How Britain is Governed
Britain consists of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the capital, is the centre of government for the whole of Britain, but local authorities are partly responsible for education, health care, roads, the police and some other things. Laws are made by Parliament. There are two ‘houses’: the House of Commons and the House of Lords(which has little power) Members of the House of Commons are called MPs(Members of Parliament, an MP is elected by the people from a particular area. Parliament elections are held every five years or less. The leader of the majority party in Parliament becomes Prime Minister, and he or she chooses the MPs who will run the different departments of government-the ministers, The Prime Minister and the most important ministers make up the Cabinet, which is the real government of the country.
There are three main political parties: the Labour Party(left-wing), the Conservative Party(right-wing) and the Social Democrat-Liberal Alliance(centre).
Britain has a ceremonial Head of State, the King or Queen, who has no political power.