Politics in the United Kingdom

England's politics are tied to that of the greater area of the UK, but as the most populous nation, largest area, and greatest GDP, English are the well represented in UK politics. Her Majesty's Government is the central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Prior to the Union, in 1707, England was ruled by a monarch and the Parliament of England. Since the Union, England has not had its own government. The separation between the different nations is defined in the Bills of Exchange Act 1882, with the Companies Act of 1985 defining Great Britain is a single state.

England's head of state is the monarch of the United Kingdom, currently Queen Elizabeth II. Elizabeth has ruled since 1952 and will celebrate her Diamond Jubilee in June 2012, marking 60 years on the throne. Under the British constitution, executive authority lies with the monarch; but currently this authority is exercised only by, or on the advice of, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet.

The Prime Minister and the other most senior Ministers belong to the supreme decision-making committee, known as the Cabinet. Though power theoretically lies with the monarch, real power lies with the Cabinet members who advise the monarch as members of the Privy Council, and through the ability to exercise power directly as leaders of the Government Departments.

The Prime Minister selects the remaining Ministers.

The Parliament

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom. Located in Westminster, London, Parliament holds ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK. British Parliament invented the Westminster System, a parliamentary democracy which remains to this day the most widely used system of politics in the world.

The Parliament is bicameral

• House of Lords - Upper house. Includes two different types of members: the Lords Spiritual (the senior bishops of the Church of England) and the Lords Temporal (members of the Peerage) whose members are not elected by the population at large, but are appointed by the Sovereign on advice of the Prime Minister.
• House of Commons - Lower house. Members are democratically elected every five years. The Queen is the third component of the legislature, though her role is largely ceremonial.

The two Houses meet in separate chambers in the Palace of Westminster (commonly known as the Houses of Parliament). All government ministers, including the Prime Minister, are members of the House of Commons or, less often, the House of Lords, and are thereby accountable to the respective branches of the legislature.

Law and the Magna Carta

English law is the legal system of England and Wales. It is based on common law and was exported to Commonwealth countries. This means that judges sit in courts deciding on cases, applying their common sense and knowledge of legal precedent (stare decisis) to the facts before them. Decisions in the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom are binding on every other court.

England and Wales are constituent countries of the United Kingdom, which is a member of the European Union. Hence, EU law is a part of English law. The European Union consists mainly of countries which use civil law and so the civil law system is also in England in this form.

The oldest written law currently in force is the Distress Act, part of the Statute of Marlborough, 1267. Three sections of the Magna Carta, originally signed in 1215 is a landmark in the development of English law. Also called Magna Carta Libertatum, this English charter remains on the statute books of England and Wales.

Parties

At the beginning of twentieth century, the English political scene was by the Whigs and the Tories.

• Whigs - Leading aristocratic dynasties committed to the Protestant succession. Received support from emerging industrial interests and wealthy merchants. Evolved into the Liberal Party (which later merged to make the Liberal Democrats).
• Tories - Associated with the landed gentry, the Church of England and the Church of Scotland. Evolved into the Conservative Party.

More loose alliances than political parties like today, these groups were the root of modern parties.

The Electoral Commission lists the details of parties.

Major Political Parties nowadays

• Conservative Party - Centre-right party. Three general categories: The Thatcherite or Conservative Way Forward, One Nation Conservatives, and Cornerstone Group.
• Liberal Democrats - Radical centrist and socially progressive. The Libdems support greater European integration.
• Labour Party - Centre-left, historically allied to Trade unions.
• Democratic Unionist Party - Hardline Unionist party in Northern Ireland.
• Scottish National Party - Centre-left party in favour of Scottish independence.
• Plaid Cymru - Centre-left party in favour of Welsh independence.
• Social Democratic and Labour Party - Centre-left, Irish nationalist party.
• Alliance Party of Northern Ireland - Liberal party in Northern Ireland that aims to break down sectarian divisions between Catholics and Protestants.
• Green Party of England and Wales - Generally Social Democratic, environmentalist party.
• UK Independence Party - Eurosceptic, Libertarian conservative and populist party which favours withdrawal from the European Union.
• British National Party - Far-right, against immigration.

