Повторити: Political Parties in Great Britain, the Legal System, the Police.

1. The Conservative Party.

2. The Labour Party.

3. The Social-Liberal Democratic Party.

4. Elections in Great Britain.

5. Changes in the electorate and political parties.

There are 3 main political parties in Great Britain: the Conservative, the Labour, the Social-Liberal
Democratic Party. The Conservative and the Labour party are the 2 governmental ruling parties. These
parties as a rule control Parliament. According to the results of the general elections to the House of
Commons one or the other of them comes into power while the other one forms the opposition. This is the
famous 2-party system which the English find so democratic. The Conservative and Labour parties share
power, they control the state mechanism, only these 2 parties have access to the management of the state.

The Conservative Party (the official name ‘The National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations’) is
the oldest party. It is the major right-wing party. It was founded in the 60-ies of the 19th century (1867) as
a result of the evolution of the Tory Party which had been existing since the end of the 17th century. It was
organized on the basis of political groups of the English landed aristocracy. The Tories (formed in 1679)
supported the claims of monarchy. “Tory” was initially a nickname meaning an Irish bandit. In the course of
its evolution in the 19th century the Conservative Party became the main party of British top monopoly
capital. The Conservative Party is the party of big business, financed and led by Big Business carrying its
policy. The name “Conservative” implies that the party aims to maintain and preserve the existing
Constitution and conserve what is good. The party developed in its present form in 1830 and supports
enterprise, encourages property owning and has been responsible for many social reforms. The Tories find
their support mainly in middle and upper class or establishment circles. Its home policy is aimed at the
limitation of trade union rights and prohibition of strikes. The foreign policy of the Conservative Party is
usually motivated by the interests of the British ruling class.

The Conservative Party has no permanent programme. On the eve of general elections the party issues a
pre-elections manifesto which states the main aspects of home and foreign policies. Being the party of big
business it reduces state allocations for social security, gives priority to private enterprise. Structurally the
party consists of 650 local associations, each one covering an electoral constituency. One should remember
that the House of Commons is formed by the deputies who have won majority in each of the 650
constituencies.

The Conservative Party has no official membership, no membership cards and party dues. Formally the
highest organ in the party is the annual conference. However, the actual power is concentrated in the
hands of the leader of the party. The leader is not elected by the annual conference, but by the MPs sitting
in Parliament on behalf of the Conservative Party – the so-called parliamentary party. The leader personally
appoints the holders of the key positions in the central office.

The Youth organization of the Conservative Party is the “Young Conservatives”. The party issues its own
paper Newsletter, the journals Time and Tide, Politics Today. The majority of the British press supports the
Conservative Party. The papers and journals are owned by big monopolies.
In the 1980s, the British politics was dominated by Margaret Thatcher: she was Britain's first woman Prime
Minister, leader of the ruling Conservative Party and the longest-serving Prime Minister in the 20th century.
Under Thatcher, it was Conservative policy to return state-owned industries to private ownership, cut
taxation and control inflation. In 1997 her successor John Major was beaten by Tony Blair of Labour.

The Labour Party was established in 1900 on the initiative of trade unions and several socialist
organizations (the independent Labour party, the Fabian Society). The main aim was to win the working
class representation in Parliament. It was initially reflected in the name of the party – Labour
Representation Committee. In 1906 it adopted the title of the Labour party. It is a classical party of social-
democratic reformism. Up to 1918 the party had no clear-cut programme. The Labour Party has always
been an association of different class elements – the working class and groups of bourgeoisie. The working
class mass organizations, the trade unions provided the main body the membership and the finance.

The party has no long term political programme which would determine the final aims and means to
achieve them. Instead the party endorses current political issues containing measures, which the future
Labour government intends to implement if the party takes office as a result of a majority in the general
elections. The home policy is based on the principles of reformism. However, the Labour Party politicians
acknowledge the necessity of carrying out limited socio-economic reforms. In this context they favoured
the nationalization of the economy (greater state control of the economy), a state-run health and
educational system, some improvements in social security, better housing. In foreign policy the party
supports NATO, military, political and economic cooperation with the USA. At the same time the Labour
Party politicians display flexibility and in their policy statements support peace, arms control.

According to the new rules the leader of the party is elected by a college of electors including
representatives of 3 bodies – the trade unions, local organizations, the Labour Parliamentary party. These
rules provided wider opportunities for the rank-and-file members (in the trade unions, local organizations
of the party) to have a greater say in the election of the leader and in the nomination of candidates of the
Labour Party to represent it in Parliament.

The positive changes in the Constitution of the party carried out under the pressure of the working class
infuriated the right-wing members. In protest some right-wing politicians left the Labour Party in 1981 and
formed another party known as the Social-Democratic Party. The latter formed an alliance with the Liberal
party. In 1988 the 2 parties finally merged together under the name the Social-Liberal Democratic Party.
The split in the Labour Party revealed new important developments in the labour movements.

