Cultuur en geschiedenis notities
Part one: UK
News literacy
Keir Starmer = leader of the Labour Party
Rishi Sunak = leader of Conservative Party
Jeremy Hunt = Chancellor of the Exchequer (financial minister)
James Cleverly = home secretary
David Cameron = Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Quality papers: The Times, The Financial Times, The Guadrian, The Observer, Time, The New York
Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA News
Broadcast media: BBC One, NBC News, abc News, CBS News
Quality check: name of broadcaster + media bias chart
Introduction to the UK
Overview
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Great Britain: England + Scotland + Wales
- Northern Ireland
,England: St. George’s Cross
+
Scotland: St. Andrew’s Cross
→ Flag of Great Britain
+
Ireland: St. Patrick’s Cross
= Union Flag
Capitals
UK = London
England = London
Scotland = Edinburgh
Wales = Cardiff
Northern Ireland = Belfast
Population
UK = 67 million
England = 56.5 million
- London Metropolitan area = 14.5 million
Scotland = 5.5 million
Wales = 3 million
Northern Ireland = 2 million
Inhabitants
England: English/British
Scotland: Scottish/British
Wales: Welsh/British
Northern Ireland: Irish and/or British
Currency
£ = Pound Sterling = British Pound = GBP
Terminology
,British Isles = United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland + Republic of Ireland
Crown Dependencies
- Channel Islands
o Guernsey
o Jersey
- Isle of Man
The Crown Dependencies are not part of the UK but are self-governing dependencies of the Crown:
they have their own directly elected legislative assemblies, administrative, fiscal and legal systems.
Monarchy
,House (Mountbatten-)Windsor
After WWI, the name Mountbatten from Prince Philip was unwanted due to German relation, but
Windsor was Elizabeth’s surname (woman).
The royal family is regarded largely favourably by the population.
,UK Politics
Constitutional monarchy
Head of state: King Charles III
Parliamentary democracy
Head of Government: Prime Minister Sunak
Parliament makes and passes legislation.
UK Parliament & UK Governement
- Scottish Parliament & Government
o Scottish local governement
- Welsh Assembly & Government
o Welsh local government
- Northern Irish Assembly (& Executive1)
o Northern Irish local governement
- /
o English local Government
▪ London Assembly
Asymmetric system: different Assemblies and Governments do not necessarily have the same rights
as their counterparts in England, Scotland, Wales or N-Ireland.
Government
- Prime Minister (PM)
o Downing Street 10 = official residence of the PM
- Cabinet
o 20 members
incl. Chancellor of the Exchequer = belangrijkste persoon na PM
- Government departments/ministries
o staffed by the Civil Service
Some powers have been devolved.
Houses of Parliament
- Palace of Westminster
2 chambers
- House of Commons
o 650 MPs elected
- House of Lords
o 784 peers unelected (number varies)
Debates on legislation can start in either chamber.
1
The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of
the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly.
, a) The Commons
Green paper = a topic we need to discuss, no commitment to specific action
White paper = a topic on which is already worked, statement of government policy, authoritative
report
A bill = a draft law
A statute = a law that has been formally approved and written down
A bill must pass both Houses + Royal Assent is needed to become a statute (but monarch never
refuses).
Every MP represents one constituency: one person per electoral district
Constituency2 = electoral district
Room divided between government and opposition
- His Majesty’s Government
- His Majesty’s Most Loyal Opposition
Speaker of the House = chief officer in the House of Commons
- got elected by fellow MPs
- acts neutral
- protects the House against abuse of procedure
- currently Lindsay Hoyle (Labour)
“the House divides”
Members vote by shouting “aye” or “no” → Speaker decides which side has won
If decision is contested → Speaker calls for a division
→ the Division Bells then ring for two minutes → in the parliamentary buildings and in pubs,
restaurants and MPs’ homes in the Westminster area → MPs go to either the aye or no lobbies →
after eight minutes the chamber is locked
2
650 constituencies = geographical areas of the country countaining +/- 66,000 voters
,House of Commons is mostly a two-party system
Blue: Conservatives
Red: Labour
Yellow: Scottish National Party
b) The Lords
Membership is not fixed.
