6 million readers. Its combined print and online editions reach nearly 9 million British readers, notable scoops include the 2011 News International phone hacking scandal, in particular the hacking of murdered English teenager Milly Dowlers phone. The investigation led to the closure of the UKs biggest selling Sunday newspaper, and one of the highest circulation newspapers in the world, in 2016, it led the investigation into the Panama Papers, exposing the then British Prime Minister David Camerons links to offshore bank accounts. The Guardian has been named Newspaper of the Year four times at the annual British Press Awards, the paper is still occasionally referred to by its nickname of The Grauniad, given originally for the purported frequency of its typographical errors. The Manchester Guardian was founded in Manchester in 1821 by cotton merchant John Edward Taylor with backing from the Little Circle and they launched their paper after the police closure of the more radical Manchester Observer, a paper that had championed the cause of the Peterloo Massacre protesters. They do not toil, neither do they spin, but they better than those that do. When the government closed down the Manchester Observer, the champions had the upper hand. The influential journalist Jeremiah Garnett joined Taylor during the establishment of the paper, the prospectus announcing the new publication proclaimed that it would zealously enforce the principles of civil and religious Liberty. Warmly advocate the cause of Reform, endeavour to assist in the diffusion of just principles of Political Economy and. Support, without reference to the party from which they emanate, in 1825 the paper merged with the British Volunteer and was known as The Manchester Guardian and British Volunteer until 1828. The working-class Manchester and Salford Advertiser called the Manchester Guardian the foul prostitute, the Manchester Guardian was generally hostile to labours claims. The Manchester Guardian dismissed strikes as the work of outside agitators –, if an accommodation can be effected, the occupation of the agents of the Union is gone. CP Scott made the newspaper nationally recognised and he was editor for 57 years from 1872, and became its owner when he bought the paper from the estate of Taylors son in 1907. Under Scott, the moderate editorial line became more radical, supporting William Gladstone when the Liberals split in 1886
17.
BBC News
–
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the worlds largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, the service maintains 50 foreign news bureaux with more than 250 correspondents around the world. James Harding has been Director of News and Current Affairs since April 2013, the departments annual budget is in excess of £350 million, it has 3,500 staff,2,000 of whom are journalists. BBC News domestic, global and online news divisions are housed within the largest live newsroom in Europe, parliamentary coverage is produced and broadcast from studios in Millbank in London. Through the BBC English Regions, the BBC also has regional centres across England, as well as national news centres in Northern Ireland, Scotland, all nations and English regions produce their own local news programmes and other current affairs and sport programmes. As with all media outlets, though, it has been accused of political bias from across the political spectrum. The British Broadcasting Company broadcast its first radio bulletin from radio station 2LO on 14 November 1922, on Easter weekend in 1930, this reliance on newspaper wire services left the radio news service with no information to report. The BBC gradually gained the right to edit the copy and, in 1934, however, it could not broadcast news before 6 PM until World War II. Gaumont British and Movietone cinema newsreels had been broadcast on the TV service since 1936, a weekly Childrens Newsreel was inaugurated on 23 April 1950, to around 350,000 receivers. The network began simulcasting its radio news on television in 1946, televised bulletins began on 5 July 1954, broadcast from leased studios within Alexandra Palace in London. The publics interest in television and live events was stimulated by Elizabeth IIs coronation in 1953 and it is estimated that up to 27 million people viewed the programme in the UK, overtaking radios audience of 12 million for the first time. Those live pictures were fed from 21 cameras in central London to Alexandra Palace for transmission and that year, there were around two million TV Licences held in the UK, rising to over three million the following year, and four and a half million by 1955. This was then followed by the customary Television Newsreel with a commentary by John Snagge. It was revealed that this had been due to producers fearing a newsreader with visible facial movements would distract the viewer from the story. On-screen newsreaders were finally introduced a year later in 1955 – Kenneth Kendall, Robert Dougall, mainstream television production had started to move out of Alexandra Palace in 1950 to larger premises – mainly at Lime Grove Studios in Shepherds Bush, west London – taking Current Affairs with it. It was from here that the first Panorama, a new programme, was transmitted on 11 November 1953. On 28 October 1957, the Today programme, a radio programme, was launched in central London on the Home Service. In 1958, Hugh Carleton Greene became head of News and Current Affairs and he set up a BBC study group whose findings, published in 1959, were critical of what the television news operation had become under his predecessor, Tahu Hole
18.
United Kingdom general election, 2005
–
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday,5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party led by Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, as of 2017, it remains the last Labour general election victory in the UK. The Labour campaign emphasised a strong economy, however, Blair had suffered a decline in popularity even before the decision to send British troops to invade Iraq in 2003. The Liberal Democrats, led by Charles Kennedy, were opposed to the Iraq War given that there had no second UN resolution. Tony Blair was returned as Prime Minister, with Labour having 355 MPs but with a vote of 35. 2%. In terms of votes they were only ahead of the Conservatives. The Liberal Democrats saw their vote increase by 3. 7% and won the most seats for any third party since 1923. The more hardline Democratic Unionist Party became the largest Northern Irish party, the election results were broadcast live on the BBC, and presented by Peter Snow, David Dimbleby, Jeremy Paxman and Andrew Marr. The governing Labour Party, led by Tony Blair, was looking to secure a consecutive term in office. The Conservative Party was seeking to regain seats lost to both Labour and the Liberal Democrats since the 1992 general election, and move from being the Official Opposition into government. The Liberal Democrats hoped to make gains from both parties, but especially the Conservative Party, with a decapitation strategy targeting members of the Shadow Cabinet. The pro-independence Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru stood candidates in every constituency in Scotland, many seats were contested by other parties, including several parties without incumbents in the House of Commons. The Health Concern party also stood again, a full list of parties which declared their intention to run can be found on the list of parties contesting the 2005 general election. All parties campaigned using such tools as party manifestos, party political broadcasts, local elections in parts of England and in Northern Ireland were held on the same day. The polls were open for fifteen hours, from 07,00 to 22,00 BST, the election came just over three weeks after the dissolution of Parliament on 11 April by Queen Elizabeth II, at the request of the Prime Minister, Tony Blair. Following the death of Pope John Paul II on 2 April, thanks to eight years of sustained economic growth Labour could point to a strong economy, with greater investment in public services such as education and health. This was overshadowed, however, by the issue of the controversial 2003 invasion of Iraq, which met widespread public criticism at the time, and would dog Blair throughout the campaign. The Chancellor, Gordon Brown, played a prominent role in the campaign, frequently appearing with Tony Blair