There are about 7.3 mln members in the Labour Party. Local party organizations which exist in most of the
electoral constituencies form the basis of the party. The annual conference which elects the National
Executive with 25 members is the highest organ of the party. The Executive is responsible for everyday
affairs of the party outside Parliament. The leader of the party, his deputy, the treasurer, the Chairman of
the party and the general secretary are all members of the National Executive. Debates at annual Labour
Party conferences are mainly based on resolutions or policy statements from the Executive, and resolutions
from the local organizations of the party. Resolutions from trade unions are generally few in number.

There is a constant struggle between the right and left wings in the party. The general trend is such that the
right wing has a majority among the members of the parliamentary party, whereas the left wing exerts
greater influence in the National Executive. When in opposition the party elects by secret ballot the
“shadow cabinet” to guide the activity of the Labour faction in the House of Commons. The “shadow
cabinet” includes the leading politicians of the Labour Party. The Labour Party issues its weekly paper
Labour News.

Elections in Great Britain

The House of Commons is a body of persons chosen at a general elections. So once in 5 years general
elections take place in Great Britain. The English consider their electoral system the most democrative one
in the world. Before the elections each candidate must put forward 150 pounds of sterling, and he loses
this sum of money if does not get more than 1/8 of the total votes cast. The whole country is divided into
650 electoral districts called “constituencies” of approximately equal population and each constituency
elects one member of the House of Commons. Big cities are divided into several constituencies the so-
called “boroughs”. The size of the constituencies varies. The British citizens can vote provided they are 18,
resident in the United Kingdom, registered in the annual register of elections for constituency. Voting is on
the same day (usually Thursday).

The Prime minister chooses the date of the next General Election, but doesn’t have to wait until the end of
the five years. A time is chosen which will give as much advantage as possible to the political party in
power. Other politicians and the newspapers try very hard to guess which date the Prime Minister will
choose. About a month before the election the Prime Minister meets a small group of close advisors to
discuss the date which would best suit the party. The date is announced to the Cabinet. The Prime Minister
formally asks the Sovereign to dissolve Parliament. Once Parliament is dissolved, all MPs are unemployed,
but government officers continue to function. Party manifestos are published and campaigning begins
throughout the country, lasting for about three weeks with large-scale press, radio, television coverage.
Voting takes place on Polling Day (usually Thursday). The results from each constituency are announced as
soon as the votes have been counted, usually the same night. The national result is known by the next
morning at the latest. As soon as it is clear that one party has a majority of seats in the House of Commons,
its leader is formally invited by the Sovereign to form a government.

Changes in the electorate and political parties.

Electoral results in the period 1979-1987 showed a growing north-south divide, with the preponderance of
Conservative control of the "core", and intensified Labour dominance in the "periphery". By the late 1980s
electoral commentators were seriously questioning whether Labour would be able to win another election
since its constituency of support was dwindling. Labour's declining constituency had been foreseen. a
leading party member had forecast in 1959: " The Labour Party will probably decline … by about 2 per cent
at each successive general election." It was a prophecy that proved reasonably accurate. The Conservatives
experienced a slight but progressive loss of middle-class votes. But this didn't compare with the large loss
of blue-collar and clerical votes lost by the Labour Party. The Labour Party faced severe problems at the
beginning of the 1990s. In the 1960s and 1970s it had needed no more than a 3 or 4 per cent swing to get
into power. By 1990 Labour could expect only 35 per cent of the national vote, and it needed more than a
10 per cent swing in its favour overall to win. Since the "blue-collar" manual worker class was rapidly
shrinking, Labour also needed to build support in those areas in which it was not represented, the inner and
outer "core" areas, by reinventing itself and throwing off its less electorally attractive characteristics. It
began to distance itself from the trade union movement, openly accepting that the unions had wielded too
much power in the past and had been too undemocratic. Each union had been able to cast a "block vote" at
the annual Labour Party conference, in other words the entire vote of the union's membership. At one time
all trade union members supported Labour, they might not agree with their own union's use of their vote.
Many party decisions at the conference were merely the outcome of a trial of strength between the unions.
From 1993 Labour no longer allowed trade unions to cast "block vote" on behalf of its membership at the
annual party conferences. This was a controversial decision since Labour largely depended on union
funding., particularly for election campaigns. Labour was able to persuade the unions to continue to
support the party financially, but it also made a major effort to build up the membership among those who
did not belong to a union. Labour also formally abandoned its philosophy of nationalisation for major
industries in 1995, and also quietly abandoned central economic planning. In addition, although
traditionally suspicious of Britain's membership of the European Community, from 1987 Labour openly
supported full participation as essential to the country's political and economic future. It also began a
strategic campaign in favour of a less class-based ideological stance, and "working for the many not the
few", as its slogan stated. It began to call itself "New Labour", to make a crucial distinction from traditional
Labour. It also concentrated its efforts on young people, particularly those voting for the first time. All these
efforts were reawarded in 1997 with a landslide victory. Labour's biggest gains were in the south east of
Britain, with precisely those groups it had aimed at. Overall 45 per cent of women and 56 per cent of the
under 30-year-olds voted for Labour. The size of Labuor victory indicated how a party could pick itself up
after a period of great weakness by good strategic planning and a careful change of image.