Lords Spiritual
- 26 Archbishops and bishops
Lords Temporal
- 92 Hereditary peers
- unlimited Life peers and peeresses
Lord Speaker (usually from Lords Temporal)
- John Francis McFall
Scotland
Scottish Parliament
= Pàrlamaid na h-Alba = Scots Parliament
- Edinburgh
- 129 MSPs
First minister: John Swinney
, - Scottish National Party (SNP)
Humza Yousaf (2023 – 7 May 2024)
Wales
Welsh Parliament
= Senedd Cymru
- Cardiff
- 60 MS
o 40 elected using first-past-the-post
o 20 elected using proportional voting
First minister: Vaughan Gething
- Welsh Labour
Mark Drakeford (resigned)
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland Assembly
= Stormont = Tionol Thuaisceart Eireann
- Belfast
- 108 MLAs (Members of the Legislative Assembly)
, o all elected using proportional representation
Principle of power-sharing: the First Minster and the deputy First Minister belong to opposite parties3
ex. First Minister is from British Unionist (DUP) → than deputy First Minister is from Irish Nationalist
(Sinn Féin)
Power-sharing has often been suspended
ex. 2022 due to post-Brexit trade rules
Back in session as of February 2024?
First Minister = Michelle O’Neill
- Sinn Féin (nationalists)
- first minister to bring up idea to unify with the Republic of Ireland and break up with UK
The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative
branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Political Parties
Conservative Party
= Tories
- right-of-centre
- support free market and privatisation
- mostly anti-Europe
- tough on crime
- emphasise personal, social, economic freedom
National party: appeals across class barriers, mainly from business interest and middle-class and
upperclass
Famous leaders
Churchill
3
The First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland are the joint heads of government of Northern
Ireland, leading the Northern Ireland Executive. Despite the titles of the two offices, the two positions have the
same governmental power + the deputy First Minister (customarily spelled with a lowercase d) is not
subordinate to the First Minister.
, Thatcher
Johnson
Labour Party
- left-of-centre
- social justice, equility of opportunity
- divided over topic of Europe
- divided over topic of economy
o Blairites: centrist economic policy
o Corbynites: economic planning, state-ownership
Working and middle-class appeal: traditionally heaviliy supported by trade unions
Largest membership
Famous leaders
Clement Attlee
Tony Blair
Jeremy Corbyn
Part one: UK
News literacy
Keir Starmer = leader of the Labour Party
Rishi Sunak = leader of Conservative Party
Jeremy Hunt = Chancellor of the Exchequer (financial minister)
James Cleverly = home secretary
David Cameron = Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Quality papers: The Times, The Financial Times, The Guadrian, The Observer, Time, The New York
Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA News
Broadcast media: BBC One, NBC News, abc News, CBS News
Quality check: name of broadcaster + media bias chart
Introduction to the UK
Overview
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Great Britain: England + Scotland + Wales
- Northern Ireland
,England: St. George’s Cross
+
Scotland: St. Andrew’s Cross
→ Flag of Great Britain
+
Ireland: St. Patrick’s Cross
= Union Flag
Capitals
UK = London
England = London
Scotland = Edinburgh
Wales = Cardiff
Northern Ireland = Belfast
Population
UK = 67 million
England = 56.5 million
- London Metropolitan area = 14.5 million
Scotland = 5.5 million
Wales = 3 million
Northern Ireland = 2 million
Inhabitants
England: English/British
Scotland: Scottish/British
Wales: Welsh/British
Northern Ireland: Irish and/or British
Currency
£ = Pound Sterling = British Pound = GBP
Terminology
,British Isles = United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland + Republic of Ireland
Crown Dependencies
- Channel Islands
o Guernsey
o Jersey
- Isle of Man
The Crown Dependencies are not part of the UK but are self-governing dependencies of the Crown:
they have their own directly elected legislative assemblies, administrative, fiscal and legal systems.
Monarchy
,House (Mountbatten-)Windsor
After WWI, the name Mountbatten from Prince Philip was unwanted due to German relation, but
Windsor was Elizabeth’s surname (woman).
The royal family is regarded largely favourably by the population.
,UK Politics
Constitutional monarchy
Head of state: King Charles III
Parliamentary democracy
Head of Government: Prime Minister Sunak
Parliament makes and passes legislation.
