...are the most tangible signs of this transformation but other constitutional reforms are either in being or well under way …… ▪ including the Human Rights Act of 1998 (incorporating the European Convention on Human Rights), ▪ a directly-elected mayor and assembly for London, ▪ a reformed House of Lords ▪ and Freedom of Information legislation. ▪ Although reform of the electoral system for Westminster now seems a somewhat distant prospect, the 1999 elections to the Welsh Assembly, to the Scottish Parliament and to the European Parliament were all conducted using electoral systems very different from the traditional first-past-the-post method. ▪ Referendums have been widely used, and more promised o Lecture by the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, to the Constitution Unit, Westminster. 8 December 1998 o No other Government this century has embarked upon so significant or wide-ranging a programme of constitutional reform as the New Labour Government. It is therefore my particular pleasure, as the member of the Cabinet entrusted with driving forward development of policy, to have been invited here to give the Annual Constitution Unit Lecture. o We came to power with specific problems identified: o a government that was over-centralised, inefficient and bureaucratic; o local government in need of...
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...exam < Module 1 > Section A 1a What are the differences between Public Bills Committees and Select Committees? [5] Public Bills Committee is part of legislative process, whereas Select Committee is part of scrutiny process. In the former committee, the bill is examined by line by line to ensure that its wording and language is clear to allow any amendments on the bill. In the latter committee, there are two departments – governmental and non-governmental. They examine government departments’ expeditures , policies and policies. There are between 16 to 50 members in the PBC who are selected by Committee of Selection whose 7 out 9 members are ships. On the other hand, there are 11 members in the SCs and to eliminate “the conflict of interest, all the members are backbench members who are elected using the Alternative vote system. 2a What are the main functions of Parliament and how well does it perform them? [5] < This question is a 20-mark question > 3a What are the differences between direct and representative democracy? [5] In direct democracy, people are directly involved in decision-making processes, whereas in representative democracy, people elect MPs who will represent and form a government in Parliament. For instance, some qualified members of Athenian society were involved in decision-making and a referendum is a limited form of direct democracy. Also general elections are kind of parliamentary democracy, they are held every five years to election...
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...1- People and Politics Understanding the Examination and Exam Technique Choosing your questions In this unit you are presented with four questions. They are of equal value and each question covers one of the four sections of the specification. These are: Democracy and political participation Party policies and ideas Elections Pressure groups There is no significance to the order in which questions appear. Each question is divided into three sections (a), (b) and (c). When choosing which questions to do, the following principles are recommended: It is almost certain that you will be better off choosing your strongest question to do first. You should choose questions on the basis of how well you can answer the section (c) part. The (c) part carries 25 of the 40 marks available for the whole answer. Do not choose a question simply because you can do part (a) especially well. The (a) question is only worth 5 marks. It would be illogical to choose your strongest (a) part if you cannot do well on section (c). If you cannot decide between several (c) parts, i.e. you can do more than one equally well, make your choice on the basis of part (b) which carries 10 marks. But remember, it is the (c) parts that will determine most what your overall mark will be. So, when you first look at the exam paper, look at the (c) sections first. Assessment Objectives Each question is divided into three sections, as follows: carries 5 marks carries 10 marks carries 25 marks The way you answer questions...
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...Constitution What is a constitution? • Set of rules seeking to establishing the duties, powers and functions of the various institutions of government • To regulate the relationships between and among the institutions • Define the relationship between the state and the individual, define extent of civil liberty Types of Constitution • Codified and uncodified o Codified – enshrined in law and based on 1 single authoritative document outlining powers of institutions + government, as well as a statement of the rights of citizen’s ▪ Document is authoritative, highest law of the land. Binds all political institutions – leads to 2 tier legal system ▪ Provisions of it are entrenched, difficult to amend or abolish ▪ It is judiciable, all political bodies are subject to authority of the courts, in particular a supreme court. o Uncodified – increasingly rare, UK one of few ▪ Not authoritative, constitutional laws treated same as ordinary laws ▪ Not entrenched, constitution can be changed through the normal process for enacting statute law. ▪ Not judiciable, judges do not have legal standard to declare that actions of other bodies are constitutional/not constitutional. o However: ▪ No constitution is entirely written, written documents do not encompass all aspects of constitutional practice ▪ No constitution...
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...not a President (Source: David Cameron, The Times, 5th October 2006) “The Cabinet is the committee at the centre of the British political system. Every Thursday during Parliament, Secretaries of State from all departments as well as other ministers meet in the Cabinet Room in Downing Street to discuss the big issues of the day. The Prime Minister chairs the meeting, selects its members and also recommends their appointment as ministers to the monarch. The present Cabinet has 23 members (21 MPs and two peers). The secretary of the Cabinet is responsible for preparing records of its discussions and decisions”. (Source: From a modern textbook) (a) What criticism is David Cameron making of Tony Blair’s style of decision making in source 1? [5] (b) Explain the main functions of the cabinet [10] (c) To what extent have UK Prime Ministers become “presidential”? [25] Or 2 QUESTION TWO THE JUDICIARY A powerful coalition of judges, senior lawyers and politicians has warned that the Government is undermining the civil liberties citizens...
