1.
Legislature
–
A legislature is a deliberative assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. Legislatures form important parts of most governments, in the separation of model, they are often contrasted with the executive. Laws enacted by legislatures are known as legislation, legislatures observe and steer governing actions and usually have exclusive authority to amend the budget or budgets involved in the process. The members of a legislature are called legislators, each chamber of legislature consists of a number of legislators who use some form of parliamentary procedure to debate political issues and vote on proposed legislation. There must be a number of legislators present to carry out these activities. Some of the responsibilities of a legislature, such as giving first consideration to newly proposed legislation, are delegated to committees made up of small selections of the legislators. The members of a legislature usually represent different political parties, the members from each party generally meet as a caucus to organize their internal affairs, the internal organization of a legislature is also shaped by the informal norms that are shared by its members. Legislatures vary widely in the amount of power they wield, compared to other political players such as judiciaries, militaries. In 2009, political scientists M. Steven Fish and Matthew Kroenig constructed a Parliamentary Powers Index in an attempt to quantify the different degrees of power among national legislatures, such a system renders the legislature more powerful. Legislatures will sometime delegate their legislative power to administrative or executive agencies, legislatures are made up of individual members, known as legislators, who vote on proposed laws. For example, a legislature that has 100 seats has 100 members, by extension, an electoral district that elects a single legislator can also be described as a seat, as, for, example, in the phrases safe seat and marginal seat. In parliamentary systems of government, the executive is responsible to the legislature which may remove it with a vote of no confidence, names for national legislatures include parliament, congress, diet and assembly. A legislature which operates as a unit is unicameral, one divided into two chambers is bicameral, and one divided into three chambers is tricameral. In bicameral legislatures, one chamber is considered the upper house. In federations, the upper house typically represents the component states. This is a case with the legislature of the European Union. Tricameral legislatures are rare, the Massachusetts Governors Council still exists, tetracameral legislatures no longer exist, but they were previously used in Scandinavia. Legislatures vary widely in their size, among national legislatures, Chinas National Peoples Congress is the largest with 2987 members, while Vatican Citys Pontifical Commission is the smallest with 7
2.
Unicameralism
–
In government, unicameralism is the practice of having one legislative or parliamentary chamber. Thus, a parliament or unicameral legislature is a legislature which consists of one chamber or house. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multicameralism, many multicameral legislatures were created to give separate voices to different sectors of society. Multiple chambers allowed for guaranteed representation of different social classes, ethnic or regional interests, where these factors are unimportant, in unitary states with limited regional autonomy, unicameralism often prevails. Unicameral legislatures are also common in official Communist states such as the Peoples Republic of China, similarly, many formerly Communist states, such as Ukraine, Moldova and Serbia, have retained their unicameral legislatures, though others, such as Romania and Poland, adopted bicameral legislatures. Both the former Russian SFSR and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics were bicameral, the two chambers were the Soviet of Nationalities and the Soviet of the Union. The Russian Federation retained bicameralism after the dissolution of the USSR, the principal advantage of a unicameral system is more efficient lawmaking, as the legislative process is much simpler and there is no possibility of deadlock. Proponents of unicameralism have also argued that it costs, even if the number of legislators stay the same, since there are fewer institutions to maintain. There is also the risk that important sectors of society may not be adequately represented, approximately half of the worlds sovereign states are currently unicameral, including both the most populous and the least populous. Many subnational entities have unicameral legislatures, and all of the Brazilian states. In the United Kingdom, the devolved Scottish Parliament, National Assembly for Wales, Congress of Deputies of Second Spanish Republic was unicameral between 1931 and 1936. Dissolved at the end of Spanish Civil War, the actual Spanish Parliament is bicameral, Supreme Assembly of Uzbekistan was unicameral before being replaced in 2005 by the current, bicameral Supreme Assembly. National Assembly of Cameroon was unicameral before being replaced in 2013 by the current, chamber of Peoples Representative of Equatorial Guinea was unicameral before being replaced in 2013 by the current, bicameral Parliament of Equatorial Guinea. National Assembly of Kenya was the unicameral legislature before becoming the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Kenya in 2013. National Assembly of Ivory Coast was the unicameral legislature before becoming the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Ivory Coast in 2016. Nebraskas state legislature is also unique in the sense that it is the state legislature that is entirely nonpartisan. In 1999, Governor Jesse Ventura proposed converting the Minnesota Legislature into a unicameral chamber. Although debated, the idea was never adopted, if those constitutional changes had been approved, Puerto Rico could have switched to a unicameral legislature as early as 2015
3.
Bicameralism
–
A bicameral legislature is one in which the legislators are divided into two separate assemblies, chambers or houses. As of 2015, somewhat less than half of the national legislatures are bicameral. Often, the members of the two chambers are elected or selected using different methods, which vary from country to country and this can often lead to the two chambers having very different compositions of members. However, in many Westminster system parliaments, the house to which the executive is responsible can overrule the other house, some legislatures lie in between these two positions, with one house only able to overrule the other under certain circumstances. For example, one house would represent the aristocracy, and the other would represent the commoners as was the case in the Kingdom of England. Others, such as France under the Ancien Régime had a legislature known as the Estates General, which consisted of separate chambers for the clergymen, the nobility. The Founding Fathers of the United States also favoured a bicameral legislature, the idea was to have the Senate be wealthier and wiser. Benjamin Rush saw this though, and noted that, this type of dominion is almost always connected with opulence, the Senate was created to be a stabilising force, elected not by mass electors, but selected by the State legislators. Senators would be more knowledgeable and more sort of republican nobility—and a counter to what Madison saw as the fickleness. He noted further that the use of the Senate is to consist in its proceeding with more coolness, with system and with more wisdom. Madisons argument led the Framers to grant the Senate prerogatives in foreign policy, an area where steadiness, discretion, the Senate was chosen by state legislators, and senators had to possess a significant amount of property in order to be deemed worthy and sensible enough for the position. In fact, it was not until the year 1913 that the 17th Amendment was passed, as part of the Great Compromise, they invented a new rationale for bicameralism in which the Senate would have states represented equally, and the House would have them represented by population. Many nations with parliaments have to some degree emulated the British three-tier model, nevertheless, the older justification for second chambers—providing opportunities for second thoughts about legislation—has survived. An example of controversy regarding a second chamber has been the debate over the powers of the Canadian Senate or the election of the Senate of France. The relationship between the two chambers varies, in cases, they have equal power, while in others. The first tends to be the case in federal systems and those with presidential governments, the latter tends to be the case in unitary states with parliamentary systems. In the United States both houses of the U. S and this is due to their original location in the two-story building that was to house them. In Canada, the country as a whole is divided into a number of Senate Divisions, each with a different number of Senators, Senators in Canada are not elected by the people but are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister
4.
Senate
–
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature or parliament. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate, so-called as an assembly of the senior and therefore allegedly wiser, thus, the literal meaning of the word senate is, Assembly of Elders. Many countries have a named an senate, composed of senators who may be elected, appointed, have inherited the title, or gained membership by other methods. Modern senates typically serve to provide a chamber of second thought to consider legislation passed by a lower house, whose members are usually elected. The modern word Senate is derived from the word senātus, which comes from senex, the members or legislators of a senate are called senators. The Latin word senator was adopted into English with no change in spelling and its meaning is derived from a very ancient form of social organization, in which advisory or decision-making powers are reserved for the eldest men. This form adaptation was used to show the power of those in body and for the process to be thorough. The original senate was the Roman Senate, which lasted until 580, in the Eastern Roman Empire, the Byzantine Senate continued until the Fourth Crusade, circa 1202–1204. This may include minimum age required for voters and candidates, proportional or majoritarian or plurality system, typically, the senate is referred to as the upper house and has a smaller membership than the lower house. In some federal states senates also exist at the subnational level, in the United States all states with the exception of Nebraska have a state senate. There is also the US Senate at the federal level, córdoba and Tucumán changed to unicameral systems in 2001 and 2003 respectively. In Australia and Canada, only the house of the federal parliament is known as the Senate. All Australian states other than Queensland have a house known as a Legislative council. Several Canadian provinces also once had a Legislative Council, but these have all been abolished, in Germany, the last Senate of a State parliament, the Senate of Bavaria, was abolished in 1999. Senate membership can be determined either through elections or appointments, for example, elections are held every three years for half the membership of the Australian Senate, the term of a senator being six years. The terms Senate and Senator, however, do not necessarily refer to a chamber of a legislature, The Senate of Finland was, until 1919, the executive branch. The Senate of Latvia fulfilled a similar function during the interbellum. In a number of cities which were members of the Hanse, such as Greifswald, Lübeck, Rostock, Stralsund, or Wismar
5.
