The 'Politics of England' form part of the wider politics of the
United Kingdom, with
England one of the
constituent countries of the United Kingdom.
Prior to the
Union, in 1707, England was ruled by its own
monarch and the
Parliament of England. Since the Union England has not had its own
government.
Because England is by far the largest constituent country, in both
population and
area, its relationship to the UK is somewhat different to that of
Scotland,
Wales or
Northern Ireland. The English capital
London is also the capital of the UK, and
English is the dominant language of the UK (not officially, but ''de facto''). Dicey and Morris (p26) list the separate states in the
British Islands. "England,
Scotland,
Northern Ireland, the
Isle of Man,
Jersey,
Guernsey,
Alderney, and
Sark. . . is a separate country in the sense of the
conflict of laws, though not one of them is a State known to public international law." But this may be varied by statute. The United Kingdom is one state for the purposes of the Bills of Exchange Act 1882.
Great Britain is a single state for the purposes of the
Companies Act 1985. Traditionally authors referred to the legal unit or state of
England and Wales as "England" although this usage is becoming politically unacceptable in the last few decades. The
Parliament of the United Kingdom is located in London, as is its civil service,
HM Treasury and most of the official residences of the monarchy. In addition, the state bank of the UK is known as the "
Bank of ''England''".
Though associated with England for some purposes, the
Isle of Man and
Channel Islands (
Jersey and
Guernsey) have their own parliaments, and are not parts of the UK. They are neither technically in the United Kingdom,
European Union nor part of England.
Political history
Pre-Union politics
Main articles: Parliament of England
The English Parliament traces its origins to the
Anglo-Saxon ''
Witenagemot''. In
1066,
William of Normandy brought a
feudal system, where he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and
ecclesiastics before making laws. In
1215, the tenants-in-chief secured the
Magna Carta from
King John, which established that the king may not levy or collect any taxes (except the feudal taxes to which they were hitherto accustomed), save with the consent of his royal council, which slowly developed into a parliament.
In
1265,
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester summoned the first
elected Parliament. The
franchise in parliamentary elections for
county constituencies was uniform throughout the country, extending to all those who owned the
freehold of land to an annual rent of 40
shillings (
Forty-shilling Freeholders). In the
boroughs, the franchise varied across the country; individual boroughs had varying arrangements. This set the scene for the so-called "
Model Parliament" of
1295 adopted by
Edward I. By the reign of
Edward II, Parliament had been separated into two Houses: one including the nobility and higher clergy, the other including the knights and burgesses, and no law could be made, nor any tax levied, without the consent of both Houses as well as of the Sovereign.
The
Laws in Wales Acts of
1535–
42 annexed
Wales as part of England and brought Welsh representatives to Parliament.
When
Elizabeth I was succeeded in 1603 by the
Scottish King James VI, (thus becoming James I of England), the countries both came under his rule but each retained its own Parliament. James I's successor,
Charles I, quarrelled with the English Parliament and, after he provoked the
Wars of the Three Kingdoms, their dispute developed into the
English Civil War. Charles was executed in
1649 and under
Oliver Cromwell's
Commonwealth of England the House of Lords was abolished, and the House of Commons made subordinate to Cromwell. After Cromwell's death,
the Restoration of
1660 restored the monarchy and the House of Lords.
Amidst fears of a
Roman Catholic succession, the
Glorious Revolution of
1688 deposed
James II (James VII of Scotland) in favour of the joint rule of
Mary II and
William III, whose agreement to the
English Bill of Rights introduced a
constitutional monarchy, though the supremacy of the Crown remained. For the third time, a
Convention Parliament, i.e., one not summoned by the king, was required to determine the succession.
The Union
Main articles: Acts of Union 1707,
Parliament of Great Britain
★
Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, passed by the Parliament of England, annexing Wales to the Kingdom of England are sometimes known as the "Acts of Union".
★
Acts of Union 1707, passed by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain.
★
Act of Union 1800, passed by both the Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Following the
Treaty of Union in
1707,
Acts of Union were passed in both the
Parliament of England and the
Parliament of Scotland, which created a new
Kingdom of Great Britain. The Acts dissolved both parliaments, replacing them with a new ''Parliament of the Kingdom of Great Britain'' based in the former home of the English parliament. All the traditions, procedures, and standing orders of the English parliament were retained, as were the incumbent officers, and English members comprised the overwhelming majority of the new body. It was not even considered necessary to hold a new general election. While
Scots law and Scottish legislation remained separate, the legislation was now dealt with by the new parliament.
