General Elections - Institutions in the UK

Source: http://www.parliament.uk/about/how/elections-and-voting/general/

When Parliament is dissolved every seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant and a general election is held. Each constituency in the UK elects one Member of Parliament (MP) to a seat in the House of Commons. Usually the political party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons forms the Government.

• What is a general election?
• When was the last general election?
• Who becomes Prime Minister?
• Formation of a government following a general election
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What is a general election?

A general election is an opportunity for people in every part of the UK to choose their MP - the person who will represent their local area (constituency) in the House of Commons for up to five years.

There is normally a choice of several candidates in each constituency, some of which are the local candidates for national political parties. People can only vote for one of the candidates and the candidate that receives most votes becomes their MP.

When was the last general election?

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 sets the interval between general elections at five years. At the end of this time a new House of Commons must be elected.

The date of the general election was 7 May 2015.

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 provides for general elections to be held on the first Thursday in May every five years.

However, there are two provisions that trigger an election other than at five year intervals:

• a motion of no confidence is passed in Her Majesty's Government by a simple majority and 14 days elapses without the House passing a confidence motion in any new Government formed
• a motion for a general election is agreed by two thirds of the total number of seats in the Commons including vacant seats (currently 434 out of 650)

Previous to this Act, the Prime Minister could call a general election at any time within the five year period and not all Parliaments lasted the full five years.

Before 2011 a general election could be called earlier for a number of reasons. For example, the Prime Minister could decide to call an election at a time when he or she was most confident of winning the election (getting more MPs than any other party) or if a government was defeated on a confidence motion, a general election could follow.

Do general elections have to be held on Thursdays?

Not necessarily. The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 set the date of the last general election at Thursday 7 May 2015 and subsequent elections to be held on the first Thursday of May at five year intervals. However, if an earlier general election is triggered the Act does not state that the election has to be held on a Thursday.

Before the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 the Prime Minister could choose any weekday for a general election, according to a fixed electoral timetable. However, Thursday has become the traditional day for general elections.

The last general election not to be held on a Thursday was on Tuesday 27 October 1931.

Who becomes Prime Minister?

Can I vote for a new Prime Minister?

No. You can only vote to elect your local MP in a general election. Even if you live in the constituency represented by the current Prime Minister or the leader of another political party, you are still only voting on whether he or she will be your local MP in the next Parliament.

Who chooses the Prime Minister?

The Prime Minister is appointed by the Queen, who is guided by constitutional conventions.

• The British Monarchy: The Queen and Government (external site)

The Cabinet Manual sets out the main laws, rules and conventions affecting the conduct and operation of government, including the role of the Sovereign.

• GOV.UK: The Cabinet Manual (external site)

Formation of a government following a general election

Usually the political party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons at a general election forms the new government and its leader becomes Prime Minister.

If no party wins a majority of the seats, a situation which is known as a 'hung Parliament', then the largest party may form a minority government or there may be a coalition government of two or more parties. The Prime Minister appoints ministers who work in the government departments, the most senior of these sit in Cabinet.

• Read more about Parliament: Hung Parliament
• Read more about Parliament: Parliament and Government

Globalisation lottery hits UK cities

http://www.theguardian.com/society/joepublic/2008/sep/10/communities.regeneration

 

Greater global economic links are boosting some cities but hurting others. The government should target regeneration help on the hardest hit, says Dermot Finch

 

 