In May 2010 The Labour Party lost the election. Gordon Brown resigned. The leader of the Conservative
Party David Cameron became the Prime Minister.

Progress Test Questions and Assignments

Exercise 1. Answer the questions:

1. When did the party system emerge in Britain?

2. What contributed to the domination of the two largest parties in Britain?

3. Expand on the role, influence, policy of the Conservative Party?

4. Which party did Margaret Thatcher lead? Which of policies are mentioned?

5. Expand on the role, influence, policy of the Labour Party.

6. Comment on the new observed tendencies in the political life of contemporary Britain as regards
the activities of other parties.

7. How often do elections take place in Great Britain?

8. How is the date of a British general election decided?

9. What were the changes in the electorate in the 1990s?

Exercise 2. Use these words and expressions from the unit to fill the gaps in the sentences below:

constituencies, opposition, private sector, general election, devolution, manifesto

a) The United Kingdom is divided into about 650 parliamentary ……….

b) A …….. takes place every four or five years.

c) Before an election, each party prepares a ……… which outlines their policies.

d) An important Conservative policy was the return of state industries to the ………….

e) The Labour government asked the public to vote on ……….. in Scotland and Wales.

f) While the Conservatives were in power, Labour formed the official ………. .
 Exercise 3. Work in pairs:

1. What is the United Kingdom's Policy towards Ukraine and could it be improved?

2. How many of the political issues mentioned in this unit are important in Ukraine? Which parties are
for and against them?

Exercise 4. Use the six expressions in Exercise 2 to write sentences about the political system in your
country.

Exercise 5. Work in pairs:

1. What advantages would a government have if it had a large parliamentary majority?

2. If you were a British voter, which party do you think you would vote for and why?

Exercise 6. Writing:

What are the equivalents of MPs in your own country? What does their work involve? List their
responsibilities and write a short paragraph describing their work.

Exercise 7. Writing:

Write an essay on the topic “Political Parties in Great Britain”.

V. The Law

1. The Legal System.

2. History of Courts.

3. The System of Courts in England and Wales.

4. Scottish Legal System.

5. People in Law Cases.

6. The Police.

7. Crime and Punishment.

The Legal System

British law comes from two major sources: laws made in Parliament (usually drawn up by government
departments and lawyers), and Common Law, which is based on previous judgments and customs. Just as
there is no written constitution, so England and Wales have no criminal code or civil code and the
interpretation of the law is based on what happened in the past. The laws which are made in Parliament
are interpreted by the courts, but changes in the law itself are made in Parliament. The most common type
of law court in England and Wales is magistrates’ court. There are 700 magistrates’ courts and about 30,
000 magistrates.

More serious criminal cases then go to the Crown Court, which has 90 branches in different towns and
cities. Civil cases (divorce and bankruptcy cases) are dealt with in County courts. Appeals are heard by
higher courts. For example, appeals from magistrates’ courts are heard by the Crown Court, unless they are
appeals on points of law. The highest court of appeal in England and Wales is the House of Lords. (Scotland
has its own High Court in Edinburgh which hears all appeals from Scottish courts). Certain cases may be
referred to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. In addition, individuals have made the British
Government change its practices in a number of areas as a result of petitions to the European Court of
Human Rights.

The legal system also includes juvenile courts (which deal with offenders under seventeen) and coroners'
courts (which investigate violent, sudden or unnatural deaths). There are administrative tribunals which
make quick, cheap and fair decisions with much less formality. Tribunals deal with professional standards or
disputes between individuals and government departments (for example, over taxation).

Criminal law is concerned with wrongful acts harmful to the community.

Civil law is concerned with individuals' rights, duties and obligations towards one another.

Lexical Clinic

The nouns jurisdiction, dominion, authority and power refer to the ability or right to rule.

Jurisdiction is the most formal of these nouns and the most re¬stricted in application. It indicates an
officially or legally predeter¬mined division of a large whole, a division within which someone or something
has the right to rule or decide: the jurisdiction of a mili¬tary court over soldiers.

Dominion is less clear-cut in its implications. It can refer, on one hand, to assigned partial rule, like
jurisdiction: a call by nationalists for Scotland and Wales to have dominion over their internal affairs. On the
other hand, it can refer to absolute control, although here it often refers strictly to the control of a superior
over on inferior: the ines¬capable dominion of the rich and educated over the poor and un¬schooled. As an
actual title for a territory, dominion can suggest a colony that has gained internal self-rule but whose
external affairs are still under the colonial power: the colony advanced to the status of a dominion and
finally to that of a republic.

