Power and Authority in Great Britain

1
Power and Authority in Great Britain

• AP Comparative Government
• Unit III

2
Case Study 1Great Britain

• Keep a Stiff Upper Lip While Taking Over the World

3
Great Britain

• This fortress built by Nature for herself,
• Against infection and the hand of war,
• This happy breed of men, this little world,
• This precious stone set in the silver sea,
• Which serves it in the office of a wall,
• Or as a moat defensive to a house,
• Against the envy of less happier lands
• This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this
  England.
• Richard II William Shakespeare

4
(No Transcript)
5
(No Transcript)
6
Power and AuthorityBritish Style

• Great Britain has many sources of authority and
  political power.
• Includes
• The Monarchy
• Strong, competitive political parties
• Open elections for Parliament

7
Legitimacy in Great Britain

• Legitimacy has developed gradually over time
• Tradition plays a very important role and is a
  primary source of stability
• Constitution of the Crown refers to important
  documents created over time including common law
  precedents, legal codes, and customs

8
(No Transcript)
9
(No Transcript)
10
When is a Government considered Legitimate?

1. Ideology
2. Continuity
3. Familiarity
4. Standing traditions/common issues
5. Propaganda Politicalization.
6. Strength of force

11
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 1. Ideology
• Have classes have melded together?
• Who is Labour (Whigs) and who is Conservative
  (Tory)?
• Government unsure of where lines of support are
  drawn.
• Prime Minister Tony Blair (Tony Blur) blurred
  the lines even more with his victory in 1997 by
  moving to the Center with left wing Labour party
  victory.

12
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• Obstacle Overcoming class structure
• Classes support each other in many endeavors
• Britain led West in the rights for workers and
  women
• Joining the Franchise (the vote) in 18th and
  19th century

13
The British Class System

• Upper Class
• Aristocratic notions of fair play.
• It is the duty of the rich to take care of the
  poor.
• Gentlemen and Law of Primogeniture -- oldest
  son will rule
• Sends sons out to HEAL the masses
• Noblige Oblesse.
• The nobility thinks it is obligated to help the
  masses
• Yuppies
• Military professional civil servants
• Attend Public schools (Private) establish
  Victorian principles of morality
• Build foundation for the Establishment

14
The British Class System

• Commoners
• Attends private schools (public)
• Substandard as compared to the well-to-do
  schools.
• Trades people
• 30 of population
• Lower Middle class
• Manual workers
• Underclass
• 20 wallow in severe poverty and immigrants
  threaten livelihood.
• Hurt by recessions and unemployment

15
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 2. Continuity
• Consensus building.....
• BORRRRing history (?) w/ little change.
• Flexibility derived from Geography
• Isolation proved to protect Britain
• Sea power to defend itself.
• Fended off outside influences , i.e. Norman
  invasion (Normans became English)
• Changed government only 5 times in 900 years.
• A centralized bureaucracy which led to the
  unitary state Britain has today.
• Marvelous institutions including the Exchequer

16
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 3. Familiarity
• THERE never has been a period, since England has
  been united into a single kingdom, when some sort
  of council or assembly was not called, from time
  to time, to aid the King in governing.
• Edward I laid down the principle that "what
  concerns all should be approved by all."
• Royal commissions established legitimacy

17
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 4. Standing traditions/common issues
• No written constitution but has Tradition of
  Enquiry
• The Magna Carta and other docs
• Concepts Included are
• Common Law Kings Law Rule of Law
• Use of Contracts promoted Rule of Law
• Taxes benefited the masses w/ a benevolent king.
• Law of Primogeniture (oldest son will rule)
• Sends sons out to HEAL the masses
• Noblige Oblesse
• The nobility is obligated to help the masses.

18
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 5. Propaganda Politicalization
• Parliament What concerns All is approved by
  ALL
• Parliament is the link across class coalitions
• An Assembly of One
• Power from the people
• Interlocking institutions of legislative and
  executive
• Parliament prime minister
• Cabinet and PM
• Exchanging legislative and executive powers.