After the
Hanoverian George I ascended the throne in
1714 through an
Act of Parliament, power began to shift from the Sovereign, and by the end of his reign the position of the ministers — who had to rely on Parliament for support — was cemented. Towards the end of the
18th century the monarch still had considerable influence over Parliament, which was dominated by the English aristocracy and by
patronage, but had ceased to exert direct power: for instance, the last occasion
Royal Assent was withheld, was in
1708 by
Queen Anne. At
general elections the vote was restricted to
freeholders and landowners, in constituencies that were out of date, so that in many "
rotten boroughs" seats could be bought while major cities remained unrepresented. Reformers and
Radicals sought parliamentary reform, but as the
Napoleonic Wars developed the government became repressive against dissent and progress toward reform was stalled.
Pre-devolution
Post-devolution
Main articles: Devolved English Parliament,
English nationalism,
West Lothian Question
Flag of England
Shield of England
Since
Scotland,
Wales and
Northern Ireland voted for
devolved legislatures in
referendums in 1997 and 1998 (see
Scottish devolution referendum, 1997,
Welsh devolution referendum, 1997, and
Northern Irish Belfast Agreement referendum, 1998), there have been numerous debates about England's position within the United Kingdom.
The
Scottish Parliament,
National Assembly for Wales and
Northern Ireland Assembly were created by the
UK parliament along with strong support from the majority of people of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and are not yet independent of the rest of the United Kingdom. However, this gave each country a separate and distinct political identity, leaving England (83% of the UK population) as the only part of the UK
directly ruled in nearly all matters by the UK government in London.
While Scotland and Northern Ireland have always had separate
legal systems to England (see
Scots law and
Northern Ireland law), this has not been the case with Wales (see
English law,
Welsh law and
Contemporary Welsh Law). However, laws concerning the
Welsh language, and also the
National Assembly for Wales, have created differences between the law in Wales, and the law in England, as they apply in Wales and not in England.
Regarding parliamentary matters, a long-standing anomaly called the
West Lothian Question has come to the fore. Before Scottish devolution, purely-Scottish matters were debated at
Westminster, but subject to a convention that only
Scottish MPs could vote on them. The "Question" was that there was no "reverse" convention: Scottish MPs could and did vote on issues relating only to
England & Wales and Northern Ireland. Welsh devolution has removed most of the anomaly for Wales, but not for England: Scottish and Welsh MPs can vote on English issues, but many
Scottish and
Welsh issues are not debated at Westminster at all.
The
Campaign for an English Parliament is a notable proponent of a separate English parliament.
Devolution of London
Main articles: Greater London Authority
Greater London has a certain amount of devolution, with the
London Assembly and the directly elected
Mayor of London. The Assembly was established on
July 3,
2000, after
a referendum in which 72% of those voting supported the creation of the Greater London Authority, which included the Assembly along with the Mayor of London. The referendum and establishment were largely contigious with Scottish and Welsh devolution.
In Greater London, the 32
London borough councils have a status close to that of unitary authorities, but come under the
Greater London Authority, which oversees some of the functions performed elsewhere in England by Counties including transport, policing, the fire brigade and also economic development.
The
Mayor of London is also referred to as the 'London Mayor', a form which helps to avoid confusion with the
Lord Mayor of London, the ancient and now mainly ceremonial role in the
City of London. The Mayor of London is mayor of Greater London, which has a population of over 7.5 million while the City of London is only a small part of the modern
city centre and has a population of less than 10,000. The first, and current, elected Mayor of London is
Ken Livingstone, who was re-elected in
2004.
There is also a London political party,
One London, which is represented in the assembly, and is
eurosceptic, with roots in the
United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) and
Veritas.
English political parties
Logo of the Campaign for an English Parliament
Most English parties tend to give themselves a British name, even if they do not operate outside England. Most of the parties that operate within England alone, tend to be either minor parties incapable of contesting many constituencies like
Pensioners Party (England), or parties purely interested in English issues, such as the
English Democrats Party (although they too have stood candidates in
Monmouthshire). There is also a tendency towards extremism, e.g. the far right
England First Party. The
Green Party has had an amicable split from
Scottish counterpart, and the
Wales Green Party section is becoming increasingly autonomous.