Authority and power are less formal than the other nouns here and more general in application. Power
refers to any exercise of control over something, often with a stress on forcefulness or strength: After the
period of greatest power the monarchy began to fade. Often, this noun refers to any sort of mental or
physical strength or power: a work of great emotional power; brute power used to put down the revolt.
Authority can indicate an officially de¬termined right to rule: a committee given authority to rule on the
credentials of disputed delegations. But authority can also refer to anyone exercising power, whether
assigned to do so or not: a power vacuum in the new republic that remained until several tribal leaders
assumed authority and formed a government. This noun can also indicate the taking on or delegating of
responsibility: You have my authority to proceed with the investigation. As an abstraction, authority can
indicate all sources of power taken as a whole: a child who always rebelled against authority.

It is interesting to know

1. Justice is often represented as a woman with her eyes covered, holding a sword in one hand and a pair
of scales in the other. There is a very famous figure of Justice which surmounts the Old Bailey, the main
court for criminal cases in London. The statue symbolizes the just weighing of evidence. But the scales of
justice go back to time imme¬morial. The ancient Egyptians held that the good deeds of a departed soul
would be weighed against his evil deeds, and justice done between them. The Koran also teaches that the
merits and demerits of souls are weighed on the scales of the Archangel Gabriel.

2. Old Bailey (now the name of the Central Criminal Court in London) was the name given to the exterior
wall of the mediaeval castle (from Old French "bailler" – "to enclose"), and also to the outer court of the
castle between the inner and outer walls. The word subsequently came to include not only the court, but
also the buildings surrounding it. When the court was abolished, the term was attached to the buildings of
the castle itself, hence the Old Bailey.

3. Court buildings situated by the River Liffey in Dublin are known as Four Courts though they house a
range of courts, including the Supreme Court, the High Court and a District Court as well as court offices
and the law library. The name derives from the fact that the building originally housed the four courts of
King's Bench, Exchequer Chamber, Common Pleas and Equity. The site has been extended but the name
remains unchanged.

History of Courts

Tribal councils or groups of elders served as the first courts. They settled disputes on the basis of local
custom. Later civilizations developed written legal codes. The need to interpret these codes and to apply
them to specific stations resulted in the development of for¬mal courts.

The ancient Romans developed the first complete legal code as well as an advanced court system. After the
collapse of the West Roman Empire in the AD. 400’s, the Roman judicial system gradu¬ally died out in
western Europe. It was replaced by feudal courts, which were conducted by local lords. These courts had
limited juris¬diction and decided cases on the basis of local customs.

Development of civil-law and common-law courts. During the early 1100's, universities in Italy began to
train lawyers ac¬cording to the principles of ancient Roman law. Roman law, which relied strictly on written
codes gradually replaced much of the feudal court system throughout mainland Europe. By the 1200's
England established a nationwide system of courts. These courts developed a body of law that was called
common law because it applied uniformly to people everywhere in the country. Common-law courts
followed traditional legal principles and based their decisions сhiefly on precedents. English common-law
became the basis of the court system for most countries colonized by England, including the USA and
Canada.

The System of Courts in England and Wales

When someone is arrested by the police, a magistrate decides where there is enough evidence against the
person for the person to go to court. If there is enough evidence and the case is a serious one, the person
accused of the crime (called "the accused") is sent to a higher court. In most cases this will be a Crown
court, where a professional lawyer acts as a judge and the decision regarding guilt or innocence is taken by
a jury. If the verdict of the jury is that the accused is guilty, the judge decides the sentence. A Crown court is
a part of the Supreme Court of England and Wales which hears serious criminal cases and appeals from a
Magistrates' Court. The Central Criminal Court in London is also known as the Old Bailey. It is to be found in
the street with the same name. Many famous criminals, including murderers and traitors, have been tried
at the Old Bailey, and most British people are familiar with the name and with the figure of Justice on top of
the building.

If there is enough evidence against the accused but the crime is not a serious one (for example, a traffic
offence) then the case is heard in a Magistrates' Court. Magistrates' courts are another example of the
importance of amateurism in British public life. Magis¬trates, who are also called Justices of the Peace (JPs),
are not trained lawyers. They are just ordinary people of good reputation who have been appointed to the
job by a local committee.

Magistrates' courts which are open to members of the public are the lowest courts in England and Wales.
Over 90% of all criminal cases are heard in these courts. In them, a panel of magistrates (usu¬ally three)
passes judgment. In cases where they have decided somebody is guilty of a crime, they can also impose a
punishment.

There also exist local courts of law in Britain which are known as county courts. In Britain county courts are
used only for civil cases. They are peopled by judges of the Supreme Court, circuit judges and recorders.
Most cases are heard by a district judge but more valu¬able cases may be heard by a circuit judge. The
most important civil court of first instance in England is the High Court.

If found guilty in the Crown Court the accused may apply to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division)
(generally known just as the Appeal Court) in London where he or she will be heard by a judge. A convicted
person may appeal to this court either to have the convic¬tion quashed, i.e. the jury's previous verdict is
overruled and he or she is pronounced "not guilty", or to have the sentence reduced. Sometimes a High
Court judge from the Queen's Bench Division assists in dealing with criminal matters in the court of Appeal
or Crown Court. In civil matters the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) receives appeals from the High Court (all
divisions) and from the County Court.

