Healthcare, education, the environment, international aid and crime are the most important issues
that Parliament has to shape and drive. Parliament has evolved throughout its long history. Two key
historical events began this process.
In 1215, King John put his seal on Magna Carta and agreed to a list of 63 rules set out by a group of
barons. Fifty years later, Simon de Montfort, for the first time, invited representatives of the towns and
shires to his 1265 parliament.
Today the Parliament is made up of three parts – the House of Commons, the House of Lords, and the
monarch. The House of Commons is the elected chamber of Parliament. There are 650 Members of
Parliament, or MPs, who each represent a constituency in the UK.They belong to either a political party
or are independent, and are elected by constituents of the area they want to represent.They discuss
laws, big issues and proposes.The House of Lords is the second chamber and shares the making and
shaping of laws with the House of Commons. It has around 800 members and it's formed mostly by life
peers, and also includes hereditary peers and bishops.The monarch’s role is ceremonial. They meet the
Prime Minister once a week to discuss what’s going on in Parliament and formally agree to every new
law.
Prime Minister’s Questions and Ministerial Questions give MPs and Lords the opportunity to challenge
the Government’s policies. Another import way can scrutinise, look in detail, at the work of
Government is through Select Committees. Select Committees analyse and scrutinise policy. They are
made up of either MPs, Lords or a mixture of both. The Committee members discuss on an issue; at the
end of an inquiry, a Committee writes a report with recommendations that the Government usually
responds to within 60 days.
Both Houses in Parliament share responsibility for making and shaping laws. Every law comes from a
bill, that is a proposal for a new law, or to change an existing law. The process to make a law is long;
first a proposal called a Green Paper is published, which presents the Government’s ideas for future
policy. After a public debate s white paper is published which outlines a firmer plan for Government
policy. Cabinet Ministers must agree whether the proposal is taken forward. Once agreed a Bill is
drawn up and the Minister responsible for the policy introduces the Bill to Parliament for debate.MPs
and members of the House of Lords comment on, debate or amend the Bill through several stages, and
at the end of the process, apart from very rare circumstances, it must be agreed by both houses. It is
then passed to the monarch who gives formal approval, or Royal Assent, and theBill becomes law,
called an Act of Parliament.
There are lots of different types of elections to vote in: general, local, European. General elections take
place in the UK usually once every five . On polling day, voters make a choice from a list of candidates.
The candidate with the most votes then becomes that constituency’s MP. Before elections, candidates
need to campaign to get people to vote for them. Parties standing for election publish a declaration of
their policies during the campaign, called a manifesto. The party with the most MPs elected forms the
Government, and their leader becomes Prime Minister. You have to be 18 or over to vote in General
Elections, but you can register from the age of 16.