19
Gaining Legitimacy in Great Britain

• 6. Strength of force
• Power went from one person to an institution
• James II (r. 1685-88) attempted to halt
  Parliaments rise to prominence.
• He was successful for 30 years until Charles II
  (1660-1685)
• Led to Glorious Revolution
• The Crown lost power to Parliament
• Parliament then ruled Britain

20
How does a Government Maintain Legitimacy?

1. Through Political Institutions and Organizations
2. Through Political Ideologies
3. By establishing Political Symbols
4. By unraveling political and social problems

• These four examples come together to promote the
  political socialization of the state-
• And this establishes the political culture of
  ones society . . . promoting and maintaining
  Legitimacy

21
How does a Government Maintain Legitimacy?

• A closer look at modern Great Britain

22
How does a Government Maintain Legitimacy?

• Through Political Institutions and Organizations
• Branches of Government, Political Parties

23
(No Transcript)
24
(No Transcript)
25
(No Transcript)
26
The Two Major Political Parties in GB

• The Conservatives (Tories)
• Pragmatic
• Noblesse oblige
• Organization
• Thatcherism and after
• David Cameron- current shadow minister

• Labour (New Labour?)
• Pragmatism
• Crisis-motivated radicalization
• Defeat-motivated moderation
• Blairs waning popularity at the end of his term
• PM Gordon Browns unpopularity in 09

27
Other Political Parties in GB

• The Liberal Democrats merger of the Liberals
  and the Social Democrats (SDP)
• Has the largest members of all the third parties
  and in some ways the most radical
• Other Minor Parties the rise in Scottish,
  Welsh, and Irish nationalism has led to moderate
  growth in support for regional parties.

28
Public Policy of the 1980s The Thatcher
Revolution

• The Domestic politics of Margaret Thatcher (The
  Iron Lady)
• The retreat from the commanding heights
• Nationalizing and privatizing
• Rolling back the welfare state
• PROS AND CONS
• Thatchers supporters say she saved the British
  economy by bring both inflation and unemployment
  under control and by creating a more dynamic
  private sector.
• Thatchers detractors say she created new
  problems and exacerbated existing ones by
  widening the gap between rich and poor and by
  allowing public services to deteriorate.

29
Public Policy of the 1990s The Blair Revolution

• Domestic Politics of Tony Blair
• Did not roll back all of Thatchers (and John
  Majors) reforms
• The New Deal
• Government spending as a percentage of GNP shrank
• Welfare that gave recipients skills to find jobs
  rather than just benefits
• Tuition increase
• Placed a tolling London drivers to reduce traffic
  congestion
• PROS AND CONS
• Blairs supporters say he has create the Third
  Way combining the best aspects of the socialist
  goals commitment to equality with a market
  economy.
• Blairs detractors say he sold out the left and
  created Thatcher lite.

30
(No Transcript)
31
(No Transcript)
32
How does a Government Maintain Legitimacy?

• 2. Through Political Ideologies
• Communism, Socialism, Democracy
• Great Britain has the oldest democratic tradition
  of any country in the world.
• Democracy
• Limited Government
• Church has little role in government

33
2. Through Political Ideologies
34
Other Important Institutions

• The British electorate
• Votes for their districts Minister of Parliament
  (MP)
• Interest groups
• Little of the lobbying one finds in the U.S.
• Interests groups focus their attention on
  decision makers (ministers, party leaders, and
  senior civil servants) BEFORE the bill is drafted
  
• Little lobbying afterwards of MPs
• The TUC with Labour and the Confederation of
  British Industry with Conservatives wield
  disproportionate influence
• Corporatist arrangements during collectivist
  years Thatcher government effectively froze the
  unions out of the decision making.

35
How does the British Government Maintain
Legitimacy?
God save our gracious Queen! Long live our noble
Queen! God save the Queen! Send her victorious,
Happy and glorious, Long to reign over us, God
save the Queen.

• 3. By establishing Political Symbols
• Flag, anthem, monarch

36
(No Transcript)
37
(No Transcript)
38
How does a Government Maintain Legitimacy?

• 4. By unraveling political and social problems
• Work on solving important issues

39
"The optimist proclaims that we live in the best
of all possible worlds and the pessimist fears
this is true. --Irving
Caesar
40
Is the British GovernmentLegitimate?