The High Court of Justice (also High Court) is the lower branch of the Supreme Court of England and Wales
consisting of the Queen's Bench Division, the Chancery Division, and the Family Di¬vision. The High Court,
the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court form the Supreme Court of England and Wales.

The Administrative Court since October 2000 is the new name for the old Crown Office in the Queen's
Bench Division of the High Court that dealt with Crown and ministerial business. It is now a part of the
Central Office of the Supreme Court.

The Admiralty Court is a section of the Queen's Bench Division made up of puisne judges (High Court judges
who are quite senior) assisted by a nautical assessor.

One more part of the High Court called the commercial court deals with actions arising out of transactions
of merchants and traders, especially actions relating to mercantile documents, export and import matters
and cases arising from agency banking and insurance.

The highest court of all in Britain is the House of Lords. Twenty or so most senior judges in the land have
seats in the House of Lords not by hereditary right, but because of their position. They are called the Lords
of Appeal or the "Law Lords". By tradition, the House of Lords is the final court of appeal in the country. In
fact, however, it is only the Law Lords who vote on the matter.

There is a separate investigative body for England and Wales known as the Criminal Cases Review
Commission which has the power to review alleged miscarriages of justice. It cannot quash convictions but
may remit cases to the Court of Appeal.

Scottish Legal System

Scotland has its own legal system, separate from the rest of the United Kingdom. Although it also uses an
adversarial system of legal procedure, the basis of its law is closer to Roman and Dutch law. The names of
several officials in Scotland are also different from those in England and Wales.

After a person is arrested by the police, an official called the procurator fiscal is in charge of deciding
whether there is enough evidence against a person to be sent to court for a trial. If there is enough
evidence and the crime is a very serious one, the accused is sent to the High Court of Justiciary. It is
composed of Commission¬ers of Justiciary. The high Court goes on circuit. For trials, it com¬prises a judge
and jury (in Scotland there are 15 people on jury). The High Court of Justiciary is the high criminal court of
Scotland, dealing with murder, rape, and all cases involving heavy punishment. A very noticeable feature
about the legal system of Scotland is that there are three, not just two, possible verdicts. As well as "guilty"
and "not guilty", a jury may reach a verdict of "not proven", which means that the accused person cannot
be punished but is not completely cleared of guilt either.

Appeals can be heard by the High Court sitting as the court of Criminal Appeal. If there is enough evidence
but the crime is less serious one, the case is heard in a Sheriff Court. It is the main lower court of law in
Scotland, dealing with both civil and criminal cases. Appeals from the Sheriff Court go to the High Court of
Justiciary.

People in Law Cases.

Solicitors. There are about 50, 000 solicitors, a number which is rapidly increasing , they make up by far the
largest branch of the legal profession in England and Wales. They are found in every town, where they deal
with all the day-to-day work of preparing legal documents for buying and selling houses, making wills, etc.
Until the 1990s, only barristers represented clients in the higher courts. Today the situation is changing and
solicitors may represent clients in a range of courts, in addition to preparing court cases for their clients and
briefing barristers.

Barristers. There are about 5,000 barristers who defend or prosecute in the higher courts. Although
solicitors and barristers work together on cases, barristers specialise in representing clients in court. While
both types of lawyers take the Common Professional examination, thereafter their training and career
structure are separate. In court, barristers wear wigs and gowns in keeping with the extreme formality of
the proceedings. The highest level of barristers have the title QC (Queen's Counsel).

Judges. Here are a few hundred judges, usually trained as barristers, who preside in more serious cases.
There is no separate training for judges.

Jury. A jury consists of twelve people (jurors), who are ordinary people chosen at random from the
Electoral Register (the list of people who can vote in elections). The jury listen to the evidence given in
court in certain criminal cases and decide whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. If the person is
found guilty, the punishment is passed by the presiding judge. Juries are rarely used civil cases.

Magistrates. There are about 30, 000 magistrates (Justices of the Peace, or JPs), who judge cases in the
lower courts. They are usually unpaid and have no formal legal qualifications., but they are respectable
people who are given some training.

Coroners. Coroners have medical or legal training (or both), and inquire into violent or unnatural deaths.

Clerks of the court. Clerks who look after administrative and legal matters in the court room.

The Police.

Each of Britain’s 52 police forces is responsible for law enforcement in its own area. In addition
there are various national and regional connections, and local forces cooperate with each other. Some
special services, such as the Fraud Squad (who investigate financial crimes), are available to any local force
in England and Wales. In general, the local police forces work independently under their own Chief
Constables. Each force is maintained by a local police authority. The exception is London, where the
Metropolitan Police are responsible to the Home Secretary.

