Lesson 2. State Organisation of the UK and the USA

Text I. The State Organisation of the UK

I. Read and translate the following text.

The United Kingdom consists of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) and Northern Ireland. Politically, it is a monarchy. Officially, a monarch (a king or a queen) is the Head of the State. In practice, the monarch's power is limited by Parliament.

The British parliament consists of 2 chambers: the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The true power belongs to the House of Commons. All new bills are introduced and debated here. In case of a majority vote, the bill goes to the House of Lords and, finally, to the monarch to be signed. Only after that does it become a law.

The main functions of Parliament are to legislate and to control the actions of the Government.

Vocabulary

politically chamber the House of Commons the House of Lords bill a majority vote to legislate

с точки зрения государственного устройства палата Палата общин Палата лордов законопроект решение большинством голосов издавать законы

II. Answer the following questions.

1. What is the United Kingdom politically?

2. Is the monarch's power absolute or limited?

3. What chambers does the British parliament consist of?

4. How are laws adopted in Parliament?

5. What are the main functions of Parliament?

Text 2. The State Organization of the USA

I. Read and translate the following text.

By the Constitution, the government of the USA is composed of three branches: the legislative, the executive, and the judicial.

The legislative power belongs to the Congress consisting of 2 chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Senate is composed of 2 members from each state elected for a term of 6 years, one third being elected every 2 years. The number of representatives from each state depends on the population of the state, each state having at least one representative. The members of the House of Representatives are elected for 2 years.

In order to become a law, all bills and resolutions must pass both the Houses and be signed by the President.

The executive branch of the government is headed by the President who is elected for a term of 4 years by electors of each state. One of the functions of the President is to appoint Federal judges.

The head of the judicial branch of power and the highest judicial body of the United States is the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court judges – they are normally nine, but Congress may alter their number – are nominated for life by the President after being approved by the Senate. The Supreme Court has the power of judicial review – the power to decide whether the actions of the President, Congress or state governments violate the Constitution.

The judicial systems of the states vary greatly in structure and procedure. Yet, there is a certain hierarchy of courts. In all states magistrate courts are at the lowest level. They deal with minor offences. Then come county courts which deal with the majority of civil and criminal cases. Appeals go to the District Courts of Appeals.

In more than two-thirds of the states, judges are elected.

Vocabulary

legislative executive judicial chamber the House of Representatives the Senate the Supreme Court to nominate judicial review to violate minor offences civil cases criminal cases appeal to elect hierarchy District Court of Appeals

законодательный исполнительный судебный палата Палата представителей Сенат Верховный Суд назначать судебный контроль нарушать незначительные правонарушения гражданские дела уголовные дела апелляция избирать иерархия окружной апелляционный суд

II. Answer the following questions.

1. What 3 branches is the government of the USA composed of?

2. Who does the legislative power belong to?

3. What 2 chambers does the Congress consist of?

4. When does a bill become a law?

5. Who is the executive branch of the government headed by?

6. What judicial body is the head of the judicial branch of power?

7. Who are the Supreme Court judges nominated by?

8. What does the power of judicial review mean?

9. What is the hierarchy of courts in the USA?

III. Choose the correct variant.

1. The highest judicial body of the US is
a) the Senate b) the Supreme Court

2. The legislative branch of the government is headed by
a) the President b) Congress

3. The higher chamber of Congress is
a) the Senate b) the House of Representatives

4. The number of Senators is
a) fixed b) depends on the population of the state

5. In order to become a law, a bill is to pass
a) the House of Representatives b) the House of Representatives and the Senate

6. The executive branch is headed by
a) the Senate b) the President

7. Federal judges are appointed by
a) the Supreme Court b) the President

8. Supreme Court judges are
a) elected b) appointed

9. In nominating Supreme Court judges, the President needs the approval of
a) the House of Representatives b) the Senate

10. The lowest courts are
a) the magistrate courts b) the county courts

Text 3. A letter from Steve

I. Read the letter and do the task following it.

Hi, Alex,

Thank you for your letter with the information about Nizhny Novgorod. You are lucky to live in such a city. I didn’t know you live in such a remarkable place. By the way, I am going to use the material in my report. Our teacher asked us to make a presentation of an essay about one of the cities of Russia, and I knew at once I would tell my class about your beautiful city and show them the photos of your favourite places and your Law Academy.

Sorry, I didn’t answer at once, I’ve been busy of late taking part in tennis and volleyball competitions. It takes a lot of time, but it does me a lot of good, you know. I am physically fit and I seldom call the doctor. Besides, it improves my character. By the way, do you do any sports, and if so, what exactly do you do?

I am glad to say your texts are all right and, by way of addition, I am sending you two more texts which are related thematically. Could you send me, in return, some material about hate crime in Russia? I am going to use it in my next essay, which I am to submit to my scientific advisor next month.

I will be glad to hear from you soon.

Yours ever,

Steve.

II. Find equivalents to the following Russian words and expressions.

Найдите в тексте письма эквиваленты следующих слов и выражений.

1. в последнее время

2. занимает много времени

3. в хорошей физической форме

4. вызывать на дом врача

5. улучшать характер

6. заниматься спортом

7. в ответ

8. представить, сдать

9. преступления на почве ненависти

10. научный руководитель

Text 4. Constitutions

I. Read the text and do the tasks following it.

It is often said that the US has a written constitution, while the British constitution is unwritten. In reality, it means that the US has a formal document called the "Constitution", but Great Britain has no such document. Yet, all parts of the British constitution exist in written form. They are set out in different documents. The most important historical documents are the Magna Carta, the Petition of Rights, the Habeas Corpus Act, the Bill of Rights, and the Act of Settlement. The American constitution is short, but many of its important aspects are unwritten.

In fact, the American constitution is the shortest. It contains about 7,000 words. The constitutions of Western countries are a little longer, while the constitution of India contains hundreds of pages.

The British constitution is flexible. It can be changed, amended or abolished just like any other law.

The United States has a rigid constitution. Amendments to the Constitution are a complex procedure that requires a majority vote in each house of Congress.

The constitutions of Great Britain and the US are normative constitutions. Their principles are observed in life. If the principles set out in constitutions are not observed in real life, such constitutions are called "nominal" constitutions. Nominal constitutions exist on paper only because their principles are disregarded by the real functioning of the system. Such constitutions are characteristic of developing countries and authoritarian regimes.

Vocabulary

to set out the Magna Carta the Petition of Rights the Habeas Corpus Act the Bill of Rights the Act of Settlemеnt flexible rigid constitution to amend to abolish house normative nominal authoritarian

излагать Великая Хартия Вольностей (1215) Петиция о правах (1628) Закон о неприкосновенности личности (1679) Билль о правах (1689) Закон о престолонаследии (1700-1701) гибкий конституция жёсткого типа дополнять отменять палата (Конгресса) нормативный номинальный, символический авторитарный

II. Answer the following questions.

1. What is the main point of difference between the US and the British constitutions?

2. Is the British constitution based on one or several historical documents?

3. Which of the constitutions in the world is the shortest?

4. What is the difference between a flexible and a rigid constitution?

5. What is the difference between normative and nominal constitutions?

III. Choose the correct variant.

1. All parts of the British constitution
a) are unwritten b) exist in written form

2. The longest constitution is
a) the constitution of one b) the constitution of India
of Western countries

3. Flexibility is characteristic of
a) the American constitution b) the British constitution

4. Amendments to the American constitution
a) are a simple procedure b) are not easily adopted

5. Nominal constitutions are characteristic of
a) democratic countries b) countries with totalitarian regimes