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...LIBERALISM QUESTIONS – A2 (UNIT 4) Short Answers 1. Why do liberals support constitutionalism and consent? (Jan 02) Constitutionalism is a belief in limited government brought about through external (usually legal) and internal (institutional) checks on the exercise of power. Consent is the idea that govt power should be based on the agreement of the governed, usually expressed through regular and competitive elections. Liberals support constitutionalism and consent because they fear that govt may become a tyranny against the individual, based on the assumption that power is inherently corrupting and concentrations of power will lead to absolute corruption. This assumption is rooted in the liberal view of human nature: as individualism implies self- interest, those with power over others are apt to abuse it for their benefit and at the expense of others. Liberal constitutionalism is expressed through support for various external and internal devices, such as codified constitutions, bills of rights, the separation of powers, federalism or devolution, and so on. Liberal support for consent is evident in support for electoral democracy in general and, more specifically, sympathy for referendums and proportional representation. 2. Distinguish between negative freedom and positive freedom, and explain the implications of each for the state. (Jun 02) Negative freedom is the absence of external constraints upon the individual, usually understood as non-interference...
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...design, type and layout by Brian Martin European Security and Defence Policy and The Lisbon Treaty © Institute of International and European Affairs 2009 Foreword This briefing paper is another brilliant contribution to the Institute’s background work on issues arising out of the Lisbon Treaty by Professors Ben Tonra and Patrick Keatinge. It describes the reality of European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), as it has developed over the past six years and explains each of the relevant provisions in the Lisbon Treaty. It puts Ireland’s particular position in ESDP in the context of the recently published guarantees secured by the Irish government at the European Council on 19 June 2009, which will form part of the basis of the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in the autumn. The briefing paper follows the traditional methodology of the Institute, examining recent practice in ESDP based on authenticated facts and it...
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...Lisbon’, which they annexed to the European Council conclusions. They also agreed that ‘at the time of the conclusion of the next accession Treaty [. . .] the provisions of the annexed Decision’ would be included ‘in a Protocol to be attached [. . .] to the Treaty on the European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union’ (Council, 2009a). The purpose of the promised Protocol was to facilitate a second referendum in Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty and to help ensure a successful outcome. The Irish government soon announced that the referendum would take place on 2 October. The prospect of a favourable result looked bright, thanks to the global economic crisis, which hit Ireland particularly hard. Although ratifying the Treaty would not make a material difference, it would send a positive signal to international investors and affirm Ireland’s good fortune to be in the euro area at a time of global financial turmoil. Armed with legally binding guarantees from the EU to allay the concerns of many who opposed the Treaty in the first referendum, and the decision by the European Council to retain one © 2010 The Author(s) Journal compilation © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and...
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...Egypt’s Uncertain Transition Towards Democracy What is Egypt’s relationship with democracy? A question that has become increasingly controversial ever since the “Arab Spring”. This paper is going to be addressing Egypt’s relationship with democracy as it assesses its transition into it over the years. For a considerable length of time Egypt has been in a crisis. Not only has their economy taken a turn for the worst but there is also a strong sense of aloofness between the government and Egyptian subjects. Executive power has been passed from the hands of President Honsi Mubarak, to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, then won by present president Mohamed Morsi, up until he was removed from office, and now is the second transitional period that is pro the rise of Abd El Fattah El Sisi as Egypt’s new to-be elected president. The questions raised here are, was democracy ever achieved at any point in these different time periods and what is in store for the future? The 2011 pro-democracy demonstrations across the Middle East and North Africa are akin to a wildfire. Their speed and effectiveness in removing ironclad autocrats has been bracing. But they have also been indiscriminate and largely unpredictable. The changes sweeping through the region haven’t led to uniform outcomes. Some of these dictators’ houses will be completely destroyed, burnt to ashes, while just across the street some will be untouched. Some dictators will fall – like Mubarak, their autocratic rule and...
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...Psychological motivation of tax payers Tax compliance has been linked heavily with deterrence as the most important compliance-increasing factor but now a days importance of tax morale is being considered as intrinsic motivational toll for the honestly pay taxes. Tax morale , however, depends on the positive interaction of individual taxpayers and the taxing authority through fiscal exchange in a broader arena . Fiscal exchange, for example, may involve adequate provision of public services for the tax payers rather than purely monetary rewards which may be influenced by political decisions or by the way tax authorities treat tax payers in course assessment of the tax liability of an assessee. The relationship between the taxpayers and the taxing authority should be an as an implicit or “psychological tax contract”, under which the taxing authority must balance strategies of deterrence with those of responsive regulation. Tax compliance has many facets. The wealthy tax payers refrain from declaring their income physically earned in foreign countries mostly earned through non declaration or less declaration of commission on foreign trade and the wealth legally in foreign countries in the name of “second home” which is far from providing a comprehensive picture of their income and wealth as well. Tax non-compliance may also be generated through under reporting of income by relatively less wealthy tax payers when they work in shadow economy i.e. when they work in...