The
Conservative Party has recently adopted a policy of
English Votes on English Legislation (EVoEL), a policy that is considered by many as fatally flawed. The Conservative policy of EVoEL aims to prevent MP's with constituencies outside of England from voting on legislation that only affects England. There is a significant element within the Conservative Party that supports full devolution for England with the establishment of a devolved
English Parliament and English Executive, along the lines of those in Scotland.
Some
English people and parties go further by calling for the dissolution of the Union entirely. However, the approach favoured by the current
Labour government was (on the basis that England is too large to be governed as a single sub-state entity) to propose the devolution of power to the
Regions of England.
Lord Falconer claimed a devolved English parliament would dwarf the rest of the United Kingdom. Referendums would decide whether people wanted to vote for
regional assemblies to watch over the work of the non-elected RDAs.
Regionalism
Various regionalist organisations exist, mainly dedicated to gaining
home rule. A
referendum held on home rule for North East England in 2004, backed by
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, failed to deliver a "yes" vote. Similar referendums had been planned in
North West England and
Yorkshire and the Humber. These were postponed on 22 July due to issues with all-postal ballots - there were many allegations of
fraud and procedural irregularities . Following the rejection of the proposal in the north east of England, Prescott ruled out holding further referendums in other regions for the foreseeable future.
Yorkshire has one of the strongest regional movements.
The government has, however, continued to push its regionalisation agenda, and the unelected Regional Assemblies are still in operation, including in the north east of England where the government's proposal was resoundingly rejected. Calls for the Assemblies to be discontinued have been ignored. For further information see
Regional Assemblies in England
Cornwall's status is particularly controversial in regard to England, with some regarding it as a
county, and some regarding it as something quite different. For more information on this matter, please see the articles
Cornish self-government movement and
constitutional status of Cornwall. One notable feature of the Cornish campaign is its rejection of a South West England assembly with
Devon and
Somerset. It also has its own political party with local representation:
Mebyon Kernow.
A much smaller movement than Cornwall's also exists in the
Isle of Wight, where the
Vectis National Party and the
Isle of Wight Party have both attempted to "disconnect" England from the island. The VNP were motivated by the fact that they believed the sale of the Isle of Wight to the English crown in 1293 was unconstitutional.
The status of
Berwick, north of the
River Tweed is controversial , especially amongst
Scottish nationalists [1]. Berwick remained a county in its own right until 1885, when it was included in
Northumberland for Parliamentary purposes. The
Interpretation Act 1978 provides that in legislation passed between 1967 and 1974, "a reference to England includes Berwick upon Tweed and
Monmouthshire".
Monmouthshire
Main articles: Monmouthshire_(historic)#Ambiguity_over_Welsh_status
Location of Monmouthshire in relation to Wales
The historic county of
Monmouthshire, lying in the
Welsh Marches (the Anglo-Welsh border), is a bone of contention for some English nationalists
[2]. Although the county is now mostly in
Wales, to add to the confusion,
Welsh Bicknor was an exclave of the county, and is in
Herefordshire (
England). The Welsh Border has historically been more fluid than the
Anglo-Scottish border
Monmouthshire's Welsh status was ambiguous until relatively recently, with it often thought of as part of
England. The entirety of Wales was made part of the
Kingdom of England by the
Statute of Rhuddlan, but did not adopt the same civil governance system, with the area of Monmouthshire being under the control of
Marcher Lords.
The
Laws in Wales Act 1535 integrated Wales directly into the English legal system and the ''"Lordships Marchers within the said Country or Dominion of Wales"'' were allocated to existing and new shires. Some lordships were annexed to existing counties in England and some were annexed to existing counties in Wales, with the remainder being divided up into new counties. Despite Monmouthshire being a new county, it was given two
Knights of the Shire in common with existing counties in England, rather than one as in the counties in Wales. The relevant section of the Act states that ''"one Knight shall be chosen and elected to the same Parliaments for every of the Shires of Brecknock, Radnor, Montgomery and Denbigh, and for every other Shire within the said Country of Dominion of Wales"''. As Monmouthshire was dealt with separately it cannot be taken to be a shire ''"within the said Country of Dominion of Wales"''. The
Laws in Wales Act 1542 specifically enumerates the Welsh counties as twelve in number, excluding Monmouthshire from the count.
