Government of the United Kingdom

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File:Her Majesty's Government.gif
A logo of Her Majesty's Government

Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom (often abbreviated to HMG) is the central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Under the unwritten British constitution, executive authority notionally lies with the monarch but is exercised only by and on the advice of the Cabinet, a collective body of the most senior ministers of the Crown, who are appointed Privy Councillors. "The Government" is a collective noun that refers to all the ministers of the Crown[1], who are all members of one or other of the houses of Parliament. Members of the Government are, both individually and collectively, politically accountable to Parliament and the people for advice to Her Majesty and all actions carried out in her name by ministers and their Departments of State.

H.M. Government's powers include general executive and statutory powers, delegated legislation, and numerous powers of appointment and patronage; however, some powerful officials and bodies, (e.g. H.M. Judges, Local Authorities, and the Charity Commission) are legally more or less independent of the Government, and Government powers are legally limited to those retained by the Crown under Common Law or granted and limited by Act of Parliament, and are subject to European Community law; both substantive and procedural limitations are enforceable in the Courts by judicial review.

The Government is led by the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the Queen as the Member of Parliament (since the early 20th century, a member from the House of Commons, though earlier Prime Minsters often came from the House of Lords) most likely to command a majority in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister is based at 10 Downing Street, which along with most government departments, is located in Westminster. The Prime Minister selects the other members of the Government for appointment (and dismissal) by the Queen, but the entire Government must resign if they lose a vote of confidence in the House of Commons. By short-term fiscal and military legislation, the Government is dependent upon Parliament,[2] which means that in practice a government must seek re-election at least every five years.[3]

The current Prime Minister is Gordon Brown, who is also leader of the Labour Party. He was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on 27 June 2007.[4] He leads a government composed of some 127 ministers, mostly Labour Party MPs.[5]

Devolved governments

Since 1998, certain areas of central government have been devolved to democratically-accountable governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. By contrast, there is no devolved government in England.

Local government

Up to three layers of elected local authorities (such as County, District and Parish Councils) exist throughout all parts of the United Kingdom, in some places merged into Unitary Authorities. They have limited local tax-raising powers. Many other authorities and agencies also have statutory powers, generally exerciseable subject to some central government supervision. In addition to legislative powers, H.M. Government has substantial influence over local and other authorities by financial powers and grants.

See also

References

External links