According to the government, Britain is "uniquely placed to succeed in the global economy". We're also "enthusiasts for globalisation", and global expansion is equated with "massive opportunity". We hear lots of positive rhetoric about globalisation benefiting the UK as a whole – which is spot on, at the national level. Look closer and there's a much more mixed picture from Reading to Bradford, from Milton Keynes to Stoke.
UK cities have been feeling the effects of globalisation for decades. We've seen a move away from a manufacturing to a service-based economy. Belfast lost 26% of its manufacturing jobs during the 1960s and employment at the city's iconic shipbuilding giant, Harland and Wolff, has dropped from 20,000 in the 1950s to just 120 today. While Liverpool's population has shrunk by 16% since the early 1980s, Milton Keynes has struck gold – its numbers have increased to 78% as the city's retail and logistics sectors boomed.
Some cities are just better placed than others to seize the opportunities of globalisation. With Reading's transport and trading links it's no surprise to hear that 40% of its workforce is employed in the top 20 exporting sectors, twice the proportion in Stoke and Doncaster. That's not to say that we're advocating a mass migration south (remember Policy Exchange's big splash last month with their Cities Unlimited report). Doncaster might not be growing at the same rate as Reading but that doesn't mean it can't flourish.
I'd like to see more realism from cities about their niche in the world economy. Not every city and town can be world class. In global terms UK cities are small, but their unique selling point is that they are located closely together. Sheffield, Liverpool, Bradford, Leeds and a host of other cities are all within a 40 mile radius around Manchester - the equivalent to London's travel to work area. To compete on a global stage, cities and towns need to collaborate with each other – working together to promote brands like "Greater Manchester" or "Greater Birmingham".
Politicians cannot and should not reverse the tide of global economic change but they can be more up front about it. Gordon Brown acknowledged in his foreword to autumn's Labour Party conference paper that economic restructuring, driven by globalisation has meant reduced security for lower skilled workers. The next step is to focus regeneration spending in cities on those hardest hit – by reskilling those whose jobs have disappeared as a result of offshoring or industrial decline. Let's look beyond fancy new city centre buildings and address some of the challenges globalisation presents for UK cities.

· Dermot Finch is the director of policy research unit Centre for Cities. Their report, UK Cities in the Global Economy, is available for download at centreforcities.org/globalisation



Bloody Sunday

More information about: Bloody Sunday

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/bloody_sunday

 

On the morning of Sunday 30 January 1972, around ten thousand people gathered in Londonderry for a civil rights march. The British Army had sealed off the original route so the march organisers led most of the demonstrators towards 'Free Derry Corner' in the nationalist Bogside area of the city. Despite this, a number of people continued on towards an army barricade where local youths threw stones at soldiers, who responded with a water cannon, CS gas and rubber bullets.
As the riot began to disperse, soldiers of the 1st Parachute Regiment were ordered to move in and arrest as many of the rioters as possible. In the minutes that followed, some of these paratroopers opened fire on the crowd, killing thirteen men and injuring 13 others, one of whom died some months later.
Free Derry
British troops had been sent into Derry as a peacekeeping force in August 1969 and had initially been welcomed by the predominantly Catholic nationalist community as a preferable alternative to what they saw as the discrimination of the local Northern Ireland security forces. The residents of the Bogside area of the city had declared it 'Free Derry' and refused to recognise the authority of the Northern Ireland government, led by a unionist majority that drew most of its support from the Protestant community.
Opposition to policies such as detention of terrorist suspects without trial (internment) and the alleged rigging of electoral wards to favour Protestant voters (gerrymandering) had inspired a nascent civil rights movement across Northern Ireland. With support for the demands of the civil rights movement so strong among local people, Derry was an obvious choice for a mass demonstration.
The events of Bloody Sunday
About ten thousand people gathered in the Creggan area of Derry on the morning of Sunday 30 January 1972. After prolonged skirmishes between groups of local youths and the army at barricades set up to prevent the march reaching its intended destination (Guildhall Square in the heart of the city), paratroopers moved in to make arrests. During this operation, they opened fire on the crowd, killing thirteen and wounding 13 others.
The dead were all male, aged between seventeen and forty-one. Another man, aged fifty-nine, died some months later from injuries sustained on that day. The wounded included a fifteen-year-old boy and a woman.
Reaction and inquiries
While the British Army maintained that its troops had responded after coming under fire, the people of the Bogside saw it as murder. The British government was sufficiently concerned for the Home Secretary to announce the following day an official inquiry into the circumstances of the shootings.
Opinion was further polarised by the findings of this tribunal, led by the British Lord Chief Justice, Lord Widgery. His report exonerated the army and cast suspicion on many of the victims, suggesting they had been handling bombs and guns. Relatives of the dead and the wider nationalist community campaigned for a fresh public inquiry, which was finally granted by then Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1998.
Headed by Lord Saville, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry took 12 years and finally reported in 2010. It established the innocence of the victims and laid responsibility for what happened on the army.
Prime Minister David Cameron called the killings "unjustified and unjustifiable". The families of the victims of Bloody Sunday felt that the inquiry's findings vindicated those who were killed, raising the question of prosecutions and compensation.