Lower house
–
A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position below the house, in many legislatures worldwide. A legislature composed of one house is described as unicameral. In comparison with the house, lower houses frequently display certain characteristics, Powers In a parliamentary system, Much more power. Able to override the upper house in some ways, can vote a motion of no confidence against the government. In a presidential system, Somewhat less power, as the house alone gives advice. Given the sole power to impeach the executive Status Always elected directly, while the house may be elected directly, indirectly. Its members may be elected with a different voting system to the upper house, most populated administrative divisions are better represented than in the upper house, representation is usually proportional to population. Elected all at once, not by staggered terms, in a parliamentary system, can be dissolved by the executive. Has total or original control over budget and monetary laws, lower age of candidacy than the upper house. Many lower houses are named in the manner, House/Chamber of Representatives/the People/Commons/Deputies
6.
Parliament
–
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative, elected body of government. Generally a modern parliament has three functions, representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government, historically, parliaments included various kinds of deliberative, consultative, and judicial assemblies. The term is derived from Anglo-Norman parlement, from the verb parler talk, the meaning evolved over time, originally any discussion, conversation, or negotiation, through various kinds of deliberative or judicial groups, often summoned by the monarch. By 1400, it had come to mean in Britain specifically the British supreme legislature, various parliaments are claimed to be the oldest in the world, under varying definitions. The Sicilian Parliament, whose first assembly was convened in 1097, the Icelandic Althing, year 930, but only including the main chiefs. Since ancient times, when societies were tribal, there were councils or a headman whose decisions were assessed by village elders, some scholars suggest that in ancient Mesopotamia there was a primitive democratic government where the kings were assessed by council. The same has been said about ancient India, where some form of deliberative assemblies existed, however, these claims are not accepted by most scholars, who see these forms of government as oligarchies. Ancient Athens was the cradle of democracy, the Athenian assembly was the most important institution, and every citizen could take part in the discussions. However, Athenian democracy was not representative, but rather direct, the Roman Senate controlled money, administration, and the details of foreign policy. Some Muslim scholars argue that the Islamic shura is analogous to the parliament, however, others highlight what they consider fundamental differences between the shura system and the parliamentary system. England has long had a tradition of a body of men who would assist, under the Anglo-Saxon kings, there was an advisory council, the Witenagemot. The name derives from the Old English ƿitena ȝemōt, or witena gemōt, the first recorded act of a witenagemot was the law code issued by King Æthelberht of Kent ca. 600, the earliest document which survives in sustained Old English prose, however, the Witan, along with the folkmoots, is an important ancestor of the modern English parliament. As part of the Norman Conquest of England, the new king, William I, did away with the Witenagemot, membership of the Curia was largely restricted to the tenants in chief, the few nobles who rented great estates directly from the king, along with ecclesiastics. William brought to England the feudal system of his native Normandy and this is the original body from which the Parliament, the higher courts of law, and the Privy Council and Cabinet descend. Of these, the legislature is formally the High Court of Parliament, only the executive government is no longer conducted in a royal court. Most historians date the emergence of a parliament with some degree of power to which the throne had to defer no later than the rule of Edward I, like previous kings, Edward called leading nobles and church leaders to discuss government matters, especially finance. A meeting in 1295 became known as the Model Parliament because it set the pattern for later Parliaments, in 1307, Edward I agreed not to collect certain taxes without the consent of the realm
7.
Parliamentary system
–
In a parliamentary system, the head of state is usually a different person from the head of government. Since ancient times, when societies were tribal, there were councils or a headman whose decisions were assessed by village elders, eventually these councils have slowly evolved into the modern Parliamentary system. The first parliaments date back to Europe in the Middle Ages, for example in 1188 Alfonso IX, the modern concept of parliamentary government emerged in the Kingdom of Great Britain and its contemporary, the Parliamentary System in Sweden. In England, Simon de Montfort is remembered as one of the fathers of representative government for holding two famous parliaments, the first, in 1258, stripped the King of unlimited authority and the second, in 1265, included ordinary citizens from the towns. Later, in the 17th century, the Parliament of England pioneered some of the ideas and systems of liberal democracy culminating in the Glorious Revolution, in the Kingdom of Great Britain, the monarch, in theory, chaired cabinet and chose ministers. In practice, King George Is inability to speak English led the responsibility for chairing cabinet to go to the minister, literally the prime or first minister. By the nineteenth century, the Great Reform Act of 1832 led to parliamentary dominance, with its choice invariably deciding who was prime minister, hence the use of phrases like Her Majestys government or His Excellencys government. Nineteenth century urbanisation, industrial revolution and, modernism had already fueled the political struggle for democracy. In the radicalised times at the end of World War I, a parliamentary system may be either bicameral, with two chambers of parliament or unicameral, with just one parliamentary chamber. Scholars of democracy such as Arend Lijphart distinguish two types of parliamentary democracies, the Westminster and Consensus systems, the Westminster system is usually found in the Commonwealth of Nations and countries which were influenced by the British political tradition. These parliaments tend to have a more style of debate. The Australian House of Representatives is elected using instant-runoff voting, while the Senate is elected using proportional representation through single transferable vote, regardless of which system is used, the voting systems tend to allow the voter to vote for a named candidate rather than a closed list. The Western European parliamentary model tends to have a more consensual debating system, Consensus systems have more of a tendency to use proportional representation with open party lists than the Westminster Model legislatures. The committees of these Parliaments tend to be more important than the plenary chamber, some West European countries parliaments implement the principle of dualism as a form of separation of powers. In countries using this system, Members of Parliament have to resign their place in Parliament upon being appointed minister, ministers in those countries usually actively participate in parliamentary debates, but are not entitled to vote. Some countries such as India also require the prime minister to be a member of the legislature, the head of state appoints a prime minister who will likely have majority support in parliament. The head of state appoints a minister who must gain a vote of confidence within a set time. The head of state appoints the leader of the party holding a plurality of seats in parliament as prime minister
8.
Parliamentary procedure
–
Parliamentary procedure is the body of rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings and other operations of clubs, organizations, legislative bodies, and other deliberative assemblies. In the United States, parliamentary procedure is referred to as parliamentary law, parliamentary practice, legislative procedure. At its heart is the rule of the majority with respect for the minority and its object is to allow deliberation upon questions of interest to the organization and to arrive at the sense or the will of the assembly upon these questions. Self-governing organizations follow parliamentary procedure to debate and reach group decisions—usually by vote—with the least possible friction, Rules of order consist of rules written by the body itself, but also usually supplemented by a published parliamentary authority adopted by the body. The term gets its name from its use in the system of government. In the 16th and 17th century, there were rules of order in the early Parliaments of England, in the 1560s Sir Thomas Smyth began the process of writing down accepted procedures and published a book about them for the House of Commons in 1583. In Canada, for example, Parliament uses House of Commons Procedure, the rules of the United States Congress were developed from the parliamentary procedures used in Britain. The American parliamentary procedures are followed in nations, including Indonesia. The procedures of the Diet of Japan have moved away from the British parliamentary model, in Occupied Japan, there were efforts to bring Japanese parliamentary procedures more in line with American congressional practices. In Japan, informal negotiations are more important than formal procedures, voting determines the will of the assembly. While each assembly may create their own set of rules, these tend to be more alike than different. A common practice is to adopt a standard book on parliamentary procedure. A parliamentary structure conducts business through motions, which cause actions, members bring business before the assembly by introducing main motions, or dispose of this business through subsidiary motions and incidental motions. Parliamentary procedure also allows for rules in regards to nomination, voting, disciplinary action, appeals, dues, and the drafting of organization charters, constitutions, the most common procedural authority in use in the United States is Roberts Rules of Order. Other authorities include The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure and Demeters Manual of Parliamentary Law, a common text in use in the UK, particularly within trade unions, is Lord Citrines ABC of Chairmanship. In English-speaking Canada, popular authorities include Kerr & Kings Procedures for Meeting, the Conservative Party of Canada uses Wainbergs Society meetings including rules of order to run its internal affairs. In French-speaking Canada, commonly used rules of order for ordinary societies include Victor Morins Procédures des assemblées délibérantes, legislative assemblies in all countries, because of their nature, tend to have a specialized set of rules that differ from parliamentary procedure used by clubs and organizations. In the United Kingdom, Thomas Erskine Mays Treatise on the Law, Privileges, Proceedings and Usage of Parliament is the authority on the powers
9.
