- •Legal vocabulary
- •Cultural Commentary
- •Vocabulary Notes
- •General English Vocabulary (students’ reading aid)
- •Reading Comprehension Exercises
- •I. Skimming.
- •Read the motto on page 59 (using the General English vocabulary notes) and say what the speeches of Members of Parliament are compared to and why.
- •II. Scanning. Find the following information in the text:
- •Vocabuary Work Exercises
- •I.* Suggest Russian equivalents for the following word-combinations:
- •III. Guess the words for the following definitions:
- •IV. Paraphrase the underlined parts of the sentences, using the expressions below.
- •V. * Study the following expressions containing prepositions and postverbs and then fill in the gaps in the sentences that follow.
- •Speaking and Translation Exercises
- •I. Answer these questions on the contents of the Chapter.
- •Pages 60 - 62
- •Pages 62 - 63
- •Pages 64 - 67
- •Pages 67 - 72
- •II. Translate the text into English trying to make use of the active vocabulary.
- •IV. Discuss the following controvercial issues:
- •Reading Comprehension
- •I. Skimming.
- •II. Scanning. Find the following information in the text:
- •Vocabuary Work
- •I. Suggest Russian equivalents for the following word-combinations:
- •Russian → English
- •III. Guess the words for the following definitions:
- •IV. Paraphrase the underlined parts of the sentences, using the expressions below.
- •V. Study the following expressions containing prepositions and postverbs and then fill in the gaps in the sentences that follow.
- •Speaking and Translation
- •II. Translate the text into English trying to make use of the active vocabulary. Legislation
Speaking and Translation Exercises
I. Answer these questions on the contents of the Chapter.
Pages 59 - 60
What is the implication of the opening quotation on page 59? How does that reflect the society’s attitude to Members of Parliament and why?
Why is Parliament referred to as the supreme law-making body in the UK?
What two main duties does Parliament perform?
Pages 60 - 62
What is Parliament made up of?
What is the history of the Palace oa Westminster and who does it still belong to?
Explain the origin of the terms „Commons“ and „commoners“.
Why do you think peers are prohibited from beeing MPs?
What is a constituency and how is the election process organised?
What two categories of deputies (as regards the party affiliation) are there in Great Britain?
What is a by-election? Why and in what circumstances does it take place?
What functions do the MPs perform and what are their duties?
Pages 62 - 63
How does the method of voting in the House of Commons ensure the observance of democracy? What are the advantages of democracy as a state system as explained by Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysberg Address?
How do you underctand devolution and why is it applied?
Why is leadership indispensable for any efficient system of government? What body provides leadership in the House of Commons? How does the British government differ from the Russian government? Who are the leaders of the British government?
What is the role of the Government and how is its functioning balanced by Parliament?
What have you learned abou the office of the Speaker?
Pages 64 - 67
What do you think is the reason for there being two types of the Peers of the realm?
What is the difference between Hereditary Peers and Life Peers?
How and why is the House of Lords being reformed? What and how many peers are going to remain in the Lords as a result?
What legislative powers do the Lords have and do not have? Is the House of Lords necessary at all for the legislative process in the UK?
What are the roles and duties of the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice?
Pages 67 - 72
Enumerate and briefly characterise the stages a Bill passes through to become an Act.
Is there any power in Great Britain capable of overriding Parliament’s laws?
In case any law or laws become unpopular, what is the way of changing them?
II. Translate the text into English trying to make use of the active vocabulary.
Законодательство
Законы – это наиболее важный первичный источник норм современного английского права. Законы и акты делегированного законодательства, которые принимаются иными органами власти по разрешению Парламента, имеют приоритет перед другими источниками права. В Англии законы приобрели форму статутов, которые принимаются в установленном порядке1 Парламентом и должны быть одобрены королевой.
Парламент – высший законодательный орган Соединенного Королевства. Теоретически считается, что Парламент пользуется неограниченной свободой усмотрения2 при принятии статутов. На практике же статуты большей частью принимаются для внесения в действующее право необходимых дополнений и изменений. В частности, статутное законодательство предназначено для отмены действующего законодательства, для дополнения положений общего права или права справедливости, для пересмотра последствий решений судов, а также для введения новых положений права по тем вопросам, которые ранее не подлежали правовому регулированию.
Законопроект может выноситься на рассмотрение Парламента правительством, стремящимся проводить партийную политику, или Правовой комиссией, когда она обнаруживает дефекты действующего права и выступает с рекомендациями о реформе той или иной области правового регулирования. Законопроект проходит несколько обязательных стадий в обеих палатах: 1) первое чтение; 2) второе чтение; 3) работа в комитетах; 4) отчет о работе над законопроектом; 5) третье чтение; 6) обсуждение поправок; 7) получение согласия королевы. Законопроект становится статутом после его утверждения обеими палатами Парламента и получения королевского согласия.
III. Project work. Working in small groups find the information on the following themes and make presentations in class.
Different forms of a parliamentary state.
The scope of work the MPs do in Parliament and in their constituencies.
Legislating (stages and procedures of passing laws) in Russia, the US and Britain compared.