PARLIAMENT - The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Commonly known as the Houses of Parliament after its occupants, it is also known as the 'heart of British politics'.

Parliament in the United Kingdom conducts its business in the Houses of Commons and Lords. Political parties can send their leaders (members) to speak in Parliament in the House of Commons (commoners = ordinary people without title). These are the Members of Parliament that make up most of the representatives of political parties in the UK.

How then is the country run and how are the rules of Government made? It is done by debate and voting so that the views of the people are represented.

Members of Parliament MPs can raise matters in the House of Commons on behalf of their constituents. They can do this by asking parliamentary questions, participating in debates or introducing legislation.

ASKING QUESTIONS

MPs can ask Ministers questions during Question Time or send written questions to them. Question Time takes place in the first hour of business each day. The government is required to answer parliamentary written questions. From the 2014-15 session onwards all written questions and answers, in both the Commons and the Lords, can be searched for via the Written Questions and Answers service.

Nearly all MPs represent political parties. The party with the most MPs after a general election normally forms the Government.

The next largest party becomes the official Opposition. If an MP does not have a political party, they are known as an 'Independent'.

Members of the House of Lords are organised on a party basis in much the same way as the House of Commons but with important differences: Members of the Lords do not represent constituencies and many are not members of a political party.

Lords who do not support one of the three main parties are known as Crossbenchers or Independent Peers. There is also a small number who are not affiliated to any of the main groups.

HISTORY OF THE PARTY SYSTEM

The system of political parties, which has existed in one form or another since at least the 18th century, is an essential element in the working of the constitution. Since the Second World War, all the Governments in the UK have been formed by either the Labour Party or the Conservative Party.

OPPOSITION PARTIES

The effectiveness of the party system in Parliament depends on the relationship between the Government and the Opposition parties. In general, Opposition parties aim to:

1. contribute to the creation of policy and legislation through constructive criticism
2. oppose government proposals they disagree with
3. put forward their own policies in order to improve their chances of winning the next general election


Before the mid-19th century politics in the United Kingdom was dominated by the Whigs and the Tories. These were not political parties in the modern sense but somewhat loose alliances of interests and individuals. The Whigs included many of the leading aristocratic dynasties committed to the Protestant succession, and later drew support from elements of the emerging industrial interests and wealthy merchants, while the Tories were associated with the landed gentry, the Church of England and the Church of Scotland.

By the mid 19th century the Tories had evolved into the Conservative Party, and the Whigs had evolved into the Liberal Party. The parliament was presided over by a speaker, who handled proceedings. The concept of right and left came originally from France, where the Right supported a smaller state with less influence on the lives of the public, the Left advocated a larger state with more influence on the lives of the public. In the late 19th century the Liberal Party began to lean towards the left, and the seating in the house of commons began to reflect this: Right of the speaker were those supporting right wing politics, the Conservatives; left of the speaker were those supporting Left wing politics. Hence LEFT & RIGHT wing politics.

The United Kingdom has many political parties, some of which are represented in the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Below are links to the websites of the political parties that were represented in the House of Commons after the 2015 General Election:

CONSERVATIVE PARTY

CO-OPERATIVE PARTY

DEMOCRAT UNIONIST PARTY

GREEN PARTY

LABOUR PARTY

LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

PLAID CYMRU

SCOTTISH NATIONAL PARTY

SINN FEIN

SOCIAL DEMOCRATIC AND LABOUR PARTY

UK INDEPENDENCE PARTY (UKIP)

ULSTER UNIONIST PARTY

Conservative Party

Co-operative Party

Democratic Unionist Party

Green Party

Labour Party

Liberal Democrats

Plaid Cymru

Scottish National Party

Sinn Féin

Social Democratic and Labour Party

UK Independence Party

Ulster Unionist Party

MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT A - Z (EXT LINKS)

BORIS JOHNSON

CAROLINE ANSELL

CHARLES CLARKE

CHARLES HENDRY

CHRIS GRAYLING

DAVID BLUNKETT

DAVID CAMERON

DAVID MILIBAND

ERIC PICKLES

GEOFFREY JOHNSON-SMITH

GEORGE OSBOURNE

GORDON BROWN

GRANT SHAPPS

GREG CLARK

GREGORY BARKER

HUW MERRIMAN

JACK STRAW

JOHN GUMMER

JOHN PRESCOTT

KENNETH CLARKE

KIM HOWELLS DR

MARGARET BECKETT

MAGARET THATCHER

MARIA CAULFIELD

NICK CLEGG

NORMAN BAKER

NUS GHANI

PATRICIA HEWITT

PHILIP DUNNE

PHILIP HAMMOND

RISHI SUNACK

SAJID JAVID

STEPHEN LLOYD

TERESA MAY  -  PRIME MINISTER

TESSA JOWELL

TONY BLAIR

VINCE CABLE

MPS INT LINKS

MICHAEL GOVE

THOMAS PAINE

CLIMATE CHANGE TRUST

We are concerned with how the make up of the above parties and (reasonably) popular policies affects the Wealden district, because we are all brothers on two islands in the Atlantic Ocean and what we do of fail to do is likely to rebound on ourselves and our fellow man in other nations around the world. How we act today influences policies in other countries in our global community. It is not just about us and our patch.

DISTRICT & BOROUGH COUNCILS

East Sussex has five District and Borough Councils, each with a border on the coast. From west to east they are: 

Eastbourne Borough Council

Hastings Borough Council

Lewes District Council 

Rother District Council 

Wealden District Council

There is also East Sussex County Council as the provider of services to the 5 East Sussex districts.

As near neighbours and with councils now sharing facilities and working together, these area of Sussex are included in our remit and an area where climate change and affordable housing are issues that need urgent attention. Where the coastline is a feature in every Council, Blue Growth is a food security issue, especially where this side of of our local economy is under-exploited.

LINKS

http://www.

https://www