Committee
–
A committee is a body of one or more persons that is subordinate to a deliberative assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to them more fully than would be possible if the assembly itself were considering them. Committees may have different functions and the type of work that each committee does would depend on the type of organization, a deliberative assembly may form a committee consisting of one or more persons to assist with the work of the assembly. For larger organizations, much work is done in committees and they may have the advantage of widening viewpoints and sharing out responsibilities. They can also be appointed with experts to recommend actions in matters that require specialized knowledge or technical judgment, a governance committee is formed as a separate committee to review the performance of the board and board policy as well as nominate candidates for the board. Coordination and administration A large body may have smaller committees with more specialized functions, examples are an audit committee, an elections committee, a finance committee, a fundraising committee, and a program committee. Large conventions or academic conferences are organized by a coordinating committee drawn from the membership of the organization. Research and recommendations Committees may be formed to do research and make recommendations on a potential or planned project or change, discipline A committee on discipline may be used to handle disciplinary procedures on members of the organization. However, this could be considered a dilatory tactic, generally, committees are required to report to their parent body. Committees do not usually have the power to act unless the body that created it gives it such power. When a committee is formed, a chairman is designated for the committee, sometimes a vice-chairman is also appointed. It is common for the chairman to organize its meetings. The chairman is responsible for running meetings, duties include keeping the discussion on the appropriate subject, recognizing members to speak, and confirming what the committee has decided. Using Roberts Rules of Order Newly Revised, committees may follow informal procedures, the level of formality depends on the size and type of committee, in which sometimes larger committees considering crucial issues may require more formal processes. Minutes are a record of the decisions at meetings and they can be taken by a person designated as the secretary. For most organizations, committees are not required to keep formal minutes, however, some bodies require that committees take minutes, especially if the committees are public ones subject to open meeting laws. Committees may meet on a basis, such as weekly or more often. The frequency of the meetings depend on the work of the committee, when the committee completes its work, it provides the results in a report to its parent body
10.
Quorum
–
A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to Roberts Rules of Order Newly Revised, the requirement for a quorum is protection against totally unrepresentative action in the name of the body by a small number of persons. The term quorum is from a Middle English wording of the commission formerly issued to justices of the peace, derived from Latin quorum, of whom, genitive plural of qui, as a result, quora as plural of quorum is not a valid Latin formation. Each assembly determines the number of members constitutes a quorum in its governing documents. The quorum may also be set by law, in the absence of such a provision, a quorum in an assembly whose membership can be determined is a majority of the entire membership. In the meetings of a convention, unless provided otherwise, a quorum is a majority of registered delegates, in a mass meeting or in an organization in which the membership cannot be accurately determined, the quorum consists of those who attend the meeting. In committees and boards, a quorum is a majority of the members of the board or committee unless provided otherwise, the board or committee cannot set its own quorum unless given such power. In a committee of the whole or its variants, a quorum is the same as the assembly unless otherwise provided, in online groups, a quorum has to be determined in a different manner since no one is actually present. The rules establishing such groups would have to prescribe this determination, an example is that a quorum in such groups could be established as present if enough members state that they are present at the designated meeting time. The chair of the group has the responsibility to determine if a quorum is present, in addition, any member can raise a point of order about an apparent absence of a quorum. When a quorum is not met, the assembly can only take limited procedural actions. These limited actions are to fix the time to which to adjourn, adjourn, recess, or take measures to obtain a quorum, any other business that is conducted is not valid unless it is ratified at a later meeting where a quorum is present. However, there is no obligation to ratify such action and those responsible may be punished for their actions, in legislatures and other assemblies that have the legal power to compel the attendance of their members, the call of the house procedure may be used to obtain a quorum. This procedure does not exist in ordinary societies, since voluntary associations have no coercive power, when a call of the house is ordered, the clerk calls the roll of members and then the names of absentees. Members who do not have an excused absence are arrested and brought in, the arrested members may be charged a fee. In the United States Senate, the procedure was used in the morning hours of February 25,1988. Byrds motion was approved 45-3 and arrest warrants were signed for all 46 Republicans, after a cleaning woman gave a tip that Senator Robert Packwood of Oregon was in his office, Giugni opened the door with a skeleton key. Packwood attempted to shove the door closed, but Giugni and two assistants pushed it open, Packwood was carried feet-first into the Senate chamber by three plainclothes officers and sustained bruised knuckles
11.
Congress
–
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different nations, constituent states, independent organizations, or groups. The term was chosen for the Continental Congress to emphasize the status of each colony represented there as a self-governing unit. Subsequent to the use of congress by the U. S. legislature, the term has been adopted by states within unions. Countries with Congresses and presidential systems, The Congress of Guatemala is the legislature of Guatemala. The National Congress of Honduras is the branch of the government of Honduras. The Congress of Mexico is the branch of Mexican government. The Congress of Paraguay is the legislature of Paraguay. The Congress of the Argentine Nation is the branch of the government of Argentina. The Congress of the Dominican Republic is the legislature of the Dominican Republic. The Palau National Congress is the legislative branch of the Republic of Palau. The Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia is the legislature of the Federated States of Micronesia. The Congress of the Philippines is the branch of the Philippine government. The Congress of the Republic of Peru is the legislature of Peru. The Congress of Colombia is the legislature of Colombia. The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the United States federal government. The National Congress of Bolivia was the legislature of Bolivia before being replaced by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly. The National Congress of Brazil is Brazils bicameral legislature, the National Congress of Chile is the legislative branch of the government of Chile. The National Congress of Ecuador was the legislature of Ecuador before being replaced by the National Assembly
12.
City council
–
A city council, town council, town board, or board of aldermen is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area. Because of the differences in legislation between the states, the definition of a City Council varies. However, it is only those local government areas which have been specifically granted city status that are entitled to refer to themselves as cities. The official title is Corporation of the City of ------ or similar, some of the larger urban areas of Australia are governed mostly by a single entity, while others may be controlled by a multitude of much smaller city councils. Also some significant urban areas can be under the jurisdiction of rural local governments. Periodic re-alignments of boundaries attempt to rationalize these situations and adjust the deployment of assets, the 2001 Local Government Act restyled the five county boroughs of Dublin, Cork, Galway, Waterford, and Limerick as city councils, with the same status in law as county councils. For many decades until the government reforms of 1989, a borough with more than 20,000 people could be proclaimed a city. The boundaries of councils tended to follow the edge of the built-up area, as a result, the term city began to take on two meanings. The word city came to be used in a formal sense to describe major urban areas independent of local body boundaries. This informal usage is jealously guarded, gisborne, for example, adamantly described itself as the first city in the world to see the new millennium. Gisborne is administered by a council, but its status as a city is not generally disputed. Under the current law the minimum population for a new city is 50,000, in the Republic of China, a city council represents a provincial city. Members of the councils are elected through local elections for provincial cities which are held every 4–5 years, Councils for the provincial cities in Taiwan are Chiayi City Council, Hsinchu City Council and Keelung City Council. In the UK, a city council is, In England, a parish council that has been granted city status. The council of a London borough that has been granted city status, in Wales, The council of a principal area that has been granted city status. A community council that has been granted city status, in Scotland, The council of one of four council areas designated a City by the Local Government etc. City councils and town boards generally consist of elected aldermen or councillors. In the United States, members of city councils are typically called council member or council man/woman, while in Canada they are typically called councillor
13.