Electoral system: First Past the Post

The UK's election system is "First Past the Post". Abbreviated as FPTP or FPP, this system operates by an election won by the candidate(s) with the most votes. The winning candidate does not need to receive an absolute majority of all votes cast. This electoral system leaves small parties disadvantaged on a UK-wide scale. It does allow parties with concentrations of supporters in the constituent countries to flourish (a referendum championed by the Libdems was held in 2011 in order to decide whether this system should be changed to the alternative vote - AV, which allows the voter to give second preferences; the proposal was rejected).

Politics in England in the last decade

A general election happened in May 6 2010. where Liberal Democrats obtained fewer seats than in the previous election, and the Conservatives finished as the largest party, with 306 seats, but not enough to get the majority. In the end, Liberal Democrats and Conservatives agreed to make a coalition government led by Cameron, who became prime minister on May 11.

In December 2011, Cameron created controversy when he vetoed changes to the Lisbon Treaty (negotiated at an EU summit) that were to increase economic integration among the EU countries. His decision strained the Conservatives' coalition partnership with the Liberal Democrats and were criticized by Deputy Prime Minister Clegg.

In September 18th 2014, a referendum was held in Scotland on independence. On the Election Day, about 85% of registered voters went to the polls and defeated the referendum, with about 55% voting "no" and about 45% voting "yes."

In 2015, new elections were held in the UK, where Cameron and the Conservatives surprised the pollsters by getting 331 seats (24 more over than in 2010), enough to form a majority government without the participation of the Liberal Democrats. The Libdems party collapses and its representation fall from 57 seats to 8, prompting Clegg's resignation.

After the victory, while Brexit is very popular in his own party, Cameron announced the organisation of a referendum on June 23, 2016 and that he would campaign for remaining in the EU. The campaign to leave the EU was leaded by former London mayor Boris Johnson (current Prime Minister).

Brexit and Theresa May

On the day of the event, 52% of the voters opted to leave the EU, becoming the first country to leave the membership. As a consequence, Cameron announced his intention to resign as prime minister. The Conservative Party named Theresa May the new party leader "with immediate effect."

In mid-April 2017 May called for a sudden parliamentary election scheduled for the following 8th June. During the elections, voters handed the Conservatives a major setback and Theresa May watched her party's legislative majority disappear, while Labour gained 29 seats to surpass 260 seats in total.

May's presidency was focused on UE leaving plan. After failing in multiple occasions in gathering sufficient support from Conservatives for her exit plan, May entered discussions with Labour leaders on a possible compromise, but these too proved fruitless. After a thoughtful decision, on May 24 she announced that she would step down as leader of the Conservative Party.

Boris Johnson

On July 24, Boris Johnson replaced May as prime minister after a series of votes by the parliamentary Conservative Party. Although Britain's formal withdrawal from the EU had been completed (and the UK left officially the EU on 1 February 2020), final details relating to a new trade deal between the UK and the EU were still to be agreed, and an agreement is only signed on December 24, 6 days before the deadline of December 31, 2020.

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Political system in London

London is at the centre of UK and English politics. The Parliament of the United Kingdom is located in London, as is its civil service, HM Treasury and most of the official residences of the monarchy.

The Mayor of London is elected by London residents. This should not be confused with the Lord Mayor of the City of London whose principal role is to be an ambassador for all UK-based financial and professional services.

The London administration was previously called Greater London Council. The GLC was dismantled by Margaret Thatcher. Yet in 2000, a London-wide government was restored with the creation of the Greater London Authority (GLA), known colloquially as City Hall, by Tony Blair's government. The new City Hall (London House) is a distinctive building on the Thames (shaped as a glass ball beside Tower Bridge in the south bank) and the headquarters for the GLA. This new authority was made up of a directly elected Mayor and a London Assembly. London was also recognised as one of the nine regions of England.

Ken Livingstone (Labour Party) was elected in 2000 and held the position until his succession by Boris Johnson (Conservative Party) in 2008. The office is currently held by Sadiq Khan (Labour Party) who was re-elected for a second term on 6th May 2021.

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