The issue was finally clarified in law by the
Local Government Act 1972, which provided that ''"in every act passed on or after
1st April 1974, and in every instrument made on or after that date under any enactment (whether before, on or after that date) "Wales", subject to any alterations of boundaries..."'' included ''"the administrative county of Monmouthshire and the county borough of Newport"''.
[1] The name passed onto a
district of Gwent between 1974 and 1996, and on 1 April 1996, alocal government principal area named
Monmouthshire, covering the eastern 60% of the historic county, was created.
However, the issue has not gone completely away, and the English Democrats nominated candidates for the
2007 Welsh Assembly elections in three of six constituencies in the area of the historic county with a view to promoting a
referendum on 'Letting Monmouthshire Decide' whether it wished to be part of
Wales or
England.
[2] The party received between 2.2% and 2.7% of the vote and failed to have any members elected.
[3]
An example of a former ''Welsh'' exclave in England is
Welsh Bicknor.
England in the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament, with the
London Eye visible in the background.
The
Parliament of the United Kingdom is located in London.
The House of Commons
English MPs are elected at the same time as the rest of the UK's MPs. There are 529 English constituencies. Because of their large number, they form an inbuilt majority in the
House of Commons. As the British Government considered Scotland to be over-represented in relation to the other components of the UK, Clause 81 of the
Scotland Act 1998 equalised the
English and Scottish electoral quota, and London alone now provides more MPs than Scotland does.
The House of Lords
The
House of Lords also has an inbuilt English majority.
Members of the House of Lords who sit by virtue of their ecclesiastical offices are known as Lords Spiritual. Formerly, the Lords Spiritual comprised a majority in the House of Lords, including the
Church of England's
archbishops,
diocesan bishops,
abbots, and
priors. After
1539, however, only the archbishops and bishops continued to attend, for the
Dissolution of the Monasteries suppressed the positions of abbot and prior. In 1642, during the English Civil War, the Lords Spiritual were excluded altogether, but they returned under the
Clergy Act 1661. The number of Lords Spiritual was further restricted by the
Bishopric of Manchester Act 1847, and by later acts. Now, there can be no more than 26 Lords Spiritual, always including the five most important prelates of the Church: the
Archbishop of Canterbury, the
Archbishop of York, the
Bishop of London, the
Bishop of Durham, and the
Bishop of Winchester. Membership of the House of Lords also extends to the 21 longest-serving other diocesan bishops of the Church of England. The current Lords Spiritual, therefore, represent only the Church of England, although members of other churches and religions can be appointed by the Queen.
England in Europe
Main articles: Elections in the European Union
While Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are each treated as single
European Parliament constituencies, England itself gets nine Euro constituencies, out of a total of twelve UK constituencies. Because of the controversy over
Gibraltar, it is included in South West England. The current English Euro constituencies are
Local government
Structure of administrative divisions of England
,
Metropolitan borough,
Non-metropolitan district
For the purposes of
local government, England is divided into as many as four levels of
administrative divisions. At some levels, various legislation has created alternative types of administrative division.
Districts in England may also have the status of
borough,
city or
royal borough.
The metropolitan counties were divided into metropolitan districts which are usually called boroughs. When the county councils were abolished the metropolitan districts gained much of their powers and therefore function similar to other unitary authorities.
Shire counties are divided into non-metropolitan districts. Power is shared with the county council, but shared differently to the metropolitan counties when first created.
The
civil parish is the most local unit of government in England. Under the legislation that created Greater London, they are not permitted within its boundary. Not all of the rest of England is parished, though the number of parishes and total area parished is growing.
See "
list of administrative divisions of England"
References
1. Local government Act 1972 (c.70), sections 1, 20 and 269
2. English Democrats Monmouthshire Referendum Website
3. Welsh assembly election 2007 (BBC News)
★ Dicey & Morris (1993). ''The Conflict of Laws'' 12th edition. London: Sweet & Maxwell Ltd. ISBN 0-420-48280-6
See also
★
England#Politics
★
Government of England
★
Education in England
★
English National Health Service
★
Regional Assemblies in England
★
★
List of monarchs of England -
Kings of England family tree
★
List of English people
★
List of not fully sovereign nations
★
Politics of Northern Ireland
★
Politics of Scotland
★
Politics of Wales
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