House of Lords
–
The House of Lords of the United Kingdom, referred to ceremonially as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster, officially, the full name of the house is, The Right Honourable the Lords Spiritual and Temporal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. Unlike the elected House of Commons, all members of the House of Lords are appointed, the membership of the House of Lords is drawn from the peerage and is made up of Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal. The Lords Spiritual are 26 bishops in the established Church of England, of the Lords Temporal, the majority are life peers who are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister, or on the advice of the House of Lords Appointments Commission. However, they include some hereditary peers including four dukes. Very few of these are female since most hereditary peerages can only be inherited by men, while the House of Commons has a defined 650-seat membership, the number of members in the House of Lords is not fixed. There are currently 805 sitting Lords, the House of Lords is the only upper house of any bicameral parliament to be larger than its respective lower house. The House of Lords scrutinises bills that have approved by the House of Commons. It regularly reviews and amends Bills from the Commons, while it is unable to prevent Bills passing into law, except in certain limited circumstances, it can delay Bills and force the Commons to reconsider their decisions. In this capacity, the House of Lords acts as a check on the House of Commons that is independent from the electoral process, Bills can be introduced into either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. Members of the Lords may also take on roles as government ministers, the House of Lords has its own support services, separate from the Commons, including the House of Lords Library. The Queens Speech is delivered in the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, the House also has a Church of England role, in that Church Measures must be tabled within the House by the Lords Spiritual. This new parliament was, in effect, the continuation of the Parliament of England with the addition of 45 MPs and 16 Peers to represent Scotland, the Parliament of England developed from the Magnum Concilium, the Great Council that advised the King during medieval times. This royal council came to be composed of ecclesiastics, noblemen, the first English Parliament is often considered to be the Model Parliament, which included archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, and representatives of the shires and boroughs of it. The power of Parliament grew slowly, fluctuating as the strength of the monarchy grew or declined, for example, during much of the reign of Edward II, the nobility was supreme, the Crown weak, and the shire and borough representatives entirely powerless. In 1569, the authority of Parliament was for the first time recognised not simply by custom or royal charter, further developments occurred during the reign of Edward IIs successor, Edward III. It was during this Kings reign that Parliament clearly separated into two chambers, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The authority of Parliament continued to grow, and, during the fifteenth century
14.
Rajya Sabha
–
The Rajya Sabha or Council of States is the upper house of the Parliament of India. Membership of Rajya Sabha is limited by the Constitution to a maximum of 250 members, Members sit for staggered six-year terms, with one third of the members retiring every two years. The Rajya Sabha meets in continuous sessions, and unlike the Lok Sabha, however, the Rajya Sabha, like the Lok Sabha can be prorogued by the President. The Rajya Sabha has equal footing in all areas of legislation with Lok Sabha, except in the area of supply, in the case of conflicting legislation, a joint sitting of the two houses can be held. However, since the Lok Sabha has twice as many members as the Rajya Sabha, the Vice-President of India is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, who presides over its sessions. The Deputy Chairman, who is elected from amongst the houses members, the Rajya Sabha held its first sitting on 13 May 1952. The salary and other benefits for a member of Rajya Sabha are same as for a member of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha members are elected by state legislatures rather than directly through the electorate by single transferable vote method. Article 84 of the Constitution lays down the qualifications for membership of Parliament, must be elected by the Legislative Assembly of States and Union territories by means of Single transferable vote through Proportional representation. Must have their name present on the voters list, cannot be an insolvent, i. e. he/she should not be in debt that he/she is not capable of repaying in a current manner and should have the ability to meet his/her financial expenses. Should not hold any office of profit under the Government of India. Should not be of unsound mind, must possess such other qualifications as may be prescribed in that behalf by or under any law made by Parliament. In addition, twelve members are nominated by the President of India having special knowledge in areas like arts. However, they are not entitled to vote in Presidential elections as per Article 55 of the Constitution, the Constitution of India places some restrictions on Rajya Sabha which makes Lok Sabha more powerful in certain areas in comparison. Money bills, as defined in the Constitution of India Act 110, when Lok Sabha passes a money bill, and transmits it to Rajya Sabha, Rajya Sabha has only fourteen days to return the bill to Lok Sabha. If Rajya Sabha fails to return the bill in fourteen days, also, if Lok Sabha rejects any of the amendments proposed by Rajya Sabha, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both Houses of Parliament in the form Lok Sabha finally passes it. Hence, Rajya Sabha cannot stall, or amend, a bill without Lok Sabhas concurrence on the same. Article 108 provides for a joint sitting of the two Houses of Parliament in certain cases, considering that the numerical strength of Lok Sabha is more than twice that of Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha tends to have a greater influence in a joint sitting of Parliament. A joint session is chaired by the Speaker of Lok Sabha, in Indian federal structure, Rajya Sabha is a representative of the States in the Union legislature
15.
Federation Council (Russia)
–
The Federation Council is the upper house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, according to the 1993 Constitution of the Russian Federation. The two houses of the Federal Assembly are physically separated, with the State Duma residing in another part of Moscow, sessions of the Federation Council are held in Moscow from January 25 to July 15, and from September 16 to December 31. Sessions are open to the public, although the location of sessions can be changed if the Federation Council so desires, for purposes of succession, the chairman of the Federation Council is the third highest position, after the president and the prime minister. In the case of incapacity of the President and Prime Minister, in the midst of the increasingly tense crisis, on September 21, Yeltsin issued Presidential Decree №1400. The constitution also called for the creation of a bicamerial Federal Assembly, consisting of a State Duma, similar to the United States Senate, the Federation Council would consist of two representatives from each of Russia’s federal subjects. Unlike the State Duma, which consisted of hundreds of districts across the nation, early debate on its creation centered on whether or not the Federation Council should be elected at all. To solve some problems on the Council’s first scheduled election in December and this helped previous territorial elites remain within national politics. The decree also stipulated a single term of two years before new elections in 1995, the Council’s first elections were held on December 12,1993, simultaneously with State Duma elections and a referendum on the new Constitution of the Russian Federation. This later was codified in 1995 when the Council’s first term expired, the constitution, however, did not specify how senators were to be elected. By 1995, using this constitutional anomaly, regional executives could sit ex officio in both their own regional executive posts and within the Federation Council. While the State Duma did much of the debates on Russian policy during this time. The ascension of President Vladimir Putin following Yeltsins resignation on December 31,1999 brought many new changes to the Federation Council. The Council furiously resisted Putins plan, conscious that their role in politics, their very ability to enjoy the fruits of living within Moscow. In their place, a wave of new Kremlin-friendly senators took the vacated seats, the last of these dual senator-governors were rotated out of office in early 2002. These appointments could later be confirmed or rejected by the regional legislatures, the move further placed more control over the Council by the executive branch, due to laws which stipulate that regional executives have a say in choosing delegates to the Federation council. Since 2000, the Federation Council has largely remained a stable body, as set in Article 101 of the Russian Constitution, the Federation Council “shall elect among its deputies the chairman of the Council. The current chairman is Valentina Matviyenko, senators are able to retain membership to their respective parties, however they are asked not to bring party factionalism to the floor itself. Since the reforms of 2000, the Council has enjoyed a close relationship with the Kremlin
16.
