Comparing European Governments:

1
Comparing European Governments

• United Kingdom, Germany, Russia

2
The Parliamentary System of the United Kingdom
3
The United Kingdom is a Parliamentary Democracy

• Parliament is an essential part of UK politics.
• Its main roles are
• Examining and challenging the work of the
  government
• Debating and passing all laws (legislation)
• Enabling the government to raise taxes

4
Parliaments Two House System

• The business of Parliament takes place in two
  Houses
• 1. House of Commons
• 2. House of Lords

5
The House of Commons

• It is the role of the citizens in the UK to vote
  elect the members of the House of Commons.
• The political party in the House of Commons with
  the most votes chooses the Prime Minister.
• The House of Commons is responsible for making
  laws for the country.

6
The House of Lords

• The House of Lords is the second Chamber of the
  United Kingdoms Parliament.
• It plays an important part in revising
  legislation and keeping a check on government by
  scrutinizing its activities.
• The House of Lords has little power.
• Most members of the House of Lords are nobles who
  have inherited their titles.

7
Leadership

• 1. Prime Minister
• This role is the real head of government. He or
  she is the leader of the Parliament and is the
  chief executive of the country.
• 2. Head of State (King or Queen)
• This role is only symbolic the Head of State
  holds very little political power. Although, the
  Queen is an important symbol of national unity.

8
The Federal System of the Federal Republic of
Germany
9
Germanys Democracy

• Like the United States, Germany is a federal
  republic
• a national government and state governments share
  powers.
• Technically, its government is a Federal
  Parliamentary Representative Democratic
  Republicwhew!

10
Leadership

• 1. Chancellor
• This is the real head of government, similar to
  the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
• He or she is chosen by Parliament, and is the
  chief executive of the country.
• 2. President
• Germanys president has very little power, and
  mainly carries out ceremonial duties.

11

• President Bush welcomes German Chancellor Angela
  Merkel to the Oval Office
• She is the 1st woman (and the first East German)
  to hold this position

12
Parliaments Two Houses

• 1. Bundestag (Upper House)
• Mainly an advisory council, but must approve laws
  and amendments
• Holds little political power
• Representatives are members of the German state
  governments and are not elected directly by the
  people
• 2. Bundesrat (Lower House)
• The role of citizens in Germany is to vote for
  elect members to this House.
• Holds most of Germanys political power.
• Members elect the Chancellor.

13
Russian Federation
14
Russias Democracy

• After the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia became
  a democracy.
• The role of the citizens is to freely elect the
  nations leaders.
• Like the United States, Russia is a federal
  republic
• the power is divided between national and state
  governments with a president who leads the nation

15
Leadership

• The 1993 constitution created a dual executive
  branch that consists of a Prime Minister and a
  President, but the president is the dominant
  figure.
• The Russian president has more power than an
  American president .
• He or she can issue orders that become laws even
  if they are not passed by the legislature!

16
The Federal Assembly

• This is the Parliament of the Russian Federation.
• It consists of two chambers
• 1. The Federation Council
• 2. The State Duma

17
What this all means for the people of Russia

• Russia has seen many changes since the break up
  of the Soviet Union in 1991.
• Russians have to learn how to function in a
  democracy instead of under communism where most
  decisions were made for them by the government.
• Government officials need to learn that laws
  apply to them just like they apply to all of the
  people.
• In the past, the Russian government punished
  those individuals who criticized their decisions.
  Now, officials have to learn to accept
  disagreements over government policies.