Starter Guide to British Politics
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STARTER<br />
GUIDE TO<br />
BRITISH<br />
<strong>Politics</strong><br />
By Alexander Williams
Confused about politics?<br />
Unsure where <strong>to</strong> start?<br />
This is the perfect GUIDE for you.
Contents<br />
1. Constituencies<br />
2. Election<br />
3. Voting<br />
4. Coalition<br />
5. Bill<br />
6. ParliamenT<br />
7. What’s Next?<br />
8. from the author
Constituencies 1/6<br />
Constituencies<br />
The United Kingdom is split in<strong>to</strong> 650 Constituencies.<br />
533 in England,<br />
59 in Scotland,<br />
40 in Wales, and<br />
18 in Northern Ireland.<br />
Each constituency is represented by an MP (Member of Parliament).<br />
These are often called seats, as each constituency represents a seat<br />
in the House of Commons, which we’ll get <strong>to</strong> later on.<br />
For example, Bur<strong>to</strong>n in the Midlands is a constituency with a population<br />
of 102,731 in 2011.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
Finding out which constituency you are in is important because you can<br />
then register <strong>to</strong> vote or find out who your local MP is.<br />
Constituencies 1/6
Candidate 2/6<br />
Election<br />
There are many different types of elections, such<br />
as; local elections, general elections, European<br />
Parliamental elections and many more.<br />
For now, we’ll focus on two key areas:<br />
General elections and referendums.<br />
General election: Each constituency can vote for<br />
whom they want <strong>to</strong> represent them in the House<br />
of Commons, this happens at least every five years.<br />
Referendums: referendums are not an election.<br />
During a referendum, everyone will vote on a<br />
major issue. For example; Britain leaving the<br />
European Union (otherwise known as Brexit)<br />
during June 2016.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
Elections are incredibly important, it gives you<br />
the chance or <strong>to</strong> view manifes<strong>to</strong>’s or major issues<br />
you could get involved with.<br />
Candidate 2/8
Voting 3/6<br />
Voting<br />
There are different types of ways <strong>to</strong> vote, the main two<br />
being ballot box voting or absentee vote.<br />
During a general election or a referendum, each<br />
constituency will allocate polling stations across <strong>to</strong>wns all<br />
over the United Kingdom. These are usually located<br />
in schools, community centre’s and other well known<br />
local areas.<br />
This is where you would usually go <strong>to</strong> vote, unless you<br />
are doing an absentee vote, otherwise known as a<br />
postal vote. Postal voting is how you would vote<br />
if you were unable <strong>to</strong> visit a polling station for any<br />
reason whatsoever, or simply find it convenient.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
Voting gives you the opportunity <strong>to</strong> voice your opinions<br />
politically. Voting in a general election can make<br />
a big difference <strong>to</strong> the future of our Government.<br />
VOTING 3/6
Coalition 4/6<br />
Political<br />
Party<br />
Most candidates that run for an election are part of a political party,<br />
such as the Conservative Party, Labour Party, or the Liberal Democrats.<br />
There are many different parties all with separate methods and goals,<br />
so take care when voting and make sure you research a wide variety of<br />
parties <strong>to</strong> see which you agree with.<br />
Candidates that aren’t part of any party, are called Independents.<br />
In the House of Commons, the political party that has the most<br />
constituencies (over 51%) wins control of the House of Commons<br />
for the next five years.<br />
Important <strong>to</strong> note: During 2010, there was a Coalition. This meant<br />
that no political party had over half of the constituencies, and there<br />
was a ‘Hung Parliament’. To solve this, two parties worked <strong>to</strong>gether<br />
<strong>to</strong> form a Coalition Government, the Conservative Party and the<br />
Liberal Democrats.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
Knowing about who runs the Government is important because - for<br />
example - the Conservatives could share the views you do, and<br />
could make changes you want <strong>to</strong> see if they were in power.<br />
Coalition 4/6
BILL 5/6<br />
Bill<br />
A Bill is a drafted proposal for a new law, or a proposal<br />
<strong>to</strong> change an existing law.<br />
Bills are passed through the House of Commons and the<br />
House of Lords and then given Royal Assent, which means<br />
the bill is sent <strong>to</strong> the reigning Monarch <strong>to</strong> pass.<br />
