Speaker in the British Parliament

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The Speaker severs all party connections after taking office. He abandons any links with his party, after being elected as a Speaker. The Speaker’s seat is called the Speaker’s chair. There are 3 chairs for his deputies. On the table there are Dispatch Box. All speeches in the House of Commons are addressed to the Speaker. When an MP wants to speak, he rises to his feet and tries “to catch the Speaker’s Eye”. Speeches are addressed to the Speaker, using the words: “Mr. Speaker”, “Madam Speaker” nad etc,. The Speaker is neutral during debates. He has to be completely unbiased and must not show favoritism towards any party.

#11

England, Scotland, Wales, Nothern Ireland

England. The name England is derived from Agles, one of the Germanic tribes, which established monarchies in lowland Britain in the 5^th century, after the final withdrawal of the Romans in 409. There are 533 English parliamentary constituencies represented in the House of Commons. The two leading parties are the Conservativa and the Labour parties. The greatest concentration of population in England and the UK are in London and South – East York, Manchester, Merseyside. London is the capital of England and the UK. Its population is about 8 million. Green Bells are areas of land intended to be left open and protected from inappropriate development. Scotland. At the time of the Roman invasion of Britain, what is now Scotland was mainly inhabited by the Picts. But Roman rule was never permanently extended to most of Scotland. In the 6^th century, the Scots from Ireland settled in what is now Argyll and gave the name to the present day Scotland. Scotland’s population has changed relatively little in the last 50 years. It is 5, million. The population density in the UK. The population of Edinburgh is 478000. The most popular national costume in Britain is the Scottish kilt with its distinctive tartan patterns. The kilt is worn around the waist. There are many Scottish traditions. In some parts of Scotland, Ireland and in the Hebrides Gaelic, a language of ancient Celtic origin, is spoken. Wales. The population of Wales is 3 million. The population density is 140 inhabitants per square kilometer. About 2/3 lives in the southern valleys and the low-lying coastal areas. The capital is Cardiff (321000 population). The Tudor dinasty which ruled England, was of Welsh ancestry. Welsh people have strong musicial tradition and Wales is well known for its choral singing. Northern Ireland. Half of 1, 8 million people in Northern Ireland lives in the eastern coastal regions, the center of which is the capital, Belfast, with the population 267500. The population density is 122 inhabitants per square kilometer. Northern Ireland is, as its nearest point, only 21 km from Scotland. More than 50% of population of NI regard themselves as Protestants and 42% as Roman Catholics. Most of Protestants are descendants of Scots or English settlers. NI is represented in the House of Commons by 18 MPs.

Elementary, secondary education in the USA

Each fall almost 50 million young Americans walk through the doorways of about 100000 elementary and secondary schools for the start of a new school year. About 85% of American school students attend public schools. The other 15% attend private schools. From Hawaii to Delaware, from Alaska to Louisiana, each of the 50 states in the USA has its own laws regulating education. Every child in America is guaranteed up to 13 years of education. This is true regardless of a child’s race, religion, sex, learning problems, physical handicap or inability to speak English. Americans have a strong tendency to educate their children about major public concerns – problems such as environmental pollution, nuclear issues, neghborhood crime and drugs. The school is usually nine months, from September to June. Elementary school. The main purpose of the elementary school is the general intellectual and social development of the child from 6 to 12 or 15. Promotion from one grade to the next is based on the pupil’s achievement of specified skills in reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic, history, geography, music and art. Secondary school. In statistical reports secondary school generally means grades 9-12. These grades are popularly called high school. Most school students follow a course that includes English, science, social studies, mathematics and physical eduaction. Elective subjects may be chosen in the fields of foreign languages, fine arts. Students receive “report cards” at least twice a year which indicate the grades they have received in each of the subjects they are studying. In the USA there is no national curriculum, but certain subjects are taught in all K to 12 systems across the country. Almost every elementary school provides instruction in these subjects: mathematics, language arts, penmanship, social studies, science, music, art. Secondary schools offer the same core of required subjects: mathematics, science, social studies and physical education.

Magna Carta.

It is Britain’s best known constitutional document. It protects the rights of the community against the crown. In 1215 King John was forced to fix his seal to the Magna Carta. Since that day the Magna Carta has become part of English law and established principle that the king is not above law. In Magna Carta there are 61 clauses. They contain criticism of the king’s abuses of power and declare that the king is not to make the people to pay taxes without the consent of the Great Council and that no one is to be punished for any wrong doings without the consent of the Great Council.

#12

The British Constitution and it’s pecularities.