State Opening of Parliament 2015

The State Opening of Parliament took place on Wednesday 27 May 2015. State Opening marks the formal start of the new 2015-16 parliamentary session. The primary purpose of this colourful state occasion is to set out the Government's legislative agenda in the Queen's Speech.

The State Opening of Parliament is the most colourful event of the Parliamentary year.

It is also the most important, because it brings together the three elements of the legislature (the House of Commons, the House of Lords and The Queen). The ceremony therefore represents the Crown in Parliament.

As Head of State, it is the duty of The Queen formally to open each new session of Parliament.

Her Majesty has only missed two Opening of Parliament ceremonies during her reign. The first time was in 1959 when she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and the second in 1963 when she was expecting Prince Edward.

After the introduction of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, the State Opening of Parliament takes place every year in May.T

 Before The Queen travels to Parliament from Buckingham Palace, certain traditional precautions are observed.

A detachment of The Queen's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard searches the cellars of the Houses of Parliament.

This tradition dates back to the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, when Guy Fawkes was arrested whilst preparing to blow up Parliament. Today, the Yeomen of the Guard continue this historic search, in addition to the security checks by police.

Another tradition is the 'hostage' MP, a Government whip who is held at Buckingham Palace to guarantee the safe return of the monarch.
The custom dates back to centuries when the monarch and Parliament were on less cordial terms.

Once these precautions have been taken, The Queen travels from Buckingham Palace in a State coach to the Palace of Westminster, usually accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh.

The Imperial State Crown travels in its own carriage, ahead of The Queen, escorted by Members of the Royal Household.

On arrival, The Queen puts on the Imperial State Crown and her parliamentary robe ready for the ceremony itself. This takes place in the House of Lords.

Some 250 representatives of the House of Commons are summoned by Black Rod, who acts as The Queen's Messenger.

By tradition, the door of the House of Commons is slammed in Black Rod's face. It is then reopened to enable Black Rod to convey the Sovereign's summons to the Speaker.

This tradition is a reminder of the right of the Commons to exclude everyone but the Sovereign's messengers.

No monarch has set foot in the Commons since Charles I entered the Commons and tried to arrest five Members of Parliament in 1642.

Spectators can view the procession to Parliament from Buckingham Palace in The Mall and Whitehall.

The ceremony is also broadcast live on BBC television.

SOURCE:  OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE BRITISH MONARCHY
http://www.royal.gov.uk/RoyalEventsandCeremonies/StateOpeningofParliament/State%20Opening%20of%20Parliament.aspx

Scottish devolution: What next for Scotland?

SOURCE: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-32810553

As the new majority Conservative government gets down to business, the BBC's Hayley Jarvis looks at the plan for Scotland and what might happen next.

 27 May 2015

What powers are heading to the Scottish Parliament?

 WATCH THE VIDEO

During the election campaign Conservative leader David Cameron pledged to give more powers to Scotland within 100 days of winning the election. He promised to create "the strongest devolved government anywhere in the world with important powers over taxation".
These new powers for Scotland were outlined in the Queen's Speech.
The Scotland Bill will be based on recommendations made by the Smith Commission - the cross-party group formed after the independence referendum to look at what additional powers might be handed to Scotland.
If the legislation makes it over the usual parliamentary hurdles, new powers will include;

• setting income tax rates and bands
• controlling a proportion of VAT raised in Scotland
• fully controlling air passenger duty
• creating new benefits in devolved areas and making discretionary welfare payments
• managing the assets of the Crown Estate

In addition, the Scottish Parliament has already been given the power to extend voting to 16 and 17 year olds in time for the 2016 Scottish Parliamentary elections.


