El marc polític del Regne Unit

Political Outline

Current Political Leaders

Re: Carlo III (dall'8 settembre 2022). Predecessore: Regina Elisabetta II.
Primo ministro: Sir Keir Starmer (dal 5 luglio 2024), Partito Laburista.

Next Election Dates

General elections (House of Commons): July 2029

Main Political Parties

Historically, the three dominant parties are:
- Labour Party: left-wing socialist and social democratic, grew out of trade union movement in the 19th century;
- Conservative Party: centre-right; believes in free-market economy, strong military and traditional cultural values;
- Liberal Democrats: centrist, moderate pro-European;

Other parties represented in the parliament include:
- Scottish National Party (SNP): centre-left;
- Democratic Unionist Party: right-wing;
- Reform UK (Brexit Party): right-wing, Eurosceptic;
- Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW - Greens): environmentalist;
- Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales: centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalism;
- Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP): advocates Irish reunification;
- Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI): liberal, centrist.

Executive Power

The King is the head of state. But above all he plays a symbolic and representational role. He continues to exercise three essential rights: the right to be consulted, to advise and to warn. Following legislative elections to the lower house of parliament, the leader of the majority party or coalition is usually appointed Prime Minister by the King and remains in office as long as he/she retains the confidence of the House of Commons. The Prime Minister is the head of government and has all executive powers, which include law enforcement and the conduct of the day-to-day affairs of the country. The Prime Minister selects members of the Cabinet and other ministers, who are then formally appointed by the monarch.

Legislative Power

The United Kingdom has a bicameral legislative system. The parliament consists of the House of Lords (the upper house) and the House of Commons (the lower house). The House of Lords includes life peers, who are appointed by the King on the advice of the Prime Minister and the House of Lords Appointments Commission, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 members of the clergy (Lords Spiritual). The House of Commons has 650 seats, and its members are elected by universal suffrage, generally for a 5-year term. The government is directly responsible to and dependent on parliament.