unit 5 review

Describe the British Cabinet.

Contains the Prime Minister and members elected by the Prime Minister. Responsible for policy making. Supreme control of the government. Coordination of all government departments.

Devolution and Constitutional Reform in Britain.

Devolution in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Creating a written constitution. More freedom of information (transparency) A new electoral system.

Describe a major difference between federal and unitary systems.***

Federal: Has divided powers; power divided into subunits, can't take away the power of the subunits. Federal power is divided into national, state, and local governments (like the United States) Unitary: divided. National has all powers and can take away the powers from the subunits. Unitary power has the power located in one central area under one government (Like all the power is in London for Britain)

Which of the following is NOT a feature of the British political system?

Federalism

The largest ethnic minority in Britain is...

Indian

A characteristic of the political culture that most directly explains Britain's cautious attitude towards participation in the European Union is...

Insularity

Describe one advantage and one disadvantage to a federal system of government.

one advantage may be that it provides more protection for individual rights. one disadvantage may be that it can create coordination issues with the different levels of government; could have inconsistent policies.

What is the purpose of the Prime Minister's question time?

To hold the Prime Minister accountable for his/her policies

Northern Ireland and Good Friday Agreement 1998

A peace agreement between IRA and UK. Northern Ireland granted its own legislative assembly.

Who was John Major?

A conservative. Created social programs. He wanted to improve NHS. He supported improved race relations and gay rights.

A major goal of both the European Union and NAFTA is the establishment of...

A free trade system

An important source of legitimacy for most advanced democracies is...

A large amount of social capital

Which of the following is the most direct consequence of the majority party losing a vote of no confidence?

A parliamentary election must be held as soon as possible

Define a parliamentary system. Explain two challenges to the sovereignty of the parliament in Great Britain.

A parliamentary system is where the chief executive is answerable to the legislative and may be dismissed by it. the majority party selects the chief executive. There is a fission between executive and legislative. EU- laws created by UK parliament must conform to European Court of Justice. Creation of a directly elected Mayor of London challenges the Parliament's sovereignty by limiting control over London.

What is the Welfare State?

A set of public policy designed for citizens needs through pensions, health care, unemployment and assistance to the power.

Which of the following would be most likely to vote for Conservative Party candidates?

A small business owner living in Southern England

Unlike most modern democracies, Britain does not have...

A written constitution

Which of the following is NOT a power of the British prime minister?

Appoints judges to the Supreme Court

Purpose of the European Union.

Began after WW2 in an effort to repair nations' economies in a war-torn Europe. An important goal was to coordinate economic policies, particularly through the common currency (the Euro).

"Collective Responsibility" is a term that applies most directly to Britain's...

Cabinet

Which political party currently (after election of 2009) has the most seats representing Britain in the European Parliament?

Conservatives

What are the key policies of the European Union?

Creation of a single, international market, monetary policy, modernize inefficient farms, create common defense and crisis management, justice/home affairs, aim to establish free movement of EU citizens throughout the Union, and enlargement of the EU

Thatcherism

Defined by policies such as privatization of business and industry, strengthening of national defense, tough of labor unions, and a return to market force controls on the economy

Since the turn of the 20th century, the main power of the House of Lords is to ..

Delay legislation passed by the House of Commons

What are the rules regarding British national elections?

Elections must be held every five years, but the prime minister may call them earlier

Which of the following is an accurate statement regarding the British electoral system?

Elections to the Scottish and Welsh regional parliaments are based on proportional representation

In general, political and economic change in Britain has long been characterized by...

Gradualism

Which of the following is NOT a linkage institution in the British political system?

House of Lords

Human Rights Act 2000

Incorporated the EU's convention on Human Rights into British Law.

How does the EU challenge the sovereignty of member states?

Increasing number of decisions are now being made by the EU instead of National governments

House of Lords Act of 1999 did....

It eliminated most of the hereditary peers from the House of Lords.

What is the Maastricht Treaty?

It was passed in 1991 & it created the modern European Union organization and gave it authority in new areas

In Britain, the principle of parliamentary sovereignty has most directly hampered the development of...