Police duties cover a wide range of activities, from a traffic control to more specialized departments such as
river police. Each independent force has a uniformed branch and a Criminal Investigation Department (CID)
with detectives in plain clothes. In addition the police authorities in England and Wales employ over 50,000
civilians and over 3,000 traffic wardens. Britain has relatively few police – approximately one policeman for
every 400 people – and traditionally they are armed only with truncheons except in special circumstances.
However, recent years have seen some major changes in police policy in response to industrial disputes and
inner city violence in Great Britain. There has been an increase in the number of special units trained in
crowd and riot control and in the use of firearms, a controversial area for the British police. The number of
police has risen along with the crime rate. In recent years they have become more accountable as a result
of highly publicized cases of police corruption and racism.

Crime and Punishment.

About 90% of all crimes are dealt with by magistrates’ courts. Sentences vary a lot but most people who are
found guilty have to pay a fine. Magistrates’ courts may impose fines or prison sentences of up to 6
months. If the punishment is to be more severe the case must go to the Crown Court. The most severe
punishment is life imprisonment: there has been no death penalty in Britain since 1965. The level of
recorded crime and the number of people sent to prison both rose rapidly during the last 30 years of the
20th century. The weekly cost of keeping someone in prison is higher than the average wage.

There are some of the punishments available to judges:

a) prison;

b) suspended sentences: the offender does not go to prison unless he or she commits another
offence;

c) probation: normal life at home, but under supervision;

d) youth custody in special centres for young adults;

e) short disciplinary training in detention centre;

f) community service: decorating old people’s houses, etc.;

g) compensation: paying or working for a victim;

h) fines: the punishment in 80% of cases;

i) disqualification from driving;

j) fixed penalty fines: especially for parking offences.

Progress Test Questions and Assignments

Exercise 1. Answer the questions:

1. Who is responsible for making law in Britain?

2. In the United Kingdom what is the difference between criminal and civil law?

3. What is the most common type of law court in England and Wales? Name three other types of
British courts.

4. What is the difference between a solicitor and a barrister?

5. How are people chosen to serve on a jury?

6. Give three examples of basic police work.

7. Do police officers in Britain carry guns?

8. Is there a national police force in Britain?

9. What is the common form of punishment?

10. There is no death penalty in Britain, is there?

Exercise 2. Match these words with their definitions:

a) arrest person charged in a court law

b) bankruptcy give a punishment

c) burglary found to have broken a law

d) defendant stick carried by a policeman

e) fraud inability to pay one’s debts

f) guilty breaking into a building to steal

g) prosecute deceiving to make money

h) sentence seize a person by law

i) statute law established by Parliament

j) truncheon bring a criminal charge against someone

Exercise 3. Define the following words:

vandalism, magistrate, firearm, tribunal, juvenile, jury, barrister, coroner, solicitor.

Exercise 4. Work in pairs:

1. Which courts do you think deal with the following:

a) robbery?

b) a divorce case?

c) a burglary committed by a fifteen-year-old?

d) a drowning?

e) a case of driving too fast?

2. Which do you think is better: judgment by one trained lawyer or judgment by twelve ordinary people?

3. Which punishment do you think is suitable for each of the following crimes:

a) murder of a policeman;

b) vandalising a telephone box;

c) drinking and driving without causing an accident;

d) robbing a supermarket with a gun;

e) stealing goods from a shop;

f) parking a car illegally.

Exercise 5. Discussion:

1. The average prison population in England and Wales has risen almost every year since the Second
World War. One possible solution is to continue building new prisons. Is this the only possibility?

2. In Britain the average salary of an eighteen-year-old trainee police officer is about 30% higher than
for a newly qualified teacher. Should police officers be paid more than teachers?

Exercise 6. Writing:

Write a short paragraph on the work of a solicitor in England.

Exercise 7. Writing:

Write an essay on the topic “The Legal System in the UK”.

VI. The Principal Economic Regions and Towns of Great Britain

1. Southern England.

2. The Central Industrial Region.

3. Northern England.

4. Scotland.

5. Wales.

6. Northern Ireland.

7. Business and Economy. Patterns of Change.

The main land of Great Britain can be divided into such economic regions: Southern England, Central
Industrial Region, Northern England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland.

Southern England

When speaking about Southern England we think of the county of Kent which is the nearest English county
to the continent. Only 20 miles separate it from France. The climate of region approaches the continent
more closely than any other part of Britain. The climate is semi-continental: hotter summers, colder
winters. The rainfall is low. The long duration of sunshine especially along the South coast is a prominent
climate feature. This has an important result on agriculture and the popularity of South coast resorts. The
large resorts of South East England are Hove, Brighton, Eastbourne, Hastings. Dover is truly called the
“Gateway of England”. The voyage from Dover to Calais takes just over an hour.

The most extensive crop is orchard fruit which takes nearly a quarter of all cropland. Hops, flowers and
vegetables other than potatoes are also of great importance. The work of hop-picking requires a large
seasonal labour supply. Kent is also noted for its orchard fruit such as apples and cherries. The production
of fruits especially soft fruits relies on rapid transport heavily. Grain crops take more than half the arable
land. Wheat is a leading crop. This part of England is densely populated. Small rural settlements are
scattered over large parts of the country.