UK Parliament & UK Governement
- Scottish Parliament & Government
o Scottish local governement
- Welsh Assembly & Government
o Welsh local government
- Northern Irish Assembly (& Executive1)
o Northern Irish local governement
- /
o English local Government
▪ London Assembly
Asymmetric system: different Assemblies and Governments do not necessarily have the same rights
as their counterparts in England, Scotland, Wales or N-Ireland.
Government
- Prime Minister (PM)
o Downing Street 10 = official residence of the PM
- Cabinet
o 20 members
incl. Chancellor of the Exchequer = belangrijkste persoon na PM
- Government departments/ministries
o staffed by the Civil Service
Some powers have been devolved.
Houses of Parliament
- Palace of Westminster
2 chambers
- House of Commons
o 650 MPs elected
- House of Lords
o 784 peers unelected (number varies)
Debates on legislation can start in either chamber.
1
The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of
the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly.
, a) The Commons
Green paper = a topic we need to discuss, no commitment to specific action
White paper = a topic on which is already worked, statement of government policy, authoritative
report
A bill = a draft law
A statute = a law that has been formally approved and written down
A bill must pass both Houses + Royal Assent is needed to become a statute (but monarch never
refuses).
Every MP represents one constituency: one person per electoral district
Constituency2 = electoral district
Room divided between government and opposition
- His Majesty’s Government
- His Majesty’s Most Loyal Opposition
Speaker of the House = chief officer in the House of Commons
- got elected by fellow MPs
- acts neutral
- protects the House against abuse of procedure
- currently Lindsay Hoyle (Labour)
“the House divides”
Members vote by shouting “aye” or “no” → Speaker decides which side has won
If decision is contested → Speaker calls for a division
→ the Division Bells then ring for two minutes → in the parliamentary buildings and in pubs,
restaurants and MPs’ homes in the Westminster area → MPs go to either the aye or no lobbies →
after eight minutes the chamber is locked
2
650 constituencies = geographical areas of the country countaining +/- 66,000 voters
,House of Commons is mostly a two-party system
Blue: Conservatives
Red: Labour
Yellow: Scottish National Party
b) The Lords
Membership is not fixed.
Lords Spiritual
- 26 Archbishops and bishops
Lords Temporal
- 92 Hereditary peers
- unlimited Life peers and peeresses
Lord Speaker (usually from Lords Temporal)
- John Francis McFall
Scotland
Scottish Parliament
= Pàrlamaid na h-Alba = Scots Parliament
- Edinburgh
- 129 MSPs
First minister: John Swinney
, - Scottish National Party (SNP)
Humza Yousaf (2023 – 7 May 2024)
Wales
Welsh Parliament
= Senedd Cymru
- Cardiff
- 60 MS
o 40 elected using first-past-the-post
o 20 elected using proportional voting
First minister: Vaughan Gething
- Welsh Labour
Mark Drakeford (resigned)
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland Assembly
= Stormont = Tionol Thuaisceart Eireann
- Belfast
- 108 MLAs (Members of the Legislative Assembly)
, o all elected using proportional representation
Principle of power-sharing: the First Minster and the deputy First Minister belong to opposite parties3
ex. First Minister is from British Unionist (DUP) → than deputy First Minister is from Irish Nationalist
(Sinn Féin)
Power-sharing has often been suspended
ex. 2022 due to post-Brexit trade rules
Back in session as of February 2024?
First Minister = Michelle O’Neill
- Sinn Féin (nationalists)
- first minister to bring up idea to unify with the Republic of Ireland and break up with UK
The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative
branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Political Parties
Conservative Party
= Tories
- right-of-centre
- support free market and privatisation
- mostly anti-Europe
- tough on crime
- emphasise personal, social, economic freedom
National party: appeals across class barriers, mainly from business interest and middle-class and
upperclass
Famous leaders
Churchill
3
The First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland are the joint heads of government of Northern
Ireland, leading the Northern Ireland Executive. Despite the titles of the two offices, the two positions have the
same governmental power + the deputy First Minister (customarily spelled with a lowercase d) is not
subordinate to the First Minister.
, Thatcher
Johnson
Labour Party
- left-of-centre
- social justice, equility of opportunity
- divided over topic of Europe
- divided over topic of economy
o Blairites: centrist economic policy
o Corbynites: economic planning, state-ownership
Working and middle-class appeal: traditionally heaviliy supported by trade unions
Largest membership
Famous leaders
Clement Attlee
Tony Blair
Jeremy Corbyn