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...David Miliband. * Replacement of the current House of Lords with a second chamber elected using PR, this would strengthen the representative function of the legislature by providing more representatives who have genuine legitimacy by the use of PR- making the composition accurate to the votes cast. * The introduction of AV would to commons would not change the current constituency structure of the UK, and would also be a bit more proportional than the current Westminster system FPTP. Explain the arguments in favour of a codified constitution. * Codification is the only way of protecting individual rights and freedoms, the current quasi-entrenched HRA fails to do this, reflected in the conservative plans to replace it with a less powerful British bill of rights with will neither enjoy quasi-entrenchment nor a direct association with the ECHR. This shows how the government of the day can tamper with our rights in the absence of codification. * It may help prevent any further drift towards excessive executive power, codification will surely constrain possibly over-mighty governments who are easily able to alter to constitution. However, it may not necessarily be entrenchment de jure but possibly de facto, which would be unnecessary and fail to curb excessive executive power. * Codification will bring Britain into line with other modern democracies, the UK is one of three, including Israel and New Zealand to not have a codified constitution. However, we would...
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...DECENTRALIZATION, GOVERNANCE AND PUBLIC SERVICES THE IMPACT OF INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Omar Azfar, Satu Kähkönen, Anthony Lanyi, Patrick Meagher, and Diana Rutherford IRIS Center, University of Maryland, College Park September 1999 Table of Contents 1 2 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................1 IMPACT OF DECENTRALIZATION ON PUBLIC SERVICES: THEORY AND EVIDENCE ............................................................................................2 2.1 Theory.............................................................................................................................................. 2 2.1.a Allocative Efficiency............................................................................................................... 2 2.1.b Accountability ......................................................................................................................... 3 2.1.c Cost Recovery ......................................................................................................................... 3 2.2 Evidence........................................................................................................................................... 3 3 FACTORS INFLUENCING THE PERFORMANCE OF DECENTRALIZED SERVICE PROVISION...................................................................................5 3.1 The Political Framework..........
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...economic, social, and cultural rights. Likewise, many transitional justice processes around the world sideline considerations of ESCR. This thesis, is based on The role of the students and youth community in the National Reconciliation Process of Liberia, A case study with the Liberian National Student Union. This thesis outlines why reconciliation is paramount at this time in the nation Liberia History and the factors involved. 1.0 Background to the study The Role of the Student and Youth in National Reconciliation and Peace building in Liberia. A case study report from IPI's Civil Society Project recounting the efforts of Youth and students actors especially Linsu and FLY, and student groups to foster peace, reconciliation, and democracy in Liberia show that the holding of democratic elections in July 1997 marked the end of Liberia's brutal seven-year civil war. The end of the war, it was thought, had settled Liberia's leadership question and it was hoped that cessation of hostilities would usher in a new era of democratic order, political stability, and economic development. This post-war peace dividend however proved to be a mirage. Liberia continues to suffer from political repression even as the socio-economic situation worsens, threatening hopes for democratization in Liberia. Toure A, (2009). Today the student has amended efforts in meeting majors stakeholders involved with the...
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...Racial & Ethnic Short-Answer Questions (15) Should reparations be paid to the descendants of victims of slavery? • Some reject the decision made in the Bakke case that providing a remedy for the effects of racial discrimination is unconstitutional. They argue that the idea of reparations is rooted in international law. • Affirmative Action is inadequate, the ‘Maafa’ (meaning disaster, i.e., slavery) is a crime against humanity, and therefore compensation is required. • In the past 50 years apologies and financial compensation has been given to a wide range of groups, including survivors of the Jewish holocaust (as well as descendants of the victims), Japanese-Americans who were imprisoned during the Second World War and native Americans who had their land illegally seized in the USA. • African Americans have been demanding compensation for slavery since the end of the American Civil War. Immediately after the abolition of slavery, the demand was for 40 acres and a mule to ensure they would not be dependent on their former slave-owners. Then, between 1890 and 1917, there was a movement to lobby the government for pensions to compensate for their unpaid labour under slavery. Since 1989, Congressman John Conyers Jnr (Michigan) has introduced a bill every year to study the case for reparations. Each of these initiatives has been largely ignored by the political establishment. • Reparations would ensure full recognition of the scale of the Maafa and, at the same time...
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...reinforced. Thirdly, the LT has attempted to improve citizen’s rights, for example by the new citizens’ initiatives, as well as by making the Charter of Fundamental Rights legally binding. Fourthly, the LT has introduced several political changes, including more cooperation on the common foreign and security policy and how to combat external threats as a global actor with a single voice. Moreover, this essay considers how the LT differs from the Constitutional Treaty, arguing that although no longer a formal constitution, it does maintain constitutional elements. It then looks at some specific issues; in particular, whether legitimacy, transparency and accountability have been improved, and takes the view that while this is the case to some extent, there remains much room to f urther improve. Finally, it also f ocuses on the EU’s future outlook in the light of the Lisbon Treaty’s amendments, arguing from an intergovernmentalist standpoint, as Member States seek EU cooperation in their own national interests. After the much criticized Treaty of Nice, the Convention on the “Future of Europe” held in March 2001, followed by the Laeken Declaration in December 2001 marked the beginning of the big debate on European...
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