Seanad
–
Seanad Éireann is the government upper house of the Oireachtas, which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann. It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members senators, unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by various methods. Its powers are weaker than those of the Dáil and it can only delay laws with which it disagrees. It has been located, since its establishment, in Leinster House, under Article 18 of the Constitution, Seanad Éireann consists of sixty senators, composed as follows, Eleven nominated by the Taoiseach. Six elected by the graduates of certain Irish universities, Three by graduates of the University of Dublin, Three by graduates of the National University of Ireland. 43 elected from five special panels of nominees by an electorate consisting of TDs, nomination is restrictive for the panel seats with only Oireachtas members and designated nominating bodies entitled to nominate. Each of the five panels consists, in theory, of individuals possessing special knowledge of, or experience in, one of five specific fields. In practice the nominees are party members, often, though not always, failed or aspiring Dáil candidates, Seven seats on the Administrative Panel, Public administration, Eleven seats on the Agricultural Panel, Agriculture and the fisheries. Five seats on the Cultural and Educational Panel, Education, the arts, nine seats on the Industrial and Commercial Panel, Industry and commerce. Eleven seats on the Labour Panel, Labour, the general election for the Seanad must occur not later than 90 days after the dissolution of Dáil Éireann. The election occurs under the system of representation by means of the single transferable vote. Membership is open to all Irish citizens over 21, but a senator cannot also be a member of Dáil Éireann, however, as stated above, nomination to vocational panel seats is restricted, nomination in the University constituencies requires signatures of 10 graduates. In the case of vacancies in the Vocational Panels, the electorate in the consists of Oireachtas members only. Vacancies to the university seats are filled by the electorate in that constituency. It was intended to play an advisory and revising role rather than to be the equal of the popularly elected Dáil, while notionally every Act of the Oireachtas must receive its assent, it can only delay rather than veto decisions of the Dáil. In practice, however, the Seanad has a government majority due to the Taoiseachs nominees. This has only occurred twice since 1937, once in 1959 when the Seanad rejected the Third Amendment to the Constitution Bill 1958, in both instances the Dáil passed the requisite motion deeming the legislation to have been passed. A money bill, such as the budget, may be deemed to have approved by the Seanad after 21 days
17.
Dewan Negara
–
The Dewan Negara usually reviews legislation that has been passed by the lower house, the Dewan Rakyat. All bills must usually be passed by both the Dewan Rakyat and the Dewan Negara, before they are sent to the King for royal assent. However, if the Dewan Negara rejects a bill, it can delay the bills passage by a maximum of a year before it is sent to the King. Like the Dewan Rakyat, the Dewan Negara meets at the Malaysian Houses of Parliament in Kuala Lumpur, originally, the Dewan Negara was meant to act as a check on the Dewan Rakyat and represent the interests of the various states. However, the constitution, which provided for a majority of state-elected senators, has since been modified to make the vast majority of senators instead appointed by the King. Members of the Dewan Negara are referred to as Senators or Ahli Dewan Negara in Malay, the term of office is 3 years and senators may only be re-appointed once, consecutively or non-consecutively. Each of the 13 state legislative assemblies chooses two senators, the King appoints two senators for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, and one respectively for the Federal Territories of Labuan and Putrajaya on the advice of the Prime Minister. Another 40 senators, regardless of their states, are appointed by the King, the intent of the original Constitution of Malaysia, which provided for only 16 Senators to be appointed by the King was to give the states some say over federal policy. Holders of a full-time profit-making position in the service are also ineligible. There is no requirement to belong to a political party, Parliament is permitted to increase the number of Senators to three per state, reduce the number of appointed Senators, or abolish the post of appointed Senator altogether. The process of appointment is set out by Article 45 of the Constitution, Senators can be appointed to ministerial posts in the Cabinet by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the Prime Minister. However, the Dewan Negara never supplies the Prime Minister, as the Prime Minister must be a member of the Dewan Rakyat. The Dewan Negara is not affected by the elections for the Dewan Rakyat, the Dewan Negara elects a President to preside over sittings of the Dewan Negara, ensure observance of the rules of the house, and interpret the Standing Orders of the house should they be disputed. Should the President be absent, his Deputy takes his place, the Dewan Negara may initiate legislation, except for financial and fiscal matters – a regulation directly from the Westminster system. It may also amend legislation, provided it does not deal with financial matters, any proposed legislation must first be passed by the Dewan Rakyat. Then it is presented to the Dewan Negara in three readings, at the first, the legislations proposer presents it to the assembly. At the second, the bill is debated, at the third, a vote is taken whether to pass or reject the bill. The Dewan Negara may not formally reject bills, it is allowed to delay their passage by one month
18.
Bundesrat of Germany
–
The German Bundesrat is a legislative body that represents the sixteen Länder of Germany at the national level. The Bundesrat meets at the former Prussian House of Lords in Berlin and its second seat is located in the former West German capital of Bonn. For its similar function, it is described as an upper house of parliament along the lines of the US Senate. Bundesrath was the name of similar bodies in the North German Confederation and its predecessor in the Weimar Republic was the Reichsrat. The political makeup of the Bundesrat is affected by changes in power in the states of Germany, each state delegation in the Bundesrat is essentially a representation of the state government and reflects the political makeup of the ruling majority or plurality of each state legislature. The German Bundesrat was first founded, together with the North German Confederation and it was continued under the same name and with the same functions by the German Empire, in 1871. Under the Weimar Constitution,1919, it was replaced by the Reichsrat, whilst appointed by state governments just as today, the delegates of the original Bundesrat—as those of the Reichsrat—were usually high-ranking civil servants, not cabinet members. The original Bundesrat was very powerful, every bill needed its consent and it could also, with the Emperors agreement, dissolve the Reichstag. The Reichsrat of the Weimar Republic had considerably less influence, since it could only veto bills—and even then be overruled by the Reichstag, however, overruling the Reichsrat needed a majority of two-thirds in the Reichstag, which consisted of many parties differing in opinion. So, in most cases, bills vetoed by the Reichsrat failed due to the lack of unity among the Reichstags constituent parties. The Bundesrat met in the building as the Reichstag and Bundestag from 1871 until 2000. The composition of the Bundesrat, 1871–1919, was as follows, Bundesrat members are not elected—either by popular vote or by the state parliaments—but are delegated by the respective state government. Normally, a state consists of the Minister President and other cabinet ministers. The state cabinet may appoint as many delegates as the state has votes, in any case, the state has to cast its votes en bloc, i. e. without vote splitting. As state elections are not coordinated across Germany and can occur at any time, the number of votes a state is allocated is based on a form of degressive proportionality according to its population. This way, smaller states have more votes than a proportional to the population would grant. The allocation of votes is regulated by the German constitution, all of a states votes are cast en bloc—either for or against or in abstention of a proposal. Each state is allocated at least three votes, and a maximum of six, states with more than 2 million inhabitants have 4 votes,6 million inhabitants have 5 votes,7 million inhabitants have 6 votes
19.
Council of States (Switzerland)
–
The Council of States is the smaller chamber of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland, and is considered the Assemblys upper house, with the National Council being the lower house. Twenty of the cantons are represented by two Councillors each. Six cantons, traditionally called half cantons, are represented by one Councillor each for historical reasons and these are Obwalden, Nidwalden, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and Appenzell Innerrhoden. The Councillors serve for four years, and are not bound in their vote to instructions from the cantonal authorities. Under the Swiss Federal Constitution, the mode of election to the Council of States is left to the cantons, all cantons now provide for the Councillors to be chosen by popular election, however those eligible to vote varies according to the applicable cantonal law. In all cantons except for Appenzell Innerrhoden, the Councillors are elected concurrently with the members of the National Council, in the canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden the representative is elected by the physically convened popular assembly the April prior to the national vote. In debates, councilors can choose any of the languages, usually the one he is most proficient with, German, French, Italian. German and French are frequently used, the Council of States represents the federal nature of Switzerland, seats are distributed by state, not by population. Most cantons send 2 representatives, while the historic half-cantons, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landshaft, each send one. Consequently, the number of people represented by a seat in the Council of State varies by a factor of 40. Notes, ¹ Population data from 2015, ² Relative representation compared to Zürich
20.