Bills can take a long time <strong>to</strong> pass through Parliament, for<br />
example: the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands)<br />
Act 2017 was introduced on 25th November 2013 but<br />
was passed on 23rd February, 2017.<br />
Once a Bill has been passed, it becomes a law.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
There are hundreds of Bills, some relating <strong>to</strong> animal or<br />
human rights, and some relating <strong>to</strong> public spending.<br />
If you are passionate about any of these <strong>to</strong>pics, you can<br />
voice your opinion <strong>to</strong> Parliament in many different ways.<br />
Bill 5/6
PARLIAMENT 6/6<br />
Parliament<br />
In the United Kingdom, we are a Constitutional Monarchy.<br />
This means the King or Queen who reigns does not<br />
make open political decisions, we have a Parliament for<br />
that: the House of Commons, the House of Lords and our<br />
Monarch.<br />
The House of Commons is controlled by the Government,<br />
which is a political party that has won more than half of the<br />
constituencies around the United Kingdom, as stated before.<br />
The political party that wins can form a Government body<br />
with roles such as: Prime Minister, Secretary of State and<br />
Chancellors. The party with the second largest number of<br />
MP’s is then known as the opposition, this is where a<br />
shadow cabinet comes in.<br />
The House of Lords is slightly different as its members are<br />
not elected by the nation, they are appointed.<br />
These two Houses work <strong>to</strong>gether <strong>to</strong> make laws,<br />
debating current issues and <strong>to</strong> challenge the work of the<br />
government in power. These, as well as our Monarch<br />
form our Parliament.<br />
Why is this important <strong>to</strong> me?<br />
We are a democracy in the United Kingdom. This is<br />
incredibly important, because you as a voter have a say<br />
in what goes on in our country and some countries don’t<br />
have that freedom.<br />
PARLIAMENT 6/6
What’s next?<br />
Keep up <strong>to</strong> date.<br />
In the United Kingdom, our<br />
Government is constantly<br />
changing so it’s important <strong>to</strong> keep<br />
up <strong>to</strong> date with everything that’s<br />
going on.<br />
How?<br />
Visiting www.parliament.uk is a<br />
great way <strong>to</strong> stay on <strong>to</strong>p with the<br />
current changes, but that is just<br />
one of hundreds of sources for<br />
information.<br />
Be Careful.<br />
<strong>Politics</strong> is very opinionated, and<br />
places where you find your<br />
information could be biased.<br />
Make sure you check multiple<br />
sources and manifes<strong>to</strong>’s before you<br />
vote.<br />
Don’t worry.<br />
<strong>Politics</strong> is a large subject but it’s<br />
not incredibly complicated once<br />
you get in<strong>to</strong> it. Be passionate and<br />
engage with issues that you care<br />
about.<br />
Feeling like your vote<br />
won’t make<br />
a difference?<br />
In the 2015 general election, only<br />
66.1% of registered voters voted.<br />
If the other 33.9% shared the same<br />
view that their vote didn’t matter,<br />
imagine the difference they could<br />
have made if they voted?
From the author<br />
Hi.<br />
I created this resource for the sole<br />
purpose of being used <strong>to</strong> educate<br />
people about Great Britain’s<br />
political system, how it works and<br />
its seperate elements.<br />
There are many elements I have<br />
left out <strong>to</strong> keep the information<br />
simple and understandable, so it is<br />
important <strong>to</strong> go away and research<br />
deeper in<strong>to</strong> politics after reading.<br />
Reading the book?<br />
This guide is an online resource as<br />
well as a series of posters.<br />
View:<br />
Download:<br />
https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/58252938/starter-guide-<strong>to</strong>-british-politics<br />
https://www.pdf-archive.com/2017/04/26/starter-guide-<strong>to</strong>-british-politics/<br />
If you want <strong>to</strong> contact the author<br />
for posters or additional<br />
information please email:<br />
alexwilliamswork@outlook.com<br />
https://www.parliament.uk/ https://www.gov.uk/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics http://www.politics.co.uk/ https://yougov.co.uk/ http://www.ukpolitical.info/
cleaR,<br />
understandable,<br />
simplified, yet detailed,<br />
Dyslexia friendly,<br />
HELPFUL.<br />
In this book you’ll find incredible illustrations, clear definitions and a fantastically structured narrative that<br />
takes you through the ins and outs of our Parliament, equipping you with the basic knowledge about politics and<br />
where <strong>to</strong> start.