The costal towns are suffering from permanent unemployment. Women find employment in the holiday
industry, but there is high male unemployment rate and many boys leave Kent after finishing school.

South-Eastern England is often called Green England for its meadows, fields of wheat, barley, oats and
grasses used for fodder. There are many market gardens and orchards. Green England (or East Anglia and
Lincolnshire) is an agricultural area. However, agricultural specialization is different in the South West and
South East and East. Owing to the mild, moist climate of the South west, grass grows for a long period of in
the year, and faring chiefly consists of rearing livestock. On the fertile lowland soils cattle are the principal
farm animals, especially dairy breeds which thrive on the lush pastures. Hence, dairying is the main farming
activity here. Oats and barley make up the principal cereal. The former are grown for fodder for the cattle.
In the very south-west horticulture is developed: the growing of early vegetables and flowers. In the very
south of the country barley is the most important grain crop, grown in rotation with other crops, while
wheat is produced on the heavier soils. An increasing demand for milk has stimulated dairy farming.

Cereals occupy an important of arable farmland in the South East, with barley the main crop and wheat
second in importance. However, the region is much better known, especially Kent, for its fruit farms. In the
Thames basin there is an emphasis on market gardening – the production of vegetables and flowers.

Agricultural specialization in the east, which consists of East Anglia and the Fens, is quite different. The Fens
is the district situated round the Wash. It is an area of low-lying, marshy land. The climate of this part of the
country is more continental in character. This has determined the growing of cereal crops, which are the
mainstay of the local economy. East Anglia and the Fens are one of the most important farming areas in the
British Isles, with a special emphasis on arable farming. Wheat and barley cover a high proportion of
farmland. More than 90% of farmland is occupied with wheat and barley. Sugar beet and potatoes are also
important crops.

The largest towns in this region are Portsmouth, Southampton, London. Portsmouth is a naval centre and
the naval activity is the source of the town’s growth. Everything reminds of the sea. The harbour is crowded
with ships of different kinds and sizes. Southampton is another big port with a very large passenger traffic.
It is a university town. The most important industry is shipbuilding.

Much smaller but very important towns of this region are Cambridge and Oxford where the oldest and
famous universities of Britain are situated. Cambridge is situated on the river Cam which is running along
the backs of several colleges. There are 30 colleges which are largely autonomous. To a great extent it
includes industries dependent on university connections. Oxford is an industrial town and one of the main
producers of motor cars. But its importance as an industrial town is masked by its importance as a
university centre. It became a leading educational centre and by the end of the 13th century the earliest
colleges of its famous university had been founded. There are 21 colleges for men and 4 for women. There
are numerous educational institutions which are not directly connected with the University.

London – the administrative, financial and political centre of Great Britain. It is the centre of many
industries. It is well known for printing film printing film-production, the manufacture of clothing, food and
drink, furniture and other specialized products. It is also important for light engineering. London has seen
greater expansion in recent years in the service industries. Service industries provide employment for twice
as many people as manufacturing industries. This is due to enormous concentration of population in the
city and the resultant need for services, such as shops, public transport. But in addition there are service
industries which occur there on a scale found nowhere else in Britain. For example, more than half of the
national labour force employed in banking and insurance, the civil service and scientific research, work in
London. Thousands of commuters travel to central London each day to work in offices, banks, insurance
companies and shops. Add to these the work of force catering for tourist trade.

The Central Industrial Region

The Central Industrial Region can be subdivided into Midlands, Yorkshire and Lancashire. The Midlands is
the area which lies roughly between the Southern fringe of the Pennines in the North, the Welsh border in
the West and the Avon in the South East. No large river flows through this area and this is a great
disadvantage and one of the main reasons for its great network of Canals.

Agriculture activities. The Midland plains have large pastures in the West where cattle breeding and
dairying are important. The amount of arable land is greater in the East where wheat, barley, oats and
sugar beet are cultivated. In the South of the plain there is the valley of Stratford-on-Avon where people
are engaged in fruit-growing and market-gardening.

Industries. For the past two hundred years the Midlands has been on of Britain's leading industrial regions.
It was the presence of coalfields, especially in the South Staffordshire coalfields, which set the area on the
path of industrial expansion and eventually the development of the great West Midlands conurbation,
which is the industrial focus of the region and includes Birmingham, Coventry and several other larger
towns. Today it is one of the chief industrial areas in the United Kingdom. Quite often it is called the
Birmingham Black Country conurbation.

There is a remarkable industrial contrast between the eastern and western parks of the region.
Manufacturing industry and pottery is the leading occupation in the West. Both the metal manufacture and
pottery making of the West are concentrated on coal fields. In the East, that is in Nottingham and
Leicerster, the leading occupation is the making of textiles and clothes.