Is everyone happy with the proposals?

WATCH THE VIDEO

The Scotland Bill will be based on draft legislation, or a "command paper", which was published by the previous Tory/Lib Dem coalition government in January. But a committee of MSPs at Holyrood, where the SNP is in government, said the powers plan "fell short" of recommendations made by Smith Commission.
SNP leader and Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon had called for a new Scotland Bill that would go beyond Smith.
She wants additional powers, including control of:

• National Insurance
• the minimum wage
• Corporation Tax
• full control of welfare and employment
• trade union law

None of these feature in the forthcoming Bill which is one of 21 proposed by the majority Conservative government.
Nevertheless, the Scottish government will be seeking assurances that UK ministers cannot veto any of the powers already promised to Scotland in the draft legislation, such as changes to benefits.
Full fiscal autonomy - the responsibility for all areas of tax and spending except defence and foreign affairs - remains a key goal for the SNP, but not yet.
During an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr, Ms Sturgeon said she would be pressing the Prime Minster to give Scotland greater financial control, but "clearly that will take a number of years to implement".

Why is it important that David Cameron delivers on this?

Just two days before people in Scotland cast their votes in the Scottish independence referendum, the leaders of the three Unionist parties - David Cameron (Conservatives); Ed Miliband (Labour) and Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats) - made a public "vow" to give Holyrood more powers.
On 18 September 2014, the electorate voted 55% to 45% against independence and Mr Cameron promised the day after the referendum that if he won the 2015 General Election he would deliver the "vow".

Would David Cameron go further in the future?

The general election saw the SNP win 56 of Scotland's 59 Westminster seats which prompted party leader Ms Sturgeon to pledge that her MPs would provide the loudest ever voice for Scots in the House of Commons.
Following the election, Mr Cameron met with Ms Sturgeon who called their talks "constructive and business like".
While the PM has said he would look at "sensible suggestions" for more powers, he has given no indication he would go beyond Smith.
The new Scottish Secretary David Mundell has also said he believed the Smith proposals were the "right package" for the country.
He too signalled the UK government would be prepared to listen to calls for more powers, but as part of usual parliamentary procedures.

What's the story for England, Wales and Northern Ireland? 

WATCH THE VIDEO
 
After the Scottish independence referendum, Mr Cameron made a speech outside No 10 Downing Street in which he said the UK needed, not only a new deal for Scotland, but for the "millions of voices in England" to be heard. So, what has happened since September last year?

• ENGLAND - Before the election, Mr Cameron tasked the then Leader of the Commons William Hague to draw up plans enabling only English MPs to vote on English matters. During the election campaign, Mr Cameron pledged that an English rate of income tax would feature in the first budget of new Conservative government. This Queen's Speech outlined that changes would be made to the standing orders of the House of Commons -basically the rules that govern the way laws are passed - ensuring that only MPs representing English constituencies could vote on legislation affecting England alone.
• WALES - The new government's programme details further devolution of powers to Wales, including a new reserved powers model to clarify the division of powers between the Welsh Assembly and parliament. The assembly will also be given more powers over energy, transport and local government elections in Wales.
• NORTHERN IRELAND - Devolution of powers has been suspended and reinstated several times since its Assembly was created following the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. It has control over areas such as agriculture, education, health and social services, economic development and the environment and in March 2010 an agreement was passed to transfer powers of justice and policing. Although there is no big devolved power heading to Northern Ireland, a Bill is in the pipeline which will provide for full and independent investigations into "unsolved Troubles-related deaths".