United States Senate
–
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress which, along with the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, composes the legislature of the United States. The composition and powers of the Senate are established by Article One of the United States Constitution. S. From 1789 until 1913, Senators were appointed by the legislatures of the states represented, following the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913. The Senate chamber is located in the wing of the Capitol, in Washington. It further has the responsibility of conducting trials of those impeached by the House, in the early 20th century, the practice of majority and minority parties electing their floor leaders began, although they are not constitutional officers. This idea of having one chamber represent people equally, while the other gives equal representation to states regardless of population, was known as the Connecticut Compromise, there was also a desire to have two Houses that could act as an internal check on each other. One was intended to be a Peoples House directly elected by the people, the other was intended to represent the states to such extent as they retained their sovereignty except for the powers expressly delegated to the national government. The Senate was thus not designed to serve the people of the United States equally, the Constitution provides that the approval of both chambers is necessary for the passage of legislation. First convened in 1789, the Senate of the United States was formed on the example of the ancient Roman Senate, the name is derived from the senatus, Latin for council of elders. James Madison made the comment about the Senate, In England, at this day, if elections were open to all classes of people. An agrarian law would take place. If these observations be just, our government ought to secure the permanent interests of the country against innovation, landholders ought to have a share in the government, to support these invaluable interests, and to balance and check the other. They ought to be so constituted as to protect the minority of the opulent against the majority, the senate, therefore, ought to be this body, and to answer these purposes, the people ought to have permanency and stability. The Constitution stipulates that no constitutional amendment may be created to deprive a state of its equal suffrage in the Senate without that states consent, the District of Columbia and all other territories are not entitled to representation in either House of the Congress. The District of Columbia elects two senators, but they are officials of the D. C. city government. The United States has had 50 states since 1959, thus the Senate has had 100 senators since 1959. In 1787, Virginia had roughly ten times the population of Rhode Island, whereas today California has roughly 70 times the population of Wyoming and this means some citizens are effectively two orders of magnitude better represented in the Senate than those in other states. Seats in the House of Representatives are approximately proportionate to the population of each state, before the adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, Senators were elected by the individual state legislatures
21.
Presidential system
–
A presidential system is a system of government where a head of government is also head of state and leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch. The United States, for instance, has a presidential system, the executive is elected and often titled president and is not responsible to the legislature, which cannot in normal circumstances dismiss it. Presidential systems are numerous, but the following are true, The executive can veto legislative acts and, in turn. The veto is generally derived from the British tradition of royal assent in which an act of parliament can only be enacted with the assent of the monarch, the president has a fixed term of office. Members of the cabinet serve at the pleasure of the president, cabinet ministers or executive departmental chiefs are not members of the legislature. However, presidential systems often need legislative approval of executive nominations to the cabinet, judiciary, a president generally can direct members of the cabinet, military, or any officer or employee of the executive branch, but cannot direct or dismiss judges. The president can often pardon or commute sentences of convicted criminals, countries that feature a presidential system of government are not the exclusive users of the title of president. For example, a dictator, who may or may not have been popularly or legitimately elected may be, likewise, leaders of one-party states are often called presidents. Most parliamentary republics have presidents, but this position is ceremonial, notable examples include Germany, India, Ireland, Israel. The title is used in parliamentary republics with an executive presidency. In a full-fledged presidential system, a president is chosen directly by the people or indirectly by the party to be the head of the executive branch. Presidential governments make no distinction between the positions of head of state and head of government, both of which are held by the president, a few countries have powerful presidents who are elected by the legislature. These executives are titled president, whereas in practice they are similar to prime ministers, other countries with the same system include Botswana, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, and Suriname. By contrast, national presidents are figurehead heads of state, like constitutional monarchs, such symbolic presidents can be directly elected by the people or indirectly by a legislative vote. Only a few nations, such as Ireland, have a popularly elected ceremonial president, subnational governments, usually states, may be structured as presidential systems. All of the governments in the United States use the presidential system. On a local level, many cities use Council-manager government, which is equivalent to a parliamentary system, some countries without a presidential system at the national level use a form of this system at a subnational or local level. Supporters generally claim four basic advantages for presidential systems, Direct elections — in a presidential system and this makes the presidents power more legitimate than that of a leader appointed indirectly
22.
Impeachment
–
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body formally levels charges against a high official of Government. Impeachment does not necessarily mean removal from office, it is only a statement of charges, akin to an indictment in criminal law. Once an individual is impeached, he or she must then face the possibility of conviction via legislative vote, in the United States, for example, impeachment at the Federal level is reserved for those who may have committed high crimes and misdemeanors. Several Federal officials, including two Presidents and several judges, have been impeached over the course of US history, US President Richard Nixon resigned before Watergate scandal impeachment proceedings could begin. The federal procedure in the United States involves a vote for impeachment in the House of Representatives on a document known as the Article of Impeachment, each separate grounds will be a separate Article. House members who support the impeachment then appoint managers who will act like prosecutors in the preparation for the Senate hearing, the defendant has the right to legal counsel, the right to cross-examine all witnesses and to testify in his or her defense. The senators must also take an oath or affirmation that they perform their duties honestly. The hearing cannot be conducted without a 50% plus one quorum, after the hearing the deliberations are held in private. Removal requires a majority of the Senate. Impeachment has its origins in English law but fell out of use in the 18th century and it exists under constitutional law in many nations around the world, including Brazil, the Republic of Ireland, Philippines, Russia, South Korea and the United States. The word impeachment derives from Latin root impedicare expressing the idea of becoming caught or entrapped, and has analogues in the modern French verb empêcher, medieval popular etymology also associated it with derivations from the Latin impetere. Impeachment was first used in the British political system, specifically, the process was first used by the English Good Parliament against Baron Latimer in the second half of the 14th century. In private organizations, a motion to impeach can be used to prefer charges, the Austrian Federal President can be impeached by the Federal Assembly before the Constitutional Court. The constitution also provides for the recall of the president by a referendum, neither of these courses has ever been taken. This is likely because while the President is vested with considerable powers on paper, he acts as a ceremonial figurehead in practice. The President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, state governors and municipal mayors may be impeached by the Chamber of Deputies, upon conviction, the officeholder has his political rights revoked for eight years--which has the effect of barring him from running for any office. On December 30,1992, Fernando Collor de Mello, the 32nd President of Brazil, the Senate nonetheless voted to convict Collor and bar him from holding any office for eight years, due to evidence of bribery and misappropriation. On April 17,2016, the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies approved the opening of the impeachment case against the president, Dilma Rousseff, the case was later revised by the Federal Senate which, on May 12, approved the suspension of the President
23.
Proportional representation
–
Proportional representation characterizes electoral systems by which divisions in an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. If n% of the support an particular political party, then roughly n% of seats will be won by that party. The essence of such systems is that all votes contribute to the result, not just a plurality, or a bare majority, Proportional representation requires the use of multiple-member voting districts, it is not possible using single-member districts alone. In fact, the most proportional representation is achieved when just one super-district is used, the two most widely used families of PR voting systems are party list PR and single transferable vote. Mixed member proportional representation, also known as the Additional Member System, is a hybrid Mixed Electoral System that uses party list PR as its proportional component, with party list PR, political parties define candidate lists and voters vote for a list. The relative vote for each list determines how many candidates from each list are actually elected, lists can be closed or open, open lists allow voters to indicate individual candidate preferences and vote for independent candidates. Voting districts can be small or as large as a province or an entire nation, the single transferable vote uses small districts, with voters ranking individual candidates in order of preference. During the count, as candidates are elected or eliminated, surplus or discarded votes that would otherwise be wasted are transferred to other candidates according to the preferences, STV enables voters to vote across party lines and to elect independent candidates. Voters have two votes, one for their district and one for the party list, the party list vote determining the balance of the parties in the elected body. Biproportional apportionment, first used in Zurich in 2006, is a method for adjusting an elections result to achieve overall proportionality. Some form of representation is used for national lower house elections in 94 countries, party list PR. As with all systems, there are overlapping and contentious claims in terms of its advantages and disadvantages. But does it follow that the minority should have no representatives at all, is it necessary that the minority should not even be heard. Nothing but habit and old association can reconcile any reasonable being to the needless injustice, in a really equal democracy, every or any section would be represented, not disproportionately, but proportionately. A majority of the electors would always have a majority of the representatives, man for man, they would be as fully represented as the majority. Unless they are, there is not equal government, many academic political theorists agree with Mill, that in a representative democracy the representatives should represent all segments of society. The established parties in UK elections can win formal control of the parliament with as little as 35% of votes, in Canada, majority governments are regularly formed by parties with the support of under 40% of votes cast. Coupled with turnout levels in the electorate of less than 60%, in the 2005 general election, for example, the Labour Party under Tony Blair won a comfortable parliamentary majority with the votes of only 21. 6% of the total electorate
24.
