Read the following sentences and decide if they are true or false.
1. The British government is elected for five years.
2. The Queen chooses the date of the next general election.
3. The place where people go to vote in the election is called a polling station.
4. The political party which wins the most seats in the House of Lords forms the Government.
5. The United Kingdom is divided into areas which are known as constituencies.
6. Each constituency is divided into a number of polling districts.
7. The Queen appoints MPs to become the Cabinet.
8. The Prime Minister opens the new Parliament.
9. The House of Lords is an unelected Chamber. 10. The voters put their votes in a ballot box.
Exercise 4
Find words and expressions in the text which mean.
1. an election in the whole country to elect a new Parliament;
2. an area of the UK for which a representative is elected to the House of Commons;
3. voting at the election;
4. a group formed from the leaders of the Parliamentary Opposition, i.e. those who might form a new Cabinet if there is a change of government after a general election;
5. a locked box where in ballots are deposited;
6. the place where people go to vote in the election;
7. to end the life of a Parliament by public announcement of the Sovereign, leading to the general election.
Exercise 5
Ask questions to get the following answers.
1. A Member of Parliament is elected to represent each area.
2. The Leader of the party with most Members forms the Government.
3. Between general elections there may be several by-elections.
4. Voters learn about candidates through the local newspapers and through leaflets.
5. Leaflets are distributed to every home in the constituency.
6. The election leaflets outline party policy on major issues of national importance.
7. Voting is secret.
Exercise 6
Answer the following questions.
1. What sort of electoral system does Ukraine have?
2. What do you know about different electoral systems in other countries?
3. What do you know about general election in the United Kingdom?
4. What are the main disadvantages of the UK electoral system and the system in Ukraine?
5. What advantages does each system have? Suggest one change you would make to each system.
Exercise 7
Complete the following text by translating the words and expressions in brackets.
POLITICAL PARTIES
A political party is a group of people who seek (керувати) the country according to their agreed views and principles . Political parties are essential to provide (виборців) with freedom of (вибору) between alternatives. The main parties in the UK are the Conservative party (right wing), the Labour party (left wing) and the Liberal Democrats (centre). A number of other parties have won seats in (napламенті). Any person who is British, Commonwealth or Irish Republic citizen may stand as a candidate at the parliamentary (B^opax) if he or she is 21 years old or over. The Conservative Party. Very often the term Tory is used instead of the Conservatives. The Conservative Party was formed in the mid of the 19th century. The Tories were the party that supported (церква) and (король). The Conservative Party believes in free enterprise and the importance of a capitalist (економіки), with (приватною) ownership preferred to state control. The Labour Party. In the eighteen-eighties the first socialist organisations arose in Britain. A great expansion of the trade union (pyxy) took place. In 1900 the Labour Party (бyлa заснована) under the name of the Labour Representation Committee. It was a federation of trade unions and trade councils, co-operative societies and socialist organisations. In 1906 the Labour Representation Committee officially adopted the title of the (Лейбористської партії). The Labour Party believes that private (власність) and enterprise should be allowed to flourish, but not at the expense of then- traditional support of the public services. The Liberal Party. There has been a Liberal Party in Great Britain since 1868 when the name was adopted by the Whig Party. The Whig Party was created after the revolution of 1688 and aimed to subordinate the power of the Crown to that of (парламент) and the upper classes. In 1981 the second centre party was created by 24 Labour (членами парламенту). It was called the (соціал-демократична) Party, and soon formed an alliance with the Liberal Party. They formed a single party which became the Liberal Democrats after the 1987 (вибopiв). The Liberal Democrats believe that the (держава) should have some control over the (єкономікою), but that there should be individual ownership. There are other political parties within the UK. The Green Party offers economic and industrial policies that relate directly to the (навколишньому середовищі). The Scottish Nationalist Party wants (незалежність) for Scotland within the European Community. Plaid Cymru — the Welsh Nationalist Party — is determined to preserve the Welsh language and culture as the foundation of a distinctive Welsh identity within the UK.
Exercise 8
Find in the text the English equivalents for the phrases.
- політична партія;
- Консервативна партія;
- Ліберальна партія;
- Лейбористська партія;
- Партія зелених;
- вибори парламенту;
- приватна/індивідуальна власність;
- профспілки (тред-юніони);
- контролювати економіку;
- зберегти мову та культуру;
- спроба вибору.
Exercise 9
Complete the following sentences with the prepositions: with, opposite, in, into, for, of, to
1. Voting takes place ... a booth.
2. I voted ... the Conservative candidate.
3. My friend belongs ... the Scottish Nationalist Party.
4. Vote ... one candidate only.
5. Mark across (x)... the box on the right hand side of the ballot paper ... the name of the candidate you are voting for.
6. Put your voting papers ... the ballot box.
7. Each constituency is divided... a number of polling districts.
8. The paper lists the names ... the candidates in alphabetical order.
9. The leader of the party ... most Members forms the Government.
