Exercises

1. Give Russian equivalents for:

Wales, the House of Lords, the House of Commons, Ireland, the English Channel, the Constitutional Monarchy, Trafalgar Square.

2. The English come from England, the Scots from Scotland, the Welsh from Wales, the Irish from Ireland. Think of as many European countries as you can. What are the people called? What language do they speak?

3. Explain the difference between these expressions: Great Britain, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the British Isles. What did the UK originally refer to?

Text 2

The Political System of the uk

The UK is a constitutional (or parliamentary ) monarchy, withould a written constitution. The British constitutional is based on Acts of Parliament ( also called “laws” or “statutes” ) and “conventions” which are commonly accepted acceptation about the way things should be done. The country has very little power and can only reign with the support of parliament. Parliament consists of two chambers known as the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Parliament and the monarch have different roles in the government of the country, and they only meet together on symbolic occasion such as the coronation of a new monarch or the opening of Parliament. In reality, House of Commons is the only one of the three which has true power. It is majority of the members are in favour of a bill it goes to the Hose of Lords to be debated and finally to the monarch to be signed. Only then does it become law. Although a bill must be supported by all three bodies, the House of Lords only has limited powers, and the monarch has not refused to sign one since the modern political system began over 200 years ago.

The Monarch

For a thousand years England ( and later the whole of the UK.) has been united under one sovereign. The hereditary principe still operates and the Crown is passed on to the sovereigns eldest son (or daughter if three are no song)

The Queen has a certain role in state affairs, not only through her ceremonial function, such as opening Parliament, but also because she meets the Prime Minister every week and received copies of all Cabinet papers.

The powers of the monarch are not defined precisely, however.

The House of Lords

Members of the House of Lords Are not elected, they sit there because of their rank and do not receive a salary. There are 26 Anglican bishop, 800 hereditary peers, 11 judges and 400 life peers. The chairman of the House of Lords is the Lord Chancellor, who sits on the Woolsack.

Members of the House of Lords debate a bill after it has been passed by the House of Commons. Changes may be recommended, and agreement between the two Houses is reached by negotiation.

The House of Commons

Is made up of 650 elected members knows as mps. An mp makes a motion, the house debates it and finally decides whether to agree or disagree with it.

Population

The population of the United Kingdom is over 57 million people. The population lives mostly in towns a cities a their suburbs.

The UK is inhabited by The English, The Scottish, The Welsh a the Northern Irish, who constitute the British nation. They all are descendants of different peoples who settled in The British Isles at different times.

The latest wave of immigrants from the West Indies, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Hong Hong has caused problems. However the atmosphere is improving and the different races are slowly learning to trust one another.

British culture is being enriched through its contact with other cultures.