Károly Pintér

Introduction to Britain

The House of Commons

When British people speak about ‘Parliament,’ they usually mean its lower house, the House of Commons (in short, ‘the Commons’). This is also reflected by the term they use for members of the Commons, who are called Members of Parliament, or MP. Each MP represents one single electoral district, called constituency in Britain. The boundaries of the constituencies are drawn in such a way to guarantee that each constituency has roughly the same number of voters (nowadays, c. 70,000 per constituency). For this reason, boundaries are revised and modified about every ten years. The number of constituencies is not fixed either, it changes with the population and it might be modified by Parliament itself. Currently there are 650 constituencies and the same number of MPs, 533 of which represent constituencies in England, 59 in Scotland, 40 in Wales, and 18 in Northern Ireland. Ironically, the Commons debating chamber has room for about 400 members only, so it is impossible for all MPs to sit down at once, but it is unusual for all members to be present at any one time. Many MPs work in other rooms of the Commons, participating in committees and meetings that are also part of the parliamentary process.

Tartalomjegyzék

Károly Pintér: Introduction to Britain A textbook for students of English
Impresszum
Előszó
Introduction
Acknowledgements
chevron_rightI. Geography of Britain
chevron_rightII. England
- 1. English v. British: When to Use Which Term?
- 2. English Identity v. British Identity
- chevron_right3. Main Regions of England: the South
- chevron_right4. Main Regions of England: The Midlands and the North
  - The Midlands
  - The North
- chevron_right5. Famous Englishmen
  - Key concepts
  - Significant towns
chevron_rightIII. Scotland
chevron_rightIV. Wales
chevron_rightV. Northern Ireland
chevron_rightVI. Crown and Parliament
chevron_rightVII. The Cabinet, the Parties and the Elections
- 1. Whitehall – the Seat of Government
- chevron_right2. How the British Elect the House of Commons
  - The First-Past-the-Post System
  - The Failure of Electoral Reform
- chevron_right3. The Parties
- chevron_right4. The Civil Service
  - Key concepts
chevron_rightVIII. Legal System in England
- chevron_right1. The Legal System of England and Wales
  - Common Law
  - Criminal Case and Civil Case
- chevron_right2. Criminal Courts
- 3. Criminal Procedure
- 4. Civil Courts and Procedure
- chevron_right5. The English Legal Profession
  - Ministry of Justice
- chevron_right6. Police
  - Key concepts
chevron_rightIX. British society
- 1. Births, Deaths and the Structure of the Population
- 2. Family
- chevron_right3. Social Class
  - Accents
- chevron_right4. Immigration and Ethnic Minorities
  - Non-white minorities
- chevron_right5. The British Welfare State
chevron_rightX. Education in England
- 1. English (Not British) Education
- chevron_right2. State Schools and Final Exams
  - School Reforms and Their Impact
- 3. Independent Schools
- chevron_right4. Higher Education
  - University Courses and Degrees
- chevron_rightStudent Life and Finances
  - Oxbridge
  - Key concepts
chevron_rightXI. Religion
- 1. Religion in a Secular Age
- chevron_right2. The Church of England
  - Organisation
  - Groups within the Church
- chevron_right3. The Other Christian Churches
  - Free Churches
  - Catholics
- chevron_right4. Other Religions

Kiadó: Akadémiai Kiadó

Online megjelenés éve: 2018

ISBN: 978 963 454 262 9

Történelem PPKE BTK jegyzetek

This book attempts to establish a basic knowledge of British politics, society and culture among its readers. It is aimed primarily at students, and is intended to enrich their knowledge of the English language with an understanding of the history and key features of this society.

The book systematically explores Britain. Beginning with its geography, it divides the United Kingdom into its overarching countries- England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland- and explores the main regions, as well as political, social and linguistic background of each. This is followed by outlines of politics, the legal system, as well as education, healthcare and religion in the UK as a whole.

This book is distinguished by its scope; intended for a Hungarian audience and written through the lens of Hungarian culture, with so called Think of Hungary First sections at the beginning of chapters to compare historical and societal developments to those that have taken place here, and allow readers to better understand these. There are also lists of Key Concepts at the end of chapters, and explanations of these which also promote the reader’s understanding.

Thus, this book is a comprehensive and systematic guide, introducing Hungarian students to Britain’s history, culture and people.

Hivatkozás: https://mersz.hu/pinter-introduction-to-britain//

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