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Structure and Function of the British Parliament

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Structure and Function of the British Parliament
What are the main functions of parliament and how do MP’s check the executives?

This essay will talk about what are the main functions of parliament and how do MP’s check the executives.

Parliament’s the source of constitutional legitimacy in Britain.

Parliament has four main functions: Formation of government

Representation

Legalisation

Scrutiny

The British Parliament is a bicameral (e.g. two chamber) legislature consisting of the elected
House of Commons, the Monarch, and the appointed House of Lords made up of life peers
(barons mainly), Bishops, together with a few hereditary peers aswell as for temporary Lords Laws.

Its most important functions as a body apart from scrutiny of executive and representation are to provide ministers for the government, in Britain an individual is drawn from Parliament (and usually the House of Commons in order to be in the Government), to pass legislation and authorize spending and the raising of taxes and to hold the government accountable and take it to task where necessary, this is the basic overview of parliament’s functions. One of the important factors that influence Parliament’s work is that the executive is selected from parliament, and as such can normally control Parliament through a disciplined majority.

Since 1945 every government has had a workable majority, these are the basic principles of the Westminster Model. The legislature is not actually intended to govern, or to have any significant role in the promulgation of legislation.

Recently it’s been seen that parliament’s power has decreased. No individual is responsible for problem though, it’s more like a consequence of the raising complexity of government in these modern times.
.
Formation of government

The government consists of members of the political party that wins an election and has the majority of members in the House of Representatives. This party and/or its leader (the Prime Minister) select fellow

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