Parliament Today

Front Cover
Manchester University Press, Sep 3, 2005 - Political Science - 338 pages

'Parliament Today' is an up-to-date textbook, explaining Parliament's historical and constitutional context but focusing on how it operates in modern Britain and how it might be reformed. It looks at parliamentary government in theory and practice, drawing widely on academic research and making extensive use of Parliament's own records. Themes and concepts are illustrated by historical, recent and contemporary examples. Where appropriate, comparisons are made with practice in other countries.

Parliament is treated as a single political institution, at the same time drawing out the similarities and differences between Commons and Lords. Boxes set out themes and concepts, figures illustrate the physical layout and tables provide detailed information on Parliament's operation.

'Parliament Today' is intended for students of politics from A-level to final year undergraduates, but also for anyone interested in what Parliament does and how it works.

From inside the book

Contents

Parliament in context
1
The origins and development of Parliament
26
The functions of Parliament
57
Parliament and democracy
71
The personnel of Parliament
96
The professionalisation of Parliament
113
The organisation of business
137
The legislative role
166
The scrutiny role
202
Parliament and the people
241
Parliament and the government
268
Reforming Parliament
288
Sources and further reading
315
Copyright

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About the author (2005)

Michael Rush is a Lecturer in Social Policy in the School of Applied Social Science at University College Dublin