Administrative division
–
Administrative divisions are granted a certain degree of autonomy and are usually required to manage themselves through their own local governments. Countries are divided up into smaller units to make managing their land. For example, a country may be divided into provinces, which, in turn, are divided into counties, which, in turn, may be divided in whole or in part into municipalities, and so on. Administrative divisions are separate from dependent territories, with the former being an integral part of the state. However, the administrative division can include dependent territories as well as accepted administrative divisions. For clarity and convenience the standard reference for the largest administrative subdivision of a country is called the first-level administrative division or first administrative level. Next smaller is called second-level administrative division or second administrative level, there is no fixed rule, for all politics is local as is perhaps well demonstrated by their relative lack of systemic order. In the realm of self-government, any of these can and does occur along a stretch of road—which for the most part is passing through rural unsettled countryside. In British cultural legacy, most territorial entities begin with fairly expansive counties which encompass a large area. Within those entities are the large and small cities or towns, many sister cities share a water boundary which quite often serves as a border of both cities and counties. For example, Cambridge and Boston, Massachusetts appear to the traveler as one large city, while locally they each are quite culturally different. Sovereign state, a national or supra-national division, country, a national or sub-national division. Administrative division codes of the Peoples Republic of China GADM, a database of country administrative areas. ISO 3166-2, specifically Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 2
25.
United Kingdom parliament
–
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
26.
Age of candidacy
–
Age of candidacy is the minimum age at which a person can legally qualify to hold certain elected government offices. In many cases, it determines the age at which a person may be eligible to stand for an election or be granted ballot access. The first known example of a law enforcing age of candidacy was the Lex Villia Annalis, many youth rights groups view current age of candidacy requirements as unjustified age discrimination. Occasionally people who are younger than the age will run for an office in protest of the requirement or because they dont know that the requirement exists. On extremely rare occasions, young people have elected to offices they do not qualify for and have been deemed ineligible to assume the office. In 1934, Rush Holt of West Virginia was elected to the Senate of the United States at the age of 29. Constitution requires senators to be at least 30, Holt was forced to wait until his 30th birthday, six months after the start of the session, in 1954, Richard Fulton won election to the Tennessee Senate. Shortly after being sworn in, Fulton was ousted from office because he was only 27 years old at the time, the Tennessee State Constitution required that senators be at least 30. Rather than hold a new election, the incumbent, Clifford Allen, was allowed to resume his office for another term. Fulton went on to win the next State Senate election in 1956 and was elected to the US House of Representatives where he served for 10 years. In South Carolina, two Senators aged 24 were elected, but were too young according to the State Constitution, Mike Laughlin in 1969, on several occasions, the Socialist Workers Party has nominated candidates too young to qualify for the offices they were running for. In 1972, Linda Jenness ran as the SWP presidential candidate, Constitution requires that the President and Vice President be at least 35 years old, Jenness was not able to receive ballot access in several states in which she otherwise qualified. Despite this handicap, Jenness still received 83,380 votes, in 2004, the SWP nominated Arrin Hawkins as the partys vice-presidential candidate, although she was only 28 at the time. Hawkins was also unable to receive ballot access in several states due to her age, in the United States, many groups have attempted to lower age of candidacy requirements in various states. In 1994, South Dakota voters rejected a measure that would have lowered the age requirements to serve as a State Senator or State Representative from 25 to 18. In 1998, however, they approved a ballot measure that reduced the age requirements for those offices from 25 to 21. In 2002, Oregon voters rejected a measure that would have reduced the age requirement to serve as a State Representative from 21 to 18. During the early 2000s, the British Youth Council and other groups campaigned to lower age of candidacy requirements in the United Kingdom
27.
Luxembourg Palace
–
The Luxembourg Palace is located at 15 rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally built to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the residence of the regent Marie de Medici. After the Revolution it was refashioned by Jean Chalgrin into a legislative building, since 1958 it has been the seat of the French Senate of the Fifth Republic. Immediately west of the palace on the rue de Vaugirard is the Petit Luxembourg, now the residence of the Senate President, and slightly further west, the Musée du Luxembourg, in the former orangery. On the south side of the palace, the formal Luxembourg Garden presents a 25-hectare green parterre of gravel and lawn populated with statues, after the death of Henry IV in 1610, his widow, Marie de Médicis, became regent to her son, Louis XIII. Marie de Médicis desired to make a similar to her native Florences Palazzo Pitti. Marie de Médicis bought the Hôtel de Luxembourg and its fairly extensive domain in 1612 and commissioned the new building, the suites of paintings she commissioned, in the subjects of which she expressed her requirements through her agents and advisers, are scattered among museums. Marie de Médicis installed her household in 1625, while work on interiors continued, the apartments in the right wing on the western side were reserved for the Queen and the matching suite to the east, for her son, Louis XIII, when he was visiting. The 24 Marie de Medici cycle canvases, a series commissioned from Peter Paul Rubens, were installed in the Galerie de Rubens on the floor of the western wing. A series of paintings executed for her Cabinet doré was identified by Anthony Blunt in 1967, Louis XIII commissioned further decorations for the Palace from Nicolas Poussin and Philippe de Champaigne. In 1642, Marie bequeathed the Luxembourg to her second and favourite son, Gaston, duc dOrléans, who called it the Palais dOrléans, but by popular will it was still known by its original name. Upon Gastons death, the passed to his widow, Marguerite de Lorraine, then to his elder daughter by his first marriage, Anne, duchesse de Montpensier. In 1660, Anne de Montpensier sold the Luxembourg to her younger half-sister, Élisabeth Marguerite dOrléans, duchesse de Guise who, in turn, gave it to her cousin, King Louis XIV, in 1694. In 1715, the became the residence of Marie Louise Elisabeth dOrleans. The widowed Duchess was notoriously promiscuous, having the reputation of a French Messalina, the Luxembourg palace and its gardens thus became stages where the radiantly beautiful princess acted out her ambitions, enthroned like a queen surrounded by her court. According to various songs which scurrilously evoked her amours the Lady of the Luxembourg hid several pregnancies. Her taste for strong liquors and her sheer gluttony also scandalised the court, on 21 May 1717, Madame de Berry received Peter the Great at the Luxembourg. On 28 February 1718, the Duchess of Berry threw a magnificent party for her visiting aunt, the entire palace and its gardens were elaborately illuminated
28.
Senate (Netherlands)
–
The Senate is the upper house of the States General, the legislature of the Netherlands. Its 75 members are elected by the members of the twelve States-Provincial every four years, members of the Senate are part-timers who often hold other positions as well. They receive an allowance which is about a quarter of the salary of the members of the House of Representatives, unlike the politically more significant House of Representatives, it meets only once a week. Its members tend to be veteran politicians or part-time politicians at the national level and it has the right to accept or reject legislative proposals but not to amend them or to initiate legislation. Directly after a bill has passed by the House of Representatives. The committee decides whether the bill can be put on the agenda of the full chamber or there should first be preparatory study of the bill. If a bill is immediately put on the agenda of the full chamber, the Senate was instituted by King William I in 1815. When the Netherlands and Belgium were united in 1815, the Belgians in particular pressed for the introduction of a bicameral system, in its early years, the Senate served as a bulwark of the Crown since it was still able to block bills that displeased the king. Such bills were usually private members bills from the House of Representatives, at that time, the members of the House of Representatives too were elected indirectly. The members of the Senate were not elected, but were confidants of the king and were appointed for life, the Senate remained in existence after the separation from Belgium in 1830. Much changed in the sphere as a result of the introduction of a new constitution in 1848. The position of the Senate and the criteria governing eligibility to stand for election were among the changes, monitoring the quality of legislation gradually came to be the main function of the Senate after 1848. * Reformatory Political Federation and Reformed Political League Historic composition of the Senate of the Netherlands List of Presidents of the Senate Official website Official website
29.