The UK is a parliamentary monarchy based on an unwritten constitution, i.e over centuries it comprises the statute law, the common law and the custom evolved. The most important constitutional documents are The Magna Carta Libertata, Habeas Corpus Act, The Bill of Rights, Petition of Rights, The Reform Act, Statute of Westminster and others. Magna Carta. It is Britain’s best known constitutional document. It protects the rights of the community against the crown. In 1215 King John was forced to fix his seal to the Magna Carta. Since that day the Magna Carta has become part of English law and established principle that the king is not above law. In Magna Carta there are 61 clauses. They contain criticism of the king’s abuses of power and declare that the king is not to make the people to pay taxes without the consent of the Great Council and that no one is to be punished for any wrong doings without the consent of the Great Council. Petition of Rights. In 1628 the Parliament opposition uniting the bourgeoisie and the gentry scored a victory: the king was made to sign a document limiting his power, the so-called Petition of Right. Habeas Corpus Act 1679. Its original purpose was to liberate anyone illegally detained, it is a protection against arbitrary imprisonment. The Bill of Rights of 1689 stated the main ideas of the constitutional monarchy with the legislative power in the parliament’s hands, the king having no right to refuse signing the bills proposed by it. This document extended the power of Parliament and made it impracticable for the Sovereign to ignore the wishes of the Government. The Reform Act of 1832 reformed the System of parliamentary representation. The Reform Bill of 1832 redistributed parliamentary seats and tripled the electorate. Statute of Westminster was enacted by the British parliament in 1931, recognizing the full equality of the British dominions within the United Kingdom. The Constitution can be altered by Act of Parliament.

Black Americans.

Among the flood of immigrants to North America, one group of people came unwillingly. These were Africans. About 500000 Africans were brought to the colonies as slaves. The history of blacks in North America began in August 1619, when a small Dutch warship sailed up the James River to the young English colony of Jamestown, Virginia. The Dutch ship had captured a Spanish ship in the Caribbean Sea carrying black men and women to Spanish colonies in South America. At that time, the Jamestown colonists needed workers to help clear and till the land and build houses. The 20 blacks landed from the Dutch ship were viewed as indentured servants. Black and white indentured servants worked side by side at Jamestown, clearing fields, planting crops, making roads and building houses. Some colonists said that blacks were secure and happy as slaves, that slavery was an economic necessity. Other advocates of slavery went a step further. Over the years, several black men and women achieved fame and fortune in the arts, sciences, religion and commerce. Some had high standing in colonial society. Many joined in the struggle to forge a new nation – the United States. One was Benjamin Banneker who gained fame as an astronomer, mathematician, author and inventor. He also helped design the city of Washington, D.C. Emancipation, or the ending of slavery, didn’t happen in a single day. The process began in April 1861 with the outbreak of the American Civil War between free states of the North and slave states of the South. Some slaves were free after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. But not all of them. Martin Luther King continued to conduct civil rights campaigns throughout the country, and in 1964 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his decade of leadership in nonviolent protest against discrimination. Tragically, he was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. Perhaps the greatest change in the past few decades has been in attitudes of America’s white community. A generation has come of age since Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. The proof of this are Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, who became the state Secretary in the administration of Bush, Barack Obama.

3. The rivers of Britain

Rivers of Br are short, their direction and character are determined by the position of the mountains. Most of the rivers flow in the eastward direction since the west coast is mountaneous. The water level in rivers is always high; they are ice-free in winter. British rivers form deep estuaries. The most important rivers are the Severn, the Thames, the Ouse, the Tyne, the Tees, the Eden. The Thames runs through rich agricultural districts in an easterly direction into the North Sea. The Severn which flows south-west into the Irish Sea, is the longest British river.

#13

British monarchy.

The queen In law is:

· Head of the executive

· An integral part of legislature

· Head off the judiciary

· Commander in chief of all the armed forces of the crown

· The supreme governor of the established Church of england

The royal title is title is: her most excellent majesty, elizabeth the 2^nd, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith.

She takes part important acts of the government such as: summoning(шакыру); proroguing(stopping parliament meeting without ending the session); dissolving the parliament; pardoning people convicted of crime; gives royal assent to bills passed by parliament; formally appoints many important office holders-ministers, diplomats, judges, bishops;

In international affairs the queen has the power to declare war & make peace, to conclude treaties & to annex or cede territories, to recognize foreign states & government. Most of those are formality, ceremonial. The queen gives audiences to ministers, officials in britain & overseas. In order to carry out her public dutiesshe receives annual parliamentary allowances. The expenditure incurred by the queen in carrying out her public duties is financed from the civil list, for upkeep of the royal palaces & for royal travel. In 1991 civil list payments were fixed at 7, 9 million pounds a year for 10 years. About 70% of the queen’s civil list provision is required to meet the cost of staff working for the queen. Since 1993 the queen has voluntarily paid income tax on all her personal income & on that part of the privy purse income which is used for private purposes.

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