Unit 6: Government

Act of Parliament

a Bill approved

by Parliament and therefore now law

Backbencher

backbenchers are

MPs or members of the House of Lords

that are not government ministers or

Opposition spokespeople. They sit

in the rows of benches behind their

parties' spokespeople, who are known

as frontbenchers

Ballot

a method of secret voting

Ballot paper

a piece of paper used

to secretly record a voter's choice

Bill

proposed legislation (law) which

is under consideration by Parliament

Budget

the annual Budget set by the

Chancellor of the Exchequer, balancing

income raised by taxation with public

spending and supporting government

policy

By

election

empty constituency, due to the death

or resignation of the previous MP

Chamber

the House of Commons

and the House of Lords both have

a Chamber. These are the rooms

where Members meet, debate, and

make important announcements and

decisions.

Candidate

someone who stands for

election as an MP

Chancellor of the Exchequer

the

MP and member of the Government

responsible for all economic and

financial matters, such as government

spending or setting taxes

Constituency

an electoral district that

an MP is elected to represent

Cross

party

of two or more political parties work

together

Crossbencher

a member of the House

of Lords who is not aligned with a

political party

Devolution

the transfer of political

power from a central government to

a regional or local government

Election

the voting process to select

a person for a public position

E

petition

gathered online calling for an action

or change

General election

when MPs are

elected to the House of Commons

to represent each of the 650 UK

constituencies

Government

the Government is in

charge of managing the country and

is usually formed by the political party

that wins the most seats at a general

election

House of Commons

the publicly

elected chamber of the UK Parliament

where MPs debate the big political

issues of the day and proposals for

new laws

House of Lords

the second chamber

of the UK Parliament where Members

help check new laws, challenge the

work of the Government and shape

public policy

Hybrid Bill

a Bill that combines

qualities of both a Private and Public Bill

Lobby

to seek to persuade an MP

or member of the House of Lords,

specifically on politics or legislation

Lobbyist

a person who lobbies

Parliament, usually working on behalf

of an organisation

Lord Speaker

the person who