Judicial Review

The collective consensus philosophy that predominated in British politics from the end of WW2 until the 1970's was based on the economic philosophy of...

Keynesianism

Which of the following British political parties had not openly advocated proportional representation?

Liberal Democratic

Describe the history of Britain's economy.

Liberalism. Emphasizes political & economic freedoms for the individual market. Tried to establish a middle way between collective consensus. (keynesianism and thatcher's neoliberalism) (free market economy and denationalization of industries)

Describe the House of Commons.

Lower in Parliament. Members elected every 5 years. Members represent a single geographic district. Single Member Plurality. Can be dissolved and have new elections. All members are elected by UK citizens in the general election. Bicameral.

Who was Tony Blair?

Member of the Labour Party. Didn't use the Euro. More modern & trendy. Growth of Scottish National Party. Created the New Labour Party.

Membership Requirements of the European Union.

Must have a stable and functioning democratic regime, a market-oriented economy, and willingness to accept all EU laws and regulations.

The economic policies of Margaret Thatcher most directly reflected...

Neoliberalism

Describe one advantage and one disadvantage to a unitary system of government.

One advantage may be that the government can set uniform policies that direct entire nation. one disadvantage may be that the government disregards local differences & ignores individual cultures among states.

The "shadow cabinet" leads the...

Opposition Party

What are the quangos?

Policy advisory boards appointed by the government which the greatest influence of British interest groups comes through.

Define political legitimacy and list two sources of political legitimacy.

Political Legitimacy is having the authority to use power through the rule of law. Charismatic Leader and Tradition.

What does the House of Lords have the power to do?

Postpone the enactment of legislation

The most important responsibility of the speaker of the House of Commons is to...

Preside over debates

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Protects citizens against secrecy. It gives citizens the right to see information. Increased transparency

Unlike Code Law, Common Law allows...

Public officials and courts to make decisions that set precedents for future policy along decisions

What is a Unitary System?

System of government where power is held in the central government and no powers are reserved for state and local governments.

What is a Federal System?

System where division of authority between central and subcentral levels is constitutionally entrenched.

Who was Margaret Thatcher?

The Iron lady. Conservative Prime Minister. Believed Britain's economy was damaged by Welfare State. Believed trade unions had become too powerful. Advocated free market capitalism and privatization.

What is the largest change the European Union has brought to Europe?

The creation of a common currency (the Euro)

Role of the Prime Minister:

The head of government. Speaks for all members of Parliament. Chooses cabinet ministers and important subordinate posts. Makes decisions in cabinet with agreement of ministers. Campaigns for and represents the party in parliamentary elections. First among equals just because he is a prime minister.

Which of the following is the most important reason why Liberal Democratic party has not been able to get a good representation in parliament?

The plurality electoral system

What is noblesse oblige?

The practice that the wealthy should pay for and support the poor

What is enlargement fatigue?

The term referring to the decline of support for the rapid growth of the EU since 2004

What tension does the Sovereign Debt Crisis effect?

Those who favor open free markets and those who seek to protect national economic interest

Which of the following is most likely to be an expert in a particular policy area?

Top Bureaucrat

The main reason that the Cameron government launched the "www.number10.gov.uk" in 1910 was to promotes the government's...

Transparency

In Britain, the process of devolution has been carried out through...

Turning over some political powers to regional governments

Which of the following political parties is the most openly and consistently anti-EU?

UK Independence

What was thatcherism and happened under it?

Unemployment rose, economic growth, cut taxes, opposed the European Union, Eurosceptic

Describe the House of Lords.

Upper in Parliament. Hereditary. Only real power is to delay legislation. Replaced by the UK Supreme Court.

During which of the following eras have coalition governments ruled Britain?

WW2 & 2010 to the present

Describe a welfare state. Describe two examples of social welfare policy important to Great Britain.

Welfare State: government takes responsibility for basic needs of people through programs: NHS, Unemployment benefits, Social Services, Pensions, etc..

The participation of quangos in policy making in Britain reflects the influence of...

neo-corporatism