The Black Country is the name given to the cluster of villages and towns which lie around Birmingham. A
large number of tall chimneys can be seen there. They send forth their smoke and soot day and night
covering the countryside with soot and blotting the sun. At night the region glitters with millions of lights,
the flames from coal-tips, engines and blast furnaces. This is one of the richest areas in England. There is a
local saying “where there’s muck there’s money”. The variety of goods produced is unimaginable –
everything from a pin to a railway engine, chains, nails, anchors, motor cars, tubes, pipes, needles and guns.
Birmingham is the centre of the cultural life of this area. It is a university centre. It is a big industrial city.
Once it was called the town of a thousand trades. Birmingham’s manufactures comprise particularly
everything in metal. It is also well known for its motor vehicles, electrical equipment and machine tools.

Coventry is an old city 90 miles north-west of London. The city was already well known in the Middle Ages.
Trading in wool, and later making woolen cloth, was the chief occupation. During the 19th century on the
basis of local coal the metal-working and engineering industries developed. However, these industries were
on a small scale, and it was not until the 20th century that rapid growth took place. The silk industry of the
past was strengthened by the introduction of artificial fibres and the engineering industry concentrated
first on bicycles and later on motor vehicles. During the early years of the 20th century , the first car
assembly lines were built, machine tool factories grew up to supply them and a host of component
industries appeared. During World War II the centre of the town was destroyed by the German air raids in
which more than 50 000 houses were damaged. Now the most important among a wide variety of
industries are motor vehicles, agricultural machinery, aircraft, machine tool, radio, television, synthetic
fibres and other goods. There are three major industrial centres situated to the east and north-east of
Coventry. They are Leicester, Nottingham and Derby.

Today Leicester is a leading centre of knitwear industry (including hosiery), and associated with this is the
manufacture of knitting machines. Nottingham resembles Leicester in being the seat of a university and in
having developed a major interest in knitwear production and the manufacture of knitting machinery.
Nottingham lace also became famous. Other industries in Nottingham are the manufacture of bicycles,
pharmaceutical products and cigarettes.

Derby is an important railway engineering centre because of its central position. More important than the
railway work-shops today, however, there are the Rolls Royce factories. Textile manufacture developed
with the building of the country's first silk mill. Man-made fibres, initially rayon, later took place of silk.

Lancashire and Yorkshire

Two major industrial regions are situated to the North of the Midlands. Lancashire is a historic centre of
British industry. It is known throughout the world as the centre of the British cotton country.

Spinning and weaving are carried on in all the towns of Lancashire but Manchester has become a centre of
the clothing trade and commerce. Manchester is the city of 30 inches rainfall damp with fogs and sunshine
reduced the industrial smoke. Manchester’s position makes it one of the major ports of England. It is also a
financial centre. It is well known for its electrical and heavy engineering, the production of the machine
tools. Manchester is a newspaper publishing centre: 3 morning, 2 evening, 5 weekly and 2 Sunday
newspapers are published. It is the home of the famous Manchester Guardian, now called the Guardian.

Liverpool is a big port, commercial centre. It stands on the river Mersey. It is known for exporting primary
products and importing manufactured goods. Flour milling, sugar refining and rubber products are of great
importance.

Due to extensive industrial development agriculture is less developed in Lancashire. There is a limited
proportion of permanent grassland on the fertile lowlands of south Lancashire. Cattle and sheep relatively
few, but there is a concentration of poultry. Potatoes are an important crop. Other vegetables such as
cabbages and peas are also cultivated, and market gardening supplies nearby towns. On some of the
lowlands in the north dairy farming predominates.

Yorkshire is the largest county in Britain. It is divided into 3 administrative areas. These areas are called
ridings. The West riding is the industrial centre with a lot of textile mills, spinning and weaving sheds while
Sheffield is the home of iron and steel.

In the North Riding large areas of the moors are under sheep pastures. Moors dominate the countryside.
Dry stone walls dividing the fields creep along the countryside like blackened snakes and add much to the
wildness of the scenery. The largest town is York. In Roman times it was called Eboracum. It has long been
important as a route centre. Railway engineering developed, and another leading industry is the
manufacture of confectionery (including chocolate). York attracts many tourists on account of its famous
minster and the medieval city walls.

The East Riding is an agricultural area. The main towns are Leeds and Sheffield. The city of Sheffield is
famous for steel industry. Two distinct types of products are made of steel here: machinery parts and
cutting tools. Leeds is a commercial centre of the area. It is known for its wool industry as well as for its
engineering plants.

The economy of Yorkshire was always closely connected with wool. This is vividly reflected in the
development of agriculture. The highlands along the Pennines covered with coarse grass form rough
pasture for sheep grazing, especially in the western and northern regions. North Yorkshire is mainly a rural
farming region. Farming is mixed and includes cattle rearing and cultivation of root crops such as potatoes,
carrots and cereals, mainly barley. In the north dairy cattle outnumber beef cattle. Much of the territory to
the east, especially near the coast is under the plough. Barley and wheat are major crops, and sugar beet
and potatoes are also important.