Politics

Politics: Key Stage 3 lesson plans (PDF, 73kb)

Politics: Key Stage 4 lesson plans (PDF, 79kb)

Background

In Britain we live in a democracy; nationally, the centre of politics is at Westminster, in London. There are two houses: Commons (made up of 659 elected MPs representing constituencies covering every part of the United Kingdom) and Lords (706 peers, Bishops and Archbishops). The Prime Minister is the leader of the party with the majority in the House of Commons - this party is called the government and the party in second place is called the opposition. The government can create new laws, but they do not become accepted by the country until they have been voted on by the Commons, approved by the Lords and then signed by the Queen.

Local politics is divided into three levels, all made up of Councillors. County Councils or Unitary authorities, Devon, Hull or Greater London, for example, control larger services: roads, council houses and schools. District councils cover smaller areas within the county, such as Torridge, Sandwell or Babergh, for example, and are responsible for more local issues: planning permission, car parks and litter collection, for example. Town or Parish councils deal with the issues related to the immediate area such as playing fields, planning and local matters.

From early times, only nobility who owned land had any say in how the country was run; power rested with the King, but after the English Civil War in the 17th century the country began to move more toward democracy. The Chartist movement of the 1840s demanded a voice for the working class in politics and throughout the Victorian period more and more people began to be allowed to vote until, with the end of the First World War and the extension of the vote to women, every citizen of Great Britain could potentially have a say in government.

One individual does not make Law. Either the government or an MP can present a Bill to Parliament. It is read, voted upon, and then if the vote is in favour, it is read again at greater length. If it passes a second vote it goes to a special Committee stage, where MPs from all parties can study it in close detail and request changes. It then goes to a third reading in the Commons, and then moves onto the House of Lords, where, if they so wish, peers can still vote against it and stop it from progressing. They can also return it to the Commons for further amendments. If it is passed, however, it is sent immediately to the Queen, whose signature makes it law and it is now an Act of Parliament.

Public services are paid for by all of us in the form of taxes. Our taxes are paid to the government, who then divert a portion of them to organisations such as the police force, for example. Other funding comes from the various levels of local councils who raise money through their individual shares of the council tax. Council tax bills actually show a breakdown of exactly where the money goes and in what percentage.

Party political broadcasts appeared on the BBC radio in the run-up to the 1924 general election. There were no strict rules about broadcasts until 1947 when the Committee on Political Broadcasting was set up, containing members of the BBC and the main political parties and the first party election broadcasts appeared on BBC television in 1951, followed by commercial stations in 1956. The Broadcasting Act 1990 was the first time that broadcasters were legally required to carry party political broadcasts. The BBC has in recent years had this requirement written into its charter.

Anyone over 18 years of age can contribute to local politics. At a local level, there are usually opportunities to stand for your town or parish council as very often these groups struggle to fill all the seats available. Local councils are generally free from party politics and members stand mostly as independents. The same is largely true of district councils, but party politics come in rather more, and more so in county politics, where members are paid for their time rather than just expenses. County politics is often seen as a springboard to standing as a party candidate for the House of Commons. It is also possible at all stages to be involved in other community single-issue groups eg rotary, community development trusts, local pressure group (eg road safety campaigns) which can have an influence upon those working directly in local government.

In some countries there is not a democratic process and decisions are made by one ruling person: a king, prime ministers etc or by a ruling group. This means that the people have very little say in what happens. Recently in Iraq the first democratic election was held since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein; ordinary citizens risked the threat of suicide bombers to go and vote: a woman lost her 16-year-old son on voting day when he was killed by a suicide bomber, she laid him out ready for burial and then went out to vote: it was that important to her!

The right to vote and elect a government is a precious, hard-won thing; in Britain, people have given their lives so that ordinary people can vote. As citizens we should acknowledge this and think about our duty to those who fought and died for us to have the right to vote for our rulers. If we don't like the choices then we should do something about it and get involved!

A good website for children to visit to introduce the subject of politics is Do Politics.