Australian Senate
–
The Australian Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Chapter I, there are a total of 76 senators,12 senators are elected from each of the six states and two from each of the two autonomous internal territories. Senators are popularly elected under the single vote system of proportional representation. As a result of proportional representation, the features a multitude of parties vying for power. Senators normally serve fixed terms, unless the Senate is dissolved earlier in a double dissolution. Following a double half the state senators serve terms ending on the third 30 June following the election with the rest serving three years longer. The term of the territory senators expires at the time as there is an election for the House of Representatives. The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act of 1900 established the Senate as part of the new system of government in newly federated Australia. From a comparative perspective, the Australian Senate exhibits distinctive characteristics. Unlike upper Houses in other Westminster system governments, the Senate is not a body with limited legislative power. Rather it was intended to play – and does play – an active role in legislation, the Constitution intended to give less populous states added voice in a Federal legislature, while also providing for the revising role of an upper house in the Westminster system. In practice, however, most legislation in the Australian Parliament is initiated by the Government and it is then passed to the Senate, which has the opportunity to amend the bill or refuse to pass it. In the majority of cases, voting takes place along party lines, since 2015, armed officers of the Australian Federal Police have been placed on duty to protect both chambers of the Federal Parliament. The system for electing senators has changed several times since Federation, the original arrangement involved a first-past-the-post block voting or winner takes all system, on a state-by-state basis. This was replaced in 1919 by preferential block voting, block voting tended to produce landslide majorities and even wipe-outs. For instance, from 1920 to 1923 the Nationalist Party of Australia had 35 of the 36 senators, and from 1947 to 1950, the Australian Labor Party had 33 of the 36 senators. From the 1984 election, group ticket voting was introduced in order to reduce a high rate of voting that arose from the requirement that each candidate be given a preference. As a result of the changes, voters may assign their preferences for parties above the line, or individual candidates below the line, both above and below the line voting now use optional preferential voting
30.
1975 Australian constitutional crisis
–
The 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, also known simply as the Dismissal, has been described as the greatest political and constitutional crisis in Australian history. Whitlams Labor government had been elected in 1972 with a majority in the House of Representatives. Another election in 1974 resulted in little change, while the Whitlam Government introduced many new policies and programs, it was also rocked by scandals and political miscalculations. The Opposition stated that they would continue to do so unless Whitlam called an election for the House of Representatives, Whitlam believed that Kerr would not dismiss him, and Kerr did nothing to disabuse Whitlam of this notion. On 11 November 1975, Whitlam intended to call an election in an attempt to break the deadlock. When he went to seek Kerrs approval of the election, Kerr instead dismissed him as Prime Minister, Fraser and his government were returned with a massive majority in the election held the following month. The events of the Dismissal led to only minor constitutional change, the Senate retained its power to block supply, and the Governor-General the power to dismiss government ministers. However, these powers have not since been used to force a government from office, Kerr was widely criticised by ALP supporters for his actions, resigned early as Governor-General, and lived much of his remaining life abroad. As established by the Constitution of Australia, the Parliament of Australia is composed of two houses, the House of Representatives and the Senate, together with the Queen. The monarch is represented through the Governor-General, who has executive powers granted in the Constitution, the reserve powers are the legal authorities remaining in the Crown after most of its historic powers were transferred to Parliament or to officials. The Governor-General ordinarily acts only upon the advice of the government, the Governor-General is removable by the Queen on the advice of the Australian Prime Minister. As Liberal Party leader Malcolm Fraser, who would play a part in the crisis, put it, The Queen has tenure. But a Governor-General holds office at pleasure, and if he ceases to please then he can be removed by a Prime Minister. As in most Westminster system parliaments, Australias government is formed by the party enjoying the confidence of the lower House of Parliament, the House of Representatives. However, Australias Parliament also has an upper house, the Senate. The Constitution forbids the Senate to originate or amend a money bill, in 1970, Gough Whitlam, as Leader of the Opposition, had stated of a budget bill, Let me make it clear at the outset that our opposition to this Budget is no mere formality. We intend to press our opposition by all available means on all related measures in both Houses, if the motion is defeated, we will vote against the Bills here and in the Senate. Our purpose is to destroy this Budget and destroy the Government which has sponsored it, prior to the 1975 crisis, the Governor-Generals power to dismiss a Prime Minister against the incumbents will under Section 64 of the Constitution had never been exercised
31.
Senate of the Republic (Italy)
–
The Senate of the Republic is a house of the bicameral Italian Parliament. The two houses form a perfect bicameral system, meaning they perform identical functions, but do so separately. Members of the Senate are styled Senator or The Honourable Senator and they meet at Palazzo Madama, the Senate consists of 315 elected members, and as of 2016 five senators for life. The elected senators must be over 40 years of age and are elected by Italian citizens aged 25 or older, the Senate is elected on a regional basis. The 309 senators are assigned to each region according to their population. However, Article 57 of the Constitution provides that no region can have fewer than seven senators representing it, except for the Aosta Valley and Molise. The five current life senators are, The current term of the Senate is five years, until a Constitutional change on February 9,1963, the Senate was elected for six-year terms. The Senate may be dissolved before the expiration of its normal term by the President of the Republic, in 2016, Italian Parliament passed a constitutional law that effectively abolishes the Senate as an elected chamber and sharply restricts its ability to veto legislation. The law was rejected on December 4,2016 by a referendum, the election of the Senate is still regulated by Law no. 270, December 21,2005, which however was judged to be partly unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court in December 2013, in each Region, except for three, at least 55% of the seats are assigned to the coalition or list which received the most votes. The Aosta Valley elects one senator, so it uses a first past the post system, Molise elects two senators with a proportional system. Trentino-South Tyrol uses a mixed member system, it elects 6 senators in first past the post constituencies. That session, presided by the oldest senator, proceeds to elect the President of the Senate for the parliamentary period. On the first two attempts at voting, a majority of all senators is needed, if a third round is needed. If this third round fails to produce a winner, a ballot is held between the two senators with the highest votes in the previous ballot. In the case of a tie, the senator is deemed the winner. The current President of the Senate is Pietro Grasso, recent Presidents of the Italian Senate, Since 1871, the Senate has met in Palazzo Madama in Rome, an old patrician palace completed in 1505 for the Medici family. The palace takes its name from Madama Margherita of Austria, daughter of Charles V, after the extinction of the Medici, the palace was handed over to the House of Lorraine
32.
Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949
–
The Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 are two Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which form part of the constitution of the United Kingdom. Section 2 of the Parliament Act 1949 provides that the two Acts are to be construed as one, the Parliament Act 1911 asserted the supremacy of the House of Commons by limiting the legislation-blocking powers of the House of Lords. Provided the provisions of the Act are met, legislation can be passed without the approval of the House of Lords, additionally, the 1911 Act amended the Septennial Act 1716 to reduce the maximum life of a Parliament from seven years to five years. The Parliament Act 1911 was amended by the Parliament Act 1949, the Parliament Acts have been used to pass legislation against the wishes of the House of Lords on seven occasions since 1911, including the passing of the Parliament Act 1949. Some constitutional lawyers had questioned the validity of the 1949 Act and these doubts were rejected in 2005 when members of the Countryside Alliance unsuccessfully challenged the validity of the Hunting Act 2004, which had been passed under the auspices of the Act. The 1911 Act was a reaction to the clash between the Liberal government and the House of Lords, culminating in the so-called Peoples Budget of 1909. In this Budget, the Chancellor of the Exchequer David Lloyd George proposed the introduction of a tax based on the ideas of the American tax reformer Henry George. This new tax would have had an effect on large landowners. The Conservatives believed that money should be raised through the introduction of tariffs on imports, contrary to British constitutional convention, the Conservatives used their large majority in the Lords to vote down the Budget. The Liberals made reducing the power of the Lords an important issue of the January 1910 general election, the Liberals formed a minority government with the support of the Labour and Irish nationalist MPs. The Lords subsequently accepted the Budget when the tax proposal was dropped. However, as a result of the dispute over the Budget, the Prime Minister, H. H. Asquith, asked King Edward VII to create sufficient new Liberal peers to pass the Bill if the Lords rejected it. The King said he would not be willing to do so unless Asquith obtained a mandate for such sweeping change by winning a second general election. The Lords voted this 1910 Bill down, the Parliament Act was intended as a temporary measure. The Parliament Act resulted in the enactment of the Irish Home Rule Government of Ireland Act 1914. The Act does not affect Bills introduced in the House of Lords, private Bills, the effect of the Act is that the House of Lords can delay those Bills that it could formerly veto. The period for which Bills other than Money Bills could be delayed was originally two years, the Speaker was given the power to certify which bills are classified as money bills. The word month means calendar month, section 1 defines the expression Money Bill
